1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:02,520 Speaker 1: Teddy Roosevelt was asked by the press what he was 2 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:06,000 Speaker 1: going to do about his out of control daughter. He replied, 3 00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:08,320 Speaker 1: I can do one of two things. I can be 4 00:00:08,440 --> 00:00:11,879 Speaker 1: president of the United States, or I can attend to Alice. 5 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: I cannot possibly do both. Imagine she's your kid, or 6 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:19,680 Speaker 1: believing that you're her. I'm Patty Steele. A scandalous and 7 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:23,479 Speaker 1: fascinating teenager comes of age in the Lighthouse. Next on 8 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:29,520 Speaker 1: the backstory. She was kind of a super nova in 9 00:00:29,560 --> 00:00:33,239 Speaker 1: the public eye, anamud Washington Insiders from the age of 10 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:37,199 Speaker 1: seventeen right up until she died at ninety six. But 11 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:41,280 Speaker 1: Alice Roosevelt Longworth was a handful from birth. She loved 12 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:44,199 Speaker 1: to freak people out, including her own family. I mean, 13 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:46,720 Speaker 1: this was a woman who carried a dagger to whip 14 00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:49,199 Speaker 1: out in a crowd just for the thrill of it. 15 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:56,120 Speaker 1: Alice was the daughter of Teddy Roosevelt and his first wife, 16 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:59,280 Speaker 1: also named Alice. Her life got off to a tragic 17 00:00:59,360 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: start when her mom died just two days after giving 18 00:01:02,480 --> 00:01:06,280 Speaker 1: birth to Alice Junior, as they called her. Teddy was heartbroken, 19 00:01:06,680 --> 00:01:09,280 Speaker 1: so much so he wouldn't even call little Alice by 20 00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:12,120 Speaker 1: her name because it reminded him of his dead wife. 21 00:01:12,640 --> 00:01:16,000 Speaker 1: Trying to deal with his grief, Teddy took off, left 22 00:01:16,000 --> 00:01:18,360 Speaker 1: the baby with his sister, and went to his ranch 23 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:21,199 Speaker 1: in North Dakota, where he went a little bit nuts hunted, 24 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:24,720 Speaker 1: buffalo at one point beat up a gunfighter in a saloon. 25 00:01:25,319 --> 00:01:28,320 Speaker 1: But he finally came home two years later and he 26 00:01:28,400 --> 00:01:31,640 Speaker 1: married the I don't know sort of stuffy Edith. They 27 00:01:31,720 --> 00:01:35,640 Speaker 1: had five more kids, but Alice and Edith had issues. 28 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:39,840 Speaker 1: Edith was crazy jealous of Teddy's dead wife, and she 29 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:42,560 Speaker 1: took it out on Alice. Junior even told her that 30 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:45,319 Speaker 1: if her mom had lived, she would have bored Teddy 31 00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:49,760 Speaker 1: to death. It got worse is Alice blossomed into a 32 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:55,680 Speaker 1: very attractive but crazy, independent young woman with a magnetic personality. Plus, 33 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:58,280 Speaker 1: her dad spoiled her rotten because he felt bad about 34 00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:04,800 Speaker 1: her crummy relationship with her stepmom. Okay, now it's nineteen 35 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:09,400 Speaker 1: oh one. Teddy becomes vice president, but months later President 36 00:02:09,480 --> 00:02:14,440 Speaker 1: McKinley is assassinated and Teddy suddenly becomes the youngest president ever. 37 00:02:15,000 --> 00:02:19,160 Speaker 1: This was Alice's moment at seventeen. She was thrilled with 38 00:02:19,240 --> 00:02:23,480 Speaker 1: her new stardom, but she also hated rules not acceptable 39 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:27,320 Speaker 1: for young women during that late Victorian era. When her 40 00:02:27,320 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: stepmother tried to get Alice out of her hair by 41 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,320 Speaker 1: sending her to boarding school, Alice told her dad she 42 00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:37,079 Speaker 1: would humiliate him if he sent her away. She stayed put. 43 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:41,399 Speaker 1: The public, though, was nuts about her. The press called 44 00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:45,799 Speaker 1: her Princess Alice. She was truly a bigger celebrity than 45 00:02:46,000 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 1: like any of the Kardashians are today, because unlike today, 46 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:52,960 Speaker 1: in her day, there just weren't that many celebrities, no 47 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 1: social media, there wasn't a thing. Plus, she was beautiful, smart, vivacious, 48 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:02,040 Speaker 1: and very funny. Al would say exactly what she thought, 49 00:03:02,440 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: and she could be malicious. Screw the critics. Expectations went 50 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:10,360 Speaker 1: out the window. She'd grace her car through the streets 51 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:14,239 Speaker 1: of Washington. She played poker, She placed bets with bookies. 52 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:18,359 Speaker 1: She wore pants yikes. She partied all night with rich 53 00:03:18,400 --> 00:03:21,600 Speaker 1: folks like the Vanderbilts, and then slept till noon. At 54 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:24,440 Speaker 1: one point, the papers ran a pick of her smoking 55 00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:28,120 Speaker 1: in public. Her dad calls her into his office and says, 56 00:03:28,400 --> 00:03:31,320 Speaker 1: there will be no smoking under my roof. So what 57 00:03:31,360 --> 00:03:34,080 Speaker 1: does she do? She takes a pack of cigarettes up 58 00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:36,040 Speaker 1: on the roof of the White House and had the 59 00:03:36,080 --> 00:03:39,720 Speaker 1: press come and take photos of her puffing away not 60 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:43,920 Speaker 1: smoking under his roof. She'd love to shock folks. In 61 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:47,320 Speaker 1: addition to that dagger, she carried her pet snake in 62 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:50,320 Speaker 1: her purse or dress pocket and loved to take it 63 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:53,880 Speaker 1: out during formal events. Nothing like a could scream at 64 00:03:53,880 --> 00:03:58,040 Speaker 1: a White House dinner party. Right, and Alice was a 65 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:01,480 Speaker 1: devout feminist. She hated the idea of marriage, but she 66 00:04:01,680 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: loved men and was constantly out late at night with 67 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:08,160 Speaker 1: all sorts, even at the age of seventeen. Through it all, 68 00:04:08,280 --> 00:04:12,120 Speaker 1: the thing she loved most was publicity. In fact, she 69 00:04:12,240 --> 00:04:15,400 Speaker 1: frequently phoned in tips about her own whereabouts to the 70 00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: papers so that not only would they cover her, but 71 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:21,560 Speaker 1: she would also get cash her rewards for the info. 72 00:04:22,200 --> 00:04:25,000 Speaker 1: The public aid it up, and the White House actually 73 00:04:25,080 --> 00:04:28,280 Speaker 1: had to hire an extra secretary just to answer her 74 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:32,120 Speaker 1: fan mail, and there was a constant influx of news stories. 75 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:35,839 Speaker 1: One newspaper kept tabs on her social life, and over 76 00:04:35,880 --> 00:04:39,359 Speaker 1: the course of one fifteen month period she went to 77 00:04:39,440 --> 00:04:42,279 Speaker 1: four hundred and seven dinners, three hundred and fifty balls, 78 00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:45,880 Speaker 1: three hundred parties, six hundred and eighty t's and over 79 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:50,680 Speaker 1: seventeen hundred social calls. Finally, because she was so popular, 80 00:04:50,760 --> 00:04:53,640 Speaker 1: and maybe to get her out of town, her dad 81 00:04:53,680 --> 00:04:56,920 Speaker 1: sent her on a four month long goodwill cruise to Asia. 82 00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:00,240 Speaker 1: She got so bored on the ship one night she 83 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:03,919 Speaker 1: pushed a congressman who was formerly dressed for dinner into 84 00:05:03,920 --> 00:05:07,120 Speaker 1: the ship's swimming pool. But she came back from that 85 00:05:07,279 --> 00:05:12,520 Speaker 1: trip engaged to playboy Congressman Nicholas Longworth, who was twice 86 00:05:12,520 --> 00:05:15,520 Speaker 1: her age. He was on the ship too. They married 87 00:05:15,640 --> 00:05:19,320 Speaker 1: and years later had a daughter, or so everyone thought. 88 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 1: Late in life, Alice made it clear that little Paulina 89 00:05:23,680 --> 00:05:27,280 Speaker 1: was actually the offspring of her secret affair with a senator. 90 00:05:27,880 --> 00:05:31,679 Speaker 1: She never divorced Longworth, but they lived completely separate lives. 91 00:05:35,960 --> 00:05:39,919 Speaker 1: Alice changed radically in nineteen fifty seven when her daughter 92 00:05:40,040 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 1: died of a sleeping pill overdose. Alice became a devoted 93 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:47,599 Speaker 1: surrogate mom to her grandchild. As well as the toast 94 00:05:47,640 --> 00:05:51,960 Speaker 1: of Washington. She was admired by Republicans and Democrats alike. 95 00:05:52,320 --> 00:05:55,279 Speaker 1: She was close pals with everybody from Bobby Kennedy to 96 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:59,320 Speaker 1: Richard Nixon and Gloria Steinem. She kept a needle point 97 00:05:59,320 --> 00:06:02,640 Speaker 1: pillow which if you haven't got anything nice to say 98 00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:05,919 Speaker 1: about anyone, come and sit by me. And when it 99 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:09,600 Speaker 1: came to the sexual Revolution, she claimed she always lived 100 00:06:09,640 --> 00:06:13,880 Speaker 1: by the motto phil what's empty, empty, what's full, and 101 00:06:14,080 --> 00:06:17,680 Speaker 1: scratch where it itches. You gotta love this woman. It 102 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:21,200 Speaker 1: was a long, amazing life. Alice finally died at age 103 00:06:21,279 --> 00:06:25,280 Speaker 1: ninety six in nineteen eighty. At the time, President Carter 104 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: said she had styles, she had grace, and she had 105 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:32,159 Speaker 1: a sense of humor that kept all of Washington wondering 106 00:06:32,279 --> 00:06:35,479 Speaker 1: which was worse to be skewered by her wit or 107 00:06:35,520 --> 00:06:38,720 Speaker 1: to be ignored by her. Well, he should know. For 108 00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:42,480 Speaker 1: some reason, Alice chose to completely ignore Carter while he 109 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:46,600 Speaker 1: was in the White House. Alice Roosevelt Longworth once described 110 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:50,760 Speaker 1: her father, Teddy's love of attention by saying he always 111 00:06:50,800 --> 00:06:53,360 Speaker 1: wanted to be the corpse at every funeral, the bride 112 00:06:53,400 --> 00:06:57,000 Speaker 1: at every wedding, and the baby at every christening. But 113 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:01,440 Speaker 1: most people who knew her would say she was describing herself. 114 00:07:12,120 --> 00:07:15,880 Speaker 1: I'm Patty Steele. The Backstory is a production of iHeartMedia 115 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:19,640 Speaker 1: and Steel Trap Productions. Our producer is Doug Fraser. Our 116 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:23,520 Speaker 1: executive producer is Steve Goldstein. Of amplified media. We're out 117 00:07:23,560 --> 00:07:26,680 Speaker 1: with new episodes twice a week. Thanks for listening to 118 00:07:26,720 --> 00:07:30,000 Speaker 1: the backstory, the pieces of history you didn't know you 119 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:30,680 Speaker 1: needed to know.