Professor Hamilton's Diary: March 18, 1935

A doctor recommends surgery for baby; Woolworth heiress seeks divorce from prince

Three doctors were involved in the case of baby Mary Elizabeth’s ears today, and after taking X-rays they “recommended mastoid operation preceded by blood transfusion tomorrow,” Professor Hamilton wrote. According to Healthline.com, “A mastoidectomy is a surgical procedure that removes diseased mastoid air cells. The mastoid is the part of your skull located behind your ear. It’s filled with air cells made of bone and looks like a honey comb. The diseased cells are often the result of an ear infection that has spread into your skull.” This seems to describe Mary Elizabeth’s condition perfectly.

The Hamiltons were unsure about this big step. Margaret called her parents in Bronxville, New York, and they apparently agreed to come help out.

The celebrity followers of the day learned that Barbara Hutton, the heiress to the Woolworth’s dimestore fortune, was not going to give a penny to the Georgian prince and playboy she was planning to divorce. Paid subscribers can read on about the marital misadventures of this poor little rich girl, who was wed and divorced seven times in a span of 33 years. Click below to upgrade to paid for just 16 cents a day.

The photo of Hutton taken on shipboard in 1930 appeared in the Los Angeles Times, accessed through Wikimedia Commons.