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 and mother Gloria VanderbiltJeff Riedel. Gloria, 92, is the great-great-great granddaughter of shipping tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt, and grew up under the custody of her aunt, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney. Her fourth marriage was to writer Wyatt Cooper, Andersonâs father, which lasted until his death in 1978. Watch more of The Jess Cagle Interview with Anderson Cooper and Gloria Vanderbilt all this week on People.com.