Heiress and socialite Gloria Vanderbilt was born in New York City, New York in February 1924. She studied art at the Art Students League of New York and successfully worked in oil, watercolor, and pastel. Vanderbilt designed for linens, china, glassware, and flatware, and in the 1970s she began licensing the use of her name in fashion lines of scarves, eyeglasses, perfume, and clothing. In 1979 her designer jeans debuted, and she later began her own company in New York. Vanderbilt has written books including "A Mother's Story" and several novels.