Anderson Cooper, Heir To Vanderbilt Fortune, Isn't Inheriting Mom's Money

Although journalist and television host Anderson Cooper is a celebrity in his own right, he stems from one of America's most prominent families - the Vanderbilts.

Cooper's maternal great-great-great-grandfather was shipping and railroad tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt, and since his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt is the heiress to the family's fortune, the CNN host spent most of his life in luxury.

Cooper developed an interest in media at a very young age, appearing on The Tonight Show and To Tell the Truth before he was even ten years old. As a tween, he took up modeling and worked with big brands, including Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. However, his focus shifted in 1988 after his older brother, Carter, committed suicide.

He decided to pursue a career in journalism after the tragedy, and landed a job as a news correspondent in the early 90s. He worked with networks like Channel One and ABC before joining CNN in 2001. He soon became the news network's weekend prime-time anchor, and eventually took on the hosting duties for CNN's New Year's Eve special from Times Square.

From then on, the journalist was tasked with more hosting duties, and over time, he even landed his own programs, including Anderson Cooper 360° and Anderson Live. He also became the correspondent for 60 Minutes on CBS.

Beside anchoring, a large chunk of Cooper's wealth also comes from the books he authored and his appearances on TV, film and stage productions.

Cooper currently makes $11 million a year, which means his net worth is about $100 million, according to celebritynetworth.com. This amount doesn't include the sum he would inherit from his family. However, it seems like that's not even a possibility because his mom won't share the Vanderbilt fortune.  

Read the full story on Shared.com.

Photo: Shared.com