Diamonds and Deadlines

A Tale of Greed, Deceit, and a Female Tycoon in the Gilded Age

By: Betsy Prioleau

Narrated by: Beth Hicks

Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

The first major biography of the glamorous and scandalous Miriam Leslie, titan of publishing and an unsung hero of women’s suffrage

Among the fabled tycoons of the Gilded Age—Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt—is a forgotten figure: Mrs. Frank Leslie. For twenty years she ran the country’s largest publishing company, Frank Leslie Publishing, which chronicled postbellum America in dozens of weeklies and monthlies. A pioneer in an all-male industry, she made a fortune and became a national celebrity and tastemaker in the process. But Miriam Leslie was also a byword for scandal: She flouted feminine convention, took lovers, married four times, and harbored unsavory secrets that she concealed through a skein of lies and multiple personas. Both during and after her lifetime, glimpses of the truth emerged, including an illegitimate birth and a checkered youth.

Diamonds and Deadlines reveals the unknown, sensational life of the brilliant and brazen “empress of journalism,” who dropped a bombshell at her death: She left her entire multimillion-dollar estate to women’s suffrage—a never-equaled amount that guaranteed passage of the Nineteenth Amendment. In this dazzling biography, cultural historian Betsy Prioleau draws from diaries, correspondence, genealogies, and published works to provide an intimate look at the life of one of the Gilded Age’s most complex, powerful women and unexpected feminist icons. Ultimately, Diamonds and Deadlines restores Mrs. Frank Leslie to her rightful place in history, as a monumental businesswoman who presaged the feminist future and reflected, in bold relief, the Gilded Age, one of the most momentous, seismic, and vivid epochs in American history.

©2022 Betsy Prioleau (P)2022 Recorded Books

Disappearing Act

“Diamonds and Deadlines” is a solid biography that reintroduces Miriam Leslie to the world. As an architectural historian specializing in the social history of 19th century architecture, I’m drawn to the Gilded Age. I’m even more interested in women’s stories from this period, so I jumped at this biography of Leslie. I was familiar with her husband’s name—Frank Leslie—but little did I know that Miriam was responsible for the early magazine that showcased women’s fashion in the middle of the 19th century. This was a particularly exciting tidbit for me as fashion history is another one of my interests.

Overall, Miriam Leslie’s story is quite remarkable. The fact that she was quite subversive in terms of going against established social norms is also fascinating. Her many marriages and extramarital liaisons would fit into today’s gossip rags without missing a beat.

I appreciate the author’s attempts to sketch in the background details of the momentous events that occurred during Miriam’s life. This contextualization provides important information for an assessment of Miriam’s life and actions. Ms. Prioleau emphasizes the importance of not judging Miriam by today’s standards, which is an all too common problem nowadays.

I did feel at times that Prioleau made sweeping comments about certain situations with little to no factual back-up. There is one particular statement that immediately caused me to stop in disbelief. In the discussion about Miriam’s shadowy origins, it would seem that she was born mixed race. Most likely, her mother was a woman enslaved to her father. Prioleau makes the statement that the majority of souther whites at this time had Black blood due to the abuses of slavery. Since I listened to the audio version and do not have a hard copy of the book, Prioleau may have cited sources for this statement. If so, great. If not, I find it irresponsible to drop such an explosive comment into the narrative without further explanation. While there are many documented cases of white men taking advantage of their female enslaved, to say that most white people have Black blood is ridiculous. Prioleau also fails to explain the distinct culture surrounding Black and white liaisons in New Orleans, where Miriam lived and may have been born. This culture was completely different from other southern cities/locations; readers would have benefited from a better explanation.

It was also difficult to keep up with Miriam’s love life. For instance, her fourth marriage to Willie Wilde, older brother of writer/playwright/poet Oscar Wilde, was not detailed enough. It was a short marriage, but I lost the thread of who the guy was and was very confused during the several pages devoted to that part of her life. The author surmised that the reader remembered Willie from an earlier mention and provided little context to how Miriam and he got together.

Despite this hiccup, Prioleau does a good job of bringing Miriam to life. It must have been a monumental task given that Miriam embellished and/or obfuscated details of her life. I definitely recommend this biography of a vibrant woman who has been lost to history.

Wonderful biography of forgotten gilded age publishing icon

This biography entertains and educates at the same time! It’s a well written and engaging account of the talented but flawed and colorful gilded age publishing icon, Miriam Leslie, apparently mostly now forgotten. A great way to learn about journalism, women’s issues and the allure of high society in this era. Just a great read or listen all the way through!

A forgotten historical icon

Fascinating story about a very successful businesswoman prior to women’s suffrage. Excellent narration. Hopefully, more will learn about Mrs. Frank Leslie.

French and Spanish pronounciation

I think that if one agrees to perform on an audiobook which includes many, many French and Spanish words, one should be sure to know how to pronounce them. It is annoying to grimace repeatedly while
listening to an otherwise lovely story.

Narration flawed by pronunciation errors and a lack of spontaneity

The book about Miriam Leslie is filled with interesting details about the Gilded Age, however it was written with stilted language more appropriate for an academic audience. The narration of Betsy Prioleau’s book should have been subjected to an editor’s more rigorous review. This was an unfortunate oversight.