Liz Smith, the former New York Post gossip columnist known for making or breaking careers for decades, died Sunday of natural causes at age 94, literary agent Joni Evans told The Associated Press.
Born in Fort Worth, Texas during prohibition, Smith graduated from the University of Texas in 1949 with a degree in journalism and, a year after, moved to the Big Apple.
An affable blonde known for her peeling laughter, Smith took a job as a news producer for Mike Wallace at CBS Radio but found her true calling while ghostwriting for the gossip column, “Cholly Knickerbocker.”
After proving she could canoodle with the best of New York’s smart set, she was awarded her own column in 1976 by the New York Daily News and also became a regular on WNBC’s “Live at Five.”
She was eventually hired by Fox to develop her own talk show and eventually became a regular on Fox & Friends.
Her syndicated daily column moved over to Newsday and then also to the New York Post.
Smith’s 2000 memoir, “Natural Blond,” was a best seller.
