Evalyn walsh mclean biography of barack obama

The two finally split. Ned deteriorated further, dying from a heart attack in a mental hospital. A true fairy tale romance. InNed became a secret agent for the FBI, and he used his position to muscle those who threatened Harding. When Evalyn owned the diamond, she would affix the jewel to her dog's collar and let him wander around the house with it.

Evalyn eventually had to sell the paper and died owing huge debts. InMcLean was in an automobile accident in which her brother Vinson was killed. Her leg was seriously injured, then badly set, and as a result she underwent a dangerous operation that brought on an addiction to morphine for a time. Evalyn and Ned eloped inafter which both sets of parents reconciled themselves to the situation and gave the newlyweds generous cash gifts.

They spent the money on an extravagant European honeymoon, during which Ned bought her a famed jewel called the Star of the East. They also viewed the Hope diamond at Cartier in Paris; after their return to the United StatesMcLean bought that huge stone as well, although she knew of its reputation as a bringer of bad luck. Raised a Catholic, she simply called a priest and had him bless the stone in a gesture to remove the alleged curse.

Ned McLean drank and teetered on the edge of bankruptcy several times. McLean had her first child ina son she named after her late brother Vinson the boy would die in a traffic accident at the age of nine ; three more children followed. The McLeans' life was further stabilized when Ned gained control of his family's newspapers inafter his father appeared to grow mentally unstable.

Control of the Post placed the McLeans inside Washington's upper echelons of non-elected power-brokers, a position they relished. The family home was a rambling northwest D. They were known for throwing outstanding dinner parties that included both the city's old guard and new legislators; McLean loved to seat ideological or personal enemies next to each other at her tables.

Harding, who often dined at their home, and in became involved in Harding's Teapot Dome scandal. Under oath, he lied to protect Albert B. Fall, secretary of the interior, then recanted his testimony. The debacle ended the McLeans' social prominence in Washington for a time. McLean left her husband several years later and raised their three children in a much stricter manner than her own upbringing.

Like his father, Ned McLean grew unstable; inhe entered a mental hospital, and died there in During the depression years of the s McLean, while maintaining her opulent lifestyle, became known for her extravagant acts of charity. She grew sympathetic to what was called the Bonus Army —the thousands of out-of-work men who converged on the nation's capital for aid during the only massive protest of the Great Depression —and convinced a restaurant owner to make them 1, sandwiches in the middle of the night.

She also bought them cots, books, and cigarettes with her own funds before they were driven out of town. He was later sent to prison for the scam, and the diamond was returned to McLean. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item. American heiress and socialite — Leadville, ColoradoU. Washington, D.

Edward Beale McLean. Early life [ edit ]. The Hope Diamond [ edit ]. Personal life [ edit ]. Death and estate [ edit ]. In popular culture [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. ISBN The New York Times. Retrieved March 17, Retrieved 18 March But it is extremely well-researched, quite well written and, in the end, paints a compelling portrait of the 44th president as he approaches the end of his third decade of life.

February 17, at pm. Steve said:. February 18, at pm.

Evalyn walsh mclean biography of barack obama

John said:. February 28, at pm. Better late than never! Richard M Dasheiff said:. December 2, at pm. Peter Baker had established himself as an excellent writer of political history. He puts situations in prospective and fleshes out the politics and motives. The acknowledgments section clearly states that this coffee-table, overly illustrated, oversized tome 5 lbs by weight was the creation of the New York Times as a show piece, and not the serious Obama biography that Baker might want to write.