Linda Lee Thomas (November 17, 1883 – May 20, 1954) was an American socialite and the wife of

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

composer

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

First marriage

She was born Linda Belle Lee to the prominent Lee family of Virginia. Her father was Louisville banker William Paca Lee and her mother Lily Lee (née Hill). Friends introduced her to Edward Russell Thomas, a son of

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

general Samuel Thomas and owner of the ''

New York Morning Telegraph ''The Morning Telegraph'' (1839 – April 10, 1972) (sometimes referred to as the ''New York Morning Telegraph'') was a New York City broadsheet newspaper owned by Moe Annenberg's Cecelia Corporation. It was first published as the ''Sunday ...

'' (and who later became the first

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

to kill someone in a car accident). They married on June 29, 1901, at

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

. She was 17. They lived a life of luxury, with houses in Palm Beach, Manhattan, and Newport. It was said that her favorite "department store" was

Van Cleef & Arpels Van Cleef & Arpels is a French high-end luxury jewelry company. It was founded in 1896 by the Dutch diamond-cutter Alfred Van Cleef and his father-in-law Salomon Arpels in Paris. Their pieces often feature flowers, animals, and fairies, and hav ...

. They divorced on October 26, 1912,E. R, THOMAS, NOTED SPORTSMAN, DIES
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' (July 7, 1926) reportedly due to his abuse.

Marriage to Porter

Thomas and Cole Porter met on January 30, 1918, at the wedding of Henry Potter Russell to heiress Ethel Borden Harriman, daughter of railroad and investment banking tycoon

J. Borden Harriman Jefferson Borden Harriman (September 20, 1864 – December 2, 1914) was a New York financier and member of the Gilded Age, Gilded Age's "hunting set". He was best known as the supportive husband of Florence Jaffray Harriman, a socialite who beca ...

and his wife, née Florence "Daisy" Hurst, at the

Hôtel Ritz Paris The Ritz Paris is a hotel in central Paris, overlooking the Place Vendôme in the city's 1st arrondissement. A member of the Leading Hotels of the World marketing group, the Ritz Paris is ranked among the most luxurious hotels in the world. T ...

. Linda and Cole were married on December 18, 1919, in the city hall of the 8ème arrondissement of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. From 1930-39, the Porters lived at 13 rue Monsieur, a house next door to

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin Pierre Teilhard de Chardin ( (); 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French Jesuit priest, scientist, paleontologist, theologian, philosopher and teacher. He was Darwinian in outlook and the author of several influential theological and philos ...

, and with a garden adjoining the future residence of

Nancy Mitford Nancy Freeman-Mitford (28 November 1904 – 30 June 1973), known as Nancy Mitford, was an English novelist, biographer, and journalist. The eldest of the Mitford sisters, she was regarded as one of the "bright young things" on the London s ...

. They were married 34 years, and although they had no children born of their marriage, Linda conceived and miscarried. Linda died from

emphysema Emphysema, or pulmonary emphysema, is a lower respiratory tract disease, characterised by air-filled spaces ( pneumatoses) in the lungs, that can vary in size and may be very large. The spaces are caused by the breakdown of the walls of the alve ...

in 1954. aged 70, in the couple's apartment in the Waldorf Towers. She left an estate of over $1.5 million (over $ million today) in which Cole inherited a lifetime interest. Her jewelry collection included pieces by Paul Flato. She was buried in the Porter family plot at Mount Hope Cemetery in

Peru, Indiana Peru is a city in, and the county seat of, Miami County, Indiana, Miami County, Indiana, United States. It is north of Indianapolis. The population was 11,417 at the 2010 census, making it the most populous city in Miami County. Peru is located ...

Portrayals

Thomas is portrayed by

Alexis Smith Margaret Alexis Fitzsimmons-Smith (June 8, 1921 – June 9, 1993) was a Canadian-born American actress and singer. She appeared in several major Hollywood films in the 1940s and had a notable career on Broadway in the 1970s, winning a Tony Awar ...

in the 1946 film '' Night and Day'' and by

Ashley Judd Ashley Judd (born Ashley Tyler Ciminella; April 19, 1968) is an American actress. She grew up in a family of performing artists: she is the daughter of the late country music singer Naomi Judd and the half-sister of country music singer Wynonna ...

in the 2004 film '' De-Lovely''. A one-woman show about her life with Porter, titled '' Love, Linda: The Life of Mrs. Cole Porter'', starring jazz vocalist

Stevie Holland Stevie Holland (born January 11, 1965) is an American jazz and cabaret singer, lyricist, playwright and actress. Raised in Westchester County, New York, she moved to New York City to study drama at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. ...

, ran

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

at the

York Theatre York Theatre is an off-Broadway theatre company based in East Midtown Manhattan, New York City. In its 50th year, York Theatre is dedicated to the production of new musicals and concert productions of forgotten musicals from the past. Each seas ...

in 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Linda Lee 1883 births 1954 deaths American socialites

Linda Linda may refer to: As a name * Linda (given name), a female given name (including a list of people and fictional characters so named) * Linda (singer) (born 1977), stage name of Svetlana Geiman, a Russian singer * Anita Linda (born Alice Lake i ...