Amy Osborne Vanderbilt (July 22, 1908 – December 27, 1974) was an American authority on

etiquette Etiquette () is the set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a ...

. 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. The most recent edition () was edited by Nancy Tuckerman and Nancy Dunnan. Its longtime popularity has led to its 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 (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

. This cookbook's illustrations are attributed to "Andrew Warhol", and predate Andy Warhol's first New York solo pop art exhibition. His illustrations are simple line drawings in pen and ink.

Biography

Amy Vanderbilt claimed descent from Jan Aertson van der Bilt, who emigrated to the Dutch colony of

New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva ...

in 1650 and was also the ancestor of Commodore

Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...

, the 19th-century railroad magnate and millionaire, a distant cousin of Amy's. She was born in

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

, the daughter of Joseph Mortimer Vanderbilt, an insurance broker, and Mary Estelle Brooks Vanderbilt, and worked as a part-time reporter for the ''

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 major daily paper focused on a borough, it covers news of local and ...

'' when she was 16 while attending

Curtis High School Curtis High School, operated by the New York City Department of Education, is one of seven public high schools located in Staten Island, New York City, New York. It was founded on February 9, 1904, the first high school on Staten Island. Histor ...

. She was educated in Switzerland and at the

Packer Collegiate Institute The Packer Collegiate Institute is an independent college preparatory school for students from pre-kindergarten through grade 12. Formerly the Brooklyn Female Academy, Packer has been located at 170 Joralemon Street in the historic district of Br ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

before attending

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

. She worked in advertising and public relations, and published her 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 The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other natio ...

. Vanderbilt was married four times and divorced three times. From 1929 to 1932 she was married to Robert S. Brinkerhoff. In 1935, she married Morton G. Clark. In 1945, she married Hans Knopf, a noted magazine photographer. In 1968 she married Curtis B. Kellar, a lawyer for

Mobil Oil Mobil is a petroleum brand owned and operated by American oil and gas corporation ExxonMobil. The brand was formerly owned and operated by an oil and gas corporation of the same name, which itself merged with Exxon to form ExxonMobil in 1999. ...

. Vanderbilt had three sons: Lincoln Gill Clark, Paul Vanderbilt Knopf, and Stephen John Knopf. On December 27, 1974, she died from multiple fractures of the skull after falling or jumping from a second-floor window in her townhouse at 438 East 87th Street in New York. It remains unclear whether her fall was accidental (perhaps due to her hypertension medication, which friends and relatives said caused severe dizzy spells) or suicide. She was buried at the

Cemetery of the Evergreens The Cemetery of the Evergreens, also called Evergreen Cemetery, is a non-denominational rural cemetery along the Cemetery Belt in Brooklyn and Queens, New York. It was incorporated in 1849, not long after the passage of New York's Rural Cemete ...

in Brooklyn, New York.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vanderbilt, Amy 1908 births 1974 deaths Etiquette writers Burials at the Cemetery of the Evergreens Amy New York University alumni American people of Dutch descent People from Staten Island Deaths from falls Curtis High School alumni