The Lady Upstairs: Dorothy Schiff and the New York Post (Hardcover)

by Marilyn Nissenson (Author) "At the beginning of the twentieth century, New York City had established itself as the center of American society and culture..." (more)
Key Phrases: advertising linage, night city editor, city room, New York, Dorothy Schiff, Paul Sann (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
In this first book, Nissenson, a producer of TV documentaries, coaxes out the contradictions of pioneering newspaper woman Dolly Schiff, who owned and published the New York Post from 1939 to 1976, when she sold to Rupert Murdoch. Peppering her historical research with incisive family testimony, personal notes, professional epistles and combative newspaper editorials, the author paints Schiff as profoundly human in her distinctive paradoxes. Her liberal politics evinced a strong connection to the plight of common folk, though she remained cold and aloof to her newspaper underlings. She was a visionary socialite who poured millions of her own inheritance into the tabloid, while serving powerful politicians meager tuna-fish sandwiches and steaming off unused postage stamps to be recycled. She championed women's rights, but never considered herself a feminist. Contradictions aside, her shrewd management and endless personal financial commitment transformed the Post into a profit-generating enterprise as well as a bastion of New Deal liberalism. A consummate flirt, she devoured and discarded husbands at an alarming rate, and Nissenson brings new light to the legend of Schiff's extramarital affair with FDR with suggestive details but no definitive answers. At times this biography reads like a perfunctory tour guide through the touchstones of 20th-century American history, but Schiff's character brims with spunk and surprise along the way. (Apr. 5)
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From Booklist
*Starred Review* Unlike the better-known Katharine Graham, Schiff did not inherit the control and operation of a national newspaper. Instead, she bought it. In 1939, Schiff bought the New York Post, to this day the longest continually published newspaper in the U.S. In this tantalizing biography, Nissenson reveals a fascinating woman who managed the Post from 1939 until 1976, when she sold it to Australian press baron Rupert Murdoch, ending the paper's career as an important voice of American liberal thought. Nissenson offers an intertwined look at the life of Schiff and the Post during the major social and political developments of American life, including the decline of postwar American liberalism. Schiff, the daughter of a prominent German-Jewish banking family, eschewed the life of a socialite and took up the newspaper business and liberal causes. The Post helped bring down Joseph McCarthy, broke the story of President Nixon's slush fund, and fostered the careers of renowned reporters Murray Kempton and Pete Hamill. Schiff's personal life was aglitter with romances with prominent men, including Franklin Roosevelt, and she was not averse to using her social status and personal charm to advance the Post. A thrilling biography. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (April 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312313101
• ISBN-13: 978-0312313104
• Product Dimensions: 14.8 x 9.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #795,904 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent story, beautifully written, April 27, 2007

By	Edumaven Rose "edumaven" (New York City) - See all my reviews

I really enjoyed this book. Nissenson tells a fascinating story of the life of one of the most powerful women in American journalism, a woman who had a huge influence on politics in New York City and the nation. Dolly Schiff was a mover and shaker who came from a rarified, super-affluent background but became a champion of mid-century liberalism. In one well-written volume, Nissenson acquaints us with the history of New York City reform politics, the history of the Democratic party, and the history of American journalism, as well as the story of a woman who led an extraordinary life. I highly recommend this book.