Suzy Kalter Gershman

Suzy Kalter Gershman (1948 - 2012) passed away Wednesday, July 25, 2012 in San Antonio, Texas, after a year-long battle with brain cancer. Gershman was an author, journalist and television personality who didn't just like to shop; she was born to shop. She brought her international expertise to readers, television viewers, travelers and shoppers the world over with her magazine articles, shopping tours and series of Born to Shop travel guides. The Born to Shop series is more than 25 years old, translated into a half dozen languages and has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide. Gershman was also the author of C'est la Vie, (Penguin paperback), a bestselling memoir about her first year of widowhood during which time she moved to Paris and began a new life. American Express Cardmember Services dubbed her "the most famous shopper in the world". Oprah called her "Super Shopper Suzy". Suzy Kalter grew in up San Antonio and graduated from the University of Texas in Austin in 1969. During college she worked for the San Antonio Express-News and served with the Texas Corps of the White House Press when Lyndon Johnson was President. She was a Mademoiselle guest editor and a runner-up in the Vogue Prix de Paris. Suzy moved to New York in 1970, where she worked first in advertising as a copywriter at Macy's, then moved on to a PR agency, The Rowland Company. She was Creative Director of The Wool Bureau and began her magazine career as a freelance journalist after she married. In 1975, Gershman and her late husband moved to Los Angeles where, as Suzy Kalter, she worked first for Time and then People. She became the West Coast style editor in People's Beverly Hills offices in 1976 after the start-up of the magazine, interviewing designers such as James Galanos and Bob Mackie. Her lifestyle reporting led to her first television job, an extended stint on PM Magazine, one of the first magazine-style daily television shows. Suzy continued to appear on countless local and network television productions. She traveled to Hong Kong with the cast and crew of Good Morning America in 1994 to create daily reports on the shopping scene there and for many years, did in-studio segments with Joan and Charlie, especially on holiday gift-giving. She was a regular guest on KGO-ABC's View from the Bay (San Francisco) with Spencer Christian and Janelle Wang. As Suzy Kalter, she wrote several books on the television business for Harry Abrams Publishers Inc. including The Complete book of M*A*S*H. As a ghost writer in Hollywood, she wrote the first three Richard Simmons books and several other celebrity best sellers. Suzy changed her name to Gershman, her husband's name, in 1986 when the Born to Shop series was launched. Gershman wrote travel and shopping columns for Travel & Leisure (six years) and Travel Holiday (four years). She also contributed to Conde Nast France with a regular column called Postcard, a destination spread written in English and French. In recent years, she wrote destination articles for Peter Greenberg, CBS Travel Editor. After the death of her best friend and husband of 25 years, Gershman moved to Paris where she continued to write the Born to Shop series and also penned her memoir, C'est la Vie, published in hard cover by Viking Press in January 2004 and in paperback by Penguin Paperback in June 2005. Two weeks later, C'est la Vie went on the best-seller list at number 34. Her shopping guide, Where to Buy the Best of Everything, was published by Frommers in 2008. She was preceded in death by her husband, Michael Gershman; her parents, Dr. S.S. Kalter and Gloria Kalter and her sister Dr. Debrah Kalter Gershman. She is survived by her son, Aaron Gershman, daughter-in-law Jennifer McCormick and granddaughter Adeline Michele Gershman; her brother, Dr. Steven Kalter and wife Karen; her niece, Julia Chartove; her stepmother, Yvette Kalter; her stepsiblings Stanley and Gayle Alterman; Kent Alterman and Michele Brennan; and Glenn Halff and Mindi Alterman. The family would like to thank the caregivers at Seraphim and at Vitas Hospice. MEMORIAL SERVICE FRIDAY JULY 27, 2012 10:00 A.M. TEMPLE BETH EL OPPENHEIMER CHAPEL 211 BELKNAP Rabbi Barry H.D. Block and Cantor Julie Berlin will officiate.