Edith Bouvier Beale (November 7, 1917 – January 14, 2002), nicknamed Little Edie, was an American socialite, fashion model, and cabaret performer. She was a first cousin of Jacqueline Onassis and Lee Bouvier Radziwill. She is best known for her participation (along with her mother, with whom she lived) in the 1975 documentary film Grey Gardens by Albert and David Maysles. Early life Beale was born in New York City, the only daughter of Phelan Beale, a lawyer, and Edith Ewing Bouvier (known as "Big Edie"), the daughter of Phelan’s law partner, John Vernou Bouvier Jr. She was born at 1917 Madison Avenue (now the site of the Carlyle Hotel). She had two brothers, Phelan Beale Jr. and Bouvier Beale, and had a lavish upbringing as part of America's "Catholic aristocracy". Beale attended The Spence School and graduated from Miss Porter's School in 1935. Known as "Little Edie," Beale was a member of the Maidstone Country Club of East Hampton. A debutante, she was presented to society during a ball at the Pierre Hotel on New Year's Day 1936. The New York Times reported on the event, where she wore a gown of white net appliqued in silver with a wreath of gardenias in her hair. While Beale was young, her mother pursued a singing career, hiring an accompanist and playing at small venues and private parties. In the summer of 1931, Phelan Beale separated from his wife, leaving Big Edie, then 35 years old, dependent on the Bouviers for the care of herself and children. In 1946, he finally obtained a divorce, notifying his family by telegram from Mexico. In her youth, Little Edie was a clothes model at Macy's in New York and Palm Beach, Florida. She later claimed to have dated J. Paul Getty and to have once been engaged to Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (although in reality she only met him once). During the 1961 inauguration of John F. Kennedy, she told Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. that, if young Joe had lived, she would have been First Lady instead of Jackie. Once, Beale ran away to Palm Beach, where she was found by her father and brought home. From 1947 to 1952, she lived in the Barbizon Hotel for Women and worked as a model, dancer, and actress. When she was in her late 30s, Beale developed alopecia totalis which caused her body hair to fall