Every generation has status symbols; showy expressions of wealth everybody wants and only a few can afford. TV shows and movies often reflect the trappings of wealth, using visual clues to demarcate the 1% from us ordinary folks - and give us something to salivate over. Shows about the uber-rich have changed, but plenty of people still tune in to find out what the Kardashians are wearing this week.
So what did your parents dream about? Reality shows were not as prevalent in the 60s, and rich people didn't invite cameras to document every scintillating detail of their daily lives. Our view of the rich was outside-in. We were kids with our noses pressed to the candy store window. Fortunately, the superrich have never been shy about flaunting their wealth for us to envy. Here are the symbols of wealth your parents coveted - and what they cost then and now.
Rolls Royce
No self-respecting multimillionaire would drive anything less. The Rolls Royce Silver Shadow was introduced in 1965 for the princely sum of $19,700 and everyone from rock stars to world leaders drove them. Rolls Royce is still the gold standard of ostentatious wealth. Business Insider describes the new Rolls Royce Phantom as yacht on wheels - with a price tag of $500,000.
Iconic Watch
We know that Rolex is the king of culture for one simple reason: It was the watch of choice for James Bond. While later movies featured different brands - Daniel Craig sports Omega - Sean Connery favored an iconic Rolex, much like Bond's creator, Ian Fleming, who wore a Rolex Explorer. In 1969, the Rolex Oyster cost $202.50. Ridiculous!! Today, You can pick up a Bond-worthy Rolex Oyster for $6,000 and up - way up, depending on your chosen metals...and they still grace the wrists of Hollywood's A-List.
Mink Coat
Every woman of status owned a luxurious full length mink. Your mom imagined herself attending a Hollywood premiere, wrapped in the cloud-soft elegance of a silk-lined sable. In her day, a high-end fur could cost up to $35,000. In the last few decades, the cost has come way down. ML Furs lists this to-die-for designer fur coat at just under $11,000.
Photo reprinted with permission
An Original Picasso
What mansion would be complete without signed original art? Picasso took the art world of the rich and famous by storm in the early 60s, and everyone who was anyone had to have one. In 1960, a Picasso oil painting was auctioned off by Sotheby's for £55,000, or roughly $80,600 in dollars (at today's conversion rate). Last year, a Picasso original set a new world record for the highest auction price in history. Les femmes d'Alger, version O sold for $160,000,000 - plus a hefty commission for Christie's, of course.
Beverly Hills Mansion
The Beverly Hillbillies introduced middle America to the inside of a real mansion, and we may never be the same. From the soaring marble staircase to the fancy cement pond, the Kirkeby Mansion at 750 Bel Air Road is arguably the most ostentatious home a wannabe 1% could have wished for in the 60s.
Don't tell mom, but it was all an illusion. The only real part of the mansion was the outside from the front. Once the actors stepped through the front door - or out the back - they were on movie sets. The interior was quite different from the set designer's vision.
The Kirkeby Mansion cost $2 million to construct in 1933. With 10 bedrooms, 12 baths, gold-plated fixtures and doorknobs, and a 150-ft waterfall, the home was something of a white elephant at the time. Hotel magnate Arnold Kirkeby bought it in 1945 for a fraction of the cost, just $250,000. Zillow estimates its current value at $16,753,660.
Classic never seems to go out of style. Diamonds will always be a girl's best friend. 50 years later, we still want to know how the 1% lives, what they drive, what they wear, even what their bathrooms look like. That desire fueled the popularity of celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton - famous only because they are rich - and TV shows from Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous to The Real Housewives.
The superrich have more choices than ever today. There are a gazillion ways to spend...well, a gazillion dollars. It should be interesting to see the next round of reality shows that bypasses crass celebrity and hones in on the true aristocracy of old money to explore the secret world of people who literally have everything.