Socialites & Jetsetters

[Daisy Pusher]

peggylane said:

Or like the fabulous Babe Paley.

Yep, she was the youngest Cushing. The oldest, Minnie, married Vincent Astor (Brooke Astor was his second wife). After their divorce, Minnie entered into a marriage blance with a gay artist, and set up a salon. The middle sister, Betsey, first married James Roosevelt and was a fixture at the White House during the WWII years. After they divorced, Betsey married Jock Whitney, who later became our ambassador to the Court of St. James. She was the ULTIMATE helpmate.

Poor Babe. Bill Paley really treated her like shit.

[divasahm]

You know, it's interesting to compare the Miller sisters to the Cushings. Minnie's interest in art vs. Alexandra's art collection, Babe's stint at Vogue vs. Marie-Chantal's children's clothing line and Alexandra's work with her MIL, Betsey's years as a Washington hostess vs. Marie-Chantal's royal status--you could go on and on.

[Mouse]

kokopelli said:

peggylane said:

Or like the fabulous Babe Paley.

Yep, she was the youngest Cushing. The oldest, Minnie, married Vincent Astor (Brooke Astor was his second wife). After their divorce, Minnie entered into a marriage blance with a gay artist, and set up a salon. The middle sister, Betsey, first married James Roosevelt and was a fixture at the White House during the WWII years. After they divorced, Betsey married Jock Whitney, who later became our ambassador to the Court of St. James. She was the ULTIMATE helpmate.

Poor Babe. Bill Paley really treated her like shit.

She and her sisters were coached by their mother to marry for wealth, not love. So what did she expect?

I think the Cushings are overrated, frankly. Give me a socialite like Susan Mary Alsop, Dina Merrill, or Brooke Astor--someone who does more than wear nice clothes and go to parties.

[berrybearie]

mouse said:

I think the Cushings are overrated, frankly. Give me a socialite like Susan Mary Alsop, Dina Merrill, or Brooke Astor--someone who does more than wear nice clothes and go to parties.

I think Brooke donated over $100 million to charities. It's sad that her life has become such a twisted soap opera in recent years (with her son and grandson fighting over her guardianship. I think the grandson now has control after alleging that his father allowed her to live in deplorable conditions).

[Mouse]

Very sad. She totally did not deserve that. Why not let her live out her remaining years happily?

[viridian]

The same issue of NY Mag also ranks the Top 20 Socialites of All Time[/color]. Paris Hilton is number 3?!

[Auroranorth]

This is interesting:

Basically, it's a why-are-these-kids-such-a-mess? kind of article.

In previous generations, children of the super-rich had respected slots at the top of certain American institutions set aside for them. After an all-but-guaranteed education at Ivy League schools, they could expect to work at family-owned corporations, or investment banks to which their fathers had ties. They would serve on the boards of foundations and other charitable organizations, and by dint of their wealth, would host parties, salons, and other social gatherings that would get them written up in the newspapers. Today, these slots are no longer reserved for the children of the rich but are open to competition, and that competition is fierce. Legacy status guarantees only a few points on a Harvard application. Shareholders have little patience with sinecured executives who don't perform. Even high society in New York and Los Angeles is no longer dominated by heirs but by professional publicists, club promoters and pop celebrities who throw the most glamorous and coveted parties, to which the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers try to wrangle invitations.

[airbrushed]

viridian said:

The same issue of NY Mag also ranks the Top 20 Socialites of All Time

[/color]. Paris Hilton is number 3?![/quote]

Kill me now!

She immediately follows Jackie O. Seriously this must a joke.

[Mouse]

How does ParAss qualify as a socialite? Wouldn't "professional famewhore" be more appropriate? How the fuck does she manage to outranke Brooke Astor or Babe Paley?

[yalil]

I guess in this day and age, the high school world of vapid socialites has been replaced by the high school world of vapid celebs, although, what's the difference anyway?

Paris circa late 1990s was more NY socialite than LA tabloid fodder, although just as useless. Her crazy mother had been whoring her out to the socialite pages of magazines, maybe thinking that Paris will get herself a nice, kid who's old money. I remember that VF article where Kathy Hilton proudly proclaimed that Page Six loves her, she's always invited to all the parties and she's fully booked for parties (and this was an 18 year old Paris and 16 year old Nicky) and she had a stalker and her nickname was Star and she kept on namedropping Leo diCaprio? And congratulations Kathy for having VF interview Paris and making her look like a total teenager trainwreck in the article, complete with pictures of her with her tits hanging out. I remember that there was some sort of rivalry too, between the Hilton sisters and the Schnabel sisters. Oh, yes, I remember the Hiltons being in Vogue too a few months before that in an article called something like American Aristocracy or Royalty or whatever where the Hiltons where sort of side by side with the Bush family (but that's Lauren Bush and she's pretty and seems well-behaved) and all she can say was that her dog was named Dolce or whatever. Kathy Hilton couldn't keep her mouth shut showing everybody how noveau riche tacky they are. Why I remember these 2 articles, I have no idea, but I instinctively hated her already then.