My Review -The Gilded Age pilot. My Rating 10/10. Streaming in Australia on Paramount First a little history lesson as it sets the scene for The Gilded Age a historical drama television series created by Julian Fellowes or to use his correct title Julian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford the British actor, producer, novelist, and screenwriter best known for creating the television series Downton Abbey . I'm only reviewing the 90 minute Pilot episode and will review the whole series when we finish the 10th instalment but if the standard keeps up this series will be as good as Downtown Abbey I'm sure. A memory of mine from those days when we could travel freely was a visit to The Breakers a "Gilded Age "mansion at Newport, Rhode Island, US. Built between 1893 and 1895 as a summer residence for Cornelius Vanderbilt II, and thinking while wandering through the luxurious rooms and gazing out from the terraces to the Atlantic Ocean what fantastic tales these walls could tell. Then later visiting The Henry Clay Frick House now a museum of art treasures which was the residence of the industrialist and art patron Henry Clay Frick in New York City. Unfortunately, the distinguished society of the time, didn't approve of the Vanderbilt or Frick fortune because it was "new" money. The Vanderbilts were not invited to any of the balls and functions of the wealthy families of New York. Frick who was also new money began building and operating coke ovens in 1870, and the following year he organized Frick and Company. Taking advantage of the difficult times following the financial panic of 1873 and acquired extensive coal deposits and supplied Pittsburgh with the coke required for its steel and iron industry. Cornelius Vanderbilt made his millions by controlling two burgeoning industries: the steamboat industry and the railroad industry. When he died, Vanderbilt's estate was estimated to be worth $100,000,000. ... In today's dollars, that would be approximately $2.3 billion, making him the richest man in America at that time. The Gilded Age ten part series follows Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson), a 19th century woman who moves to New York to live with her old money aunts after the death of her father who squandered his fortune and left her penniless. The Old Money a term used to describe families like the Van Rhijn and Astor families was typically associated with White Anglo-Saxon Protestant ("WASP") status. "Old money" applies to those of the upper class whose wealth separates them from lower social classes. With the robber barons and railroad tycoons trying to break into high society, Marian the niece of Agnes Van Rhijn (Christine Baranski ) and Ada Brook (Cynthia Nixon) finds herself stuck in a social war between her traditional aunts and their new money neighbours George (Morgan Spector) and Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon). Filming took place on Long Island, but that there were also sets based in Queens and key outdoor scenes were shot on location in New York City. Some key scenes not shot in New York City or Long Island? Parts of the The Russells' mansion come from interiors in several mansions in Rhode Island, including their ballroom, which is actually located in The Breakers. I had fun spotting the Tony Award winners and nominees from the Broadway stage in this great ensemble cast at the center of the action are a pair of two-time Tony winners - Christine Baranski and Cynthia Nixon - who play sisters Agnes van Rhijn and Ada Brook. Other Tony and Emmy Award winners in this lavish production include Audra McDonald , Michael Cerveris, Donna Murphy ,Kelli O"Hara and Carrie Coon cast as Bertha Russell a new money debutante who's determined to break into the old money polite society. I'm looking forward to future episodes of this beautifully produced series it's so well written and a joy to watch.

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