Michael Batterberry (1932–2010) was born to American parents in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England, where his father was an executive with Procter & Gamble. His family returned to the United States when World War II broke out. After brief stints in various occupations, including cabaret singer in Italy and interior designer in Venezuela, Batterberry settled in New York, where he became a freelance illustrator for Gourmet magazine and a writer for other magazines focusing on art history. Beginning in the 1960s, he wrote a number of books on the history of art and design.
