Older Socialites
I work in a field (T&E lawyer) that puts me in frequent contact with wealthy over the age of say 45. I'm based in NYC, so most of our clients are in the Northeast or Florida, with some in the Bay Area and Southern California.
The vast majority of them are regular people who lead pretty standard lives. They spend most of their time with their families, maybe they belong to a country club and have dinner there with old friends once a month, maybe the wife has a local charity or a disease that affected their family personally that they raise money for.
But like most people over 50, they're not all that interested in socializing with strangers. If there's a spare ticket to some big name charity event, it's far more common that I'll hear "can't I just write them a check?" than "who's going to be there and what should I wear?"
And yet... there's a whole crew of people over 50 who spend their time being "socialites", seeing and being seen at big name charity events, or, like Tom Ford in that NYT piece, being at places like SoHo Club and certain hotels in LA so often that they have their own tables.
So who are these older socialites and what makes them like that? Is it that they don't have families or friends to fall back on? They're no wealthier than the "can't I just write a check" types, yet the idea of being at parties all the time is still alluring to them.
What do you think makes them tick?
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | April 24, 2019 2:40 AM
|
congrats OP: this is the most boring, the most "who gives a flying fuck" thread i've ever seen on the DL. And i've been here a long time.
| by Anonymous | reply 1 | April 23, 2019 6:22 PM
|
It's not all that mysterious, OP. Some people like to socialize; others don't.
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | April 23, 2019 6:36 PM
|
I'm so honored R1
And yet ... you read it AND commented on it.
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | April 23, 2019 6:46 PM
|
Some people need to be seen in order to feel like they exist. That's why some go to the events and others do not, I think.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | April 23, 2019 7:01 PM
|
Insecurity and the need for external validation. It's not enough to have money, they need other people to know they have money to feel better about themselves and feel superior. They attend these types of events to prove that they are "somebody" who is invited to such an "exclusive" event.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | April 23, 2019 7:03 PM
|
OP, for a lot of them it's both validation and a write off. They're not going to have a good time but to see, be seen, and to network, all of it tax-deductible. It's either a charitable or business expense.
As you would know.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | April 23, 2019 7:13 PM
|
The Food Allergy Ball is doing important work, raising awareness on the Upper East Side about food allergies!
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | April 23, 2019 7:19 PM
|
Yes R6, and as noted, many of them have one or two charities they feel strongly about or got involved with and will work for those. More often than not their friends are also involved in the same charity. Otherwise, they're happy enough to write a check, sponsor a table, etc., so as to get the deduction.
The ones I'm curious about are the types of people who show up in those Social Diary threads on DL, they're at every party, every art gallery opening, etc. I guess it's as good a way to fill the hours as any.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | April 23, 2019 10:55 PM
|
Cafe Society.
It was...for certain types who couldn’t get in to the Mortimer Club.
| by Anonymous | reply 11 | April 23, 2019 11:44 PM
|
Maybe they realize that the ;people they meet at these occasions are boring.
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | April 24, 2019 2:23 AM
|
They want to show off their clothes and style and be photographed for Vanity Fair.
| by Anonymous | reply 13 | April 24, 2019 2:36 AM
|
Bunny Mellon was the same way. An extremely wealthy billionaire socialite who was life long friends with jackie kennedy. But was more of a recluse than anything else.
Some people just really don't care about being seen. The $$$ and the lifestyle is enough for some.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | April 24, 2019 2:40 AM
|
