As The Money Burns

Nicki Woodard
As The Money Burns Podcast

All they want is love. Everyone else wants their fortune. Based on historical research, As The Money Burns is a deep exploration into the lives of actual heirs and heiresses to some of America’s most famous fortunes and what happens when the Great Depression hits.A narrative podcast that explores history, psychology, and finance.

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    Cursed Hopes

    As tough times persist, several dangers lie ahead for dreams, fortunes, and more importantly life itself. May – August 1933, many struggle as Prohibition and the Great Depression continues. Evalyn Walsh McLean attempts to sell the Hope Diamond and buy back the Washington Post. Doris Duke and other heiresses are under threat of kidnapping in Newport. Cobina Wright’s new attempt to rebuild her fortune comes with some shady business connections and other troubles. Other people and subjects include: Barbara Hutton, Nanaline Duke, William May Wright aka “Bill,” Lil’ Cobina Wright, Jr., James HR Cromwell aka “Jimmy,” James “Henry” Van Alen aka Jimmy, Jenny Renaud, Edward McLean, Countess Gladys Vanderbilt Szechenyi, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt, Alice-Leon Moats, No Nice Girl Swears etiquette book, armed bodyguards, armed limousine, Lindbergh baby kidnapping, crime of the century, gold certificates, fraud, hoax, ransom, press, Gaston Means, John F. Condon, Cemetery John, J.J. Faulkner, Florence Nightingale Graham – Mrs. Thomas J. Lewis – Elizabeth Arden, cosmetics pioneer, operation, recovery, Primo Carnera, Jack Sharkey, John Factor, General Pershing, Admiral Cone, Bernard "Barney" Baruch, Jay “Rye” Ryland, Sam Rosoff, Mr. Dimples, amorous English gentlemen, Prince Kadhar, Alice Roosevelt Longfellow, Kermit Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt, President Franklin Roosevelt, Eugene Meyer, William Randolph Hearst, Marion Davies, Rosemary “Rose” Douras Davies, Emily Post, Mahatma Gandhi, Tammany Hall, Hope Diamond, Kohinoor, Star of India, souvenirs, replicas, cursed gem, unlucky charm, bad luck, bankruptcy, pawn, 1933 booklet, multi-level exhibition, diamond mine, huts, shacks, Amsterdam diamond cutters, gold mining, Prohibition, repeals, beer, tax evasion, prison sentence, the Great Depression, monkeys, baboons, cruise lines, ocean liner Leviathan – SS Vaterland, Waldorf-Astoria hotels, Brearley, Fermata, convent in Rome, Rough Point, Maine Chance Farms, Madison Square Gardens, Yankee Stadium, Roosevelt hospital, Chicago’s World Fair, “A Century of Progress” exhibition, Newport, New York, Boston, Washington, D.C., Chicago, the Rockies, Saratoga, horse races, Cobina Wright’s autobiography I Never Grew Up, Max Baer, Max Schmeling, Murray Humphreys, Chicago underworld, FBI – Federal Bureau of Investigation, tapped phone conversations, Al Capone, prison baseball team, prison riot, jail time, making connections, World War I, World War II, refurbishment, scrap, Mahatma Gandhi hunger strike, Jewish writers, concentration camps, struggles, tv series, fashion designers, Hulu’s Becoming Karl Lagerfeld, Netflix’s Halston, Apple TV’s The New Look, Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, Yves St. Laurent, Pierre Balmain, Thierry Mugler, Cristobal Balenciaga, Jean Patou, artistic and creative endeavors, rejection, setbacks, prey, predator, hedonism, chaos, multiple issues at once, Chris Williamson, Modern Wisdom podcast, Jimmy Carr, jealousy quote, blocks, happiness… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    32 min
  2. 3 SEPT

    Most Eligible

    While one honeymoon falls apart, another set of bachelors appear on the matrimonial market. #BarbaraHutton, #PrinceMdivani, #honeymoon, #Stotesbury, #MarryingMdivanis, #politicalspeech, #Astor, #restoringthethrone Barbara Hutton, Prince Mdivani, honeymoon, Stotesbury, Marrying Mdivanis, political speech, Astor, restoring the throne June - July 1933, Barbara Hutton and Prince Alexis Mdivani continue on their honeymoon, while Woolworth family members, Doris Duke, and Louise Van Alen try to avoid residual press scrutiny. Meanwhile on July 20th, 1933, Jakey Astor prepares to be the most popular bachelor in Newport this summer, Jimmy Cromwell gives a speech at Whitemarsh Hall for his new book, and Prince Serge Mdivani and Prince David Mdivani return from overseas to deal with their divorces, citizenship, and potential bid to restore their royal thrones. Other people and subjects include: Doris Duke, John Jacob Astor VI aka “Jakey,” Louise Van Alen – formerly Princess Mdivani, James HR Cromwell aka “Jimmy,” Huntington Hartford, Vincent Astor, Daisy Van Alen, Eva Stotesbury, E.T. Stotesbury, Franklyn Hutton, Irene Hutton, Germaine “Ticki” Touquet, Prince David Mdivani, Princess Mae Murray Mdivani, Prince Serge Mdivani, Princess Mary McCormic Mdivani, Princess Nina Mdivani Huberich, Charles Huberich, General Zahkari Mdivani, Jessie Woolworth Donahue, James “Jeem” Donahue aka Jimmy, Woolworth “Wooly” Donahue, Helena Woolworth McCann, Helena McCann, Caroline Astor, John Jacob Astor IV aka “Jack,” Madeleine Talmage Force Astor Dick, William Dick, Enzo Fiermonte, Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt, Jr., Alice Vanderbilt, Donna Cristina Torlonia (Christina, Cristiana, Christiana), LeBrun “Brunie” Rhinelander, Mrs. Jock Whitney – Bessie Dobson Altemus Eastman, Lord Poulett – Earl of Poulett, Bridget Poulett, Prince Michael Romanoff, President Franklin Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin, Mahatma Gandhi, Russian imperial throne, Georgian royal throne, citizenship, Tinseltown army – militia, Republican Women’s Committee of Philadelphia, ocean liners – Rex, Europa, Italy, Titanic, Lusitania, Venice, Lido, Newport, New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Reno, Saratoga, Southampton, Wooldon Manor, Whitemarsh Hall, Ali Baba motorboat, Voice of Young America book, biographies, documentaries, increased press coverage, press target, condemnation, praise, orchidaceous, camera shy, heartfree, modern influencer, Nancy Randolph, romance and scandal, divorces, honeymoon, diet, mono focus in history, parallel events and people, Jennifer Anniston, Angelina Jolie, love triangles, females pitted against each other, public humiliation, teasers, wealthy, celebrity, press attention, August 2024 Stock Market Crash, American Dow, Magnificent Seven Stocks – Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta – Facebook, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, 1929 Stock Market Crash,… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    27 min
  3. 1 AUG

    Eastern Rites, Part 2

    A large crowd gathers for a fairy tale royal wedding, but will the honeymoon have a happy ending? Part 2 June 1933, Barbara Hutton and Prince Alexis Mdivani have the second and grandest of their two wedding ceremonies in Paris. The elaborate and beautiful ceremony draws a large and excited crowd, followed by a reception then off to their honeymoon. Will Barbara finally have her happily ever after? Other people and subjects include: Doris Duke, Franklyn Hutton, Louise Van Alen – formerly Princess Mdivani, James “Henry” Van Alen aka Jimmy, William “Sam” Van Alen, Germaine “Ticki” Touquet, James “Jeem” Donahue aka Jimmy, Woolworth “Wooly” Donahue, Fraser McCann, Princess Roussadana “Roussie” Mdivani Sert, Josep Maria Sert, Prince David Mdivani, Princess Mae Murray Mdivani, General Zahkari Mdivani, Countess Silvia de Rivas de Castellane - Countess Henri de Castellane, Phillippe / Felipe Rodriguez de Rivas y Diaz de Eraso – V Conde de Castilleja de Guzman, James Blakeley, Jean Kennerley, Morley Kennerley, Marshall Heminway, Laura “Dolly” Heminway Fleischmann O’Brien, Jay O’Brien, Czar / Tsar Nicholas II Romanov, Rasputin, Maharajah of Kapurthala, Prince Theodore of Russia – Prince Feodor Alexandrovich Romanov, Jean Patou, Berry Wall, Lili Damita, Rene de La Croix de Castries – Count Renault St. Croix, Victor Grandpere, Christian DuFort, Serge Lifar, Georgian Minister Araki Tchenkeli, Archpriest Jacob Smirnoff, Monsier Affonski, Jane Alcott, Midnight Express train, Hotel Ritz - Ritz Carlton in Paris, Meurice Hotel, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral – L’Eglise Russe – Russian Church, Eastern Orthodox religion and wedding ceremony traditions, wedding reception, Russian choir, priests, police security, crowd control, tailor’s debt, debt collector, process server, honeymoon, increase in news articles, conflicts amongst sources, choices reconstructing the past, celebrity weddings, expensive wedding, Anant Ambani, Radhika Merchant, fantasizing and planning weddings, college roommate, hating my own wedding, fairytales, part ogre princes,… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    32 min
  4. 30 JUL

    All That Matters, Part 1

    A royal wedding draws a large crowd, but could the honeymoon be over already? June 1933, Barbara Hutton and Prince Alexis Mdivani have the first of their two wedding ceremonies in Paris. With all the press attention, the Prince’s royal title comes back into question, while his brothers Prince Serge Mdivani and Prince David Mdivani deal with divorce petitions. Other people and subjects include: Franklyn Hutton, Irene Hutton, Louise Van Alen – formerly Princess Mdivani, E.F. Hutton, Marjorie Merriweather Post Hutton, Jessie Woolworth Donahue, Helena Woolworth McCann, Princess Roussadana “Roussie” Mdivani Sert, Josep Maria Sert, Prince David Mdivani, Princess Mae Murray Mdivani, Koran Mdivani, Prince Serge Mdivani, Princess Mary McCormick Mdivani, Princess Nina Mdivani Huberich, General Zahkari Mdivani, Czar / Tsar Nicholas II Romanov, Prince of Wales – Prince David – future King Edward VIII – Duke of Windsor, Viscountess Thelma Morgan Furness, Wallis Simpson – future Duchess of York, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, Gloria Vanderbilt, Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Prince of Asturias Infante Alfonso, Cuban commoner bride, King Alfonso XIII of Spain, Jean Patou, Coco Chanel, Sam Insull, former Marshal of Nobility in Georgia Nicholas Dadiani, Georgian Minister Araki Tchenkeli, Assistant Mayor of Paris Daniel Marin, Georgian royal family Bagriotinis, ocean liner Bremen, motor boat Ali Baba, Lausanne, Switzerland, Los Angeles, 8th Arrondisement & 16th Arrondisement in Paris, Hotel Ritz – Ritz Carlton in Paris, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral – L’Eglise Russe – Russian Church, Eastern Orthodox religion, Russian Imperial family, 1850 Russian Imperial Decree of 50 Georgian Princes, 1892 list of aristocratic families by Russian Imperial government Department of Heraldry, phony titles, fake royals, pretenders, Russian exiles, aristocrats, nobles, deposed royals, Bolshevik Revolution, Romanian royalty, Swedish royalty, nobility, aristocracy, industrial aristocracy, morganatic marriages, engagement rings, square cut platinum engagement ring, black pearl engagement ring, jade necklace, Argentine polo ponies, Cartier clock, Baccarat crystal, Limoges porcelain, fashion, beach pajamas, donation to the poor, bachelor party, bachelorette party, honeymoon, fever, June wedding season, wedding invitations, wedding gifts, private detectives, withholding information as story device, story hints, mother’s influence, losing mother, old History Fair teacher sponsor, It Must Be Love 6 article romance series, flour heiress marries librarian, Hollywood starlet marries childhood sweetheart, banker marries waitress, British earl marries white daughter of Indian rajah, questions for listeners,… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    27 min
  5. 27 JUN

    Out to Sea

    It’s another season of international sports competition, so where has one tennis star disappeared to this time? June 1933, Frank Shields loses at the French Championship then disappears only to be found later crossing the ocean. Meanwhile another sport takes notice with a superb knockout. Other people and subjects include: Cobina Wright, Prince Serge Mdivani, Prince David Mdivani, Rebecca “Billie” Tenney Shields, Queen Mary of England – Mary of Teck, Prince of Wales – Prince David – future King Edward VIII – Duke of Windsor, Prince Albert – Bertie – King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III of England, Vlad III – Vlad Tepes – Vlad the Impaler – Vlad Dracula, Julius "Julie" Seligson, Ellsworth Vines, Sidney Wood, George Lott, Cliff Sutter, Wilmer Allison, Helen Jacobs, Elizabeth Ryan, Mrs. Dorothy Andrus Burke, Christian Boussus, Cilli Aussem, Dunleavy-Cleaves firm, insurance policies, heavyweight boxing match, promoter, fighter, referee, Aryan, Jew, Nazi, American, African American, Max Baer, Max Schmeling, Jack Dempsey, Primo Carnera, Hitler, Nazis, Nazi publication Der Sturmer, Luftwaffe, Purge of Berlin, Joe Lewis – the Brown Bomber, Greta Garbo, June Knight, Rocky IV, Rocky Balboa, Ivan Drago, Harry Anslinger, Federal Narcotics Division, ocean liners – President Harding, Paris Europa, Le Havre, Auteuil, France, New York, Yankee Stadium, French Hardcourt Tennis Championship, London Championship, Wimbledon, Davis Cup, Newport Tennis Week, tennis, amateur status, appendicitis, strawberries, injury, Bigger Than Life by William Shields, missing person, tuxedo, stowaway, Prince Michael Romanoff – Harry Gerguson, stowaway monkey Jenny, recurring themes, overlaps, Michael Malice, Beyond Belief: the American Press & the Coming of the Holocaust 1933 – 1945 by Deborah Lipstadt, resilience, letting go, making choices changing course, Netflix film Unfrosted by Jerry Seinfeld, Marjorie Merriweather Post, Amy Schumer, Pop-Tarts,… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    21 min
  6. 6 JUN

    Renouncing The Throne

    Pending nuptials bring more attention to a royal fiancé and his questionable lineage. May 1933, Franklyn Hutton finally agrees to announce the engagement of Barbara Hutton and Prince Alexis Mdivani. Only now the prince’s true royal ties are again called back into question. Other people and subjects include: Louise Van Alen, Prince Serge Mdivani, Mdivani siblings (referencing Nina Mdivani Huberich, Roussadana “Roussie” Mdivani Sert, David Mdivani), General Zakhari Mdivani, Solomon Mdivani, Charles Huberich, Countess Silvia de Rivas de Castellane, Irene Hutton, Prince of Wales – Prince David – future King Edward VIII – Duke of Windsor, Flying Prince, Flying Premiere, King Alfonso XIII of Spain, Prince Infante Alfonso – Prince of Asturias – Count de Covadonga, Maharajah of Alwar, Prince Infante Jaime – Duke of Anjou, Prince Infante Juan, King Juan Carlos I, Prince Felipe – King Felipe VI, Princess Leonor – Princess of Asturias, King John I of Castile / Spain, Prince Henry of Castile / Spain, Prince Charles – King Charles III of England, Princess Diana – Princess of Wales, Crown Prince Rudolph of Austro-Hungarian Empire, Baroness Maria von Vetsera, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Crown Prince Dipendra of Nepal, Jalal-al Din, King Mirian III of Georgia, female ruler Tamar, Georgian Tsar Heraclius II – Erekle II – Irakly II, King George XII of Georgia, Genghis Khan, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Prime Minister of Prussia – Captain Hermann Goering / Goring, fairy tales, royal history, empires, dynasties, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, hominins, Hittite, Fertile Crescent, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Persian Sasanian Empire, Arabs, Seljuk Turks, Mongols, Holy Roman Empire Byzantium, Khwarezm, Ottoman Turkish Empire, Persian Safavid Empire, Russian Romanov Empire, Soviet Union, Kuwait, Cambodia, France, England, Spain, Castile, Aragorn, Bagriotini dynasty, House of Capet, House of Bourbon, Hapsburg, Austro-Hungarian Empire, World War I, World War II, fall of monarchies, rise of republics, restored monarchies, 1978 Spanish Constitution, Spanish Royal Decree of 1977, 2006 Nepalese revolution, historiography, transliteration, contradicting dates & spellings, Edward Gibbon, History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, H.G. Wells, The Outline of History, morganatic marriages, royal titles, heir apparent, heir presumptive, royal suicide, royal family massacre, mistress, renouncing titles, thrones, and succession, line of succession, pretenders, defunct thrones, retract, failed love matches, private air travel, ocean liners Chitral & Europa, Gare de Lyon train station, Ritz Hotel – Paris, Marseilles, France, Georgia – Russian province – Soviet state, Mayerling hunting lodge, ballet, childhood fantasies, wealth, fame, romantic fantasies, coveted prizes, Prince Harry of England, Meghan Markle, pseudo royalty, Nigeria, British royal family,… Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    27 min
  7. 16 MAY

    An Earl And A Duke

    An heiress has her hands full battling the tax man while flirting with a new aristocratic suitor. May 1933, Doris Duke finds herself with another potential aristocratic suitor the impoverished Earl of Warwick, but she has more potential trouble coming from the IRS trying to collect more taxes on her estate. Other people and subjects include: Nanaline Duke, James HR Cromwell aka “Jimmy,” John Jacob Astor VI aka “Jakey,” James “Buck” Duke, Edward E.T. Stotesbury, Eva Stotesbury, Evalyn Walsh McLean, Walker Inman, Eleanor Roosevelt, Donna Christina Torlonia (Cristina / Christiana / Cristiana,…), Elsie Moore Torlonia, Earl of Warwick Charles Guy Fulke Greville, William Rhinelander Stewart, Greta Garbo, Lili Damita, Amelia Earhart, Colony Club - Manhattan, New York City, Hollywood, Supreme Court, appeal, reject, Internal Revenue Service – IRS, tax evasion, Atlanta Penitentiary, Byzantine Empress Irene, French Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, British Queen Elizabeth I, Russian Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible, chess set, Il Duce Benito Mussolini, Rachele Guidi Mussolini, Clara Petacci, Brooklyn Daily Eagle, mistress, wife, stepsister, dictator, World War II, California Railway Commission, gas rate cuts, Los Angeles, Chicago and Indiana radio stations, air waves, Jamaica ginger, ginger extract, Prohibition, jake, partial paralysis, *ginger paralysis (referenced not directly mentioned), castor oil extract, phosphate poisoning, Spain, Germany, Italy, Morrocco, jake walk, jake dance, jake leg, John Addis, A.C. Addis, Kansas wholesale grocers, President of Hub Corporation Harry Gross, The Untouchables TV Series Season 2, illusion, delusion, social media, retelling stories, supernova explosion, Baltimore bridge, right side of history, dark sides of history, chaotic times Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    20 min
  8. 4 MAY

    Society Circus

    After years of struggle, a hostess gets to throw her most famous and popular annual event once again, so come and see who attends. April 1933, Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus arrives in New York, but everyone is more interested in the return of Cobina Wright’s Circus Ball at the Waldorf-Astoria. Other people and subjects include: James HR Cromwell aka “Jimmy,” William May Wright aka “Bill,” Prince Serge Obolensky, Elsa Maxwell, President Franklin Roosevelt, Eleanor Roosevelt, Prince David – Prince of Wales, King Edward VIII – Duke of Windsor, Wallis Simpson – Duchess of Windsor, Viscountess Thelma Morgan Furness, Virginia “Birdie” Graham Fair Vanderbilt, Lili Damita, Raymond Guest, Tony Biddle, servants Bruce & Fred, William “Bill” Paley, Samuel Klein, Mrs. Alexander Hamilton, Sally Tevis, Mrs. E. Marshall Field, Mrs. James Roosevelt, Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Dall, Mr. & Mrs. John Hearst, Grand Duchess Marie, Countess de Forceville, bluebloods, George Gershwin, Ed Wynn, Eva La Galliene, Jimmy Durante, Hope Williams, Noel Coward, Fred Astaire, Clifton Webb, Fanny Ward, Beatrice Lillie, Fanny Brice, Charles Winninger, Lupe Velez, Cleon Throckmorton, Peter Arno, Cecil Beaton, Rosamund Pinchot, Rudy Vallee, Erna Gilsow, Lucrezia Bori, Marilyn Monroe, giraffe women – Red Karens from Karen Hills, Burma, National Geographic magazine, the Little Season, trained seal, donkey, elephants, calliope, ball park mustard, costume themes (Paris Apaches, Siamese twin, peasants, snake charmers, harem, cowboys, Cossack rider, aerialist, tight rope, juggler, pantomime, Pierrot, Pierrete, Annie Oakley, cellophane sylph) Greatest Show on Earth, Circus Ball, Society Circus Ball, Sassiety Circus, April in Paris, Butterfly Ball, Metropolitan Opera Ball, Nineteenth Century Parisian Carnival, beer garden, Prohibition, Cullen-Harrison Act of 1933, legalizing beer & wine, ocean liners Bremen, Olympic, Ile de France, Waldorf-Astoria New York, Jade Room Basildon Room, Grand Ballroom, Madison Square Garden, Colony Club, Ritz-Carlton, memoirs, multiple events of same name, blended details, circus, Ancient Rome, Ancient Greece, gladiators, menagerie, amphitheater, Philip Astley, John Bill Ricketts, George Washington, Joshuah Purdy Brown, Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus, P.T. Barnum, James Anthony Bailey, Golden Jubilee tour, traveling circus, traveling museum, canvas tent, Soviet circus, Lenin, Moscow Circus School, gymnastics, China, acrobatics, tin type – melanotype – ferrotype, metal polaroid, Daguerrotype, Adolphe Alexandre Martin, Civil War, Wild West, World War I, World War II, animal rights, carnivals, Middle Ages, Renaissance, minstrel shows, Greek god Dionysus, Roman god Saturnalia, Germanic Nordic goddess Nerthus, Carnival of Venice, Napoleon, Carnivale international locations, Mardi Gras, Boy Scouts of America, W.D. Boyce, Scouting Movement (British), James Baden-Powell, London fog, YMCA, Ernest Thompson Seton, Woodcraft Indians, Daniel Carter Beard, Sons of Daniel Boone, resilience, hope, chaotic times, pandemic, recovery, historical footage of war times, gas masks, bunny costumes, Lebanon Civil War, women having tea, humanity, better times Archival Music provided by Past Perfect Vintage Music, www.pastperfect.com.

    27 min

About

All they want is love. Everyone else wants their fortune. Based on historical research, As The Money Burns is a deep exploration into the lives of actual heirs and heiresses to some of America’s most famous fortunes and what happens when the Great Depression hits.A narrative podcast that explores history, psychology, and finance.

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