AS THE MONEY BURNS

Podcast by Nicki Woodard

Episode 125 – World’s Worst Gigolo

Outline

Divorce

Insults and accusations

Series Tag

00:00

[Music – My Heart Belongs to Daddy by Billy Cotton, Album The Great British Dance Bands]

AS THE MONEY BURNS is an original podcast by Nicki Woodard.  Based on historical research, this is a deep exploration into what happened to a set of actual heirs and heiresses to some of America’s most famous fortunes when the Great Depression hits.

Each episode has three primary sections.  Section 1 is a narrative story.  Section 2 goes deeper into the historical facts.  Section 3 focuses on contemporary, emotional, and personal connections.   

00:30

Story Recap

Young Alfie Vanderbilt Jr. turns 21 and comes into his fortune, as Doris Duke fights for her fortune and wins against the tax man.

Now back to AS THE MONEY BURNS

Title

00:47

World’s Greatest Gigolo

[Music Fade Out]

Episode Tag

Some weddings might be grand, but nothing catches more attention than a good divorce scandal.

01:01

[Music – Did You Mean It? By Jack Hylton, Album The Great British Dance Bands]

Section 1 – Story

[Music Fade Out]

01:18

Glamour and romance are great but ever so fleeting.  One can fall just as out of love as in love, but that road is not quite so sweet.  Adding a royal or fortune into the mix amplifies both sunnier and darker feelings with the glare of publicity.

Isn’t marrying a prince supposed to guarantee a happily ever after?  Though dragons, in various forms, might appear almost anywhere when a horde of gold is at stake.

01:49

The elaborate wedding of ruggedly handsome, no longer impoverished Russian Prince Alexis Mdivani to the emerging fashionista, slightly less chubby American heiress Barbara Hutton has taken over as a sensation.

Their scandalous and titillating love story during the dark and dreary Great Depression has ignited a spark of interest on both them and those near them.

As if they alone were not enough, Alexis is part of the “Marrying Mdivanis” – 5 siblings “dispossessed” of their royal lifestyle from the now Soviet Union state of Georgia.  Along with other aristocratic and royal families fleeing the Russian Revolution to various parts of Europe and America, these siblings marry and sometimes impoverish wealthy and elite spouses.

Only marrying well isn’t their only skill. 

02:42

Friday, August 25^th, 1933, Los Angeles

Alas, the two older brothers Prince Serge Mdivani and Prince David Mdivani have found themselves in divorce court with their soon to-be-former spouses opera singer Princess Mary McCormic Mdivani and actress-singer-dancer Princess Mae Murray Mdivani, respectively.  The formerly wealthy, now struggling wives are requesting spousal support and to keep invested interests in the Mdivani shares in the Pacific Shore Oil Company.  The two brothers find themselves in 3 Los Angeles courts battling over those same oil shares due to unpaid debts.

Meanwhile…

03:26

Monday, September 4^th, 1933, Biarritz, France

Many fashionable elites gather at the polo fields.  The Prince of Wales – Prince David, future King Edward VIII – Duke of Windsor – is seen giving out the polo trophy to the team comprising of Lord Mountbatten and Prince Alexis Mdivani. 

03:47

While the crowd may enjoy the sport, the real competition comes from the fashions.  Earlier by the pool, the handsome Prince of Wales sports red trunks while his not-so-secret and likely already replaced paramour Lady Thelma Morgan Furness wears a scarlet one piece.  At the fields, Lady Furness wears white with a large white Panama hat.  The American born Princess Marquesa de Portago dresses in blue with a small white hat.  Actress Lily Damita wears a nearly translucent white suit, and another lady dresses in chartreuse.  But eyes really are focused on the newest and most intriguing fashionista – the newly married Princess Barbara Hutton Mdivani, who wears a dark blue dress with white dots of varying sizes, a string of pearls, and a sparkling engagement ring.

04:38

Barbara is indeed now a fashion icon with people mimicking and taking significant interest in her style.  With the assistance of her enigmatic seductress sister-in-law Princess Roussadana “Roussie” Mdivani Sert, Barbara has a small picture photo by Cecil Beaton featured in August 1933 Vogue.  Barbara’s black enamel painted nails are copied by others in Biarritz.  Her black pearl engagement ring leads to a rush in buying the smoky gems from New York jewelers.  Her Chanel shantung with stars printed on red is turned into pajamas.  Another silk dress from her wedding attire copied.  Even 30 miniature replicas of her shoes with buckles and Mdivani coronets are created for a special exhibition in Paris.

05:23

But being a glamorous newlywed can come with some downsides.  All the public attention doesn’t necessarily bring out the best in gossip tidbits.

Like little news pieces on how her husband Prince Alexis owes the Nevsky Church for their June wedding.  It seems the Prince might have made the $1200 donation (almost $29.5k in 2025), but according to Archpriest Jacob Smirnoff the costs for renovations and the elaborate ceremony exceeded that amount by $300 (close to $7k in 2025).  Finally, Barbara’s father the astute Franklyn Hutton pays the overdue bill dismissing the claims and explains that it is he who handles his daughter’s bills as she is still legally a minor until her 21^st birthday this upcoming November.

06:11

Yet as the newly minted Princess Mdivani’s life might be enviably glamorous, her soon to be former sisters-in-law crumble into the scandalous.

Shameless doesn’t even seem to do justice to all the reports in the press as things get heated and shall we say quite dirty.

Mary requests $600 in alimony (roughly $14,660 in 2025) in addition to the $40k loan (nearly $977,500 today) loan she made to her husband for the Pacific Shore Oil Company shares. 

She claims that she received a black eye from Serge, who later retorts that if such a ridiculous thing happened that it only proves he is a He-man.

06:56

Both David and Serge insist their wives stopped working during their marriage, and that the women should be totally subservient to their husbands.  The men lived large, too large, devouring their wives fortune.  Mary’s not only had to deal with the expense of Serge but the implosion of the Insull energy empire eliminating a large portion of her wealth as well.

Naturally, upon separating from their husbands, both talented ladies immediately head back to work.

07: 24

Along with the Paris news, other stories pop up.  A Lindbergh kidnapping clue in France is another false alarm.  Meanwhile, the famous aviator and his wife travel to Russia, while back in the United States, some divorces devolve into more scandal.

Seduction is oh so grand and delicious as it is happening.  But when seduction comes with a motive such as securing a fortune, the dark side inevitably comes.  Somewhere at some time, the dream turns into a nightmare. 

07:57

The young impetuous minor heiress Janet Snowden is trying to divorce Prince Caravita after less than a 5 day marriage.  For an annulment, her grounds are that her Prince was a washout as a bridegroom whose kisses left her cold and that their marriage remained loveless for their 5 nights together.  She also claims he plans to live in Italy and doesn’t have his own fortune, but rather one doled out by his mother.  The Latin princeling is one of the most famous racing motorists in Italy, and Prince Caravita contends that Janet is actually in love with the Portuguese pretender John de Braganza.

Ah, young Janet is not the only bitter and shameless ex to throw out too much in the press.

08:38

With headlines like “Singer’s Husband Names Fugitive In Divorce Action,” there is going to be a lot, A LOT of attention.

Monday, September 25^th, 1933

In a Los Angeles court, Prince Serge files his divorce charges and makes some jaw dropping claims.  The press is having a field day.

09:04

The fake royal Prince Serge claims that during their marriage his songbird wife was allegedly running around behind his back with the now fugitive 76 year old Samuel Insull in 1931 and 1932 until the latter fled the country.  Unsavory gossip plagued Serge that Mary and Insull had multiple and ongoing secret meetings. 

The formerly charming Prince Serge also claims that Mary would have bouts of drunkenness and cruelty.  In one instance, she slaps him at a club in front of friends, then chases him outside to attempt another strike while he is in the car.  Once back in their hotel residence, in protection, he locks himself in his separate room, in which she breaks into then tore the clothing from his back.  As a result, Serge had to remain at home for four days in recovery and shame.

09:53

Now despite all the back and forth, it is noted that Serge has advanced funds to support Mary’s daughter Reba McCormic. 

Umm, what?  There’s a daughter? 

10:04

Reba is from Mary’s first marriage to Kenneth Rankin in 1908.  During Mary’s second marriage to Chicago mob lawyer Chester MacCormic (Macomic – Macormac), she changed to McCormic keeping a spelling error made by a Chicago Civic Opera employee.  However that secret marriage is not valid as Chester had not divorced his other wife. 

Serge might be Mary’s 3^rd husband?… 

Reba was born in 1910 so would already be 23 in 1933, so why the need for support?…

10:42

As for the Chicago utilities magnate whose empire imploded in 1932, before he could be charged Insull fled to Greece, where he still faces extradition attempts.  Insull had long been a leader in the Chicago arts and music scene and instrumental in the construction of as well as the performance arrangements for the Chicago Civic Opera House.

11:00

Coincidentally in April 1933, Insull is also named as a paramour in another Chicago opera divorce between another soprano and composer Marion Campbell and her Native American husband writer and lecturer Nipo (Nippo) Strongheart.  Nipo too claims Insull was the other man. 

But overall there are more severe and disastrous associations, many opera stars invested in Insull’s utility enterprises thus lost their own fortunes when his empire collapsed.  Serge and Mary too are investigated for loans made by Insull to the couple and thus pursued by creditors trying to recover some of the losses.

11:41

Arriving in Chicago, the soon to-be former Princess Mdivani – Mary appears for a brief engagement before she continues a tour in New York then onto to Europe and eventually Russia and possibly the Soviet state of Georgia, yes as in the former home of the Mdivani clan and referenced as a sheep raising country in south Russia. 

In replying to a flurry of press questions, Mary is quite upset that her dear friend is being dragged into this mess.  She claims that she and Insull have a sincere and wholesome friendship.

12:15

Mary retorts Serge is being vindictive since Insull refused to meet the prince directly.  Actually, the Arkansas born and Texas raised Mary uses more colorful language such as –

“Prince Mdivani is a mosquito, the world’s worst gigolo, and has a peanut brain.”  In another, she calls him the “world’s greatest gigolo” for his ability to seduce then financially drain his target.  She states he is “quixotic, impulsive, arrogant, vain, unmanageable, impractical, and one of the tenderest, most loveable liars I had ever had to deal with.”  

However once the marriage is secured, his charm fades quickly and is replaced with controlling, jealousy, greed, abuse, and lots of cheating on his side.  Mary further notes Serge didn’t have a red cent to his name when they got together, and every dime they had was due to her.

13:14

In her defense, Mary gives several interviews on the subject detailing their first meeting and falling in love, her resistance and eventual inevitable enchantment, conveniently leaving out the detail that Serge was married to silent silver screen siren Pola Negri at the time.  The latter’s divorce too made headlines as it was apparent then Mary would be wife number 2.

Thus it might be not so surprising, that Pola too has appeared in the headlines.  The former ex-wife and Princess Mdivani – Pola supports her former rival stating –

“I can sympathize with Miss McCormic over Serge’s divorce tactics.  There is no use mincing words.  Mary is right when she says Mdivani is one the world’s greatest gigolos.  The Mdivani Chapter was one of the most bitter in my life; I’m finished with it.”

14:09

Luckily, Pola finds herself more in the papers these days in relation to her potential impending engagement to Harvester millionaire Harold McCormick (unrelated to Mary and last name spelled differently too).  Over the past several months, Pola and Harold have been spotted in all the fashionable resorts in Paris and on the Riviera.  Harold is the former husband of Edith Rockefeller and secondly to Polish opera singer Ganna Walska.  For the latter, Harold supported her unsuccessful opera career and earlier had thwarted the promising Cowgirl soprano Mary’s own earlier entrée into the Chicago Civic Opera.  However that disappointment led to a brief shake up at the opera house and Mary coming under the tutelage of renowned opera singer and prima donna Mary Garden (who also mentored Cobina Wright) as well as Mary befriending her longtime friend and somewhat patron Insull.  

Too bad both proteges ignored Mary Garden’s most important advice – a career in opera requires more than talent, but hardwork and sacrifice, great sacrifice, her own unequaled success due to simple living and no marriage, which also means no children.

15:27

Wednesday, September 27^th, 1933, Athens, Greece

The former utilities baron and foxy grandpa Insull merely laughs and shrugs his shoulders over all the hoopla.  His only true concern is evading a second extradition trial to prevent returning to the U.S. to face charges involving his collapsed empire.

Sometimes the happily ever after might be more happily in the after when a failed romance finally ends…