Doris Duke Biography
Doris Duke Biography ( 1912 – 1993 ) Tobacco heiress, philanthropist. Born November 22, 1912, in New York City. Doris Duke was the only child of American tobacco baron, James Duke, and his wife, Nanaline. When she was born, the newspapers christened her "the richest little girl in the world." However, Duke was the most reluctant of celebrities. For over 50 years, she sought to avoid the glare of publicity, hiding from cameras and refusing interviews. When she died at her Beverly Hills mansion, without family or friends, Duke’s billion-dollar legacy was left in the sole control of her butler, the semiliterate alcoholic Bernard Lafferty. In death, the reclusive Duke again became the focus of the world’s attention. The Duke family fortune was made from ...