Archive Episode: Brooke Astor, Famous Socialite Robbed
The Perfect Scam
AARP
4.5 • 980 Ratings
🗓️ 14 November 2025
⏱️ 22 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A prominent philanthropist and the center of New York society, Brooke Astor lived a tumultuous yet glamorous life. Left a fortune by her third husband, Vincent Astor, Brooke planned to live out her later years at her country estate. But when Brooke's son refuses to let her do so, then sells his mother's favorite painting (worth over $30 million), grandson Philip decides to step in. Philip's efforts to return his grandmother to the country home she loved would uncover one of the most prominent cases of financial elder abuse in U.S. history, with millions lost and a family torn apart.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This week on The Perfect Camp. |
| 0:05.2 | My father was trying to convince his mother that she was running out of money. |
| 0:10.8 | He had so, so much undue influence had been imposed on her. |
| 0:16.2 | Here she thinks she's being completely broke, |
| 0:19.1 | and he's just selling stuff left and right. |
| 0:26.3 | Welcome back to the perfect scam. I'm your host, Bob Sullivan. The famous New York |
| 0:32.8 | socialite, Brooke Astor, sometimes referred to as the unofficial first lady of New York City, |
| 0:38.9 | lived an incredible life. When she died in 2007, she was 105 years old. She was the city's |
| 0:47.8 | last tie to the gilded age. After all, she was born in 1902. But this woman of almost limitless wealth spent the last several years of her life, worried about money. |
| 1:01.0 | Her son, Anthony Marshall, was accused of elder financial abuse. |
| 1:05.0 | Eventually, the family became embroiled in a highly public legal battle over Brooke Astor's fortune and her care. |
| 1:13.5 | When her grandson, Philip Marshall, steps in to protect her, taking his own father to court, |
| 1:19.8 | New York newspapers had a field day with the proceedings. The story shed elder financial abuse |
| 1:25.8 | in a new light, starting a national conversation about |
| 1:28.7 | a problem that far too often stays hidden as a family secret. |
| 1:33.3 | Today, former perfect scam host Will Johnson talks with Philip Marshall, the grandchild |
| 1:38.2 | who stuck up for his grandmother, Brooke Astor, when she needed an advocate. |
| 1:42.8 | Since November is National Caregivers Month, we thought we'd pluck this story from our archives |
| 1:48.1 | for you while we work on all new episodes of The Perfect Scam. |
| 1:52.5 | And just so you know, AARP has lots of general resources for caregivers at aARP.org |
| 1:58.8 | slash caregiving. |
| 2:02.8 | For AARP, the Perfect Scam Podcast, I'm your host, Will Johnson. |
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