Claudia Cohen

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Claudia Cohen
Born	December 16, 1950 (1950-12-16) Englewood, New Jersey, USA
Died	June 15, 2007 (aged 56) New York City, New York, USA
Occupation	Gossip columnist, socialite, television personality

Claudia Lynn Cohen (December 16, 1950 – June 15, 2007) was an American gossip columnist, socialite and television reporter.

The daughter of businessman Robert Cohen, the president of the Hudson County News Company,^[1] a magazine wholesaler, and his wife, Harriet, Claudia Cohen grew up in Englewood, New Jersey, and attended the Dwight School for Girls (now the Dwight-Englewood School) and the University of Pennsylvania.^[2]

In 1976 she joined the New York Post as a reporter for its fledgling gossip column Page Six. After the departure of the column's editor, Neal Travis, Cohen was installed as editor in 1978. Noted for going for the jugular, creating a column with savvy and a sharp edge Cohen is credited with putting Page Six on the map. Cohen left the Post in 1980 to start her own short-lived gossip column, I, Claudia at a rival Manhattan newspaper. While that column was not a success it did further Cohen's profile in New York City's entertainment scene. In 1984 Cohen began a relationship with corporate raider Ronald Perelman. The two became a hot item in Manhattan social circles, marrying in 1985; they had a daughter, Samantha.

After nine years together the marriage fell apart. Cohen walked away with a reported $80,000,000 (eighty million U.S. dollars) settlement.^[3] On her own, for the first time in years, Cohen went back to her journalism career appearing regularly on the morning talk show Live with Regis and Kathie Lee to discuss entertainment gossip and society news. During this time Cohen dated former U.S. senator from New York state, Al D'Amato who once called a press conference to declare that he was in love with her. ^[4] Cohen and D'Amato were planning to be engaged, but D’Amato was still legally married at that time. ^[5] That relationship later ended.

Cohen was a regular on Live with Regis and Kelly and an active member of the Manhattan and Hamptons social scene until her death. Cohen died on June 15, 2007 from ovarian cancer^[6]

Ex-husband Ronald Perelman recently asked the University of Pennsylvania to rename the historic Logan Hall, which sits next to College Hall, as the Claudia Cohen Hall, much to the shock of Penn faculty, alumni, and students ^{[7] [8]}

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• New York Observer article about Claudia Cohen's funeral

Persondata
NAME	Cohen, Claudia Lynn
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	American gossip columnist, socialite and television reporter
DATE OF BIRTH	December 16, 1950
PLACE OF BIRTH	Englewood, New Jersey, United States
DATE OF DEATH	June 15, 2007
PLACE OF DEATH	New York City, New York, United States