CNN’s “silver-haired fox” Anderson Cooper can thank his 2016 documentary “Nothing Left Unsaid” for his unexpected Christmas gift this year. About 38 years ago, Cooper’s half-brother, Christopher Stokowski, had a huge fight with the family shrink which led Stokowski on a long journey of estrangement from the family. Cooper, who was close to his big brother and only 10-years-old at the time, was said to be devastated by the decision. This was also around the time when Cooper would lose his father, Wyatt Cooper. However, after the April 2016 release of the documentary, which details the life and legacy of Gloria Vanderbilt, Stokowski made another decision.
For the first time since 1978, he decided to come home.
During an interview with Page Six, Anderson Cooper confirmed that his long-lost brother did, in fact, reach out to him as well as to their mother. The cable news anchor’s uncle, Harry Cooper, stated that Vanderbilt, 92, and Stokowski, 64, have seen each other at least three times since the documentary’s release. As with any family, this one is not without their own set of tragedies. Before there was the perfume or jeans, Vanderbilt was the subject of a very bitter child custody case in the 1930’s. Vanderbilt’s son, Carter, who was Anderson’s full-blooded sibling, committed suicide right before her eyes at age 21.
Family feud
Details surrounding Stokowski are a bit fuzzy but it all seems to have occurred after an encounter with the family therapist, Christ Zois, who was accused of meddling in Stokowski’s relationship with fiancée April Sandmeyer.
In 1974, Stokowski fell in love with the socialite and the two made plans to marry. Even though the pair never made it to the altar, it was Sandmeyer who helped facilitate the reunion after viewing the documentary.
It’s a family affair
Christopher Stokowski is the second child born to Vanderbilt and then-husband, famed conductor Leopold Stokowski.
The fashion icon is actually very close with her eldest son Stan, 63, who is a landscape gardener and father of three. Vanderbilt’s marriage to Stokowski ended following an affair with the late Frank Sinatra. Ever since the suicide of one son, Vanderbilt and Cooper decided not to celebrate the holidays. Now, with the return of another, maybe they can find a reason to celebrate again.
