Amy Vanderbilt
Encyclopedia
Amy Vanderbilt was an American
authority on etiquette
. In 1952 she published the best selling book Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Book of Etiquette. The book, later retitled Amy Vanderbilt's Etiquette, has been updated and is still in circulation today. The most recent edition (ISBN 0-385-41342-4) was edited by Nancy Tuckerman and Nancy Dunnan. Its longtime popularity has led to it being considered a standard of etiquette writing.
She is also the author or collector of cooking materials, including the 1961 book Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cook Book illustrated by Andy Warhol
.
Amy Vanderbilt descended from either an uncle or brother of Cornelius Vanderbilt
and is therefore not an official descendant-member of the Vanderbilt family
. She was born in New York City
and worked as a part-time reporter for the Staten Island Advance
when she was 16. She was educated in Switzerland
and at the Packer Collegiate Institute
in Brooklyn
before attending New York University
. She worked in advertising and public relations, and published her famous book after five years of research. From 1954 to 1960 she hosted the television
program It's in Good Taste and from 1960 to 1962 she hosted the radio
program The Right Thing to Do. She also worked as a consultant for several agencies and organizations, including the U.S. Department of State
.
From 1929 to 1932 she was married to Robert Brinkerhoff. In 1968 she married Curtis Kellar, a lawyer for Mobil Oil.
On December 27, 1974, she died from multiple fractures of the skull after falling from a second-floor window in her townhouse at 438 East 87th Street in New York.
To this day, it is not clear whether her fall was accidental (most likely due to the medications she took for hypertension
, which friends and relatives (including Pauls Knopf) later said caused her to have severe dizzy spells) or whether she committed suicide
. She was buried at the Cemetery of the Evergreens in Brooklyn.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
authority on etiquette
Etiquette
Etiquette is a code of behavior that delineates expectations for social behavior according to contemporary conventional norms within a society, social class, or group...
. In 1952 she published the best selling book Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Book of Etiquette. The book, later retitled Amy Vanderbilt's Etiquette, has been updated and is still in circulation today. The most recent edition (ISBN 0-385-41342-4) was edited by Nancy Tuckerman and Nancy Dunnan. Its longtime popularity has led to it being considered a standard of etiquette writing.
She is also the author or collector of cooking materials, including the 1961 book Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cook Book illustrated by Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
.
Amy Vanderbilt descended from either an uncle or brother of Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt
Cornelius Vanderbilt , also known by the sobriquet Commodore, was an American entrepreneur who built his wealth in shipping and railroads. He was also the patriarch of the Vanderbilt family and one of the richest Americans in history...
and is therefore not an official descendant-member of the Vanderbilt family
Vanderbilt family
The Vanderbilt family is an American family of Dutch origin prominent during the Gilded Age. It started off with the shipping and railroad empires of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and expanded into various other areas of industry and philanthropy...
. She was born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and worked as a part-time reporter for the Staten Island Advance
Staten Island Advance
The Staten Island Advance is a daily newspaper published in the borough of Staten Island in New York City. The only daily newspaper published in the borough, and the only borough to have its own major daily paper, it covers news of local and community interest, including borough politics. As of...
when she was 16. She was educated in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and at the Packer Collegiate Institute
Packer Collegiate Institute
Packer Collegiate Institute is an independent college preparatory school for students from prekindergarten through grade 12. Formerly the Brooklyn Female Academy, Packer has been located at 170 Joralemon Street in the historic district of Brooklyn Heights since its founding in 1845.- History :A...
in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
before attending New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. She worked in advertising and public relations, and published her famous book after five years of research. From 1954 to 1960 she hosted the television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
program It's in Good Taste and from 1960 to 1962 she hosted the radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
program The Right Thing to Do. She also worked as a consultant for several agencies and organizations, including the U.S. Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
.
From 1929 to 1932 she was married to Robert Brinkerhoff. In 1968 she married Curtis Kellar, a lawyer for Mobil Oil.
On December 27, 1974, she died from multiple fractures of the skull after falling from a second-floor window in her townhouse at 438 East 87th Street in New York.
To this day, it is not clear whether her fall was accidental (most likely due to the medications she took for hypertension
Hypertension
Hypertension or high blood pressure is a cardiac chronic medical condition in which the systemic arterial blood pressure is elevated. What that means is that the heart is having to work harder than it should to pump the blood around the body. Blood pressure involves two measurements, systolic and...
, which friends and relatives (including Pauls Knopf) later said caused her to have severe dizzy spells) or whether she committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
. She was buried at the Cemetery of the Evergreens in Brooklyn.