CNN commentator Anderson Cooper said his mother, socialite and heiress Gloria Vanderbilt, offered to carry his baby at 85 years old, years before he sealed his plans and welcomed his son, Wyatt Morgan Cooper, into his life.
During his guest appearance on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert," the journalist revealed that his mother called him to share her "ludicrous idea" to become his surrogate. She came from her visit to her gynecologist, who told her that her body could still bear kids.
Cooper told Colbert that he was thinking of ways to convince his mom to give up the idea, adding that it wasn't shocking for her to speak about these things because she often had "batshit crazy things" to say. Two years after that conversation, Vanderbilt shared a news clipping to her son about a grandmother who became a surrogate to make her point.
He did eventually welcome a baby boy in April 2020, who was named after his father, Wyatt Emory Cooper, whom he lost when he was only ten years old. Vanderbilt, however, never met Wyatt since she passed away due to cancer in 2019.
Cooper Never Thought He Could Become a Dad
In sharing the baby's birth, Cooper said that he never thought he could become a father as a "gay kid."
"I am grateful to a remarkable surrogate who carried Wyatt, and watched over him lovingly, and tenderly, and gave birth to him," he wrote, adding that the surrogate mother has her own beautiful family and a very supportive husband.
Cooper has been co-parenting with his ex-partner Benjamin Maisani. He said that his son, now 16 months old, is a happy and giggly kid who likes to interact with strangers. The dad also said that he's relishing his time with his son at this age because he knows there will come a point where he won't want to be around his father.
The journalist said he would carry on with his mother's same idea and wouldn't leave Wyatt any inheritance. Cooper said in a podcast interview via the "Morning Meeting" show that he does not believe in passing "huge amounts of money" to family members, except for Wyatt's college tuition.
Cooper inherited just $1.5 million from his mother's estate and knew early on that there was no trust fund under his name. He agrees with his mother that inheritance money could be a curse.
Vanderbilt was a scion of America's grandest railroad and shipping family built by Cornelius Vanderbilt, his great-great-grandfather. Vanderbilt made a name for herself as a fashion designer in the 1970s. On the other hand, Cooper's net worth as a popular TV personality is estimated to be around $200 million.
Co-Parenting with Maisani
Cooper and his ex-partner continue to live in the same house despite their separation after ten years of being together. In an interview with Ellen DeGeneres, Cooper relayed that one of the reasons they decided to end their relationship was because Maisani didn't want any children.
However, Cooper described his ex as a wonderful parent to Wyatt, and if something were to happen to him, he would want Maisani to be his son's family. Yet he shut down suggestions of getting back together with his ex or having another child, saying that he won't likely handle another child right now, especially with what's happening in the world.
