Scandalous Women

Wishing all of my readers a very healthy, happy, and prosperous New Year.

Title:    The Horror of Love: Nancy Mitford and Gaston Palewski in Paris and London Author:   Lisa Hilton Publisher: Pegasus Publication date:   December 12, 2012 Pages : 336           How acquired:   Net Galley Overview:   "Oh, the horror of love!" Nancy Mitford once exclaimed to her sister Diana Mosley.   Elegant and intelligent, Nancy was a renowned wit and a popular author. Yet this bright, waspish woman, capable of unerring emotional analysis in her work gave her heart to a well-known philanderer who went on to marry another woman. Was Nancy that unremarkable thing—a deluded lover—or was she a remarkable woman engaged in a sophisticated love affair? Gaston Palewski was the Free French commander and one of the most influential politicians in post-war Europe. Their life together was spent amongst the most exciting, powerful, and controversial figures in the center of reawakening Europe. She support...

I was first introduced Hetty Green during the Bicentennial.   LIFE Magazine had put out a special issue on noted American women during the previous two hundred years of the nation’s existence and Hetty was one of the women.   Of course, they chose the least flattering picture they could find, Hetty during her later years when she was noted for her eccentricities.   She was nicknamed “The Witch on Wall Street,” which is interesting when you consider there were hardly any women on Wall Street or in business in the 19 th century.   All of which makes Hetty’s accomplishments all the more remarkable.   Unlike Victoria Woodhull and her sister Tennessee Claflin, Hetty didn’t get her stock tips from a railroad tycoon like Cornelius Vanderbilt.   She studied the markets closely, bought low and sold high (Warren Buffett would have been proud), and kept her expenses low by borrowing a desk in the offices of Chemical bank (which later merged with J.P. Morgan).  ...

Title:   The Queen Mother - The Untold Story of Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, Who Became Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Author:   Lady Colin Campbell Publisher:   St. Martin’s Press Pub Date:    April 2012 How Acquired:   New York Public Library What it’s about:    (from the inside cover)   Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother has been called the "most successful queen since Cleopatra." Her personality was so captivating that even her arch-enemy Wallis Simpson wrote about "her legendary charm." Portrayed as a selfless partner to the King in the Oscar-winning movie The King's Speech , The Queen Mother is most often remembered from her later years as the smiling granny with the pastel hats. When she died in 2002, just short of her 102nd birthday, she was praised for a long life well lived.   But there was another side to her story. For the first time, Lady Colin Campbell shows us that the untold life of the Queen Mother is far more fascinating and m...

Title:   A Royal Affair Cast Mads Mikkelsen as Johann Friedrich Struensee A licia Vikander as Caroline Mathilde Mikkel Følsgaard as Christian VII David Dencik as Ove Høegh-Guldberg Søren Malling as Hartmann Trine Dyrholm as Juliane Marie William Jøhnk Nielsen as Frederik VI Cyron Bjørn Melville as Enevold Brandt Rosalinde Mynster as Natasha Laura Bro as Louise von Plessen Bent Mejding as J.H.E. Bernstorff Thomas W. Gabrielsson as Schack Carl Rantzau Søren Spanning as Münster John Martinus as Ditlev Reventlow Erika Guntherová as Hofdame Harriet Walter as Augusta, Princess of Wales Klaus Tange as Minister Director & Screenwriter – Nicolaj Arcel Distributed by:   Nordisk Film, Magnolia Pictures (US) Based on Princesse af blodet by Bodil Steensen-Leth What it’s about:   The story is set in the 18th century, at the court of the mentally ill King Christian VII of Denmark, and focuses on the romance between the queen and the royal physician Struensee. My thoughts:   I f...

  Billy Rose Theatre Collection, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Most of the time living in New York is delightful, and there are few other cities on this planet (apart from London) that I could see myself living.  However, holiday weekends in New York can be a pain, particularly this past weekend with all the sales going on.  To escape the crowds, I headed up to the Performing Arts Library at Lincoln Center to see the Katherine Hepburn exhibt entitled 'Dressed for State and Screen .' While I've been a fan of Katherine Hepburn's since I was a kid, I've never thought of her as a style icon but walking through the exhibit, I had to change my mind.  The exhibit was sponsored by the Kent State University Museum, the recipiant of Hepburn's costumes and other theatrical paraphenalia after her death.  The exhibit wasn't huge but the items they had on display were choice, including the evening gown that she wore in ADAM'S RIB, and the wedding dr...

Title:   Constance - The Tragic and Scandalous Life of Mrs. Oscar Wilde Author:   Franny Moyle Publisher: Pegasus Publication date: 10/10/2012 Acquired through :   Net Galley What it’s about:   In the spring of 1895 the life of Constance Wilde changed irrevocably. Up until the conviction of her husband, Oscar, for homosexual crimes, she had held a privileged position in society. Part of a gilded couple, she was a popular children's author, a fashion icon, and a leading campaigner for women's rights. A founding member of the magical society The Golden Dawn, her pioneering and questioning spirit encouraged her to sample some of the more controversial aspects of her time. Mrs. Oscar Wilde was a phenomenon in her own right. But that spring Constance's entire life was eclipsed by scandal. Forced to flee to the Continent with her two sons, her glittering literary and political career ended abruptly. She lived in exile until her death. My thoughts:   I’ve been ...