February 9, 2017

by Cynthia Gunnells

There is not much I can write about Grey Gardens – the 14-room estate located feet from the sea at 3 West End Road in East Hampton, Long Island – or its infamous residents that has not already been documented.

While the estate has been available to rent since late last year, I gleefully found out – on my birthday of all days – that the mansion is on the market for the first time in nearly 40 years. (Update: read about the estate sale, here.)

The tale of Grey Gardens and the two Edie Beales first came to light in October 1971, when the Suffolk County Health Department raided the house after a tip that the mother-daughter duo was living in squalor with an array of cats, raccoons and garbage. Once the media got wind of the fact they were the aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, the fervor grew. Then, the Maysles brothers, who were considering a documentary on Jackie’s sister Lee Radziwill, met the Beales, and the rest is cinematic history.

Grey Gardens: The Staunchest Character of All

While Jackie Onassis funded the initial cleanup and repair of Grey Gardens after the raid and subsequent media coverage, the invasion of privacy, embarrassment and fear of a repeat attack haunted the Beales for the rest of their lives.

“You know they can get you in East Hampton for wearing red shoes on a Thuuursday, and all that sort of thing,” Little Edie exclaimed in her trademark, high-pitched, studied, New England squall. “I don’t know whether you know that. I mean, do you know that? They can get you for almost anything!”

The mansion is as much a character in this story as the women themselves. As the world around them moved on, the Edies stayed protected and comforted behind the rotting walls of Grey Gardens, suspended in time together for decades.

For a real look at the Beales, check out My Life at Grey Gardens: 13 Months and Beyond. Written by Lois Wright, a friend of the duo and houseguest in 1975, this book gives readers a true look at the day-to-day lives of these women – how they would lock themselves in the house (and others out); what they thought of the documentary; how they existed in a codependent self-made reality in the winter with no heat, and in the summer covered with fleas; and how Little Edie dealt with the death of her mother who, incidentally, suffered for months at home after a mysterious fall left her with a broken leg and infected bedsores before finally agreeing to go to the hospital to die. She knew if she perished at Grey Gardens, the police and coroner would have to come inside and subject her beloved daughter to another raid.

Little Edie would go on to live at Grey Gardens alone, for two more years, before selling it to Ben Bradlee, former Executive Editor of the Washington Post, and his wife, journalist Sally Quinn, for a mere $220,000 and a promise that they’d renovate the house rather than tear it down. You can read about it and view the photo essay.

Grey Gardens is simply priceless, but if you have a cool 20 mil it can be yours. However, the Edies will live on in that summer house behind the hedgerow – a part of the story, a part of the history – forever.

For more on Grey Gardens and my visit to the estate, click here.

“[Grey Gardens] is oozing with romance, ghosts and other things.” – Little Edie