Marjorie Merriweather Post

Marjorie Merriweather Post

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Marjorie Merriweather Post Close Hutton Davies May was a leading American socialite and the founder of General Foods, Inc. She was 27 when her father died, and she became the owner of the rapidly growing Postum Cereal Company later becoming the wealthiest woman in America when her fortune reached approximately USD $250 million.

(2009) Five billion dollars in todays money/

Marjorie Post was born in Springfield, Illinois, the daughter of C. W. Post and Ella Letitia Merriweather.

Contents

1 Marriages

2 Russian Art Collection

3 Lifestyle

4 Movie

5 Notes

6 References

7 External links

[edit]Marriages

Post married four times. In 1905, she married investment banker Edward Bennett Close of Greenwich, Connecticut: They divorced in 1919. Their eldest daughter Adelaide married Thomas Durrant, Merrall McNeille, and banker Augustus Riggs; their second daughter, Eleanor Post Close, later known in the media as Eleanor Post Hutton, married director Preston Sturges, Etienne Marie Robert Gautier, George Curtis Rand, Hans Habe, Owen D. Johnson, and conductor Leon Barzin. By his second marriage, Edward Close would become the paternal grandfather of actress Glenn Close.

Secondly, she married, in 1920, Edward Francis Hutton, financier. In 1923, E. F. Hutton became the chairman of the board of the Postum Cereal Company, and they developed a larger variety of food products, including Birdseye Frozen Foods. The company became the General Foods Corporation. Post and Hutton divorced in 1935. Their only child, Nedenia Marjorie, became an actress under the name Dina Merrill, who married Stanley M. Rumbough, Jr., actor Cliff Robertson, and Ted Hartley.

In 1935 Post married, as her third husband, Joseph E. Davies, a Washington lawyer: They divorced in 1955. The couple lived in the Soviet Union from 1937 to 1938, while he served as second American ambassador to the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin. During this time, Davies and Post acquired many valuable Russian works of art from Soviet authorities.

In 1951 their home, Hillwood located in Brookville, Long Island was sold to Long Island University for $200,000. It became C.W. Post College, now known as the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University.

Her final marriage occurred in 1958 to Herbert A. May, a wealthy Pittsburgh businessman, and former Master of Fox Hounds of The Rolling Rock Hunt Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. She divorced May in 1964, and subsequently reclaimed her full maiden name of Marjorie Merriweather Post.

Russian Art Collection

During the 1930s, the Soviet government under Joseph Stalin began selling art treasures and other valuables seized from the Romanov family and other Russian citizens after the Russian revolution in order to earn hard currency for its industrialization and military armament programs. Critics have claimed that these items were expropriated, however Post's transactions were from the recognized governmental authority. She herself (or Davies for that matter) were not involved with the original seizing of the items.

It was later alleged that many works of art from the Tretyakov Gallery and other collections were either donated or offered at nominal prices to Post and her then-husband Joseph E. Davies, who were both art collectors. Davies is also alleged to have purchased art expropriated from Soviet citizens well after the Russian Revolution, including victims of Stalin's Terror at discount prices from Soviet authorities.[1]

Many of the items which remain under the control of the Post estate or their agents can be viewed at former Washington DC estate of Post, Hillwood, which has operated as a private museum since Mrs. Post's death.

Lifestyle

Mar-A-Lago, Marjorie Merriweather Post's estate on Palm Beach Island. Library of Congress photograph, HABS.

Entrance to Mar-A-Lago owner's suite, April 1967.

Marjorie Merriweather Post was also known for her lavish homes, the largest of which was Mar-A-Lago which is located in Palm Beach, Florida. Designed by Joseph Urban, Mar-A-Lago was purchased from the Post Family Trust by Donald Trump. Trump in turn had the 110,000 square foot (10,000 m²) house completely restored to its original state. Mar-A-Lago originally had 115 rooms and a 9-hole golf course, and sits on a strip of land between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Worth. It is nicknamed "the jewel of Palm Beach." Mrs. Post's other estate, Hillwood (Washington, D.C.), is operated as a museum, displaying her French and Russian art collection featuring the work of Faberge, Sèvres porcelain, French furniture, tapestries, and paintings.

With her second husband, E. F. Hutton, she was the owner of Sea Cloud (Hussar II), the largest privately owned sea-going yacht in the world. Post also owned Camp Topridge in the Adirondacks, which she considered a "rustic retreat", with a fully staffed main lodge and private guest cabins, each staffed with its own butler. The Huttons also owned Hillwood in Brookville, New York, which later became the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University. Another home, which she shared with Joseph Davies in Washington, D.C., was called Tregaron.

Marjorie Post donated some of her jewelry to the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.; it is displayed in the Harry Winston exhibit. Pieces in the collection include the Napoleon Necklace and Marie Louise Diadem (a 275 carat (55 g) diamond and turquoise necklace and tiara set Napoleon I gave to his second wife, Empress Marie Louise), a pair of 20 carat (4 g) diamond earrings belonging to Marie Antoinette, a 30.82 carat (6.164 g) blue heart diamond ring, and an emerald and diamond necklace and ring belonging to Mexican emperor Maximilian.

Her donation of funds to construct field hospitals in France during World War I was recognized by the French government awarding her the Legion of Honor. In 1971 she was among the first three recipients of the Silver Fawn Award presented by the Boy Scouts of America.

The Merriweather Post Pavilion, an outdoor concert venue, in Columbia, Maryland is named for her.

The Marjorie R. Post Park in Massapequa Park, New York on Long Island has been incorrectly linked with the cereal heiress, but that park was in fact named for Marjorie R. Post (now Marjorie Toombs of Vermont), who was the first woman elected to the board of the Town of Oyster Bay. It is unknown at this time if there is any connection between the Long Island branch of Marjorie Merriweather Post's family and that of Marjorie R. Post for whom the park in Massapequa is named.

She was the daughter of C. W. Post and Ella Letitia Merriweather. At age 27, when her father died, she became the owner of the rapidly growing Postum Cereal Company, founded in 1895. She was subsequently the wealthiest woman in the United States, with a fortune worth about US $250 million. She attended the Mount Vernon Seminary and College (now the George Washington University's Mount Vernon Campus). Post maintained a close lifelong relationship with her alma mater and served as the first alumna trustee of Mount Vernon Seminary and College. Today, a collection of her correspondence with Mount Vernon administrators is maintained by GWU's Special Collections Research Center. Post's complete collection of personal papers, as well as those of her father, are held by the University of Michigan's Bentley Historical Library.

In addition to Hillwood and other estates, Marjorie Merriweather Post's other lavish home was Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida. Designed by Marion Sims Wyeth and Joseph Urban, Mar-a-Lago was willed in 1973 to the U.S. Government as a retreat for Presidents and visiting foreign dignitaries. The mansion was not, however, used for this purpose, prior to being declared a National Historic Landmark in 1980. It was purchased by businessman Donald Trump in 1985. Post and her second husband, E. F. Hutton, owned Sea Cloud (Hussar V), the largest privately owned sea-going yacht in the world at the time. Post also owned Camp Topridge on Upper St. Regis Lake in the Adirondacks, which she considered a "rustic retreat". It included a fully staffed main lodge and private guest cabins, each staffed with its own butler. The expansive Great Camp, built in 1923 by Ben Muncil, eventually contained nearly 70 buildings, as well as a Russian dacha, on 300 acres. It was one of only two Adirondack camps to be featured in LIFE magazine. Another home, which she shared with Joseph Davies in Washington, DC, was called Tregaron. Some of Post's jewelry bequeathed to the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, is displayed in the Harry Winston exhibit. Pieces in the collection include the Napoleon Necklace and the Marie Louise Diadem (a 275 ct. [55g] diamond-and-turquoise necklace and tiara set that Napoleon I gave to his second wife, Empress Marie Louise); a pair of diamond earrings set with pear shapes, weighing 14 ct.(2.8g) and 20 ct. (4g), once belonging to Marie Antoinette; the Blue Heart Diamond, a 30.82 ct. (6.164g) heart-shaped blue diamond ring; and an emerald-and-diamond necklace and ring, once belonging to Mexican emperor Maximilian. She funded a U.S. Army hospital in France during World War I, and, decades later, the French government awarded her the Legion of Honor. In 1971, she was among the first three recipients of the Silver Fawn Award, presented by the Boy Scouts of America. The Merriweather Post Pavilion, an outdoor concert venue in Columbia, Maryland, is named for her.

During the 1930s, the Soviet government under Joseph Stalin began selling art treasures and other valuables seized from the Romanov family and former Russian aristocrats after the Russian revolution to earn hard currency for its industrialization and military armament programs. Critics have claimed that these items were expropriated; however, Post and Davies's transactions were from the recognized governmental authority. Neither she nor Davies was involved with the original seizing of the items. Allegations later surfaced that many works of art from the Tretyakov Gallery and other collections were either donated or offered at nominal prices to Post and Davies, who were both art collectors. Davies is also alleged to have purchased art expropriated from Soviet citizens well after the Russian Revolution, including victims of Stalin's Terror at discount prices from Soviet authorities. Many of the items, which remain under the control of the Post estate or the agents, can be viewed at Hillwood, the former Washington, DC, estate of Post. It has operated as a private museum since Post's death and displays her French and Russian art collection, featuring the work of Fabergé, Sèvres porcelain, French furniture, tapestries, and paintings.

Post married four times. In 1905, she married investment banker Edward Bennett Close of Greenwich, Connecticut, and they divorced in 1919. Together, they had: Adelaide Close (1908–1998), who married three times, to Thomas Wells Durant, Merrall MacNeille, and Augustus Riggs IV. Eleanor Post Close (1909–2006), later known in the media as "Eleanor Post Hutton", married six times, to film director Preston Sturges, Etienne Marie Robert Gautier, George Curtis Rand, Hans Habe, Owen D. Johnson (son of author Owen Johnson), and orchestral conductor Leon Barzin. Via his second marriage, Edward Bennett Close would become the paternal grandfather of actress Glenn Close.) Post was married for a second time, in 1920, to financier Edward Francis Hutton. In 1923, he became the chairman of the board of the Postum Cereal Company, and they developed a larger variety of food products, including Birdseye Frozen Foods. The company became the General Foods Corporation in 1929. Post and Hutton divorced in 1935. They had one child: Nedenia Marjorie Hutton (b. 1923), better known as actress "Dina Merrill." Marjorie Merriweather Post and her husband Ambassador Joseph E. Davies, at center, with Carton Skinner at a presentation of a Naval Reserve Pennant. Marjorie Merriweather Post and her husband Ambassador Joseph E. Davies (center) with Carlton Skinner at a presentation of a Naval Reserve Pennant. In 1935, Post married her third husband, Joseph E. Davies, a Washington, DC, lawyer. They had no children and were divorced in 1955. During 1937-38, in a crucial period leading up to World War II, Davies served as the second American ambassador to the Soviet Union, ruled at that time by Joseph Stalin. During this time, Davies and Post acquired many valuable Russian works of art from Soviet authorities. In 1951, their Long Island estate (the original Hillwood) which she originally purchased in 1922 with Hutton, located in Brookville, New York, was sold to Long Island University for $200,000. It became C.W. Post College in 1954, now known as LIU Post. In 1966, she became honorary housemother of Zeta Beta Tau's Gamma Delta chapter, often hosting the fraternity brothers for brunches. Post served as the honorary house mother of the college's first local fraternity, Sigma Beta Epsilon, which, in 1969, became the New York Beta chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Since Post had borne only girls, she referred to the fraternity of sons-in-law as her "boys", while they called her "Mother Marjorie". Post was honored by Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity as a "Golden Daughter of Minerva". Her final marriage, in 1958, was to Herbert A. May, a wealthy Pittsburgh businessman and the former master of fox hounds of the Rolling Rock Hunt Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania. That marriage ended in divorce in May 1964 and she subsequently reclaimed the name Marjorie Merriweather Post. Post died at her Hillwood estate on September 12, 1973, after a long illness. The bulk of her estate was left to her three daughters.

American socialite, heir to the Post cereal fortune, and wealthiest woman in America. Marjorie Merriweather Post was a businesswoman, collector, museum founder, and philanthropist. She was the only child of C.W. Post, founder of the Post Cereal empire. When Marjorie's father died in 1914, she became head of the $20 million cereal company that would later become the General Foods Corporation. This made her one of America's most successful businesswomen and the richest woman in the world. Marjorie's first husband, and father of her first 2 daughters, Edward Close, would remarry. One of his twin sons, from that second marriage, would be the father of actress Glenn Close. With her second husband, E.F. Hutton, she transformed the Post Cereal Company into General Foods. They had 1 child together, the actress Dina Merrill, nee Nedenia Marjorie Hutton. In the 1920s, Marjorie built her legendary Palm Beach estate, Mar-a-Lago. In the 1930s, she accompanied her third husband, Joseph E. Davies, to the Soviet Union, where he served as ambassador. After divorcing Davies, she purchased the Hillwood estate in DC and became one of Washington's top hostesses.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Aug 14 2019, 22:48:52 UTC

Herbert A. May (1891-1968), an executive vice president of Westinghouse, was a socialite and avid fox hunter who liked to entertain at Rosewall, his 28-room mansion in Pittsburgh. When his wife died of pneumonia in 1937, he was left to raise three young sons and an adopted daughter. In the ensuing years he enjoyed a quietly successful career in the railroad and banking industries and became a patron of the arts. May was head of the Pittsburgh Civic Opera and enthusiastically pursued his interest in ballet.

After a gap of 20 years, he married for a second time, and he rose to fame with this social upgrade. His bride was none other than Marjorie Merriweather Post, one of the richest women in the world. On June 18, 1958, the couple married at her daughter’s Maryland estate. In a reply to a congratulatory telegram from her granddaughter, Marjorie replied, “Walking on fluffy pink clouds.”

Herb was the last of her husbands – number four – and at age 67* on his wedding day, he was four years younger than Marjorie, who was vibrant, energetic, youthful looking and the undisputed queen of Washington DC society. Her philanthropy kept the capital city alive. But Mr. May kept a big secret from Marjorie. He was actively bisexual.

Although Marjorie had been warned, she brushed it off as mere gossip. After all, Herb had been married and fathered three sons. Although she had met him thirty years earlier, she was happy to become reacquainted in 1957, two years after an acrimonious divorce from diplomat Joseph Davies. There was much to like about Herb. He was handsome and silver haired, but fit. As well, he was soft-spoken, diplomatic, charming, well-liked and kind. He loved parties and loved to dance, and he had mastered the art of blowing through money. Herb had told his children not to expect any inheritance.

Before the wedding Marjorie’s daughter had been told that Herb was homosexual, and some of Marjorie’s friends repeated tales about Herb’s attachment to a male dancer from the Washington National Ballet and a handsome male personal secretary. Incredibly, Herb brought this secretary along on their honeymoon. Still, none of this deterred Marjorie. She was at the peak of her power in Washington, and Herb shared so many of her interests, while providing a partner for entertaining and carrying out her various acts of charity.

Mr. May was the poorest of Marjorie’s four husbands, so she set up a trust fund for him. She was attracted to his intelligence, patronage of the arts, success in business, etc., but she was won over by his warmth, enjoyment of people and his obvious pleasure in her company. They were both tall, thin, elegant and handsome people who looked for all the world like a king and queen.

But Herb did not want to abandon his home and family in Pittsburgh, and Marjorie did not want to leave Washington, where she exerted major influence. They compromised by agreeing to commute between the two cities, and Marjorie retired from the board of General Foods, the source of her fortune. This gave her time for concentrating on ramping up the cultural scene in Washington, which she thought to be woefully inadequate for a capital city. She installed her husband as chairman of the board of the National Ballet, from which Herb was soon selecting individual male dancers for special interest and attention.

However, Herb soon did Marjorie a huge favor by helping her overcome her fear of flying. She intended to commute to Pittsburgh by train, but for one trip he arranged for a company plane, a Lockheed Lodestar, to transport Marjorie to Pittsburgh. The flight was ultra smooth, and the weather was calm. A half hour into the trip she told her husband that she was enjoying the flight, then a few minutes later said to him, “Herb, I want one.” He explained that a plane like that cost several million dollars, plus a crew and maintenance. She replied, “I didn’t ask how much it costs. I want one.” Shortly thereafter she purchased a British-made Vickers Viscount turbo-jet (above) powered by four Rolls-Royce engines, capable of accommodating 44 passengers. Herb suggested the name "Merriweather", his wife’s middle name. She was best pleased. Of course, she ripped out all those seats and furnished the interior as a living room with sofas, chairs and tables. Instantly, this became her favorite mode of transportation. She began using “Merriweather” to transport all her friends to and from her estates in Palm Beach and the Adirondacks.

In a short time, however, cracks began to develop in their connubial bliss. Herb grew to resent Marjorie’s restrictions on alcohol. She was stingy with cocktails and wine at her parties, which were otherwise lavish beyond description. To the amazement of her guests, she subsequently extended the cocktail hour to a full thirty minutes and began stocking guest rooms at her retreats in Florida and New York with liquor. As a life-long Christian Scientist, her personal limitation of alcohol consumption remained a steadfast practice, but she was eager to please Herb. Marjorie also included Herb’s four children in stays at Mar-a-Lago (Palm Beach, Florida) and Top Ridge (the Adirondacks in New York). Mar-a-Lago, the spectacular winter social haven, had been shuttered since Marjorie’s divorce from Joseph Davies in 1955, but Herb talked her into reopening it in 1961. Marjorie was thrilled to once more be at the top of the heap of Palm Beach society. However, it was there at Mar-a-Lago (below) that Herb was to meet his downfall.

Mar-a-Lago is now owned by President Donald Trump, who runs it as a profitable membership club.

Herb was well aware that, by being married to Marjorie, he had become one of the most powerful men in Washington. But trouble was brewing. In spite of her age, Marjorie had a voracious sexual appetite. Herb was complaining to friends that he was astonished that a woman in her seventies desired daily sex. Also, by the 1960s Margaret Voigt, Marjorie’s social secretary who ran all of her social affairs, had become Marjorie’s most powerful staff member. Herb and Marjorie’s children voiced concerns that Margaret had become too influential as the social gatekeeper for access to the heiress. Margaret even ate at Marjorie’s table. When Herb made the mistake of criticizing Margaret’s inefficient office practices, a resentful standoff ensued. Shortly thereafter, a set of photographs arrived on Marjorie’s desk. They showed graphic evidence that Herb was a practicing homosexual.

The pictures showed Herb naked as he cavorted with much younger men and boys around the oceanfront pool of Mar-a-Lago. Next a blackmail attempt was made, with threats to publish the incriminating photographs unless hush money was paid. Marjorie was astonished and equally surprised that her daughter, actress Dina Merrill, knew about Herb’s proclivities before the marriage had taken place. Nevertheless, friends and family knew that until that moment, Herb and Marjorie had enjoyed a warm, romantic relationship.

With irrefutable evidence presented to her, Marjorie decided that divorce was the only option. By 1964, it was a done deal. Their marriage had lasted a scant six years, and Marjorie was pleased to have the embarrassing incident behind her.

She was not vengeful, however. When Herb suffered a stroke after the divorce, Marjorie paid the medical bills and provided an apartment in Fort Lauderdale where Herb lived until his death in 1968*. And she continued to be in contact with Herb’s children, particularly Peggy, who had formed an especially close relationship during the marriage. Marjorie’s loyalty to Herb’s children was mutual, and they knew they were fortunate to be allowed to maintain a relationship with a great lady. Marjorie died in 1973, at age eighty-six.

• Note: The New York Times obituary, published on March 13, 1966, offered facts that clash with those stated in Rubin’s book. According to the Times, Mr. May died at a hospital on St. Thomas at age 71. He had suffered a stroke while on a cruise. If he had been 71 years old in 1966 (the year of his death), he would have been born in 1895, making him eight years younger than Marjorie, who was born in 1887. Yet Rubin declares that May was four years younger than his wife – 67 years old to Marjorie’s 71 years on the day of their marriage. She also stated that he died in 1968, whereas the NYT obituary was published on March, 13, 1966.

Sources: American Empress – Nancy Rubin (1995) http://www.paulbowles.org/marjoriemerriweatherpost.html

General Foods Corporation, former American manufacturer of packaged grocery and meat products. Since 1989, General Foods product lines have been sold by Kraft Foods Inc.