Why Anderson Cooper Won't Receive an Inheritance From Mom Gloria Vanderbilt The talk show host opens up about not getting his mother's millions.

April 1, 2014 -- Anderson Cooper may come from a family with money, but he won't be seeing a dime of it.

Though his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, inherited a fortune before making her own millions, Cooper will not receive an inheritance.

"My mom's made clear to me that there's no trust fund. There's none of that," he told Howard Stern. "[And] I don't believe in inheriting money."

Anderson Cooper Reveals He's Gay

Cooper, 46, said that inherited money is an "initiative sucker" and a "curse." Because of that, he's grateful that his mother always gave him an incentive to work.

"Who's inherited a lot of money that has gone on to do things in their own life?" he asked. "From the time I was growing up, if I felt that there was some pot of gold waiting for me, I don't know that I would've been so motivated."

Calling his mother "the coolest person I know," Cooper also praised her for instilling within him a great work ethic. And, he said, should he become a father one day, he'd likely follow in her footsteps.

"I would want them to start working early on and start to have a sense of responsibility," he said. "If maybe I felt like they had a good sense of responsibility, maybe I would try to leave some money. I don't know."