HBO’s “The Gilded Age” series has featured real-life, prominent influencers of the historical era within its fictional environment. But who exactly were these individuals who shaped the Gilded Age into how we remember it today? In this podcast episode, we explore who the real, so-called tastemakers of this time period were in actual American history. Individuals such as Ward McAllister, Lina Astor (Caroline Schermerhorn Astor) and Edith Wharton were major figures who were both a product of, as well as molded, the era at the time according to their vision. Their “Gilded Age” helped give this time period the qualities we remember it as having to this day: a time period for showing off extravagant wealth, for practicing incredible formality, restraint, and upholding rigorous social codes. It was also a time period when many Americans came into money for the first time and therefore were “guided” by the more established elite circles as to how how they could and should behave, act, and even decorate their homes. We explore where New York’s elite even came from and who or what, exactly, they were modelling their “society” after.
What inspired this episode?
Who, exactly, was Ward McAllister? And who was Lena Astor? We explore their background and lives to understand more about the people who molded both The Gilded Age according to their vision and left a lasting impact (for better or worse) on American “high society.” We also take a look at Edith Wharton, her life and her works as both an interior designer and an author who, in the 20th century, reflected on the Gilded Age and helped shape the period into what we now remember it as: a time of extravagance as well as rigid social mores.
Sources Consulted
The following materials were cited or referenced in the creation of this podcast episode. (Not all authors or works mentioned are available for free online, unfortunately, but I linked the ones that are below)
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