New Video: Betsy Bloomingdale Entertains

The gates open and you drive (or are driven) up to the door of a gracious home. You are escorted into a living room for a drink before dinner. Delicious good is served and then you retire to the many pleasures the property has to offer as you drink, talk, and cavort with Hollywood elite and prominent California business people. Where did all this magic take place? At the gorgeous home of Betsy Bloomingdale, wife to Alfred who started and ran the popular department store.

The Art of Entertaining

Back in the height of Mrs. Bloomingdale’s scene, entertaining was not as it is now. People dressed and by dressed I mean in couture gowns and tailored tuxes. Going to someone’s home for an evening was an event. Women would arrive bedecked in jewels and furs. The men would be neatly put together in tuxedos with a cigarette already in hand.

Restoring the Home

The beautiful thing about the way they have restored her home is that you get the sense through the video that Mrs. Bloomingdale has just stepped out for a moment and will quickly return to greet you and sit down for a short chat. Although she has passed, her legacy of gracious entertaining lives on in the future and the wonderful space of her home.

Dreams

When I was growing up, entering into this world was always my dream. I saw glimpses of this world in TV and old movies. I knew that this is a world where I would fit and belong. I had lots of interesting ideas and things in my head. I knew these sorts of people would want to hear them and if my ideas were good enough then someone would discover me and I would be very successful! At least, that’s what 16 year old me thought and how he thought the world worked. One of the reasons I embarked on a creative journey (first in music and later in writing) was so I could hang out, talk about my creative stuff, have drinks, and exist in these elegant worlds. One of the few things I love to do is talk to interesting people. My favorite moments are when I’m interviewing someone and we really connect and have a deep conversation. Those are the days when I really love doing this.

However, those days are rare. One of the things I learned about myself when I happened upon these videos (thanks to random YouTube recommendations) is that the world I wanted to live in: a world of dinner parties, drinks, and fast cars doesn’t really exist anymore. Particularly in the first video, it is mentioned often that people just don’t entertain that way anymore. People don’t really live that way anymore. I always imagined myself as a modern Truman Capote hanging out with interesting people in beautiful settings. But it is 2020 and that world is gone. That leaves me without much of a dream or a real purpose for doing this. One of my goals right now is to find a new dream and a new purpose for living.

I have done a great deal in my life and I have collected tales and stories and all sorts of things along the way. I’ve endured hardships and humiliations from a variety of people. I always felt like the suffering was worth it as long as I arrived in the world I thought was just waiting for me. That is no longer the case. Now, I must face the reality of being 32 years old with a budding writing career and meager prospects otherwise. It is time to shift gears. I’m not sure where I’m going to shift to but the reality is that Betsy Bloomingdale and her wonderful parties are a thing of the past and so is my dream. What should I do next?