Gloria Vanderbilt

Art Brokerage: Gloria Vanderbilt American Artist: b. 1924. Gloria Laura Vanderbilt (born February 20, 1924) is an American artist, author, actress, fashion designer, heiress, and socialite. During the 1930s, she was the subject of a high-profile child custody trial in which her mother, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, and her paternal aunt, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, both sought custody of the child Gloria and control over her $5 million trust fund. Called the "trial of the century" by the press, the court proceedings were the subject of wide, sensational press coverage due to the wealth and notoriety of the involved parties and the scandalous evidence presented to support Whitney's claim that Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt was an unfit parent. As an adult in the 1970s, Gloria Laura Vanderbilt became known in connection with a line of fashions, perfumes and household goods bearing her name. She was particularly noted as an early developer of designer blue jeans. She is a member of the Vanderbilt family of New York and the mother of CNN television anchor Anderson Cooper. In 2001, Vanderbilt opened her first art exhibition, "Dream Boxes," at the Southern Vermont Arts Center in Manchester; it was a critical success. She launched another exhibition of 35 paintings at the Arts Center in 2007. Two years later, she returned to the Arts Center as a panelist at its Annual Fall Show Exhibition, signing copies of her latest novel, Obsession: An Erotic Tale. Listings wanted.