Maxine Cheshire: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|American newspaper reporter (1930–2020)}} |
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|name = Maxine Cheshire |
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|death_place = [[McAllen, Texas]], U.S. |
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'''Maxine Cheshire''' ( |
'''Maxine Cheshire''' ([[née]] '''Hall'''; April 5, 1930{{spnd}}December 31, 2020) was an American newspaper [[reporter]]. She worked at ''[[The Washington Post]]'' between 1965 and 1981. |
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==Early life== |
==Early life== |
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Cheshire was born in [[Harlan, Kentucky]], on April 5, 1930. Her father worked as a lawyer who represented the miners' [[Trade union|union]]; her mother worked as his legal assistant. He wore a [[bulletproof vest]] to work due to recurring assassination attempts, while her mother had to use the gun she kept in the family home on several occasions.<ref name="WP obit">{{cite news|title=Maxine Cheshire, Post reporter and columnist with 'the guts of a cat burglar,' dies at 90|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/maxine-cheshire-post-reporter-and-columnist-with-the-guts-of-a-cat-burglar-dies-at-90/2021/01/28/05810dae-6179-11eb-afbe-9a11a127d146_story.html|first=Matt|last=Schudel|date=January 29, 2021|access-date=January 29, 2021|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> |
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Maxine Cheshire was born in [[Harlan, Kentucky]] as Maxine Hall on April 5, 1930. She attended the [[University of Kentucky]] between 1949-50 and for a further two years at [[Union College]].<ref name=riley57>[[#riley1995|Riley (1995)]]: p. 57</ref> |
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Cheshire studied at the [[University of Kentucky]] between 1949 and 1950, and for a further two years at [[Union College (Kentucky)|Union College]].<ref name=riley57>[[#riley1995|Riley (1995)]]: p. 57</ref> Although she initially wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and become a lawyer, his death in 1951 led to her dropping out of college. She subsequently joined ''[[The Harlan Daily Enterprise]]'' at the age of 21.<ref name="WP obit"/> |
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==Reporting career== |
==Reporting career== |
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Cheshire first worked as a reporter for two local papers, the ''Barbourville Mountain Advocate'' and ''The Harlan Daily Enterprise''.<ref name=riley57/> From 1951, she worked for three years for the ''[[Knoxville News Sentinel]]'' as a police reporter. She subsequently joined ''The Washington Post'' in 1954. She first worked as a society reporter until 1965, when she began to write her own column, entitled "VIP", until 1981. In that guise she did not simply stick to the contents of a typical [[gossip columnist]], but spoke of other, more serious matters such as bribes to government officials.<ref name=riley57/> Because of this, she was known and feared by the establishment, having worked on a variety of [[scandal]]-type stories concerning various political leaders, such as [[Koreagate]],<ref name=kirkus/><ref name=blockparty>{{cite news|last1=Fuller|first1=Stephanie|title=If She Quit, Nixon Would Hold a Block Party|url=http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1973/11/29/page/45/article/maxine-cheshire|access-date=November 9, 2015|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]|date=November 29, 1973|page=45}}</ref> the lechery of [[John F. Kennedy]], and [[Richard Nixon]]'s habit of keeping, illegally, gifts given to him by foreign dignitaries. This line of work earned her the nickname "The Last of the Fast-Draw Gunslingers" at the ''Post''.<ref name=kirkus>{{cite news|title=Maxine Cheshire, Reporter|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/constance-taber-colby-3/maxine-cheshire-reporter/|access-date=November 9, 2015|work=Kirkus Review}}</ref> |
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Cheshire wrote an eight-part series in the early 1960s on the restoration of the [[White House]] undertaken by [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis|Jacqueline Kennedy]]. She reported that several pieces that were supposedly antiques were actually fakes, and that the true cost of the decorations exceeded the official stated figure. President Kennedy phoned [[Phil Graham]], the publisher of the ''Post'', to gripe about the report. He said, "Maxine Cheshire has reduced my wife to tears. Listen to her", as his wife cried in the background.<ref name="WP obit"/> |
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| ⚫ | Cheshire was the subject of one of [[Frank Sinatra]]'s most widely known slurs in 1973 when, at a pre-inaugural party, he told her, "Get away from me, you scum. Go home and take a bath{{nbsp}}... You're nothing but a two-[[United States dollar|dollar]] [[cunt]]. You know what that means, don't you? You've been laying down for two dollars all your life". With that, he thrust two one-dollar bills into her wine glass in front of a variety of witnesses and added, "Here's two dollars, baby, that's what you're used to".<ref name=rojek>[[#rojek2004|Rojek (2004)]]: pp. 141–142</ref> |
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[[Ben Bradlee]], one of the editors of the ''Post'' during Cheshire's time there, wrote in his autobiography ''A Good Life'' that he "probably spent more time dousing fires ignited by Maxine than any other journalist except those that [[Bob Woodward|Woodward]] and [[Carl Bernstein|Bernstein]] would ignite in 1972".<ref name="WP obit"/> However, he added that "she was fun to work with and awesome to watch once she sank her teeth in someone’s flank".<ref name="WP obit"/> |
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==Personal life== |
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Cheshire's first marriage was to Herbert Cheshire, a fellow journalist. Together, they had four children: Marc, Hall, Gideon, and Leigh. They later divorced. She subsequently married Jasper "Jack" Warren – who owned an oil-drilling company in Texas – in 1982. They moved to [[Houston]], and remained married until his death in 2013.<ref name="WP obit"/> |
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Cheshire died on December 31, 2020, at her home in [[McAllen, Texas]]. She was 90, and suffered from cardiovascular disease in the time leading up to her death.<ref name="WP obit"/> |
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==Notes== |
==Notes== |
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{{reflist |
{{reflist}} |
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==References== |
==References== |
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*{{cite book|last1=Riley|first1=Sam G.|title=Biographical Dictionary of American Newspaper Columnists|date=1995|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, Conn|isbn=9780313291920|url=https://books.google. |
* {{cite book|last1=Riley|first1=Sam G.|title=Biographical Dictionary of American Newspaper Columnists|date=1995|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, Conn|isbn=9780313291920|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a7kT7EDFakAC&pg=PA57|ref=riley1995}} |
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*{{cite book|last1=Rojek|first1=Chris|title=Frank Sinatra|date=2004|publisher=Polity|location=Malden, MA|isbn=9780745630915|url=https://books.google. |
* {{cite book|last1=Rojek|first1=Chris|title=Frank Sinatra|date=2004|publisher=Polity|location=Malden, MA|isbn=9780745630915|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F4DEdXSMYikC&pg=PA141|ref=rojek2004}} |
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{{refend}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheshire, Maxine}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheshire, Maxine}} |
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[[Category:1930 births]] |
[[Category:1930 births]] |
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[[Category:2020 deaths]] |
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[[Category:People from Harlan, Kentucky]] |
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[[Category:University of Kentucky alumni]] |
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[[Category:Union College (New York) alumni]] |
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[[Category:American reporters and correspondents]] |
[[Category:American reporters and correspondents]] |
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[[Category:The Washington Post people]] |
[[Category:The Washington Post people]] |
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[[Category:Journalists from Kentucky]] |
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[[Category:Writers from Kentucky]] |
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[[Category:American women non-fiction writers]] |
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[[Category:21st-century American women]] |
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Latest revision as of 01:28, 29 December 2023
Maxine Cheshire | |
|---|---|
| Born | Maxine Hall April 5, 1930 Harlan, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | December 31, 2020 (aged 90) McAllen, Texas, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Reporter |
Maxine Cheshire (née Hall; April 5, 1930 – December 31, 2020) was an American newspaper reporter. She worked at The Washington Post between 1965 and 1981.
Early life
[edit]Cheshire was born in Harlan, Kentucky, on April 5, 1930. Her father worked as a lawyer who represented the miners' union; her mother worked as his legal assistant. He wore a bulletproof vest to work due to recurring assassination attempts, while her mother had to use the gun she kept in the family home on several occasions.[1]
Cheshire studied at the University of Kentucky between 1949 and 1950, and for a further two years at Union College.[2] Although she initially wanted to follow in her father's footsteps and become a lawyer, his death in 1951 led to her dropping out of college. She subsequently joined The Harlan Daily Enterprise at the age of 21.[1]
Reporting career
[edit]Cheshire first worked as a reporter for two local papers, the Barbourville Mountain Advocate and The Harlan Daily Enterprise.[2] From 1951, she worked for three years for the Knoxville News Sentinel as a police reporter. She subsequently joined The Washington Post in 1954. She first worked as a society reporter until 1965, when she began to write her own column, entitled "VIP", until 1981. In that guise she did not simply stick to the contents of a typical gossip columnist, but spoke of other, more serious matters such as bribes to government officials.[2] Because of this, she was known and feared by the establishment, having worked on a variety of scandal-type stories concerning various political leaders, such as Koreagate,[3][4] the lechery of John F. Kennedy, and Richard Nixon's habit of keeping, illegally, gifts given to him by foreign dignitaries. This line of work earned her the nickname "The Last of the Fast-Draw Gunslingers" at the Post.[3]
Cheshire wrote an eight-part series in the early 1960s on the restoration of the White House undertaken by Jacqueline Kennedy. She reported that several pieces that were supposedly antiques were actually fakes, and that the true cost of the decorations exceeded the official stated figure. President Kennedy phoned Phil Graham, the publisher of the Post, to gripe about the report. He said, "Maxine Cheshire has reduced my wife to tears. Listen to her", as his wife cried in the background.[1]
Cheshire was the subject of one of Frank Sinatra's most widely known slurs in 1973 when, at a pre-inaugural party, he told her, "Get away from me, you scum. Go home and take a bath ... You're nothing but a two-dollar cunt. You know what that means, don't you? You've been laying down for two dollars all your life". With that, he thrust two one-dollar bills into her wine glass in front of a variety of witnesses and added, "Here's two dollars, baby, that's what you're used to".[5]
Ben Bradlee, one of the editors of the Post during Cheshire's time there, wrote in his autobiography A Good Life that he "probably spent more time dousing fires ignited by Maxine than any other journalist except those that Woodward and Bernstein would ignite in 1972".[1] However, he added that "she was fun to work with and awesome to watch once she sank her teeth in someone’s flank".[1]
Personal life
[edit]Cheshire's first marriage was to Herbert Cheshire, a fellow journalist. Together, they had four children: Marc, Hall, Gideon, and Leigh. They later divorced. She subsequently married Jasper "Jack" Warren – who owned an oil-drilling company in Texas – in 1982. They moved to Houston, and remained married until his death in 2013.[1]
Cheshire died on December 31, 2020, at her home in McAllen, Texas. She was 90, and suffered from cardiovascular disease in the time leading up to her death.[1]
Notes
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g Schudel, Matt (January 29, 2021). "Maxine Cheshire, Post reporter and columnist with 'the guts of a cat burglar,' dies at 90". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
- ^ a b c Riley (1995): p. 57
- ^ a b "Maxine Cheshire, Reporter". Kirkus Review. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
- ^ Fuller, Stephanie (November 29, 1973). "If She Quit, Nixon Would Hold a Block Party". Chicago Tribune. p. 45. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
- ^ Rojek (2004): pp. 141–142
References
[edit]- Riley, Sam G. (1995). Biographical Dictionary of American Newspaper Columnists. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press. ISBN 9780313291920.
- Rojek, Chris (2004). Frank Sinatra. Malden, MA: Polity. ISBN 9780745630915.
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