Vanderbilt, Amy

Vanderbilt, Amy (1908–74) authority on etiquette; born in Staten Island, N.Y. (cousin of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt). She studied journalism at New York University and worked in advertising, publicity, and journalism before Doubleday invited her to write an etiquette manual. Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Book of Etiquette (1952, frequently revised) established her as the leading American authority on good manners, a position maintained for two decades by her popular books and television and radio programs and her syndicated etiquette column (1954–74), which reached 40 million readers.