When it comes to political entertaining, Perle Mesta was the consummate hostess, known for her lavish, never-to-be-forgotten parties. She not only set the standard for subsequent generations; she is still fondly remembered in Washington, D.C. today.
Mesta is the subject of an intriguing, well-researched new biography, The Woman Who Knew Everyone: The Power of Perle Mesta -- Washington’s Most Famous Hostess (Grand Central, 376 pages), by New York Times best-selling author Meryl Gordon.
Mesta, a wealthy, larger-than-life widow who grew up as a rambunctious tomboy, had a father who taught her early on to speak her mind. As a grown woman, she had the uncanny knack for spotting and nurturing high-level political talent early on and helping to skyrocket their respective careers.
As such, she brought both political parties together to break bread, and as a key part of Washington society, she did extensive fundraising and gave lavish parties for U.S. President Harry Truman, hosted President Lydon Johnson at huge Democratic convention parties, and maintained a close friendship with Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower.
She also became closely aligned with their wives and extended family members. Her conquests included charming dignitaries, politicians, and celebrities around the world, including having an audience with King George and Queen Mary at Buckingham Palace.
“I think Perle Mesta was a pioneer; really an unsung hero,” says Gordon. “This was during the 40s and 50s, way before Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem, and there she was championing the Equal Rights Amendment.” Mesta had such significant political influence that she got the ERA into both the Republican and Democratic platforms.
White House state dinners and other opulent events in D.C. have never gone out of style. But, Gordon believes she would be unable to hold such bi-partisan parties in 2025. “I think there is too much anger on both sides today.”
Among the major revelations Gordon discovered while researching her book was that Mesta was “a woman who [initially] was worth tens of millions of dollars, but when she died, her estate was valued at less than half a million.
Gordon hadn’t realized that Mesta “had run through most of her money, spending the last 10-15 years of her life doing cross-country speaking engagements to fund her political passions.”
Mesta inherited her money from her late husband, George, a Pittsburgh steel manufacturer who died of a heart attack at age 63; she was 42 years old at the time. While he was a loving but traditional husband, he discouraged activism, and after his death, she pursued her zest for high-profile entertaining. It turns out she spent her fortune on opulent parties and was very generous to her employees.
While many of the journalists and politicians who knew Mesta have since died, and Mesta herself died, on March 16, 1975 at the age of 92, Gordon had the opportunity to dig deep into Mesta’s life, through scores of newspaper articles that featured Mesta, as well as articles that the consummate hostess penned herself.
Gordon interviewed Lyndon Johnson’s daughters and spent time at the Truman and Eisenhower Presidential Libraries. She also poured over 150 pages of notes from a Time Magazine cover story on Mesta that was donated to the New York Historical Society.
Mesta had a “reputation for putting on an elaborate spread,” according to the book, “with platters of Virginia ham, roast turkey, meatballs and pasta, and her signature drink, pink champagne,” as well as bourbon and scotch, coupled with imaginative entertainment.
Former Associated Press reporter Ann Blackman and former Washington Post feature writer Sally Quinn, who attended Mesta’s parties when they were young reporters, fondly spoke in interviews about “what a character Perle was, and about their vivid memories of the scrumptious food, and flowing champagne and liquor.”
For all of the praise and adoration from her sister, Marguerite, and her extended family and other admirers, Mesta also graciously navigated the criticism and detractors who took pleasure in disparaging her.
Mesta, who had never attended college, was named by President Truman as the first female envoy to Luxembourg, where she paid for parties for an estimated 25,000 American GIs and held toy-filled parities for war orphans.
This aspect of her life inspired the hit Broadway musical Call Me Madame, starring Ethel Merman, with songs by composer Irving Berlin, which ran for two years and was subsequently turned into a movie.
The Hostess with the Mostes’ is a moniker she was given and the title of a song from Call Me Madam, which followed her for many years.
According to the book, Mesta wanted to be known for her feminist achievements and feared, correctly, that she would be remembered for her first-class parties.
“In her day – and oh, what a day it was – she was one of the most admired and famous women in America,” we learn from Gordon’s book. “Frustrated by the obstacles put in her way, yet fundamentally happy, Perle loved her life and tried to do good. That would have to be enough.”
“In her day, [Perle Mesta] was one of the most admired and famous women in America,” from Meryl Gordon’s book, The Woman Who Knew Everyone.