I had a job; I was, during the war, a nurse, a 'Gray Lady.' We wore a veil and a gray dress.

Power is the ability to do good things for others.

When I was 40, I used to wonder what people thought of me. Now I wonder what I think of them.

No matter how horrid a person may appear on the surface, if you dig deeper, you will find some nice, unexpected little quality.

Money is like manure; it’s not worth a thing unless it’s spread around.

If I go up to Harlem or down to Sixth Street, and I'm not dressed up or I'm not wearing my jewelry, then the people feel I'm talking down to them. People expect to see Mrs. Astor, not some dowdy old lady, and I don't intend to disappoint.

I have to go around and ask people for money, of course, quite a lot. And it's quite an art to ask people for money. But I think that I have to ask them for money for the things that I'm interested in, and of course, money breeds money.