Lorena Hickok
20th-century American journalist / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Lorena Alice "Hick" Hickok (March 7, 1893 – May 1, 1968) was a pioneering American journalist and long-term romantic interest[1] of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.[2]
Lorena Hickok | |
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Born | Lorena Alice Hickok (1893-03-07)March 7, 1893 East Troy, Wisconsin, U.S. |
Died | May 1, 1968(1968-05-01) (aged 75) Hyde Park, New York, U.S. |
Resting place | Rhinebeck Cemetery (Hyde Park, New York, U.S.) |
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Occupation(s) | journalist, public relations official |
Known for | journalism, relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt |
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After an unhappy and unsettled childhood, Hickok found success as a reporter for the Minneapolis Tribune and the Associated Press (AP), becoming America's best-known female reporter by 1932. After covering Franklin D. Roosevelt's first presidential campaign, Hickok struck up a close relationship with the soon-to-be First Lady, and travelled with her extensively. The nature of their relationship has been widely debated, especially after 3000 of their mutual letters were discovered, confirming physical intimacy (Hickok was known to be a lesbian). The closeness of their relationship compromised Hickok's objectivity, leading her to resign from the AP and work as chief investigator for the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA). She later promoted the 1939 New York World's Fair, and then served as executive secretary of the Women's Division of the Democratic National Committee, living mostly at the White House, where Hickok had a conjoining room with the First Lady. Hickok was the author of several books.