How accurate is 'The Gilded Age's' history of New York's Black elite? We checked
NEW YORK — Julian Fellowes may be TV's preeminent chronicler of the British aristocracy, but his latest series, "The Gilded Age," finds the writer in uncharted terrain: America.
The lavish HBO series, which premiered last month, is set in 1882 New York City. Taking a page or two from Edith Wharton, it centers on two wealthy families who live in neighboring mansions on Fifth Avenue and represent opposing forces in New York society: the Old Money Van Rhijns, who proudly tout their pre-Revolutionary roots, and the nouveau riche Russells, who are determined to use their railroad fortune to conquer Manhattan.
But in an unusual twist for this kind of society tale, "The Gilded Age" also follows the Scotts, a prominent Black family from Brooklyn that includes Peggy, an aspiring writer who works as a secretary to the prickly Agnes Van Rhijn (Christine Baranski).
"I wanted very much to make 'The Gilded Age' distinctively American," Fellowes said. "And I didn't believe I could do that without having a Black narrative and a Black family alongside the others. It just didn't feel right to, actually."
Several years earlier, Fellowes had read "Black Gotham," in which author Carla Peterson traces her family history to the Black elite of 19th century New York. "I had no idea, really, that there was a prosperous, upper-middle-class Black community in New York towards the end of the 19th century, based not
