Many Spanish given names honor the Virgin Mary. Girls are frequently given the name Maria or Maria followed by a suffix name and boys are sometimes given the name Maria as a middle name. Girls with Marian composite names may use the suffix portion of their name as their main informal name.
Cooper's father and Vanderbilt's husband Wyatt Emory Cooper, who Vanderbilt still believes is the love of her life, died at a young age and Vanderbilt never married again. Anderson was only ten years old when his father died suddenly of heart failure.
Anderson Cooper is the son of a Gloria Vanderbilt; one of the nations most wealthiest people (i.e. Biltmore Estate, Asheville, NC). His family's net-worth could be estimated at hundreds of millions, if not a billions of dollars. Basically, he had no need to work his way up in Journalism, he comes from the wealthiest 1% of the world. Cassady Ledford.