Pearl mesta

Pearl Mesta (center) with US President Harry S. Truman and First Lady Bess Truman (1949)

Perle Mesta (born October 12, 1889 in Sturgis , St. Joseph County , Michigan , † March 16, 1975 in Oklahoma City , Oklahoma ; actually Perle Reid Skirvin Mesta ) was an American society lady and US ambassador to Luxembourg . Her person inspired the composer Irving Berlin to write the musical Call Me Madam .

Early years

Perle Mesta was born Pearl Reid Skirvin in Sturgis, Michigan and moved to Oklahoma City in 1906. Her father Bill Skirvin was a typical self-made man , who in Texas on oil had reached and thus a fortune had made (which was built by him Skirvin Hilton is still to visit in Oklahoma City). In 1917 Perle married the Pittsburgh manufacturer George Mesta. She first came into contact with Washington politics as a companion to her 54-year-old husband, who was an advisor to President Woodrow Wilson during the First World War . After the war, the couple made extensive trips to Europe. When George Mesta died in 1925, his widow, who was only 36 years old, was already able to fall back on contacts from business and politics. The pearl Mesta, which has now become wealthy through several inheritances, moved several times and finally settled in Newport , Rhode Island in 1929 . There she soon rose to become one of the most influential hosts of events for politicians and people in their vicinity.

The political hostess

Around 1935, Perle Mesta also began to become more involved in political issues. She campaigned for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (the draft constitutional amendment that is supposed to guarantee equality between men and women according to the constitution, but has not yet been ratified) and joined the National Woman's Party , where she temporarily took over public relations . In terms of party politics, Mesta was initially a supporter of the Republicans , but switched to the Democratic camp in 1940 . In the same year she moved to Washington, DC , and later supported Harry S. Truman's presidential candidacy there .

After the successful outcome of the election, he showed his appreciation by sending Mesta as the first US ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (until then, diplomatic relations were maintained through the US embassy in Belgium ). This caused a sensation at the time not only because Mesta was one of the first women in US history to hold a diplomatic post, but rather because of her down-to-earth personality and her direct, anything but diplomatic manner Mesta remained in this role from 1949 to 1953. For her services, the state honored her as the first woman with the highest honor it has to bestow, the Order of the Oak Crown .

More important than her diplomatic mission, however, was the role Perle Mesta played as the political hostess in Washington. During the 1940s and 1950s, parties that were organized by her were considered a major social event in the circles of political celebrities, where everything of name and status met. An invitation was a sure sign that the aspirant had made it into the closest circles of political high society. In this context, Perle Mesta's nickname - "The Hostess with the Mostes'" (a play on words that translates loosely as "The hostess who has the best [sic!] To offer" ) was born: On the lush The festivities were celebrated exuberantly, the physical well-being of all those present was always well taken care of, the alcohol flowed in rivers (ironically, Mesta, who was a follower of Christian Science , never drank a drop herself). The social influence of Perle Mesta was at times so significant that Time Magazine dedicated the cover story and the cover to her on May 14, 1949. Mesta was still active as a political host until the 1970s, but her influence declined significantly with the inauguration of John F. Kennedy and the changing social climate.

Perle Mesta died at the age of 85 on March 16, 1975 in Oklahoma City.

The musical Call Me Madam

The uniquely personal style of Perle Mesta as ambassador to Luxembourg inspired the composer Irving Berlin to the musical Call Me Madam , the later by Walter Lang also made into a film was (in German-speaking countries under the title Madame makes history (s) unknown). In both productions, the role of Mrs. Sally Adams, for whom Perle Mesta was the model, was played by the then celebrated musical star Ethel Merman .

A song in the musical ( "The Hostess With the Mostes' on the Ball" ) alludes to the nickname Mestas. The title of the musical itself should also go back to a saying by the former diplomat. When asked which form of address she preferred, she is said to have replied: "Call me Madam Minister" . This was then shortened to "Call Me Madam" .

literature

• Pearl Skirvin Mesta: My Story . McGraw-Hill, New York 1960.
• Paul Lesch: Playing Her Part: Perle Mesta in Luxembourg . American Chamber of Commerce in Luxemburg, Luxemburg 2001.
• Paul Lesch: Call Her Madam . Samsa 1997. (Documentary)

Web links

• Perle Mesta in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• Time Magazine cover story from March 14, 1949