- Born
- Died
- Birth nameRoberta Brooke Russell
- Brooke Marshall Astor was the only child of Major General John Russell and granddaughter of Rear Admiral John Henry Russell, a descendant of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. With her moneyed background, she grew up in Hawaii, Panama, China and Santo Domingo, and became fluent in Chinese. In 1953, she became the third wife of Vincent Astor, who was listed 12th on the first Forbes list of the wealthiest Americans. Vincent Astor left an enormous estate at his death in 1959, and left his widow to distribute the funds to charity. Over the next 40 years, Mrs. Astor distributed $195 million from The Astor Foundation to New York social projects, including the Bronx Zoo and the New York Public Library. In 1997, at the age of 95, she gave out the last $25 million and closed the foundation, stating that she wanted more time to travel and write poetry. On January 15, 1998, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton. As a major New York philanthropist and one of the last scions of the American Astor dynasty, Brooke Astor has earned a place as New York's grande dame, equally known for her personal style and witty demeanor. Having recently turned 103, she still makes appearances in New York City.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous
- SpousesWilliam Vincent Astor(October 8, 1953 - February 3, 1959) (his death)Charles (Buddy) Henry Marshall(April 19, 1932 - November 27, 1952) (his death)John Dryden Kuser(April 26, 1919 - 1930) (divorced, 1 child)
- Son Anthony D. Marshall is an author, former CIA officer and diplomat. From 1969 to 1977, he served as Ambassador to the Malagasy Republic, Trinidad and Tobago, Kenya, and the Seychelles.
- Author of three books.
- She was awarded the American National Medal of the Arts in 1988 by the National Endowment of the Arts in Washington D.C.
- Described her marriage to John Dryden Kuser as "the worst years of my life".
- Features editor of "House & Garden" magazine in the 1940s.
- In my day, people used to talk more about interesting things, about politics and books. Now all people do is talk about money.
- Power is the ability to do good things for others.
- (at age 92) "When I was 40, I used to wonder what people thought of me. Now I wonder what I think of them."
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