Anderson Cooper has a pretty zany story about his late mom, Gloria Vanderbilt, that shows, uh, just how great her love for her son was.
The CNN host sat down with Stephen Colbert on “The Late Show” this week to talk about his book, “Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of An American Dynasty,” that follows the life of his mother, a member of the famed Vanderbilt family who died in 2019 at 95 years old.
Cooper then shared with Colbert how unconventional his mother was, sharing a specific anecdote that happened about a decade before Vanderbilt passed.
“She would come up with just ludicrous ideas,” he began, before divulging that Vanderbilt called him out of the blue when she was 85 to say she had gone to the gynecologist and the doctor told her she could still bear a child.
A flabbergasted Cooper recalled that he immediately had to figure out how to tell his mother not to have a child, but was then assured by her that she didn’t want a child of her own. She, Cooper said, told him: “‘Honey, I’m not talking about having a child of my own. I mean, that’s crazy — I’m 85 ... Well, what I was thinking, you get an egg and fertilize it with a sperm, and I’ll carry your child.’”
“Sometimes people wonder how, during interviews, I stay stone-faced and listen to people say batshit crazy things ... I grew up with Gloria Vanderbilt,” joked Cooper.
He went on to say that her proposal “stunned” him and he told her that “even for you, that is batshit crazy.”
“That is so weirdly Oedipal on a whole new level. That kid would be on the front page of the New York Post for the rest of his life,” said Cooper.
Despite his pushing back, Cooper said the proposal didn’t stop there. Two years later, Vanderbilt sent Cooper a newspaper clipping about a grandmother who carried a child for her son.
“My mom has circled it, and then written in a note, ‘See!’” he told Colbert.
Her insistence aside, Cooper ultimately had a son via surrogate in 2020. The baby boy, named Wyatt Morgan Cooper, was introduced to the world via Cooper’s Instagram with a heartfelt announcement.
“I am grateful to a remarkable surrogate who carried Wyatt, and watched over him lovingly, and tenderly, and gave birth to him. It is an extraordinary blessing — what she, and all surrogates give to families who cant have children,” Cooper wrote in the post at the time.
Support HuffPost
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
At HuffPost, we believe that everyone needs high-quality journalism, but we understand that not everyone can afford to pay for expensive news subscriptions. That is why we are committed to providing deeply reported, carefully fact-checked news that is freely accessible to everyone.
Whether you come to HuffPost for updates on the 2024 presidential race, hard-hitting investigations into critical issues facing our country today, or trending stories that make you laugh, we appreciate you. The truth is, news costs money to produce, and we are proud that we have never put our stories behind an expensive paywall.
Would you join us to help keep our stories free for all? Your contribution of as little as $2 will go a long way.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you’ll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.