The Gilded Age · Season 1, Episode 1
“Never the New” · Season 1, Episode 1
In this episode: Agnes van Rhijn (3), Ada Brook (3), Marian Brook (1), Peggy Scott (1), George Russell (1)
She thanks you for the letter that you did not show me and for the tickets that you purchased without my knowledge. She means to join us here just as soon as she has closed the house and sold her furniture.
What a relief.
A relief? And who is to support her? Exactly. Me. With the Van Rhijn money, which was not achieved at no cost to myself. You were allowed the pure and tranquil life of a spinster. I was not.
I'm very grateful.
So you should be.
Now you need to know, we only receive the old people in this house. Not the new. Never the new.
What's the difference?
The old have been in charge since before the Revolution. They ruled, justly, until the new people invaded.
It's not quite as simple as that.
Yes, it is.
Well, I'm new. I've only just arrived.
Marian, never mind that the Brooks have been in Pennsylvania for a century and a half. My mother, your grandmother, was a Livingston of Livingston Manor, and they came to this city in 1674. You belong to old New York, my dear, and don't let anyone tell you different. You are my niece, and you belong to old New York.
I don't need money. I'm fed, I'm paid, and I have a place to stay.
Well, I brought you something. You take it.
I told you I don't need it.
Don't be silly, I'm your mother, I'm allowed to give you money.
I may be a bastard, Mr. Thorburn, but you are a fool. And of the two, I think I know which I prefer. Now, good day to you, sir.
Well I like her strong views. I like her energy. Don't worry, Agnes. She's clever. She'll learn the rules.
Will she? Revolutions are launched by clever people with strong views and excess energy.
These quotes come from Wikiquote's The Gilded Age pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
