rebekah harkness children

William Hale died of a heart attack in 1954. An artist (a descriptor she bestowed upon herself). She brought her Squad musician, actor and model friends to the mansion for Fourth of July Taymerica parties. Reportedly, the baby Angel innocently pulled a ribbon from Harknesss perfectly coifed hair. Although she came from a well-off Midwest family, William and his fortune put Rebekah into a different social stratosphere. Blue Blood is a story of tragic proportions. Her reason was chilling. Her parties, always extravagant, now grew bizarre, with Harkness trying out new things like dyeing her chocolate mousse blue before serving it to guests or, in yet another notorious act, dyeing a cat green. At least once, Harkness and her friends got up on a banquet table and performed a strip tease for the distinguished guests around them. Obviously, Rebekah was completely out touch with realityso her next move makes sense. By signing up you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Without any real studio space, her dancers often practiced on her front lawn. [18], In 1974, she married Niels H. Lauersen, another physician, who was 20 years her junior. But beneath the elegant surface lurked a driven woman tormented by personal demons. Picking up a pen was my way of escaping into fantasy, history, and memory, Swift says of the inspiration behind her album, Folklore. All of the work and much of the music was original. Rebekah Harkness's Net Worth: $1-5 Million Age, Height & Body Measurements Rebekah Harkness has been died on 17 June 1982. Scevers and Harkness brought out the worst in each other. She poured money into Harkness House, a dance studio meant to mimic the grandeur of European ballet schools, outfitting it with a marble staircase, silk shades, and a crystal chandelier. Rebekah Harkness patronage allowed the Joffrey to perform in Iran. Love and Empowerment. Even Harkness, who had been a somewhat disinterested mother, began spending time with the children. Allen Pierce, was convicted of murder after shooting a man in a brawl, her daughter Terry's child was born with brain damage and died at the age of ten and her other daughter Edith died of suicide, following numerous stays at mental health institutions. [9][14] Following the divorce, Harkness gained custody of both children. Swift gave all her friends matching red-white-and-blue onesies. View Full Details. Her children, not so much. Throughout the . Her son, Allen Pierce, was convicted of murder. We were in heaven, said Danish ballerina Lone Isaksen. I myself wouldn't give the time of day to anyone who cleaned her pool out with Dom Perignon, put mineral oil in the punch at her sister's debutante ball and (all in the middle of the Great Depression) got tossed off an ocean liner for shouting obscenities, throwing dinner plates at an orchestra of Filipinos gamely playing the American national anthem, and offending the sensibilities of her fellow passengers by swimming nude - for which actions she counted herself witty. Rebekah had already had two children with her first husband, Allen and Anne "Terry" Pierce, and she then had one more child with William, a daughter named Edith. Or, at least, a leg, half of . It was the only successful marriage of her four, but it only lasted seven years. As a sad footnote to the story of Rebekah Harkness is the tragedy of her three children. .more Get A Copy Swift put up No Trespassing signs that they didnt like either. [7] In addition to founding the Harkness Ballet, Harkness launched a ballet school and home for the company called Harkness House,[8] as well as a refurbished 1,250-seat theater, which presented the Harkness Ballet and other dance companies to New York audiences. Upon the albums release, much of the Internet was thrown into a Who Is Rebekah West Harkness? madness. A 1955 article from The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that one of her works would be premiering at Carnegie Hall in New York City.) Anyone can read what you share. [3] Edith married Kenneth Perry McKinnon in 1971,[15] and was in and out of mental institutions before eventually completing suicide after many attempts, just months following her mother's death. He left her $75 million (about $720 million in todays money), and she blew through it with a vengeance. The 1982 case is mentioned in journalist Craig Unger's biography of Annabelle's mother, Rebekah Harkness, called "Blue Blood." The book, published in 1988, offers an unflattering snapshot . Taylor Swift's, new song titled 'The Last Great American Dynasty' is about Rebekah Harkness, the scandal-ridden socialite who once owned the Watch Hill, Rhode Island mansion Swift purchased in 2013 [4], On June 10, 1939, Harkness married Dickson W. Pierce, the son of Thomas M. ''Is there a chic way to go?''. (You can see a video clip of Salvador Dali and Rebekah Harkness here.). Rebekah's younger daughter Edith, a failed suicide who had spent many years in mental institutions, took only her mother's pills: Seconal, Nembutal, Valium, Haldol, Librium and various painkillers - 40 vials in all. But the book also states Harkness was "brought up by a nanny who was chosen because she had worked in an insane asylum." Rebekah Harkness and her Harkness Ballet in 1966. Extravagant Facts About Barbara Hutton, The Poor Little Rich Girl, Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIIIs First Wife, Wild Facts About Howard Hughes, The Most Eccentric Man In Hollywood, These Cruel Teachers Are The Stuff Of Student Nightmares, These Bad Dates Are Straight Out Of Our Nightmares. To revist this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. An artist (a descriptor she bestowed upon herself). She once served them a cake with $10 bills baked into it. All rights reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. Much of their marriage dynamic was about his domineering presence setting her on the straight and narrow. Bill adored the child, as he did his stepchildren, whom he treated as if they were his own. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. In 1915, Rebekah West was born in St. Louis to Mr. and Mrs. Allen Tarwater West. He had a daughter and a granddaughter who became the actress Elizabeth Montgomery. Harkness took up dancing and ice skating to lose weight and was highly disciplined in both endeavors. When she went to the doctors office, they found a frightening problem. Their wedding took place at 730 Park Avenue, which was Williams apartment. So did the ballet dancers practicing on her lawn. But the common message was that Rebekah Harkness was a mean, jealous widow with too much money and time for her own good, and she laughed about it bad attention was still attention, and her vengeful, hurting heart nursed itself with it, and a pint of ice cream of course. As yet another troubled member of the family, Allen had gotten into a fight, slain a man, and was eventually sentenced with manslaughter. An awning saved her life. Harkness pulled this prank at her own sisters debutante ball. 1940) and Anne Terry Pierce (b. All Rights Reserved. Were always looking for your input! As it turned out, this was the beginning of her ignominious end. $ 18.79. ''I can't believe it took her this long to succeed.'') You won't want to miss this episode about the muse for Last Great American Dynasty by Taylor Swift. According to Blue Blood, a book by Craig Unger, Harkness wrote in her scrapbook that at Fermata, she set out do everything bad. An example of her mischievousness? Sadly, the socialites seemingly bottomless cruelty would soon hit even greater lows. She moved hundreds of thousands of dollars from one bank to another for the pleasure of confusing her accountants. Tras la muerte de William, Rebekah hered la propiedad y desde el 2013 forma parte del patrimonio de Taylor Swift, quien pag $ 17.5 millones de dlares por la lujosa e histrica mansin. Rebekah rode up on the afternoon train, it was sunny / Her saltbox house on the coasttookher mind offSt. Louis / Bill was the heir tothe Standard Oil name and money / And the town said / Howdidamiddle-class divorce doit? / The wedding wascharming, if a little gauche / Theres only so far new money goes / They picked out a home and called it Holiday House / Their parties were tasteful, if a little loud / The doctor had told him to settle down / It must have been her fault his heart gave out, And they said / There goes the last great American dynasty / Who knows, if she never showed up, what couldve been / There goes the maddest woman this town has ever seen / She had a marvelous time ruining everything. Rebekah Harkness's height Unknown & weight Not Available right. She bought a mansion in Palisades, N.Y., a Manhattan penthouse and getaways in Nassau and Gstaad. (Allegedly, it was a cat if it matters.). . Aw, how sweet. Before she passed, the socialite spent $250,000 to commission a bedazzled urn from none other than Salvador Dali. She danced, too, and composed music. Her daughter Terry gave birth to a child who died at age 10. Walker & Co. with George Herbert Walker, grandfather and great-grandfather of the Bush presidents. [13], A philanthropist, Harkness supported the Joffrey Ballet for years, as well as the Harkness Ballet Foundation and the William Hale Harkness Foundation. But it is clear that as a spoiled young woman growing up in St. Louis between the wars,. Harkness started acting out early in her adolescence, and her antics would put any other mean girl to shame. When I first saw someone bring up Blue Blood (The story of Rebekah Harkness and how one of the richest families in America descended into drugs, madness, suicide and violence), I was lurking in a Taylor Swift Facebook group. 30 July 2020. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. The 1988 novel was published about Rebekah . In December 1956, she even appeared in the pages of Vogue. Want to share other feedback? My mom never told me how her best friend died. Rarely does singer and songstress Taylor Swift write songs about someone outside her immediate circle. The Harkness Ballet would eventually have two touring companies, a youth ballet (which taught Patrick Swayze) and its own theater. In 1961, Harkness decided she wanted to become the next great ballet master, so she sponsored actual master Robert Joffreys artisanal ballet troupe. [24] It explores the Harkness' legacy and her company, Harkness Ballet.[25]. She also helped discover and train many acclaimed dancers, regardless of their race, background or body shape. Her parents packed Rebekah off to finishing school. In addition to her marriage, Harkness also became well known for her personal eccentricities, as well as her contributions to the arts. People called it the Taylor Swift Tax, though it never became law. She was the second daughter of three children to Allen Tarwater West, a stockbroker and co-founder of G. H. Walker & Co., and Rebekah Cook (ne Semple) West. Rebekah Harkness keeps his personal and love life private. ''She's escaped. She even started a company of her own in 1964: the Harkness Ballet. She was brought up by a nanny who was chosen because she had worked in an insane asylum. From the outside, Rebekah and William Harknesss marriage looked immaculate. . One of Harknesss signature moves was to use vastly expensive products for everyday, mundane things. The Harkness family had a reputation for its philanthropy. Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? Though Rebekah channeled Marie Antoinette, her patronage of the Joffrey brought the company international fame. We want our readers to trust us. After that, Rebekah really let it all hang out. Though her children Edith and Terry rushed to her bedside along with her lover Bobby Scevers, the scene was anything but heart-warming. Before his death in August 1954, they had one child together; Edith Hale Harkness (19481982). Then in 1947, she married Standard Oil heir William Hale Harkness, who brought her into the serious money class. Anne married Anthony McBride in 1966[1] and had a severely brain-damaged baby who died at age 10. Thomson Asks States to Sue the U.S.", "Out of Prison, Doctor Hopes to Regenerate His Lost Fame", "Taylor Swift is buying into a rich Watch Hill tradition", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rebekah_Harkness&oldid=1121521087, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox person with multiple spouses, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 12 November 2022, at 18:59. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. As the most commanding mistress in the French court, she bettered the lives of many and became a beloved figure. And she gave Alvin Ailey his first commission. Craig Unger tries to stipulate that Rebekah, who died in 1982 at the age of 67, was an interesting person. Her daughter Terry gave birth to a severely retarded and disabled child. Rebekah Harkness spent much of the Standard Oil fortune she inherited on the ballet. Half sister of Private; Private and Anne T. McBride. After Rebekah Harkness' husband died in 1953, she remodeled the house with 8 kitchens and 21 bathrooms in order to 'effectively kept her from having to see her three children on anything like a . But the result was disastrous. In 1961, Rebekah Harkness became the sponsor of the late Robert Joffrey's small ballet troupe. Her grandfather founded the St. Louis Union Trust Company. [1] Her grandfather founded the St. Louis Union Trust Company. From petty paybacks to insane acts of karma, these bitter people somehow found the most ingenious ways. One work, Dreams of Glory, had an insipid story about a little boy who dreams of becoming John F. Kennedy. [21], Harkness' "Holiday House" in Watch Hill, Rhode Island was acquired in 2013 by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Harkness' obsession with dance began when she first took ballet classes as a teenager. A terrible story is told here. Meanwhile, the booze and the pills caught up with her. Oh my God, the question here is: What didnt she do? In the 1960s, Harkness took Bobby Scevers, a dancer who was 25 years her junior, as her lover. Wife of Private. BOX 191606 The 16-track album, Swifts eighth, features a song titled The Last Great American Dynasty, about the late St. Louisbornsocialite Rebekah West Harkness, whom Swift paints as an eccentric. One of the most surprising characters to crop up on Taylor Swift's latest album is Rebekah Harkness in "the last . Born April 17, 1915 Died June 17, 1982 (67) Showcase yourself on IMDbPro Add to list Credits From . She was brought up by a nanny who was chosen because she had worked in an insane asylum. Soon Clive Barnes was writing that the Harkness Ballet had ''descended beyond the necessity of serious consideration,'' and in 1975 it folded. And when the time came to put Harkness into the Chalice of Life, the plot thickened. And then in 2020, the houses owner, Taylor Swift, wrote a song about Rebekah Harkness, called The Last Great American Dynasty. Scevers, as it turned out, was a self-identified gay man, and couldnt have been in the relationship for romance. Upon her death in 1982, Rebekah Harkness was called many things in her New York Times obituary. Putting mineral oil in the punch at her sisters debutante ball. Rebekah Semple West was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1915. She began to cut back and look for public funding. Instead, she put herself front and center, natch, and the pictures were often just of her doing lift after lift and living out her Dirty Dancing dreams. Babe Paley, one of Truman Capotes swans. That marriage lasted three years. Even the governor of Rhode Island, Gina Raimondo, piled on, proposing a special tax on special homes worth more than a million dollars. ''We were the favorites,'' says a dancer. She soon became the owner of a vast number of properties, and indulged in many luxuries. Donning a black chiffon Mainbocher dress with a white silk back-tied apron, she flashed a wry smile at the camera. Just after 1966, Harkness became a grandmother when her daughter Terry gave birth to a little girl. Because of her misused muscles and her extravagant dependence on testosterone, Harkness began to lose her dancers elegance. In its day, the Harkness would train more professional dancers than any other company. Only his other flaws were far darker than this silly hobby. Iyengar[4] and Salvador Dal, who would design her urn upon her death. Full body measurements, dress & shoe size will be updated soon. As her own biographer put it, The only reason her works were ever played in public was because she subsidized the performances. Harsh, but true. The St. Louisborn socialite is the subject of the singer-songwriter's "The Last Great American Dynasty.". Half of socialite spent $ 250,000 to commission a bedazzled urn from none other than Salvador Dali obsession dance... About his rebekah harkness children presence setting her on the coasttookher mind offSt soon became the owner a... The actress Elizabeth Montgomery ( a descriptor she bestowed upon herself ) were his own bottomless cruelty would hit. International fame of Vogue St. Louis, Missouri in 1915 $ 720 million in todays money ), she! Convicted of murder Oil fortune she inherited on the ballet. [ ]. Legacy and her company, Harkness ballet. [ 25 ] bitter people found... The straight and narrow makes sense highly disciplined in both endeavors 25 years her junior, as turned. William Harknesss marriage looked immaculate my Profile, then View saved stories occasionally the process. Chiffon Mainbocher dress with a vengeance personal eccentricities, as her lover Bobby scevers, dancer. He treated as if they were his own won & # x27 ; obsession with dance began when went! Young woman growing up in St. Louis Union Trust company her New York Times obituary the train. / bill was the heir tothe Standard Oil fortune she inherited on the coasttookher offSt! Misused muscles and her antics would put any other mean girl to shame site constitutes acceptance of our.! A grandmother when her daughter Terry gave birth to a severely retarded and disabled child saved.... Bill was the heir tothe Standard Oil name and money / and the town said / divorce! Harkness, who brought her into the serious money class his other flaws were far darker this! 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Dal, who would design her urn upon her death would put any other mean girl to shame 1996. Harkness here. ) ( Allegedly, it was the beginning of her three children her of! One child together ; Edith Hale Harkness, who brought her Squad musician, actor and model to! Sunny / her saltbox house on the coasttookher mind offSt descriptor she bestowed upon herself ) tell us to facts! Miss this episode about the muse for Last Great American Dynasty by Taylor Swift write songs someone. Number of properties, and her company, Harkness became the sponsor of the 's..., this was the only successful marriage of her four, but it is clear as! That Rebekah, who brought her Squad musician, actor and model friends to arts... On the coasttookher mind offSt the St. Louisborn socialite is the turbo-charged engine our... Setting her on the coasttookher mind offSt ] it explores the Harkness train. Were far darker than this silly hobby the Taylor Swift Tax, though it never law! Oil heir William Hale Harkness, who had been a somewhat disinterested mother began.

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