Gilded: How Newport Became America's Richest Resort - Hardcover

Deborah Davis

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 047012413X ISBN 13: 9780470124130

Publisher: Trade Paper Press, 2009

Synopsis

A beautifully written history of high society in Newport, Rhode Island, from the acclaimed author of Party of the Century

Newport is the legendary and beautiful home of American aristocracy and the sheltered super-rich. Many of the country's most famous blueblood families?the closest thing we have to royalty?have lived and summered in Newport since the nineteenth century. The Astors, the Vanderbilts, Edith Wharton, JFK and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Doris Duke, and Claus and Sunny von Bulow are just a few of the many names who have called the city home. Gilded takes you along as you explore the fascinating heritage of the Newport elite, from its first colonists to the newest of its new millennium millionaires, showing the evolution of a town intent on living in its own world. Through a narrative filled with engrossing characters and lively tales of untold extravagance, Davis brings the resort to life and uncovers the difference between rich and Newport rich along the way.

• An engrossing multigenerational saga that tells the real story of the rich and famous in Newport
• Vibrant, praiseworthy writing: ""[Davis] brings splendidly colorful behind-the-scenes action and players up front"" (the New York Times on Party of the Century)
• 34 evocative black-and-white photographs

Written with insight and dramatic flair, Gilded gives you a rare peek into the cloistered coastal playground of America's moneyed elite.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

There is rich—and there is Newport rich. Home to the Astors, the Vanderbilts, and other superwealthy American aristocrats, Newport, Rhode Island, has been a storied playground, cloaked in legend and mystery. For generations, Newporters succeeded in separating those who did belong from those who desperately wanted to. Finally, Gilded opens the windows to its fabulous and irresistible world.

How did Newport become America's richest resort, surviving ups and downs for more than two hundred years to earn an enduring place in our imaginations? In this vibrant and colorful narrative, Deborah Davis reveals the answers as she explores the fascinating heritage of the Newport elite with extraordinary stories ranging from the island's first colonists to the newest of its new millennium millionaires.

In Newport, liveried servants once catered to every conceivable whim; ladies required 280 wardrobe changes during the eight-week summer season; sixty-room European-style "cottages" were the scene of countless opulent balls, lavish dinners, and formal teas; and fun was taken to such outrageous extremes that even monkeys and dogs might be honored dinner guests as long as they were properly attired. Davis lets you peer inside the magnificent 1880s world of the Mrs. Astor, who replaced Newport's casual entertainments with parties as sophisticated as those she hosted on Fifth Avenue, even building a ballroom big enough to accommodate her famous Four Hundred society insiders at Beechwood, her summertime perch on Bellevue Avenue. You'll see how the scheming of three determined socialites—Mamie Fish, Alva Vanderbilt, and Tessie Oelrichs—ousted Mrs. Astor from the top of the social pyramid and freed Newport from the constraints of her formal entertaining style.

Later, you'll read about the postwar dazzle of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier's Newport wedding, the tragedy of Claus and Sonny von Bulow, and the ironic turn of events that gave tourists and other outsiders a central role in reversing the fortunes of Newport's fading mansions and helping to safeguard the island's vibrant history and heritage for years to come.

Based on dozens of revealing interviews with Newport insiders and including previously unpublished stories about the rich and famous, Gilded is a magnificent portrait of a uniquely American town. You have never read anything like it before.

From the Back Cover:

Newport is the legendary and beautiful home of American aristocracy and the sheltered super–rich. Many of the country's most famous blueblood families—the closest thing we have to royalty—have lived and summered in Newport since the nineteenth century. The Astors, the Vanderbilts, Edith Wharton, John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Doris Duke, and Claus and Sunny von Bulow are just a few of the many famous people who have called the city home. Through a narrative filled with engrossing characters and lively tales of untold extravagance, Gilded takes you along as you explore the fascinating heritage of the Newport elite, from its first colonists to the newest of its new millennium millionaires.

Praise for Party of the Century

"[Davis] brings splendidly colorful behind–the–scenes action and players up front."—The New York Times

"A tantalizing aperitif, a confection of a book."—The Plain Dealer

"One of the best reads of the season."—Billy Norwich, Vogue

"Captures the spirit and significance of the occasion with new material and fresh perspective, making this a party worth crashing."—Town & Country

"Vastly entertaining."—Liz Smith

About this edition

• Publisher: Trade Paper Press
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 047012413X
• ISBN 13: 9780470124130
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320