Brooke Astor: Famous Socialite Robbed
The Perfect Scam
AARP
4.5 • 1.1K Ratings
🗓️ 31 August 2018
⏱️ 27 minutes
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Summary
A prominent philanthropist and the epicenter of the New York society scene, Brooke Astor lived a tumultuous but glamourous 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 | Coming up on AARP the perfect scam. My father was trying to convince his mother that she was running out of money. |
| 0:08.0 | He had so, so much undue influence had been imposed on her. Here she thinks she's being |
| 0:14.6 | completely broke and he's just selling stuff left and right. |
| 0:20.3 | For AARP, The Perfect Scam Podcast. I'm your host Will Johnson. I'm joined once again in the studio by the AARP Fraud Watch Network |
| 0:29.5 | Ambassador Frank Abignell. I will. Great to be with you again. |
| 0:33.0 | Well, this week's scam is one that highlights the dangers and prevalence of financial elder abuse or |
| 0:38.7 | financial exploitation. |
| 0:40.8 | It's the story of the late Brookaster in how she became a victim at the hands of her own son. |
| 0:46.0 | It's a story of a stolen fortune, a fight for guardianship, and a family's broken trust. Brooke Astor defined New York society. |
| 0:55.0 | She was classy, glamorous, smart, and funny. |
| 1:01.0 | And for much of her life she was in charge of the Vincent Astor Foundation |
| 1:04.6 | her third husband's legacy dedicated to the alleviation of human suffering. |
| 1:08.6 | When Vincent Astor died in 1959 he left his fortune to the cause, and Brooke Astor took over. |
| 1:15.4 | But the final years of her life before she died in 2007 at the age of 105 were overshadowed |
| 1:21.4 | by a nightmarish scenario at the hands of her only son from her first marriage, |
| 1:25.9 | Anthony Marshall. |
| 1:27.3 | He and a family lawyer stole tens of millions from Brooke Astor after she was diagnosed |
| 1:32.2 | with Alzheimer's disease. They were |
| 1:34.2 | eventually convicted of the crime. It was Anthony Marshall's own son, Philip |
| 1:38.2 | Marshall, who came to his grandmother's rescue in a well-publicized case that |
| 1:42.3 | captured headlines and brought together a cast of |
| 1:44.8 | Brooke Astor's famous friends. Philip Marshall never intended to pursue a |
... |
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