⬅ Franklin Roosevelt: Cosmetic surgery while President?

A reader has raised the possibility that President and Mrs. Roosevelt had cosmetic surgery during Roosevelt's presidency. For now, this should be considered as a topic to be investigated, rather than an established fact. SEE BELOW Of possible relevance is the disappearance of the pigmented lesion above FDR's left eye in 1940-1944 (see above).

In April 2004, reader Marshall Price sent the following note to Dr. Zebra:

My father, Georgie Price (1901-1964), told me he advised Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt to go to his friend and surgeon, Maxwell Maltz, for cosmetic surgery, and that they did. If I recall correctly, they had work done on one or more noses and chins.

Independently of that, I heard on a television show that they retired to Hyde Park for a month during Franklin's Presidency, avoiding all visitors.

Is this true, and are the two events related?

My father advised many aspiring entertainers to improve their chances at success in various ways, coining stage names and recommending body building, training, elocution lessons, etc., and he attributed much of his success in show business to having his teeth pulled and replaced by dentures when he was young, having a "nose job," having his ears "taken in," sitting in front of a sun lamp, taking speech and voice lessons, and learning many skills.

He impressed upon me profoundly the importance of keeping the Roosevelts' surgery secret, but that was many years ago, and I'm sure divulging it now would harm no one and would serve history well.

I agree with Mr. Price's attitude toward history and the passage of time.

I am publishing the note because it contains a verifiable claim. If readers determine there was an acute noticeable change in the appearance of President Roosevelt, please let me know.

The note is published with the permission of Mr. Price.