American Queenmaker: How Missy Meloney Brought Women Into Politics

by Julie Des Jardins

Overview

The first biography of Missy Meloney, the most important woman you've never heard of

Marie "Missy" Mattingly Meloney was born in 1878, in an America where women couldn't vote. Yet she recognized the power that women held as consumers and family decision-makers, and persuaded male publishers and politicians to take them seriously. Over the course of her life as a journalist, magazine editor-in-chief, and political advisor, Missy created the idea of the female demographic. After the passage of the 19th Amendment she encouraged candidates to engage with and appeal to women directly. In this role, she advised Presidents from Hoover and Coolidge to FDR. By the time she died in 1943, women were a recognized political force to be reckoned with.

In this groundbreaking biography, historian Julie Des Jardins restores Missy to her rightful place in American history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781541645493
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	01/21/2020
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Julie Des Jardins holds a PhD in American Women's and Gender History from Brown and until 2014 was a full professor of history at Baruch College, CUNY. She has taught at Harvard, Macalester, Tufts, and currently sits on the Advisory Council of National Women's History Museum in Washington, D.C. The author of four critically-acclaimed books (including a volume on Lillian Gilbreth for Westview's Lives of American Women series, edited by Carol Berkin), she regularly writes for academic journalsand has written for the Smithsonian Magazine and Salon, and lectures widely on gender in America. Des Jardins lives in San Carlos, California.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

Chapter 1 The Makings of a Sob Story 1

Chapter 2 A Cub Reporter in 1900 19

Chapter 3 Manhattan, Marriage, Motherhood, Magazines-and Modernity, 1901-1914 43

Chapter 4 What It Means to Be a Patriot (The Suffragist Who Wasn't), 1915-1920 63

Chapter 5 Cultivating Relationships and Best Sellers for and by Women, 1920s 81

Chapter 6 The Publicist of Madame Curie, 1921 105

Chapter 7 Hatching Ideas for Women Readers, Workers, and Voters, 1922-1926 131

Chapter 8 A Widow's Touch at the New York Herald Tribune, 1926-1927 149

Chapter 9 The Work of Weaving Webs, 1928-1929 173

Chapter 10 Being Useful in a Great Depression, 1930-1932 191

Chapter 11 Female Friends, Forums, Fascists, and Freedom of Speech, 1933-1934 209

Chapter 12 Publicly Turning a Page, 1934-1936 231

Chapter 13 Illness and Impending War, 1937-1940 253

Chapter 14 A Woman's Work Is Never Done, 1940-1943 269

Epilogue 287

Acknowledgments 297

Notes 299

Index 343

Editorial Reviews

11/04/2019

Historian Des Jardins (Walter Camp: Football and the Modern Man) unearths the power and influence of early 20th-century editor Marie “Missy” Mattingly Meloney (1878–1943) in this competent and purposeful biography. Born in Kentucky, Meloney came of age in Washington, D.C., where her widowed mother opened a school for girls. Despite lifelong health problems, Meloney became a newspaper reporter at the turn of the century. After marrying fellow reporter William Brown Meloney IV and working part-time as she raised their son, Meloney became managing editor of Woman’s Magazine in 1914 and set out to replace the publication’s “twaddle” with articles written by experts in such varied fields as housekeeping, education, and world affairs. In subsequent editorships at the Delineator, the New York Herald Tribune Sunday Magazine, and This Week, Meloney helped newly enfranchised women become informed voters; cultivated professional relationships with presidents and first ladies; made Marie Curie a household name in the U.S.; and educated Americans about European fascism. Crediting her subject with “propell other women into prominence and women’s issues into public discourse,” Des Jardins makes a convincing case for Meloney’s crucial role in showing American women how to flex their political muscle. Readers interested in women’s issues will find this to be a valuable contribution to the subject. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

"American Queenmaker gives overdue recognition to one of America's foremost journalists."—Wall Street Journal

"The first biography of Marie Mattingly Meloney... opens our eyes to a woman who should be a household name."—Kirkus Reviews (starred)

"A meticulously researched and readable biography that will engage readers interested in women's history and journalism, and in 20th-century social reform."—Library Journal

"Des Jardins makes a convincing case for Meloney's crucial role in showing American women how to flex their political muscle. Readers interested in women's issues will find this to be a valuable contribution to the subject."— Publishers Weekly

"JulieDes Jardins brings her considerable skill and insight to a biography of Missy Meloney, a pioneering newspaper editor, an advisor to presidents and policy makers, a friend to Eleanor Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover, and a mentor to artists, writers, and scientists throughout the first half of the 20th century. Des Jardins explores the impact of a gender ideology that forced women like Meloney to couch their unprecedented achievements in the male public sphere as feminine sacrifice. In this compelling study, Des Jardins brings Missy Meloney out of the shadows and allows her at last the public acclaim she deserves."—Carol Berkin, PresidentialProfessor of History, Emerita, CUNY and editor of the series Lives of AmericanWomen

"Missy Meloney was a uniquely powerful woman-and she used that power not to advance her own career (impressive as it was), but to advance the careers of other women and the causes they cared most deeply about. Her fingerprints are all over early 20th century politics, mass media, and popular culture but we are only now seeing them thanks to Julie Des Jardins's intimate and groundbreaking biography."—Susan Ware, author of WhyThey Marched: Untold Stories of the Women Who Fought for the Right to Vote

"Julie Des Jardins has done a fine job conjuring Missy Meloney as a force of nature and championing a woman who was herself a champion — especially of strong women. As a journalist, editor, and publicist, Meloney was skilled at diverting attention toward others, yet in American Queenmaker, Des Jardins has placed Meloney at center stage."—Susan Quinn, author of Marie Curie: A Life and Eleanor and Hick: The Love Affair that Shaped a First Lady

From the Publisher

01/01/2020

Des Jardins (Walter Camp) profiles a remarkable yet relatively unknown figure in American history who dedicated her life to advancing the careers of other women and to bringing women's issues and needs into a public forum. Although not a suffragist or feminist, Missy Mattingly Meloney (1878–1943) best represents the so-called "New Women," who exercised control over their social and political lives in the early 20th century. A journalist by occupation, Meloney was also an energetic social reformer and confidante of Eleanor Roosevelt. Based on meticulous archival research, this book details the vast array of projects in which Meloney was involved: arranging Marie Curie's fundraising tours throughout America, campaigning to promote women's college education, advising politicians on strategies to secure women's votes, championing the Better Homes in America movement, and spearheading relief efforts during World War I. Without idealizing her subject, the author carefully points out Meloney's contradictions and inconsistencies. Meloney led an amazingly productive life despite living with chronic health conditions, challenging us to reimagine our definitions of powerful women. VERDICT A meticulously researched and readable biography that will engage readers interested in women's history and journalism, and in 20th-century social reform.—Marie M. Mullaney, Caldwell Coll., NJ

Library Journal

★ 2019-11-10
The first biography of Marie Mattingly Meloney (1878-1943), "a journalist, publicist, social reformer, mother, rainmaker, diplomat, political operative, and patron of women, the arts and sciences."

After her father's death, Missy (as the author refers to her throughout) used her literary and social knowledge to introduce herself into Washington, D.C., society and the sophisticated world of statesmen and men of letters. She began a lifetime of making contacts and went on to have a "public impact [that] reverberated broadly," writes former history professor Des Jardins (Walter Camp: Football and the Modern Era, 2015, etc.), a board member of the National Women's History Project. A fall from a horse left Missy with a permanent limp, and her recurring battles with a tubercular lung could have condemned her to a restricted life. However, "she vowed never to be the unavailable convalescent her mother had been." When the Washington Post published her letter promoting a church, a journalist was born. Not long after, she captured a scoop on Spanish-American War hero George Dewey. Missy delivered not only a story, but also photos and connections to famous neighbors, whom she knew personally. As Des Jardins clearly demonstrates, she never stopped looking beyond the story. In 1900, she went to Colorado to recuperate from a TB attack and returned home as the Denver Post's Washington correspondent—at age 18. One of Missy's strengths was her patience. Whether seeking a story, convincing someone to write for her national publication, This Week, or gaining access to the Senate press gallery, she waited, worked, and always succeeded. What she discovered along the way was the strength of women's ability to accomplish things through contacts and friendships. Without the vote, titles, or positions, one could still master the art of influence. Missy's network extended across Europe and America and the political and intellectual spectrums. Marie Curie, Eleanor Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, and Lou and Herbert Hoover are only some of the people whose lives she affected. Her accomplishments were vast, and Des Jardins capably brings them to light.

The author opens our eyes to a woman who should be a household name.

Kirkus Reviews