The Shocking True Story of a Gilded Age Society Magazine's Deception and Downfall

Did you ever hear the one about James R. Keene, the 19th-century stock market maestro whose Wall Street clients included William Rockefeller Jr.? No? Well, if a shocking tale about Keene existed—and we're not saying it did—William d'Alton Mann would have made sure it stayed out of the public eye. Keene, after all, had been so generous as to lend Mann $90,000, the equivalent of more than $2 million today.

You see, Mann—a Union Army colonel turned unscrupulous oil prospector, patent-happy entrepreneur, turncoat congressional candidate, and, eventually, gossip-slinging extortionist—was the owner of Town Topics: The Journal of Society, a weekly magazine equally loathed, loved, and feared by the moneyed class of the Gilded Age. Under Mann's stewardship, Town Topics became both a trenchant chronicler of the one percent and a vehicle for Mann to join its ranks. Members of the elite with surnames like Astor, Morgan, Vanderbilt, Whitney, and Gould paid exorbitant sums with the expectation that Mann would keep their peccadilloes out of his publication. As the colonel himself once bragged, "I have cartloads of stories locked up in my safe that would turn New York upside down."

New York was turned upside down all right, but by a scandal of Mann's own making. It's a story that endures 120 years later, amid our HBO-induced Gilded Age fascination. It echoes in the National Enquirer's "catch and kill" controversies, not least the case in which Donald Trump was found guilty this year of paying his pals at the Enquirer to buy and then quash damaging stories. Or in the adjacent saga starring Jeff Bezos, who publicly accused the Enquirer of blackmailing him with the threat of exposing delicate photos. And who can forget when New York Post reporter Jared Paul Stern faced accusations of trying to extort billionaire Ron Burkle? You could even argue that there are whiffs of Town Topics in the Harvey Weinstein playbook of quelling negative press by offering journalists lucrative book and development deals.

"The common thread that runs through these incidents is the suppression of stories," says Nancy C. Unger, a Gilded Age historian, reflecting on "the notion of using journalism not simply to inform the public but to promote private ambitions." It's easy to think of this type of tabloid malfeasance as a modern day phenomenon, but it actually has a long, sordid history.

View in Browser  The Shocking True Story of a Gilded Age Society Magazine's Deception and Downfall Did you ever hear the one about James R. Keene, the 19th-century stock market maestro whose Wall Street clients included William Rockefeller Jr.? No? Well, if a shocking tale about Keene existed—and we're not saying it did—William d'Alton Mann would have made sure it stayed out of the public eye. Keene, after all, had been so generous as to lend Mann $90,000, the equivalent of more than $2 million today. You see, Mann—a Union Army colonel turned unscrupulous oil prospector, patent-happy entrepreneur, turncoat congressional candidate, and, eventually, gossip-slinging extortionist—was the owner of Town Topics: The Journal of Society, a weekly magazine equally loathed, loved, and feared by the moneyed class of the Gilded Age. Under Mann's stewardship, Town Topics became both a trenchant chronicler of the one percent and a vehicle for Mann to join its ranks. Members of the elite with surnames like Astor, Morgan, Vanderbilt, Whitney, and Gould paid exorbitant sums with the expectation that Mann would keep their peccadilloes out of his publication. As the colonel himself once bragged, "I have cartloads of stories locked up in my safe that would turn New York upside down." New York was turned upside down all right, but by a scandal of Mann's own making. It's a story that endures 120 years later, amid our HBO-induced Gilded Age fascination. It echoes in the National Enquirer's "catch and kill" controversies, not least the case in which Donald Trump was found guilty this year of paying his pals at the Enquirer to buy and then quash damaging stories. Or in the adjacent saga starring Jeff Bezos, who publicly accused the Enquirer of blackmailing him with the threat of exposing delicate photos. And who can forget when New York Post reporter Jared Paul Stern faced accusations of trying to extort billionaire Ron Burkle? You could even argue that there are whiffs of Town Topics in the Harvey Weinstein playbook of quelling negative press by offering journalists lucrative book and development deals. "The common thread that runs through these incidents is the suppression of stories," says Nancy C. Unger, a Gilded Age historian, reflecting on "the notion of using journalism not simply to inform the public but to promote private ambitions." It's easy to think of this type of tabloid malfeasance as a modern day phenomenon, but it actually has a long, sordid history. Read More For Chloe Bennet, Starring in 'Interior Chinatown' Was Therapy Before the Hulu adaptation of Charles Yu's bestselling novel was even announced, the actress knew she had to play Lana Lee. Read More Caroline Kennedy Breaks Her Silence on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s "Dangerous" Views on Vaccination Kennedy, currently the U.S. ambassador to Australia, denounced her cousin's stance on vaccines. Read More Queen Camilla Wears Queen Elizabeth's Aquamarine Tiara for the First Time Queen Camilla isn't afraid to wear a show-stopping sparkler. Read More How to Get the Best Wedding Photos Veteran photographer Genevieve de Manio, who did Chelsea Clinton's wedding, divulges a few tricks of her trade. Hint: Get off TikTok. Read More A New Book Celebrates a Legendary Jewelry Partnership Sybil and David Yurman: Artists and Jewelers chronicles the couple's 50-year journey in art and commerce. Read More Follow Us Unsubscribe | Privacy Notice | CA Notice at Collection Town & Country is a publication of Hearst Magazines. ©2024 Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This email was sent by Hearst Magazines, 300 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019-3779