Community Corner
'Empty Mansions' Author Bill Dedman at New Canaan Library
See Pulitzer Prize Winner Bill Dedman speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15 at New Canaan Library about his book "Empty Mansions," about heiress Huguette Clark, and the sprawling 12,000 square foot New Canaan mansion that she never inhabited.
Bill will be at the Library on Tuesday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m.
Just released, Dedman's latest book, Empty Mansions is the fascinating story of heiress Huguette Clark, and the sprawling 12,000 square foot New Canaan mansion that she never inhabited. Mr. Dedman will speak about his book and the absorbing story behind it when he appears at New Canaan Library on Tuesday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m. The event is co-sponsored by the New Canaan Historical Society and Elm Street Books and will take place in the Library’s Adrian Lamb Room.
Written in collaboration with Huguette’s cousin Paul Clark Newell, Jr., Dedman reveals much more than the story behind the mysterious French chateau-style mansion sitting on 52 acres. Through careful research, some of which was done through the New Canaan Historical Society, Dedman creates a multi-layered portrait of the mysterious Huguette, her closest confidants (including her French boyfriend) and her complex family. The daughter of self-made copper industrialist W. A. Clark, Huguette grew up surrounded by extraordinary wealth and privilege, in the splendor of a New York City mansion. A lover of art and music, bright and talented, Huguette, at an early age, began to secret herself away from the public eye. Though she was reclusive, she did keep contact with select family members and friends, and, despite owning palatial homes all over the country, Huguette spent more than 20 years living in one room in a New York hospital. Dedman also details the on-going legal battles for her fortune that her remaining extended family has been waging since her death.
Bill Dedman is an investigative reporter for NBC. In 1989 he received the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting for his work for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He got his start in journalism at age 16 as a copy boy at The Chattanooga Times, and has written for The Boston Globe, The Washington Post and The New York Times.
For additional information on this event and the Authors on Stage series please contact the Library at 203-594-5003, or visit newcanaanlibrary.org. This library program is free and open to the public.
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