The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post
Everyone has heard of Mar-A-Lago in Florida and some have heard of Merriweather Post pavilion in Maryland. Not everyone realizes that both of these properties were associated with Marjorie Merriweather Post. She was raised in Battle Creek Michigan to the cereal giant, C. W. Post.
When Marjorie was 16 she met her first husband, Edward Close. They were married young and had two children. Her father gave her the Boulders estate to run. He told her she was responsible for the budget, staff, charitable donations and savings. He was annoyed when he discovered she was off by $.05. She then married her second husband, E.F. Hutton and they had a daughter, actress Dina Merrill. She and her third husband, Joe Davies, lived in Russia for two years while he was the ambassador. He developed intestinal cancer but later recovered with treatment. They divorced after he became emotionally cruel not only to her but the staff as well. She divorced her fourth husband, Herb May, after indiscreet photos were delivered to her.
Mrs. Post was a philanthropist and donated her yacht, Sea Cloud, to the Navy during WWII. It was always important to make charitable donations. Before her death, she gave several of her homes to the Smithsonian to be used as museums. Reading this book gave me just a peak into this woman’s full life. She did so many things that most people would only dream of doing. The author did an amazing job of research and presenting the information in memoir style of first-person writing. If you like historical nonfiction books, you will enjoy reading this one.
