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Historical period dramas are not only highly entertaining but also can serve as bigger metaphors for modern audiences. Wrapped up in the elaborate costumes and stylized language, there are lessons to be learned. So it is with Julian Fellowess HBO series The Gilded Age, which has much to say about the complexities of innovation and capitalism. The series has been scoring record ratings ahead of its much-anticipated Season 3 finale, which airs August 10. Let’s take a look at what all the fuss is about. If you’re not up to date on the series, beware: There are spoilers ahead! First, some background Before we get into the dollars and cents of it all, heres a quick refresher. The Gilded Age premiered in January 2022 on HBO despite being slated to air on NBC originally. The plot follows Marian Brook (played by Louisa Jacobson), a newly orphaned young adult who is forced to move in with her old-monied aunts in New York City in 1882. Residing across the street from her new home are railroad magnate George Russell (Morgan Spector); his wife, Bertha (Carrie Coon); and their two young adult children, Larry (Harry Richardson) and Gladys (Taissa Farmiga), who are looked down upon because of their “new money” status. The title of the show refers to the time period in which it is set. Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner are credited for naming this moment in history in their book The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today. These authors’ social commentary remarked that the period looked beautiful but it was all just a patina or facade built on an ethically questionable foundation. So what can audiences learn here? Capitalism needs regulation While George Russell is a fictional character, he has historical precedent in the likes of Jay Gould and Cornelius Vanderbilt. George made his fortune by being a ruthless railroad tycoon. When the old guard doesnt accept his authority, he muscles his way in. In Season 1 he manipulates the stock market, causing Patrick Morris (Michael Gill), a city alderman, to lose his fortune and take his own life. George isnt afraid to pressure politicians to achieve his goals of railroad expansion. He threatens to pull his business from the representatives districts, and offers bribes and political favors. He bullies entire towns by promising to bypass certain cities if his demands are not met. George does not care about the human impact of his business dealings. Audiences are shown a softer side of the robber baron in Season 2 when he agrees to negotiate with striking railroad workers, but even then George makes sure the final deal favors his interests instead of the working class. Ultimately, the character serves as a cautionary tale, warning against unchecked capitalism (though last weeks cliffhanger suggests we may see him have a change of heart). It’s lonely at the top Jack Trotter (Ben Ahlers) works as a footman in the Van Rhijn household. On the side, he labors to invent a reliable alarm clock and ultimately sells it with Larry Russell for $600,000. Overnight, Jacks whole life changes. His take is worth around $9.5 million in today’s dollars, according to Vulture. While this achievement gives Jack options, he is forced to leave the only home hes ever known. He is now a man who doesnt fit in anywhere, straddling the world of aristocracy and his former working-class roots. Its interesting to ponder whether or not money bought Jack happiness. Money opens doors Bertha Russell is an ambitious woman who spends much of the series determined to win the approval of society’s most elite circles. Her wealth gets her in the door, but it does not buy her immediate acceptance. Bertha is snubbed by the Van Rhijns and Mrs. Astor (Donna Murphy), denied a box at the opera, and gossiped about relentlessly. Eventually, she makes her own mark in societybecause all money talks, even if it’s new. There will be ups and downs Capitalism is volatile, as experienced by many of the characters in The Gilded Age. This includes Oscar van Rhijn (Blake Ritson), who was born to privilege but loses it all with one bad real estate investment. Thankfully, his Aunt Agnes (Christine Baranski) reluctantly saves the day. Ditto for Mr. Collyer (Michael Cerveris), who was once a successful banker. When he loses his money, his father-in-law gets him to agree to divorce his wife and abandon his child. He changes his name to Watson and finds employment in the Russell household as a valet. The Russell family fortune is dependent on the railroad industry. Because this is new technology in the 19th century, it can be a highly speculative enterprise. When profits are king, entrepreneurs like George Russell run the constant risk of becoming over-leveraged, having to defend their wealth in morally questionable ways, and maybe even losing it all. The latest season of The Gilded Age focuses in part on the real-life panic of 1893, which “threatened the solvency of the entire banking system,” according to Federal Reserve History. New industries change society The railroad was a disrupting force in 19th-century America, analogous to the modern tech industry. Trains not only changed how people traveled but also how products were distributed and wealth was made. These days, Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos fundamentally shift society with entities such as Facebook, Instagram, and Amazon. Like the Russell family, they also have amassed enormous wealth, and they exert their power across business, culture, politics, and philanthropy. If George Russell were alive today, he might be ushering in the latest version of ChatGPT instead of building a new rail line. Oscar van Rhijn might have lost his fortune on crypto or NFTs. While the final word might lie in future episodes, The Gilded Age doesnt fully condemn or endorse capitalism. It holds a mirror up to human nature and lets the audience draw its own conclusions, via petticoats and top hats.
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E-Commerce
I dont know if youve noticed, but email scams are getting surprisingly sophisticated. Weve had a handful of instances here at The Intelligence International Headquarters where weve had to do a double-takeor occasionally even the rarely seen triple-takeand put an authentic-seeming email under the metaphorical microscope to confirm that it was actually something shady. Spoiler alert: In each and every such instance, the email in question was, in fact, shady as all get-out. And at least a couple of times, we came dangerously close to missing it and falling for the trap. Thats why I was so intrigued when I came across the tool Im gonna share with you today. Its an incredibly useful resource for identifying fishy emails and instantly confirming that something isnt what it seemsand, in all likelihood, is out to try to scam you in some way. And it’s something Gmail, Outlook, and other mail providers aren’t even close to accomplishing with the same level of ease and sophistication. This is one youll absolutely want to hang onto. Be the first to find all sorts of little-known tech treasures with my free Cool Tools newsletter from The Intelligence. One useful new discovery in your inbox every Wednesday! Email scams, exposed The next time you see something potentially shifty in your inboxany email that raises your eyebrows even a little and makes you wonder, Could this possibly be legit?remember a crafty free service called Snitcher Space. Snitcher Space does just one thing and does it impressively well: It analyzes any email you send it, on the spot, and tells you if it seems likely to be a scamalong with exactly what red flags (if any) led to that verdict. It takes roughly five minutes to use, though most of that is just waiting for the analysis to be completed. Were really talkin maybe 10 seconds of actual active effort. Seriouslythere isnt much to it: The next time you come across a questionable-seeming email, just forward it to the address scan@snitcher.spaceright from your inbox, using the regular ol forwarding command within whatever email app or service you prefer. The first time you do so, youll get a confirmation email that youll need to click once to confirm. A single one-time confirmation is all it takes to start using Snitcher Space. Then, after a few minutes (or sometimes more, if the service is especially busyas it has been since this recommendation first appeared in my newsletter), youll get an email back with the complete scam analysis. All the info you need comes directly into your inbox, in a single-email analysis. Whats particularly helpful is that when Snitcher Space isnt sure of something, itll tell youand explain its logic so you can assess the situation for yourself. Here, for instance, is the result for an email one of us received recently where even Snitcher Space wasnt 100% sure about the legitimacy: If Snitcher Space isn’t entirely sure if an email is legitimate, it’ll tell youand offer you all the evidence to reach your own informed conclusion. Its a rare and refreshing treat to see that level of candor at a time when AI chatbots everywhere default to doubling down and confidently lying when they dont actually know something. And its just one more reason why Snitcher Space is a tool well worth your while to keep around and have ready to serve you whenever the need arises. Snitcher Space is entirely web-basedno apps and nothing to downloadthough youll actually interact with it entirely over email, simply by forwarding something to scan@snitcher.space. Its completely free to use. The company includes affiliate ads at the bottom of its analysis messages, which seems to be the main method of monetization at the moment. The service promises it deletes emails immediately after theyre scanned and doesnt store or share any manner of personal info. Ready for more smart tech treasures? Check out my free Cool Tools newsletter for an instant introduction to an incredible audio appand another off-the-beaten-path gem every Wednesday!
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E-Commerce
While no one claimed having children was going to be cheap, the cost of back-to-school shopping gives me sticker shock every year. The National Retail Federation (NRF) estimates that the average household will spend just under $860 on back-to-school shopping for K-12 students returning to the classroom for the 2025-2026 academic year. (That said, depending on how the summer has gone, you may be willing to pay any price to get them back into a daily routine.) Parents of older kids arent off the hook, unfortunately. The NRF also estimates that the average household with a college student will spend $1,325 for all their needed supplies before returning them to campus. The good news is that back-to-school shopping doesnt have to overwhelm your budget, no matter how eye-watering the costs may seem. Heres what you need to know. Start with school fees School fees are easily forgotten, which makes them the costs most likely to bust a back-to-school budget. Youve probably got a basic mental tally of the school supplies, new clothes, electronics, and backpacks you need to buy for your kids, and its very easy to let those items take up the full budget you set aside for back-to-school expenses. Then its time to register your kids, and you learn you have to pay $80 per kid for school fees, plus $70 per kid for Chromebook insurance, and a $50 athletic participation fee so your daughter can join the swim team. This is not to mention prepaying their lunch account, prepurchasing a yearbook, and multiple other potential costs that can add up quickly. Thats why its a good idea to contact the school before you begin shopping to find out what school fees and optional costs you can expect. Then you can leave room in your back-to-school shopping budget rather than let the fees blow a hole in it. Know where to shop You can save a lot of money if you shop at the right places, starting in your own home. Take an inventory of your house The average American home has closets and drawers full of usable school suppliesoften still in their original packagingthat can be repurposed for your kids back-to-school shopping list. This is also true of the backpack full of stuff Junior has left marinating in the basement since the end of last school year. Provided the pack didnt include unwashed athletic socks (in which case, its probably achieved sentience and eaten the cat), careful excavation will likely unearth a number of perfectly good supplies that can be used again next year. Check local free trading programs In addition to taking inventory of your home, check for free stuff, too. Programs like Buy Nothing and Freecycle may also have some of the supplies you need. Obviously, youll spend time rather than money to use these programs, but the real benefit is keeping usable items out of the landfill. Online versus brick-and-mortar While doing all your shopping from your smartphone is convenient, its not necessarily cheaper. Brick and mortar stores may offer steeply discounted loss leaders to entice customers in, and many stores like Staples, Kohls, and JCPenney offer price matching in store. As for taking advantage of loss leaders, timing matters. Most weekly sales run from Sunday to Saturday, so youre more likely to find those deals if you shop early in the week. Just remember that the loss leader is designed to get to the storewhere youll be tempted to buy everything else you need at full price since youre already there. If you do buy online, check for promo codes before checking out to save money. Additionally, consider using a discount gift card to make your purchase. Sites like CardCash allow you to purchase gift cards to major online retailers for less than the face value. When to skimp and when to splurge While it may seem like all school supplies are basically the same, educators have been burned by cheaply made materials. This is why many teachers will specify the brand of marker, glue stick, or other supplies they want your child to have in their desk. After years of dried-out and unusable supplies, your childs teacher has strong opinions about off-brand options. Even if your teacher or their supply list doesnt provide guidance on when its okay to skimp and when to splurge, a good rule of thumb is to splurge on anything that gets frequent use and requires durability. Just remember that rule of thumb describes a laptop for a college student, but it also describes a box of crayons for a kindergartner. Its the most wonderful time of the year The smell of sharpened pencils is in the air, yellow school buses are returning to their routes, and students are vowing that this is the year theyll actually do all their homework on time. Dont let the fear of busting your budget on back-to-school shopping ruin this lovely moment. Reaching out to your childs school to determine what fees you may have to pay will help you set your back-to-school budget before you start shopping. From there, find as many free school supplies as you can in your own home and through local trading programs. When youre ready to shop, compare online and in-store deals to find the best prices. But while youre shopping, dont skimp on important supplies. The nations teachers will thank you.
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E-Commerce
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