Social Climbing on Gilded Stairs

<p>This week, Lucy and Ben take a trip to gilded age New York and rub shoulders with robber baron-socialites, the Vanderbilts. They examine a battery-powered costume and reflect on the trauma and tantrums of being one of the privileged ‘400’ to critique the parallels between America’s pioneering plutocrats and today’s popularity-seeking pin-ups. Just how does Kim Kardashian measure up against Cornelius ‘The Commodore’ Vanderbilt?</p> <h3><strong>References</strong></h3> <ul> <li><a href="https://catalog.princeton.edu/catalog/7993704">Gilded New York: Design, Fashion, and Society</a>, ed Donald Albrecht and Jeannine Falino (The Monacelli Press, 2013).</li> <li><a href= "https://nyupress.org/9781479826858/what-would-mrs-astor-do/">What Would Mrs Astor Do? The Essential Guide to the Manners and Mores of the Gilded Age</a>, by Ceceila Tichi (2018)</li> <li><a href= "https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2016/05/met-gala-2016-red-carpet"> Zac Posen's light-up dress</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQW9Ks0GZUQ">Queen of Versailles</a>, dir Lauren Greenfield (2012)</li> </ul>