The Beautiful and Damned tells the story of Anthony Patch, a 1910s socialite and presumptive heir to a tycoon's fortune, and his courtship and relationship with his wife Gloria Gilbert. It describes his brief service in the Army during World War I, the couple's post-war partying life in New York, and his later alcoholism.[1][3] Gloria and Anthony's story deals with the hardships of a relationship, especially when each character has a tendency to be selfish.