Wikipedia

Cindy Adams

Cynthia Heller Adams (born April 24, 1930)[1][2] is an American gossip columnist and writer. She is the widow of comedian/humorist Joey Adams.

Cindy Adams
Adams at the première of Spider-Man 3 at the Tribeca Film Festival 2007
Born (1930-04-24) April 24, 1930 (age 94)
NationalityAmerican
Occupations
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1952; died 1999)​

Career

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Writing

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Since 1979, Adams has written a gossip column for the New York Post, a New York City newspaper that has featured approximately 500 of her stories on its front cover.[3] She became a syndicated columnist in 1981. She is known for ending her columns with the catch phrase: "Only in New York, kids, only in New York."[4]

Adams wrote for local papers, including, eventually, the New York Post at the same time as her husband, who wrote a newspaper column for the Long Island Press and later the New York Post. In 1965, she co-wrote an autobiography of Indonesian president Sukarno, about whom she wrote another book two years later, during which he had been toppled. Among those whom she interviewed in 1970 was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the shah of Iran. Adams also became friendly with Imelda Marcos, the controversial widow of former Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos. In 1975, Adams co-wrote an autobiography of Jolie Gabor, the mother of the Gabor sisters.[5][6]

In 2003, Cindy Heller Adams authored a St Martin's Publishing Group publication titled The gift of Jazzy, a memoir of appreciation for her pet dog.[7] She authored a sequel in 2006, titled Living a dog's life: Jazzy, Juicy, and me.[8][9][10] The introduction to the book includes a comical note from the author: "Neither Jazzy nor Juicy had any hand in the writing of this book. The creativity is strictly mine. And let it be known, some of the names, places, and incidents have been changed to protect the guilty."[11]

Television

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Adams was an original contributor to the syndicated, tabloid television show A Current Affair. She has appeared often on Good Morning America, a morning news-and-talk show on the ABC television network. In 1990, she served as a panelist on To Tell the Truth, an NBC television network game show.

Adams also contributed twice a week to the Live at Five newscast on WNBC television,[12] and then to the station's Sunday Today in New York newscast.[13]

Animal activism

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After the death of Joey Adams, Cindy's husband of nearly 47 years, a friend gave her a new loving, loyal companion to help fill the void, a canine named Jazzy.[14] The Yorkshire Terrier trailed her in public and became a minor celebrity himself. Adams and Jazzy would often dine together in New York City's finest restaurants, including Le Cirque.[15] Adams dresses her dogs in expensive designer clothes and jewelry.[16]

One weekend, Adams put Jazzy in an upstate New York kennel when she left the city. By the time she returned, Jazzy had died.[17][18] She had a necropsy performed, which showed E. coli bacteria in the dog's system. In an article published in The New York Times, Adams was quoted as saying, "Now this is a dog that I hand-fed. I would lie on my stomach in the kitchen and hand-feed him kosher chicken. We would go to Le Cirque and eat off of Limoges porcelain. Where would he get E. coli?"[17]

She became a vocal advocate for strengthening regulations of boarding kennels.[19] In 2004, she garnered the support of television journalist Barbara Walters, socialite Ivana Trump, attorney Barry Slotnick, writer Tama Janowitz, and New York City Council Speaker Gifford Miller, to pass the Boarding Kennel and Regulation Act, also known as "Jazzy's Law".[17] According to Adams, "To prevent others from suffering my Jazzy['s] pain, this local 'Boarding Kennel and Regulation Act' will: license kennels, monitor them regularly, fine those in violation, require records and rules, demand boarded pets prove vaccination and immunization against contagious doggy diseases."[20] Despite the increasingly strict New York City health code, which permits only service animals in restaurants, Adams continues to bring her dogs to New York City restaurants.[13]

Personal life

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Early life and education

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Cynthia Heller was an only child.[2] Following her parents' divorce when she was 1, young Cynthia was raised by her single mother Jessica, later joined by stepfather Harry Heller.[14][21] Cynthia attended Andrew Jackson High School in Queens, New York, but did not graduate, citing an incomplete assignment in home economics. She received an honorary diploma in 2024.[22]

Marriage to Joey Adams

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Adams began to work as a photographer's model in Manhattan, and met her future husband, comedian/humorist Joey Adams, a year later,[2] when they appeared on the same radio show.[21] They married on Valentine's Day 1952, and had no children. Joey died in 1999, following a long illness.[23] Her words after her husband's death included:[24]

  • "My career came because I married Joey."
  • "This man gave me everything. Everything I have, I got from him. He introduced me to the world."

Doris Duke apartment

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Adams lives and works in a nine-room penthouse apartment with a 1,000-square-foot (93 m2) veranda on Park Avenue in Manhattan, which she and her husband purchased from the estate of billionaire heiress Doris Duke[3] in 1997.[25] Because of the apartment's connection with Duke, Adams hosted the wrap party for the television biographical film Bernard and Doris (2008), about Duke's later years and Duke's relationship with her butler.[26]

Illness in 2010

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Adams ceased writing her regular New York Post column in May 2010 without notice, and there was no news beyond brief mentions that she was "unwell". In late June, Liz Smith, another gossip columnist (previously with the Post), reported in her online column that Adams was ill with a stomach malady. A Christian Scientist, Adams had avoided medical help until forced by friends Barbara Walters and television judge Judith Sheindlin to obtain it; Sheindlin became Adams's healthcare proxy as Adams had no remaining immediate family. Smith reported on June 29, 2010, that "she [Adams] is now on the mend".[27] Adams's column returned to the New York Post on September 20, 2010,[28] explaining that she had had a ruptured appendix and anemia.

Books published

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  • Sukarno; Adams, Cindy Heller (1965). Sukarno – An Autobiography. Bobbs-Merrill. (Indianapolis, Indiana; Kansas City, Missouri). OCLC 256887.
  • Adams, Cindy Heller (1967). My Friend the Dictator. Bobbs-Merrill (Indianapolis, Indiana). OCLC 1129848.
  • Gabor, Jolie; Adams, Cindy Heller (1975). Jolie Gabor. Mason/Charter (New York City). ISBN 978-0-88405-125-1.
  • Adams, Cindy Heller (1980). Lee Strasberg – The Imperfect Genius of the World. Doubleday (Garden City, New York). ISBN 978-0-385-12496-6.
  • Adams, Cindy Heller; Crimp, Susan (1995). Iron Rose – The Story of Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy and Her Dynasty. Dove Books (Beverly Hills, California). ISBN 978-0-7871-0475-7.
  • Adams, Cindy (2003). The Gift of Jazzy. St. Martin's Press (New York City). ISBN 978-0-312-27307-1.
  • Adams, Cindy (2007). Living a Dog's Life – Jazzy, Juicy, and Me. St. Martin's Press (St. Martin's Griffin imprint) (New York City). ISBN 978-0-312-36407-6.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Cindy Adams: Forget Wikipedia, I'm Not 83!". HuffPost. May 11, 2009. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Jacobs, Andrew (April 3, 2006). "On Job With Empress of Celebrity Gossip". The New York Times.
  3. ^ a b Rosman, Katherine (December 21, 2016). "Want the Scoop on Team Trump? Pay Attention to Cindy Adams". The New York Times. in this large, lavish apartment, which was once owned by Doris Duke.
  4. ^ Stein, Sadie (December 5, 2019). "Cindy Adams, New York's Queen of Gossip, Keeps Everyone's Secrets". Town & Country. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  5. ^ Adams, Cindy (March 7, 2006). Living a Dog's Life: Jazzy, Juicy, and Me. Macmillan. ISBN 9780312323776. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  6. ^ Kilgannon, Corey (July 2, 2003). "Boldface Names – Only at Cindy's, Kids, Only at Cindy's". The New York Times. Retrieved July 1, 2010.
  7. ^ Adams, Cindy Heller (2003). The gift of Jazzy (1st ed.). St. Martin's Publishing Group. ISBN 9781429956895.
  8. ^ "Living a Dog's Life, Jazzy, Juicy, and Me". Goodreads. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  9. ^ Adams, Cindy Heller (2006). A dog's life: Jazzy, Juicy, and me (2nd ed.). St. Martin's Publishing Group. ISBN 9780312364076.
  10. ^ "Cindy Adams, About the Author". Macmillan Publishers.
  11. ^ Diamond, Wendy (October 17, 2006). "Cindy, Jazzy, Jr. & Juicy Adams Bark About Gossip". Animal Fair. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  12. ^ Barron, James; Stelter, Brian (March 7, 2012). "Station to Oust Anchor, Ending 'Chuck and Sue'". The New York Times. ... Cindy Adams of The New York Post, who appeared on 'Live At Five' when Ms. Simmons was one of the anchors.
  13. ^ a b Guzman, Isaac (September 27, 2009). "My New York: Cindy Adams". New York Post. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  14. ^ a b "Gossip columnist Cindy Adams' bold-faced life". CBS News. October 7, 2018. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  15. ^ Kuczynski, Alex (February 3, 2003). "At Lunch With: Cindy Adams – Listen Up: Lady Plugs Self, Dog, Not Stars". The New York Times. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  16. ^ Stuever, Hank (May 18, 2023). "I Woof New York: Cindy Adams and Her Yorkie Prove That a Little Dog Can Go a Long Way". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved April 29, 2024.
  17. ^ a b c Hu, Winnie (November 10, 2004). "Working to Save Other Yorkies from Jazzy's Fate". The New York Times. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  18. ^ Williams, Jeannie (February 2, 2003). "Cindy Adams Wags a Jazzy Dog Tale". USA Today. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  19. ^ Bernstein, Jacob (June 28, 2013). "Angst at the A.S.P.C.A." The New York Times.
  20. ^ [unreliable source?] "Kennel and Regulation Act". bernadette-peters.com.
  21. ^ a b Tallmer, Jerry (April 2006). "Cindy Adams – Present Tense". ThriveNYC. Archived from the original on October 11, 2010.
  22. ^ Hogan, Bernadette (July 16, 2024). "Cindy Adams gets high school diploma years after graduation". Spectrum News NY1. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  23. ^ Moritz, Owen (December 3, 1999). "Comic Joey Adams, 88". Daily News. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  24. ^ Alexander, John (January 5, 2017). "Born in Brooklyn: Late comedian Joey Adams would be 106: Renowned Comedian and Columnist Was Born Jan. 6, 1911". Brooklyn Daily Eagle.
  25. ^ Swanson, Carl. "Only on Park Avenue, Kids — Cindy Adams Gives Up on Plan To Sell Place for $11 Million". New York. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  26. ^ Adams, Cindy (December 12, 2005). "Wrap Party at My Apartment". New York Post.
  27. ^ Smith, Liz (June 29, 2010). "Barbara Walters Bounces Back – Also from Our Liz: Cindy Adams's 'Alternative' Medicine". wowOwow. Retrieved August 13, 2010.
  28. ^ Adams, Cindy (September 21, 2010). "Return". Detroit Free Press. p. 2D.
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