Nina S. Olds (née Gore; July 25, 1903 – April 3, 1978)
was an American actress and socialite known for her three marriages, to
Eugene Vidal
Eugene Luther "Gene" Vidal (; April 13, 1895 – February 20, 1969) was an American commercial aviation pioneer, New Deal official, inventor, and Sportsperson, athlete. He was the father of author Gore Vidal. For eight years, from 1929 to 1937 ...
,
Hugh D. Auchincloss
Hugh Dudley Auchincloss Jr. (August 15, 1897 – November 20, 1976) was an American stockbroker and lawyer who became the second husband of Nina S. Gore, mother of Gore Vidal, and also the second husband of Janet Lee Bouvier, the mother of Firs ...
, and
Robert Olds
Robert Olds (June 15, 1896 – April 28, 1943) was a general officer in the United States Army Air Forces, theorist of strategic air power, and proponent of an independent United States Air Force. Olds is best known today as the father of Brig. ...
, as well as her children, authors
Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
and
Nina Auchincloss.
Early life
![ThomasGore3c32246u crop](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/ThomasGore3c32246u_crop.jpg)
Nina S. Gore was born on July 25, 1903, to
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
Thomas Gore
Thomas Pryor Gore (December 10, 1870March 16, 1949) was an American politician who served as one of the first two United States senators from Oklahoma, from 1907 to 1921 and again from 1931 to 1937. He first entered politics as an activist for ...
(1870–1949) and his wife Nina Belle Kay (1877–1963),
a Texas plantation owner's daughter.
[ Kauffman, Bill (2006-11-20]
The Populist Patriotism of Gore Vidal
, ''The American Conservative
''The American Conservative'' (''TAC'') is a magazine published by the American Ideas Institute which was founded in 2002. Originally published twice a month, it was reduced to monthly publication in August 2009, and since February 2013, it has ...
'' She had a younger brother, Thomas Notley Gore (1910–1964).
Her father, who lost his eyesight during his youth, was said to have been an
atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
and had a strong
misanthropic
Misanthropy is the general hatred, dislike, distrust or contempt of the human species, human behavior or human nature. A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings. The word's origin is from the Greek words μῖσ ...
streak. Nina's son would later write that "he was a genuine populist; but he did not like people very much. He always said no to anyone who wanted government aid."
[ He was claimed to have said that "If there was any race other than the human race, I'd go join it." Thomas Gore died in 1949.]
Life and personality
In 1928, Gore made her Broadway debut in ''Sign of the Leopard'', which opened at the National Theatre. In 1940
A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
*January ...
, Nina, an alternate delegate from Virginia to the Democratic convention announced her support of Wendell Willkie
Wendell Lewis Willkie (born Lewis Wendell Willkie; February 18, 1892 – October 8, 1944) was an American lawyer, corporate executive and the 1940 Republican nominee for President. Willkie appealed to many convention delegates as the Republican ...
over Roosevelt.
From 1925 until 1950, she lived in Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
She later split her time between Cuernavaca, Mexico
Cuernavaca (; nci-IPA, Cuauhnāhuac, kʷawˈnaːwak "near the woods", ) is the capital and largest city of the state of Morelos in Mexico. The city is located around a 90-minute drive south of Mexico City using the Federal Highway 95D.
The na ...
, and Southampton, New York
Southampton, officially the Town of Southampton, is a town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the town had a population of 69,036. Southampton is included in the stret ...
. In the seven years preceding her death, she lived in San Antonio, Texas
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
.
Nina was known as a vivacious, quixotic, and unpredictable person. Her son Gore referred to her as an alcoholic
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomin ...
and "certifiably insane," as she likely suffered from bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of abnormally elevated mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevated mood is severe or associated with ...
. She was candid about her sexual exploits and was said to have had an affair with John Hay Whitney
John Hay Whitney (August 17, 1904 – February 8, 1982) was U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, publisher of the ''New York Herald Tribune'', and president of the Museum of Modern Art. He was a member of the Whitney family.
Early life
Whit ...
in the early 1930s while he was married to Liz Whitney Tippett
Mary Elizabeth Whitney Person Lunn Tippett (born Mary Elizabeth Altemus) (June 18, 1906 – October 30, 1988) was a wealthy American socialite and philanthropist who was a champion Equestrianism, horsewoman and for more than fifty years, a prominen ...
, at the same time Liz had an affair with Nina Vidal's husband, Eugene Vidal
Eugene Luther "Gene" Vidal (; April 13, 1895 – February 20, 1969) was an American commercial aviation pioneer, New Deal official, inventor, and Sportsperson, athlete. He was the father of author Gore Vidal. For eight years, from 1929 to 1937 ...
. Nina also had "a long off-and-on affair" with the actor Clark Gable
William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...
. She was also described thus:
"When she enters a room you feel here comes everything that is fresh, healthy and beautiful. Her skin glows warmly and her huge brown eyes are bright. An outdoor woman, she is full of indoor charm. Rides every day of her life."
Gore was glamorous and has been described as a flighty mother with an apparent lack of maternal interest in her children. Her son, Gore Vidal, would later say about his mother, "we rarely got into a conversation. It was pointless. She didn’t see me. I wished I didn’t see her."
In 1949, she loaned Gore $3,000 toward the purchase of Edgewater, his estate on the Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
.
Personal life
In 1922, Gore married Eugene Luther Vidal
Eugene Luther "Gene" Vidal (; April 13, 1895 – February 20, 1969) was an American commercial aviation pioneer, New Deal official, inventor, and athlete. He was the father of author Gore Vidal. For eight years, from 1929 to 1937, he worked ...
, an American commercial aviation pioneer. Because her father was ill and couldn't attend, U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
William A. Rodenberg
William August Rodenberg (October 30, 1865 – September 10, 1937) was a U.S. Representative from Illinois.
Born near Chester, Illinois, the son of German immigrants,
Rodenberg attended the public schools. He graduated from Central Wesleyan ...
walked her down the aisle. They divorced in 1935. Together, they had one child:
*Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
(1925-2012), the writer.
In 1935, Nina married Hugh Dudley Auchincloss, Jr. (1897-1976), the son of Hugh Dudley Auchincloss, Sr. (1858–1913), a merchant and financier, and Emma Brewster Jennings. Hugh had previously been married to Maya Auchincloss (1899-1990), a Russian noblewoman, from 1925 to 1932. Hugh and Maya had one child, Hugh Dudley Auchincloss III (1927–2015). Together, Nina and Hugh had two children:
* Nina Auchincloss (born 1937), who married Newton Steers
Newton Ivan Steers Jr. (January 13, 1917 – February 11, 1993), was a U.S. Congressman who represented Maryland's 8th congressional district from January 3, 1977, to January 3, 1979.
Early life
Newton Ivan Steers Jr. was born on January 13, 19 ...
(1917–1993) in 1957, after having briefly dated Ted Kennedy
Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...
. They divorced in 1974 when she married Michael Whitney Straight
Michael Whitney Straight (September 1, 1916 – January 4, 2004) was an American magazine publisher, novelist, patron of the arts, a member of the prominent Whitney family, and a confessed spy for the KGB.
Early life
Straight was born in New Yor ...
(1916–2004), a member of the Whitney family
The Whitney family is an American family notable for their business enterprises, social prominence, wealth and philanthropy, founded by John Whitney (1592–1673), who came from London, England to Watertown, Massachusetts in 1635. The historic fa ...
who was a publisher and novelist. Straight was the son of Willard Dickerman Straight
Willard Dickerman Straight (January 31, 1880 – December 1, 1918) was an American investment banker, publisher, reporter, diplomat and by marriage, a member of the very wealthy Whitney family. He was a promoter of Chinese arts and investments, an ...
(1880–1918), an investment banker who died in Michael's infancy, and Dorothy Payne Whitney
Dorothy Payne Elmhirst ( Whitney; January 23, 1887 – December 14, 1968) was an American-born social activist, philanthropist, publisher and a member of the prominent Whitney family.
Life and work
Whitney was born in Washington, D.C., the daugh ...
(1887–1968), a philanthropist. They divorced in 1998.
*Thomas Gore Auchincloss (born 1939), who married Diana Lippert (b. 1940) in 1960. She was the daughter of Bernhard G. Lippert (1904–1947), the former German Vice Consul in the U.S. They later divorced and Diana married Francis Shields, father of Brooke Shields
Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress and model. She was initially a child model and gained critical acclaim at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film ''Pretty Baby'' (1978). She continued to model into ...
and son of Francis Shields Sr. and Italian Princess Donna Marina Torlonia di Civitella-Cesi
Donna Marina Torlonia dei Principi di Civitella-Cesi (22 October 1916 – 15 September 1960) was an Italian-American aristocrat, best known as the paternal grandmother of the actress and model Brooke Shields.
Family
Torlonia was born in Rome, a ...
.
Hugh and Nina S. Auchincloss divorced in 1941. Hugh remarried to Janet Lee Bouvier
Janet Norton Lee Auchincloss, previously Bouvier, (December 3, 1907 – July 22, 1989) was an American socialite. She was the mother of the former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy and Lee Radziwill.
Early life
Janet Norton Lee was born on Decemb ...
(1907-1989), the mother of future First Lady Jacqueline Lee "Jackie" Bouvier (1929–1994) and Caroline Lee Bouvier (1933–2019). Hugh and Janet had two children together, Janet Jennings Auchincloss
Janet Jennings Auchincloss Rutherfurd (June 13, 1945 – March 13, 1985) was an American socialite. She was the half sister of the former First Lady of the United States, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and socialite Lee Radziwill.
Early life
Auch ...
(1945–1985) and James Lee Auchincloss (born 1947).
In June 1942, Nina remarried for the third and final time to Robert Olds
Robert Olds (June 15, 1896 – April 28, 1943) was a general officer in the United States Army Air Forces, theorist of strategic air power, and proponent of an independent United States Air Force. Olds is best known today as the father of Brig. ...
(1896-1943). Robert died of pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
on April 28, 1943, after hospitalization for constrictive pericarditis
Constrictive pericarditis is a medical condition characterized by a thickened, fibrotic pericardium, limiting the heart's ability to function normally. In many cases, the condition continues to be difficult to diagnose and therefore benefits from ...
and Libman-Sacks endocarditis, at the age of 46, just prior to his son Robin Olds
Robin Olds (July 14, 1922 – June 14, 2007) was an American fighter pilot and general officer in the United States Air Force (USAF). He was a " triple ace", with a combined total of 17 victories in World War II and the Vietnam War. Que ...
' graduation from West Point.
Nina died on April 3, 1978, in New York City at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute– ...
after a long illness.
Descendants
Olds was the grandmother of Hugh Auchincloss Steers
Hugh Auchincloss Steers (June 12, 1962 – March 1, 1995) was an American painter whose work is in the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Walker Art Center, and the Denver Art Museum. He died of AIDS at the age of 32.
Early life
Steers was born ...
(1963–1995), an artist and Burr Gore Steers (born 1965), a filmmaker.
See also
*Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and ...
*Nina Auchincloss Straight
Nina Gore Auchincloss Straight (formerly Steers, born January 10, 1937) is an American author, journalist, and socialite. She is the mother of writer/director Burr Steers and artist Hugh Auchincloss Steers, half-sister of Gore Vidal, step-sister of ...
* Jacqueline Lee Onassis
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gore, Nina S.
1903 births
1978 deaths
People from Lawton, Oklahoma
American socialites
Auchincloss family