Ned, a young Wall Street lawyer and his pregnant wife, Charlotte, decide to move to New York City, but first, they must find a place to live. Due to a housing shortage, they discover that none of the apartment buildings have any vacancies, and that some of the building superintendents are less than reputable, offering to accept bribes. Will they find a place to live before the baby is due? Join us for the true story of Charlotte Smallwood Cook's search for a home in old New York, written for her children to explain the experience to them.
About the Author: Charlotte Smallwood-Cook definitely qualifies as a celebrity author, having been the first woman elected to the position of district attorney in the state of New York and possibly the entire nation. Born Charlotte Licht on January 24, 1923, in Trumansburg, New York, she graduated Trumansburg High School in 1940, Cornell University in 1944, and completed law at Columbia University in 1946. While at Cornell, she met her husband Ned Smallwood, who was from Warsaw, New York. During the 1940s, it was difficult for women lawyers to be taken seriously, but Charlotte was "a woman of fierce intelligence and devotion to her clients." In 1949, at the age of twenty-six, she was elected to a three year term as district attorney, breaking a barrier none had managed before. With the support of Ned, she fought the odds and naysayers, including the local Republican Party boss, who told her it wasn't a job for a woman. Defying his refusal to allow her to run, she won the primary, then the election with an amazing 65% of the votes. The election even drew a sexist remark on the air from Arthur Godfrey, whom she later met. During the three years she was in office, she prosecuted the United States' first capital murder case in more than forty years. When Ned died unexpectedly in 1952, Charlotte decided not to seek reelection in order to focus on her children and private law practice. In 1989, she was unanimously appointed as the chairperson of the Wyoming County Republican Committee. She began oil painting at the age of 65 and was an avid antique collector. Charlotte and Ned had a daughter Suki and son Edward, five grandchildren, a great-granddaughter, and four step-children. Years later, Charlotte married Frederick Cook, who passed away in 1987. Charlotte retired at the age of 90, after 65 years, and passed away four months later from lung cancer on January 26, 2013, in Batavia, New York. A plaque honoring her, now hangs in the Wyoming County Courthouse.