Shirley Carter Burden Jr. was born in Beverly Hills, California, on August 25, 1941. The son of photographer and philanthropist Shirley Carter Burden and actress Flobelle Fairbanks Burden, he grew up in a family distinguished by wealth, artistry, and public service. He attended Harvard University, graduating cum laude in 1963 with a degree in English, and wrote his senior thesis on Henry Miller. He went on to Columbia University Law School, where he earned his law degree in 1966.

While still in law school, he and his first wife became known for their gatherings at the Dakota, attracting figures such as Truman Capote, Andy Warhol, Norman Mailer, George Plimpton, Robert and Ethel Kennedy, and members of the Kennedy family. By the mid-1960s, however, Burden began shifting away from society life toward political service. After passing the bar, he went to work for Senator Robert F. Kennedy, serving as liaison to the Puerto Rican community in East Harlem and contributing to the Bedford-Stuyvesant Development Project. The assassination of Senator Kennedy in 1968 inspired Burden to co-found the New Democratic Coalition, dedicated to reforming city politics.

In 1969 he ran successfully for the New York City Council, winning with more than 80 percent of the vote. Over three terms he became a visible and dynamic figure, chairing the committee on health and advancing legislation on children's protection from lead paint, prisoner's rights, housing for the elderly, and one of the earliest gay rights bills in the nation. Though not all of his proposals passed, many became law in full or in part, and he was often described as a politician in the Kennedy mold. His career in office ended in the late 1970s after unsuccessful campaigns for higher office, including a race against Bella Abzug for Congress.

In addition to politics, Burden was active in publishing and broadcasting. In 1969 he became principal owner ofThe Village Voice, then the nation's largest weekly newspaper. He later merged it with New York Magazine and in 1976 sold his interest to Rupert Murdoch. By 1980 he turned to radio, founding Commodore Media with a single station and building it into a company that owned and operated stations across several states. He was also managing partner of William A. M. Burden & Company, a family investment partnership, and served on the board of Reliance Insurance Companies.

Burden was equally committed to philanthropy. He established and supported the Burden Center for the Aging in Yorkville, contributed to the New York Public Library, the Morgan Library, and the New York City Ballet, and aided organizations including the Brookdale Center on Aging, the National Crime Prevention Council, Wellesley College, and Survivors of Domestic Abuse. His private collections reflected his love of art and literature, encompassing master drawings by artists such as John Singer Sargent, Picasso, and Matisse, as well as a world-class collection of modern American first editions.

Shirley Carter Burden Jr. died in Manhattan on January 23, 1996, at the age of fifty-four. He was laid to rest at Woodlawn Cemetery.

Shirley Carter Burden Jr. was born in Beverly Hills, California, on August 25, 1941. The son of photographer and philanthropist Shirley Carter Burden and actress Flobelle Fairbanks Burden, he grew up in a family distinguished by wealth, artistry, and public service. He attended Harvard University, graduating cum laude in 1963 with a degree in English, and wrote his senior thesis on Henry Miller. He went on to Columbia University Law School, where he earned his law degree in 1966.

While still in law school, he and his first wife became known for their gatherings at the Dakota, attracting figures such as Truman Capote, Andy Warhol, Norman Mailer, George Plimpton, Robert and Ethel Kennedy, and members of the Kennedy family. By the mid-1960s, however, Burden began shifting away from society life toward political service. After passing the bar, he went to work for Senator Robert F. Kennedy, serving as liaison to the Puerto Rican community in East Harlem and contributing to the Bedford-Stuyvesant Development Project. The assassination of Senator Kennedy in 1968 inspired Burden to co-found the New Democratic Coalition, dedicated to reforming city politics.

In 1969 he ran successfully for the New York City Council, winning with more than 80 percent of the vote. Over three terms he became a visible and dynamic figure, chairing the committee on health and advancing legislation on children's protection from lead paint, prisoner's rights, housing for the elderly, and one of the earliest gay rights bills in the nation. Though not all of his proposals passed, many became law in full or in part, and he was often described as a politician in the Kennedy mold. His career in office ended in the late 1970s after unsuccessful campaigns for higher office, including a race against Bella Abzug for Congress.

In addition to politics, Burden was active in publishing and broadcasting. In 1969 he became principal owner ofThe Village Voice, then the nation's largest weekly newspaper. He later merged it with New York Magazine and in 1976 sold his interest to Rupert Murdoch. By 1980 he turned to radio, founding Commodore Media with a single station and building it into a company that owned and operated stations across several states. He was also managing partner of William A. M. Burden & Company, a family investment partnership, and served on the board of Reliance Insurance Companies.

Burden was equally committed to philanthropy. He established and supported the Burden Center for the Aging in Yorkville, contributed to the New York Public Library, the Morgan Library, and the New York City Ballet, and aided organizations including the Brookdale Center on Aging, the National Crime Prevention Council, Wellesley College, and Survivors of Domestic Abuse. His private collections reflected his love of art and literature, encompassing master drawings by artists such as John Singer Sargent, Picasso, and Matisse, as well as a world-class collection of modern American first editions.

Shirley Carter Burden Jr. died in Manhattan on January 23, 1996, at the age of fifty-four. He was laid to rest at Woodlawn Cemetery.