A Lady, First

by Letitia Baldrige

"As young women studying at Vassar, Letitia's schoolmates were concerned with finding husbands. Letitia wanted to go to Paris. When she was told only men could get overseas diplomatic jobs, she became even more determined and landed a coveted position in the American Embassy of Paris. There she quickly learned the dos and don'ts of diplomacy while partaking in the city's lively postwar social scene - along with Jackie Bouvier, Marlene Dietrich, and Elizabeth Taylor. These experiences led to the exciting job of working for Clare Boothe Luce at the American Embassy in Rome in the early 1950s.". "Back in the United States, as the first woman executive for Tiffany & Co., Letitia Baldrige was a trailblazer in the new field of public relations, appealing to the whims and tastes of the rich and famous, and those that aspired to be. Yet it was her role as the first lady's social secretary in the Kennedy White House that proved to be her most notable - and challenging. She has been privileged t