Gloria Vanderbilt RIP

Gloria Vanderbilt passed away on June 17, of stomach cancer.

She was of course one of THE Vanderbilts, a direct descendant of Cornelius (aka The Commodore) Vanderbilt, a man who built a business empire out of the new steam technologies -- he was one of the first to make effective use of the Fulton steamships, and later the first of the great Railroad barons.

What was Gloria's connection? She was the Commodore's great-great-granddaughter: the daughter of Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt who was the son of Cornelius Vanderbilt II, who (though his name might be misleading in this connection) was the son of William Henry Vanderbilt, who in turn was the son of Cornelius Vanderbilt the one and only.

Moving forward in time rather than back, Gloria was the mother of Anderson Cooper (by her fourth husband, Wyatt Emory Cooper). And Anderson is now a prominent news anchor with CNN.

Aside from the genealogy in either direction, Gloria will be remembered as a woman who created a new category of clothing, the "designer jeans," and as the inspiration for a Paul McCartney song, "Mrs Vanderbilt" (WINGS, 1974).

GV was one of the first designers to make public appearances. This has become a common event in the fashion world now I take it, the designers are celebrities of the same level as the highest earners among the models. But it was new in the late 70s and 80s, when GV was doing it.

So here's to Mrs Vanderbilt. "Up there in heaven living in a tent/ It's made of clouds and you don't pay rent." (My apologies to Wings.) Cheers!

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