Marguerite Littman (1930-2020) was said to be the inspiration for Holly Golightly, the heroine of Truman Capote’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” She collected many famous friends through her wit and magnetic charm. Then, she harnessed her power as a socialite to raise funds to fight the AIDS epidemic in the ‘80s.
Marguerite Littman (1930-2020) was said to be the inspiration for Holly Golightly, the heroine of Truman Capote’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” She collected many famous friends through her wit and magnetic charm. Then, she harnessed her power as a socialite to raise funds to fight the AIDS epidemic in the ‘80s.
This month, we’re talking about muses–women who were drivers of creativity and inspiration. Once again, we’re proud to partner with Mercedes-Benz (whose famous namesake was inspired by a young muse named Mercedes). Tune in daily for stories of women whose lives inspired work that has shaped our culture.
History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Liz Smith, Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Lindsey Kratochwill, Adesuwa Agbonile, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Ale Tejeda, Sara Schleede, and Alex Jhamb Burns. Special thanks to Shira Atkins.
Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.
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Hello! From Wonder Media Network, I’m Jenny Kaplan. This is Womanica.
This month, we're talking about muses -- women who were drivers of creativity and inspiration.
Today’s muse was said to be the inspiration for Holly Golightly, the heroine of Truman Capote’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” She collected many famous friends through her wit and magnetic charm. Then she harnessed her power as a socialite to raise funds to fight the AIDS epidemic in the ‘80s.
Meet Marguerite Littman.
Marguerite was born Marguerite Lamkin on May 4, 1930 in Monroe, Louisiana. Her father was a prominent lawyer, and her mother was a homemaker. The family was wealthy and well-established, and lived on what had been one of the largest plantations in the area.
Marguerite was a theatrical child, and she and her older brother Speed staged plays every Saturday — with Marguerite as leading lady.
These amateur productions led to adult aspirations in Hollywood. Speed became a playwright and novelist and got a contract to write under film producer Jerry Wald. He moved to Los Angeles, and Marguerite tagged along.
When Jerry Wald met Marguerite, he thought she was the spitting image of a young Susan Hayward. He wanted to make her into the next big starlet. But first he had to get rid of her Southern drawl.
Marguerite trained with vocal coach Lester Luther. But even after trying unusual methods — like speaking with stones in her mouth — she still couldn’t drop her accent.
Marguerite explained: “'If you were to say, 'How are you?' to me, I'd have to get my mouth in a certain position and do preliminary things. I mean, you'd be long gone before I said, 'I'm very well, thank you.'''
Marguerite gave up on trying to get in front of the cameras. But if she couldn’t squash her country twang, she could at least teach movie stars to sound like her. She worked as a vocal coach on over a dozen films, most famously helping Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman speak like Southerners in the 1958 film “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.”
While she lived and worked in Los Angeles, Marguerite became quite the social butterfly, meeting and keeping countless Hollywood connections. Her circle included the painter David Hockney, writer Gore Vidal, playwright Tennessee Williams, and, of course, Truman Capote. Marguerite bonded with the queer community, in a time when not everyone was so welcoming. The poet Stephen Spender described her as “an ally…against the gossiping classes of Hollywood.”
Marguerite also attracted many passionate suitors during her California years. One hid in her bushes and left her expensive cooking pots as gifts in her hallway. Another composed a 50-page love letter complete with a marriage proposal. Marguerite said didn’t read past the second page.
Marguerite did find love briefly with screenwriter Harry Brown. They got married in 1952, but Harry, who was a rumored alcoholic, became abusive. Marguerite later recalled, “I told Harry I was going out to buy some lamb chops, and never went back.”
After her divorce with Harry, Marguerite married again in 1959, this time the actor Rory Harritty. That union also ended in divorce.
By now, she was living in New York City and working at Glamour magazine. In her “Dear Daisy” column, she answered letters fr women desperate for romance advice. Marguerite provided what she called “teddy bear tricks,” to help girls catch and keep a man’s interest – often by irritating them. In one column, she advised: “Don’t put his flowers in a vase; leave them in the sink.”
In 1963, Marguerite met Mark Littman, a British lawyer while he was visiting Manhattan. She later recalled, “I couldn’t use any teddy bear tricks, because he knew I was Daisy, but something worked.”
The couple got married in 1965 and settled in London. In her new country, Marguerite maintained her sociable nature, hosting eccentric luncheons and dinner parties for her many friends. Andy Warhol described one such affair at the London townhouse in his diaries: “Marguerite invented something great for dessert — chocolate soup…It’s orange juice and Grand Marnier and chocolate, hot.”
In the mid to late ‘80s, Marguerite harnessed her power as a socialite to raise funds to fight the out-of-control AIDS epidemic. She was friends with actor Rock Hudson and helped nurse him as he was dying of AIDS in 1985.
In 1986, she wrote to 300 friends to ask them each to contribute 100 pounds to become founding members of the AIDS Charitable Trust. In Marguerite’s words: “No one said no.” From there, she led larger fundraising campaigns, wrangling artist friends to donate their work for auction. She also enlisted the help of Princess Diana, who donated her enviable wardrobe to the cause. That act alone raised over $3 million.
Marguerite later remembered: ''She said: 'I have a wonderful idea. I'm going to give you all of my dresses.' I didn't know quite what that meant. I thought, Oh, God, do I dress that badly?''
After 11 years of raising funds, Marguerite decided to dissolve the AIDS Charitable Trust and combine efforts with other existing groups. She eventually became a director of the board for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Marguerite died on October 16, 2020 in her home in London. She was 90 years old.
All month, we’re highlighting muses. For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram @womanicapodcast.
Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator.
Talk to you tomorrow!