So first, I offer my humble thanks and most profound respect to the historians, curators, biographers, and archivists who make the information pertaining to Marjorie Merriweather Post so readily accessible and abundant. These individuals honor and offer up the facts of Marjorie’s life as a result of their countless hours of interviews, archival review, scholarly study, investigative research, and meticulous stewardship. I am a very thankful and humble beneficiary.
Nancy Harris, former oral historian and curator for Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, is the reason I first stepped into Marjorie Merriweather Post’s rarefied and inspiring world. A friend of my husband’s family, Nancy gave me the first tip years ago. “Do you know about Marjorie Merriweather Post?” she asked me one Sunday at my mother-in-law’s table. I’m ashamed to admit that, when asked that question, I knew nothing about Marjorie Merriweather Post other than the fact that her name sounded vaguely familiar. Nancy then offered just a few fast facts: about the Post Company, about Marjorie’s four very different and dramatic marriages, about how Marjorie lived like an empress with her world-class art collection and her capacious households. Years ago, as an undergraduate at Yale, I had taken a course on the history of American nutrition, and we had learned about the fierce rivalry between the Posts and the Kelloggs and their founding of America’s new breakfast industry—a rivalry and a set of characters that would change life for all of us. So I was immediately intrigued. Nancy encouraged me to visit Hillwood, and that was the best tip of all. Since then, I have been obsessed, and I have thanked Nancy by sending her endless follow-up questions, everything from “When did Scampi the dog die?” to “Why do you really think Marjorie and Ed Close split up?” Thank you so much, Nancy, for your generosity and kindness and willingness to offer insight and support as I have worked on this book for years. I hope you do not regret giving that first tip.
Nancy Rubin Stuart has written the definitive biography that tells the story of Marjorie Merriweather Post’s life in its entirety. Nancy spoke to countless family members and friends of Marjorie’s, studied innumerable newspaper and journal articles, combed the archival family scrapbooks and letters and more—and the result is the brilliant and comprehensive work American Empress: The Life and Times of Marjorie Merriweather Post. Stuart provides direct quotes from fascinating interviews with Marjorie’s daughters, grandchildren, friends, and colleagues that offer invaluable insights and perspectives. Stuart’s work shines a light not only on the minutiae and daily details that made up the comprehensive whole of Marjorie Merriweather Post’s life, but also fleshes out a portrait of her as a complex and compelling human. I cannot recommend the biography highly enough for all who feel moved by Marjorie Merriweather Post’s life and are inspired to learn more.
The Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens is quite literally a sprawling treasure trove. When you walk into Marjorie’s final and beloved home, you step into her world. You see the clothes hanging, crisp and tidy, in her closet. You see that her private powder room was an explosion of pink, because that was her favorite color until the end. You see the couch where she took naps, the Friendship Walk she cherished, and the pavilion where she hosted world leaders and society legends for dances and movie screenings. As her daughter Dina said of Hillwood when she visited it as a museum: “It’s as if Mother could walk in and sit down to dinner.” If you have read this book and have come to understand the exacting standards of Marjorie Merriweather Post as a hostess and homeowner, then you know that that statement speaks volumes. At Hillwood, you see what mattered to Marjorie. Portraits of empresses may cover her walls, and letters from presidents sit atop her furniture along with rows of Sèvres porcelain, but the faces of her smiling daughters hang by her bed, and mementoes of her family and her many adventures occupy pride of place. Marjorie Merriweather Post came alive for me at that beloved home of hers. I would recommend not only a visit, but also checking them out on social media: @hillwoodmuseum on Twitter and Instagram.
My thanks go to Estella M. Chung, director of collections at Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens. Estella has given us a biography organized by themes in Marjorie’s life, Marjorie Merriweather Post: The Life Behind the Luxury. Estella’s other work, Living Artfully: At Home with Marjorie Merriweather Post, is a stunning compilation of photographs, handwritten notes, quotations, menus, and other original source material that once belonged to Marjorie and her daily world, each of which provides fascinating and precious insight into her life and legacy.