Florence Harding: The First Lady, The Jazz Age, And The Death Of America's Most Scandalous President - Softcover

Anthony, Carl Sferrazza

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0688169759 ISBN 13: 9780688169756

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 1999

Synopsis

A major new biography of the politically powerful forerunner of Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton.

Deeply researched and richly told, Florence Harding reveals the never-before-told story of First Lady Florence Harding's phenomenal rise to power. The daughter of an abusive father in small-town Ohio, mother at a young age to an illegitimate child, Florence Harding saw her escape in Warren Harding, and became the driving force behind his ascent to one of the most scandal-ridden presidencies in United States history.Preeminent First Ladies biographer Carl Sferrazza Anthony not only captures the drama of Florence Harding's personality, but he uses the White House to bring to life Jazz Age America -- a world of speakeasies and Miss America, Babe Ruth, Al Jolson, and the rise of Hollywood. He shows how Florence's friendship with Evalyn McLean, the morphine-addicted owner of the Hope Diamond and The Washington Post was one of the defining bonds in her public life. With newly unsealed medical information, Florence Harding finally unfolds the mystery of whether the First Lady poisoned the President, whose death occurred seventy-five years ago. Florence Harding is a fascinating and informative look at a lost chapter in American history.

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Review

A convincing reassessment of President Warren Harding's sudden death in 1923 is only one of the high points in this exhaustive biography of the president's wife, Florence (1860-1924). The author presents a detailed, three-dimensional portrait of the complicated woman he persuasively claims was the first truly modern First Lady: an equal partner in--indeed, the undisputed manager of- -her husband's career, and a trusted advisor whose opinions were always consulted. She'd had hard knocks, including a child conceived out of wedlock and an alcoholic first husband, but in public Florence always possessed the dignified, commanding presence that won her the nickname "Duchess." The contrast between her staid demeanor and Warren's partying ways, which included frequent and flagrant infidelities, makes for some juicy passages in an otherwise sober account of a transitional figure in the long struggle by American women to gain political power. --Wendy Smith

About the Author

Carl Sferrazza Anthony, the author of nine books, is considered the nation's expert on the subject of presidential wives and families. He has written extensively for publications, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, American Heritage, Smithsonian, and Town & Country, and also writes screenplays. He currently lives in Los Angeles.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0688169759
• ISBN 13: 9780688169756
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 672