Phelan Beale
| Phelan Beale | |
|---|---|
| Born |
May 23, 1881 Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | June 12, 1956 (aged 75) Pass Christian, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Alma mater |
University of the South (1902) Columbia University (1905) |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Spouse(s) |
Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale (m. 1917; div. 1946) Dorothy D. Durham (m. 1947–56) |
| Children |
Edith Bouvier Beale Phelan Beale, Jr. Bouvier Beale |
| Relatives |
John D. Phelan (grandfather) John Vernou Bouvier III (brother-in-law) |
Phelan Beale (May 23, 1881 – June 12, 1956) was an American attorney and sportsman in New York City who was married to Edith Ewing Bouvier, an aunt of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. Beale is probably best remembered as the absent father chronicled in the Grey Gardens saga portrayed in a 1975 movie documentary, 2006 Broadway musical, and 2009 HBO Film, all of which were named for his home in East Hampton, New York.
Beale was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and grew up in Montgomery, Alabama. He was the grandson of John D. Phelan (1809-1879), an Alabama Speaker of the House and Alabama Supreme Court Justice. Beale graduated from the University of the South in 1902 and from Columbia University Law School in 1905.
He formed the law practice of Bouvier and Beale with Jacqueline Onassis's grandfather, "Major" John Vernou Bouvier, Jr.
In 1917, he married Bouvier's daughter, Edith Ewing Bouvier (later nicknamed "Big Edie"). Ushers at the January 17, 1917, wedding at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City included Jackie's father John Vernou Bouvier III and W. Sergeant Bouvier. Together, they had three children:
In 1924, Beale and his wife acquired the 28-room Grey Gardens mansion fronting the ocean (the oceanfront parcels were sold much later) in the Georgica Pond neighborhood. In 1926, Beale and his wife separated and were legally divorced in 1931, but continued his presence in East Hampton. As part of the divorce, Edith was given the East Hampton house, Grey Gardens.
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