Birthday Wish, Part 2

About this episode

Doris Duke's 21st birthday brings both celebration and danger as she navigates threats from kidnappers and ill-intentioned suitors.

A big birthday with a big inheritance comes with more attention and trouble. So would a birthday party even be worth the risk? November 1933, after Doris Duke turns 21 and receives the first portion of her inheritance, she must now face threats from kidnappers, ill-intentioned suitors, and lawsuits. Meanwhile another kidnapping situation turns deadly. Amidst the threats, Doris has a small birthday dinner party with some illustrious guests back at her mansion. Other people and subjects include: Nanaline Holt Inman Duke, James H.R. Cromwell aka “Jimmy,” Princess Barbara Hutton Mdivani, Prince Alexis Mdivani, Prince Serge Mdivani, Prince David Mdivani, Eva Stotesbury, Edward “E.T.” Stotesbury, Walker Inman, Prince Serge Obolensky, Elsa Maxwell, Maury Paul / Cholly Knickerbocker, Janet Snowden, Harold Vanderbilt aka “Mike,” Charles Lindbergh, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Mrs. Curtis Dall aka Anna Roosevelt, “Atty” Atwater Kent Jr., Secretary of War, superintendent of Annapolis, West Point graduate, Newport sheriff, Cinina Rafaela (alternate spellings Cimina – Fafeala), J. Irving Shaffer, Brooke Hart, Thomas H. Thurmond, Jack Holmes, California Governor…

People in this episode

Host: Nicki Woodard

Topics covered

• inheritance
• kidnapping
• celebration
• threats
• high society
• historical events

Keywords

• Doris Duke
• inheritance
• kidnapping
• 1933
• birthday party
• high society
• lawsuit
• celebrity

More episodes of As The Money Burns

• Kiss the Bride, Part 2 of 2 · May 29, 2026 · 32 min
• Unholy Alliance, Part 1 of 2 · April 17, 2026 · 38 min
• Glass Cage - 6th Anniversary Bonus · April 4, 2026 · 23 min
• Birthday Wish, Part 1 · February 27, 2026 · 32 min
• Million Dollar Slap · November 2, 2025 · 38 min
• Curves · October 1, 2025 · 29 min