Frances Lear

Frances Lear (née Loeb, July 14, 1923 – September 30, 1996) was an American activist, magazine publisher, editor and writer. Biography Lear was born with only a first name, Evelyn, to an unwed mother in Hudson, New York, at the Vanderheusen Home for Wayward Girls. She was adopted at 14 months by Aline and Herbert Loeb from Larchmont, New York, who changed her name from Evelyn to Frances. When she was 10 years old, her adoptive father committed suicide after losing his business in the Depression. Her mother remarried and when Frances was 12, her stepfather began molesting her, according to her autobiography. She attended the Mary A. Burnham School for Girls in Northampton, Massachusetts. She originally made her career as a buyer for women's sportswear at Lord & Taylor. She was married and divorced twice at a young age, first to Arnold Weiss and secondly to Morton Kaufman (or Kaufmann). In 1956, she married television producer Norman Lear in Las Vegas. At age 50, she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. She became an activist for the women's movement, civil rights and mental health.