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This week The Frick Collection will reopen its doors to the public after a renovation and restoration of nearly five years and a cost of $220 million dollars. Visitors will again see the elegant Beaux Arts mansion once occupied by Gilded Age industrialist Henry Clay Frick and his wife and daughter. They will also see the priceless collection of masterworks of art from the Renaissance through the 19th century, much of acquired by Frick himself.
In this episode, a companion show to the Bowery Boys "House of Beauty: The Story of the Frick Collection", Carl talks with managing educator Caitlin Henningsen about her work researching the domestic staff who worked in the mansion, just who they were and what their roles in the household were. They also speak about how Frick thought about blending art with domestic space in several of his homes and what he wanted to achieve with this mansion before it became a museum after his death in 1919.
Caitlin and Carl also discuss, thanks to extraordinary archival records, how the Fricks entertained in a grand Gilded Age style in the very dining room visitors see today.
Find PART ONE over at the Bowery Boys podcast House of Beauty: The Story of the Frick Collection
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Between the late 1890s and early 1920s, over 2 million Jews from Eastern Europe made the long, arduous and unsettling journey to America to escape persecution and violence in their native countries.
Many of these Jews were fleeing Russia, where a state sanctioned antisemitism forced many to escape for their lives. This mass immigration was, in large part, the result of the efforts of three entrepreneurial men whose efforts insured escape for tens of thousands.
-- Albert Ballin, the director of the Hamburg-America line; Jacob Schiff, the German born New York based philanthropist and financier; and the Gilded Age financial titan J.P Morgan, all insured methods of escape that would otherwise not have been possible.
So much of this story has not been told until now and it is through the research and writing of historian Steven Ujifusa that has finally brought the full story to light.
Steve joins The Gilded Gentleman table in this episode to discuss what exactly happened, the enormous difference Ballin, Schiff and Morgan all made in helping so many to escare. In addition, Steve shares his own story as well and how he was able to uncover little-known material to tell the larger story.
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New York's NoHo neighborhood, wedged between Greenwich Village and the East Village, holds the stories of many people and places that then went on to become deeply associated with the Gilded Age.
The Astor family began their dynasty here in both investment and real estate as did the well known Dutch-American merchant family the Schermerhorns. Caroline Schermerhone who went on to become the famed Mrs. Astor grew up right here on Bond St along with many members of her family.
NoHo today still contains many remnants of its early 19th century glamorous past as well as sites where the tensions between the wealthy residents of the Lafayette Place neighborhood classed with the growing immigrant population just one street away on the Bowery.
Master Bowery Boys Walks tour guide Aaron Schielke joins Carl for a look at this fascinating neighborhood which includes stories of the rich and famous as well as the macabre details of a dramatic and grisly 19th century murder that took place on Bond St in the heart of NOHO that remains unsolved to this day.
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Belle da Costa Greene is a truly unique historical figure. As the librarian of Gilded Age financier J.P Morgan's extraordinary personal collection of rare books, manuscripts and historical objects, Greene was one of the most visible and formidable players in the art world of the early 20th century.
She sourced precious objects from major galleries and at auction not only in New York, but also throughout Europe with her deep expertise and drive.
As Belle competed regularly against other major collectors in this male dominated world and was covered regularly by the press, although much of her own personal story remained unknown or the subject of speculation. Belle was born into an affluent African-American family in Washington DC but upon moving North with her mother, she passed for white. With new research and curatorial insight, even more is now known about this exceptional woman and her role in creating one of the world's most important libraries and museum collections.
Carl is joined by Morgan Library and Museum curator Philip Palmer to discuss and delve into the world and life of Belle Da Costa Greene.
This episode was edited by Kieran Gannon
Visit the Morgan Library and Museum and check out the Belle da Costa Greene exhibition (through May 4, 2025)
And listen to the Bowery Boys podcast on the history of the Morgan Library and Museum
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Edith Minturn was a Gilded Age society beauty. Isaac Newton Phelps Stokes was a New York architect passionate about preserving the city's past.
When John Singer Sargent accepted the commission to paint their portrait as a wedding present, he perhaps didn't realize how difficult it would prove to be. Capturing Edith Minturn Stokes' strong personality as one of the era's "new woman" resulted in a portrait that in some ways was as scandalous as his famous "Madame X".
Author and Historian Jean Zimmerman joins The Gilded Gentleman to reveal the real story behind this famous portrait, along with just who Newton Phelps Stokes and Edith Minturn really were. The third part of this story is of course Sargent himself who broke new ground and broke a few conventions in portraying "Mr. and Mrs. I.N. Phelps Stokes" as they really were.
This episode was edited by Kieran Gannon
Get your tickets for the Bowery Boys Gilded Age Weekend, featuring Carl Raymond, the Gilded Gentleman -- May 29-June 1
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Of all the balls and parties thrown during the Gilded Age, the extravagant evening hosted by Bradley and Cornela Martin at the Waldorf in 1897 was perhaps the most legendary, but also the most filled with misconceptions.
February 10, 2025 was the 128th anniversary of this grand ball that topped them during New York's opulent Gilded Age. To celebrate, we are offering an ENCORE presentation of the episode on the ball with historian and author Rick Hutto whose family is descended from the Bardley Martin's themselves.
Visit the Gilded Gentleman website for an entire list of shows.
This show was edited by Kieran Gannon
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Who doesn't like to get a valentine -- perhaps even from a mysterious admirer?
The practice of sending valentines goes back centuries, and these well-designed romantic messages could have many meanings -- highly spiritual, an expression of friendship and love, or even a proposal of marriage.
In this episode Carl is joined by historian and collector Nancy Rosin whose own collection of over 12,000 valentines from the past 400 years has recently been archived at the Huntington Library.
Nancy takes us back to the early Roman days, through the MIddle Ages and into the "golden age" of valentines in the early 19th century and, at last, into the extravagant Gilded Age.
Nancy shares some of the most significant examples from her collection and leads us into very personal worlds of beauty and love from the 17th century to our modern day.
Visit the Gilded Gentleman website for more information
This episode was edited by Kieran Gannon
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Historian Dr. Elizabeth L. Block, author of "Beyond Vanity: The History and Power of Hairdressing," returns to the show for an insightful and fascinating look at hair and hairdressing in the Gilded Age.
Hairstyles and the methods of hairdressing evolved dramatically over the 19th century from an "at home" activity shared by sisters and female relatives to salons opening often with female entrepreneurs which gave women significant agency and power.
In addition to making a social statement through one's designer gowns from the great Paris couture houses, Gilded Age hostesses made sure that in addition to the dresses and jewels, they wore the most fashionable hairstyles of the day.
This show was produced by Kieran Gannon
Related Gilded Gentleman podcasts:
Gilded Age French Fashion: The House of Worth and Beyond
Gilded Age Undergarmetns: What Did Mrs. Astor Wear Under There? -
To ring in the new year, join Carl and listener favorite guest Don Spiro for an encore presentation of the history of champagne. Don, vintage beverage specialist and former professional bartender, looks at just how champagne first came to be, how its style evolved over time and just what contemporary champagne makers are offering today.
So pop a cork and enjoy the fizz as Don and Carl go back in time and trace the bubbling, effervescent history of champagne. Make sure to listen to Don's previous appearances on the Gilded Gentleman podcast -- shows on burlesque, absinthe and the golden age of Gilded Age cocktails!
This show was edited by Kieran Gannon and produced by Bowery Boys Media.
Visit the Gilded Gentleman website for more episodes.
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Grace Church, a soaring neo-Gothic church built in 1846, still sits today at the famous bend in Broadway at 11th Street. Throughout the 19th century it was the most fashionable church for old New York society, even when the elite moved up the island of Manhattan.
Grace represented the early world of the Astors, the Schermerhorns and other families who had their beginnings in the neighborhood around Lafayette Place. The church which has a vibrant congregation today was the scene over its history of many famous events including the christening of Edith Wharton in 1862, the wedding of Tom Thumb in 1863, the wedding of one of the most famous "million dollar princesses" Consuleo Yznaga, the future Duchess of Manchester in 1876 and the funeral of famed social arbiter Ward McAllister in 1895.
In this episode from the archives of the Bowery Boys history podcast, Greg Young and Tom Meyers trace the history of this landmark church as well as pay a visit themselves for a talk with the Reverend Harry Krauss, Grace Church historian.
For lots of historic images from this show, visit the Bowery Boys website.
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The world of Vienna at the end of the 19th century was a world of change. New design, new fashion and new philosophy -- and new music.
But amidst sweeping change, the Viennese drank champagne and were swept along by the works of the great Johann Strauss II, known appropriately as the "Waltz King". One of his greatest works is the operetta megahit Die Fledermaus which, beneath its frivolity and popping champagne corks, lies a darker vision and foreshadowing of a very different world to come.
In this episode, Carl is joined by returning musicologist and professional musician Dr. Christopher Brellochs for a look at Strauss and his most famous work -- how he created it and what he was trying to communicate to audiences.
In addition, Carl and Chris take a look at another blockbuster operetta, The Merry Widow by Franz Lehar and discuss how the musical form has evolved into a modern era.
Lastly, this episode ends with a look at just how works like Die Fledermaus and The Merry Widow have influenced our modern Broadway musical theatre today.
Visit the Gilded Gentleman website for more episodes.
This show was edited by Kieran Gannon and produced by Bowery Boys Media.
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Join Carl and Dr. MIchael Carter, Senior Properties Historian for English Heritage, to celebrate an English country Christmas.
Carl and Michael center their discussion on Wrest Park, home to the De Grey family for over 600 years. In the 19th century, the original house was torn down and a French inspired mansion rose in its place, still surrounded by the 18th century gardens which guests can still see today.
Michael shares stories of some very special Christmases celebrated at Wrest Park during World War I. and then takes us back into history to discover the origins of some of our most celebrated traditions from plum pudding to Twelfth Night.
For information on the American Friends of English Heritage, click here.
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This new Broadway season includes the revival of the classic musical GYPSY: A Musical Fable by Jule Styne, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents. This new revival stars Audra McDonald as the irrepressible Mama Rose,in this iconic show based on the memoirs of burlesque performer Gypsy Rose Lee.
To celebrate the revival and to take us back into the world of vaudeville and burlesque, listen favorite Don Spiro returns to the show to share the history of burlesque -- what it was and wasn't in the Gilded Age years -- and how it all developed into the dynamic new renaissance of the art we see today.
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David Belasco -- playwright, producer, impresario, theatre manager, and theatrical visionary -- was one of the most important names in the world of the Gilded Age stage.
Beginning his life and career in San Francisco following the Gold Rush years, Belasco moved to New York to revolutionize how theatre was seen and produced in the last years of the 19th and into the 20th century.
In addition to writing such hits as plays "Madame Butterfly" and "The Girl of the Golden West" which went on to become even more popular ad Puccini operas, he was responsible for launching the careers of Maude Adams (the first Peter Pan), Mary Pickford and Barbara Stanwyck. He was known for often wearing the robes and clerical collar of a Catholic priest, despite his Jewish heritage and thus began to call himself "The Bishop of Broadway".
Belasco owned and operated today's Belasco Theatre on 44th St which continues to bear his name. The theatre, built in 1907, is home to current Broadway hits and still contains the once lavish apartment now abandoned in which he lived on the theatre's top floor.
It's said that perhaps Belasco has never quite left his eponymous theatre and reports have persisted over the years of sightings and strange occurrences that indicate his possible presence even today.
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Along with their acclaimed novels and short works of fiction, Henry James and Edith Wharton both extensively explored the genre of the ghost story, enormously popular throughout much of the 19th century. In nearly all of their ghostly tales, James and Wharton explore the inner depths of the human psyche and the all-too-human emotions of fear, abandonment, passion and loss.
Carl is joined by returning guest Dr. Emily Orlando, author and professor of English at Fairfield University, for an in-depth look at examples of the ghost story from both Henry James and Edith Wharton. Carl and Emily delve into James' techniques of horror and suspense in his masterpiece "The Turn of the Screw" and how Wharton explored the ambiguities and challenges of marriage and abandonment in several of her stories including "The Lady's Maid's Bell", "Afterward", "Pomegranate Seed" and perhaps her own masterpiece -- "All Souls".
Orlando was also featured in the Gilded Gentleman episode -- Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence
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Stories of the Gilded Age so often focus on the world of adults and more often on the highest layer of elite society. Of course, there was much, much more to the story of America's social and economic growth at the end of the 19tth century that involved those of the middle and lower classes - and also included children.
Listener favorite Esther Crain, author and creator of Ephemeral New York, joins The Gilded Gentleman for a look at the world of children during the Gilded Age. As she shared in the episode "Invisible Magicians: Domestic Servants in Gilded Age New York" with writings by actual servants, Esther has uncovered documents written in children's own voices that capture their world and reality.
From a 12 year old boy in Gilded Age Harlem to a teenage girl on what would become Manhattan's Upper East Side, we can finally meet children who are both seen and heard.
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Elizabeth Wharton Drexel was a quintessential ingenue of the Gilded Age. Eventual heiress to the Drexel banking fortune, elegant and sophisticated, Elizabeth married but was widowed unexpectedly. But she married again, this time to Harry Symes Lehr, a bon vivant and social playboy.
But she soon learned her life was to become a reality far from what she ever expected.
This episode tells the story of Elizabeth Drexel and Harry Lehr along with the world in which they lived. In 1935, after Harry's death, Elizabeth wrote what we would perhaps today call a "tell all" memoir -- King Lehr and the Gilded Age -- recounting the challenges of her marriage but also the frivolity and froth of the Gilded Age from her own observances as an up-close participant.
Her observances are some of the most acute and incisive we have on the period.
Visit the Gilded Gentleman website for more information and episodes
This episode was edted by Kieran Gannon
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Just the name "Tiffany" evokes the glamour and elegance of the Gilded Age. But there is much more to the story than just the eponymous retailer who continues to sell fine jewelry and decorative objects today.
Carl is joined by Lindsy R. Parrott, the Executive Director of The Neustadt Collection, one of the country's most important collections of Tiffany glass and archival materials, to discuss the two Tiffanys - Charles Lewis Tiffany who began the original retail silver and jewelry and his son Louis Comfort Tiffany who created revolutionary designs in stained glass.
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Itâs nearly the end of the summer but there's still time for one more visit to the seashore and, in particular, one place that was so very popular in the Gilded Age -- Coney Island.
Join Carl and guest Esther Crain for an encore presentation of âIn the Good Old Summertime: Where the Gilded Age Played.â
And coming soon -- Esther will be joining Carl this fall for a brand new episode â âChildren of the Gilded Age: Seen and Not Heard (Until Now).â
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As New York continued its march up the island of Manhattan, there were few places where New Yorkers that couldnât escape to Newport could find somewhere to relax, play, stroll, and find some shade. The development of the great Central Park provided some much-needed relief but it took some time for it to become a place that was accessible and viable for all of New Yorkâs social classes.
Out on the far coast of Brooklyn, the resort of Coney Island developed rapidly and became a truly great escape with its famous amusement parks where one could find adventure and perhaps a bit of romance. Esther takes us on a journey to visit these spots and spaces where Gilded Age New Yorkers could cool off, forget the realities of life for just a bit and have a really good time.
More about Carl's special guest:
â Esther Crain, an author, historian, and native New Yorker. In 2008 she launched the website Ephemeral New York, where she writes and publishes stories every week that chronicle Gothamâs past through old photos, newspaper archives, vintage artwork, and other artifacts.
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In this special episode created in partnership with English Heritage, Carl is joined by curator Christopher Warleigh-Lack for a look at the once royal residence of Osborne House on England's Isle of Wight.
Christopher guides us through inside the grand estate where Queen Victoria and Prince Albert spent summer and Christmas holidays. Following Albert's sudden death, Victoria continued to come to Osborne and even spent her final days here by the sea.
A visit to Osborne House today reveals an intimate view of the private life of Queen Victoria and her family.
For more information on the American Friends of English Heritage, click here.
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