![]() ![]() Underneath, she discovered a huge amount of darkness and cold, a decades-long tale of disaffection, divorces and disappointment, emotional and financial abandonment. The scandal held New York in thrall, but Gordon saw only a tip of an iceberg. There was the unusual addition of four public relations firms to write them. There had been the usual flurry of terse e-mails and opining letters. When 83-year-son Tony Marshall was arrested for allegedly looting his mother's estate, his son had sued him over the care he'd provided her. Any family should recognize the ambivalence simmering in the House of Astor - a family tragedy that's also the best food-court conversation you've ever overheard. The players are royal as ancient Greeks, but not as remote. Astor Regrets: The Hidden Betrayals of a Family Beyond Reproach" is full of heavy names and detailed lavishness, but what really turns pages is Gordon's elegant familiarity. The helpful neighbors in this case happened to be Henry Kissinger, David Rockefeller and the De la Rentas. Instead of divvying up cabin time, they rotated visits between four impeccable New England estates and a luxurious apartment the size of Rhode Island. ![]() ![]() It's just that the things they were fighting over were not who would get the good china, but who got the New York City Public Library. When storied philanthropist and New York Synonym for Rich Brooke Astor died at the incredible age of 105, her family, like any family, fought over her remains. The rich are different from you and me, but only by amount. ![]()
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