Betty Lee Bloomingdale ( Newling; August 2, 1922 – July 19, 2016) was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was considered a fashion icon, first appearing on the International Best Dressed List in 1962, and in 1970 was named in the list's Hall of Fame. Bloomingdale attended the Marlborough School in Hancock Park.

On September 14, 1946, she married Alfred S. Bloomingdale, the son of Rosalind (née Schiffer) and Hiram Bloomingdale, and the grandson of Lyman G. Bloomingdale, a co-founder of the department store Bloomingdale's. The couple settled in Bel Air, Los Angeles and had three children:

  • Lisa Bloomingdale (born 1951), who married R. McKim "Kim" Bell in 1974
  • Robert Russell Bloomingdale (born 1954), who married Justine Hayward Schmidt in 1979

Lifestyle

In the early 1960s, Bloomingdale began travelling to Paris regularly to view and purchase haute couture clothing. Over the coming decades, she amassed a collection of over 100 gowns and outfits.

When her husband died of cancer, a media scandal ensued over his estate. Bloomingdale had cut off a financial allowance to her husband's mistress Vicki Morgan in 1981. On his death, Morgan took her 12-year relationship with Alfred public. Bloomingdale's life, marriage and the affair were the basis of Dominick Dunne's novel An Inconvenient Woman.

Bloomingdale was a frequent party host, mainly for charity, for which she was dubbed "Good Queen Betts". She was well known for her attention to detail, keeping copious notes of each dinner party she hosted, including a photo of the place setting, the menu, the seating arrangement, and her outfit, so that guests would never dine on the same dishes or see her in the same gown twice. Bloomingdale published a book on entertaining and hosting, Entertaining With Betsy Bloomingdale: A Collection of Culinary Tips and Treasures From the World’s Best Hosts and Hostesses, in 1994.

Her social circle included Nancy Reagan, Joan Collins, Joan Rivers, Lauren Bacall and Nan Kempner. Her friendship with Reagan began in the 1950s, and was so close that Bloomingdale became known as the "First Friend" during the Reagan presidency.

She was the subject of an exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in 2009; "High Style: Betsy Bloomingdale and the Haute Couture," displayed 60 of her haute couture gowns.

Death

Bloomingdale died on July 19, 2016, at her home in Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, from complications from a heart condition. She was 93 years old.