page_title: The Four Hundred (1892)
section_title: Criticism and backlash
hierarchical_section_title: The Four Hundred (1892) / History / Criticism and backlash
caption_attribution_description: English: Title: The European Svengali and the trilbys of the "four hundred" - he hypnotizes 'em every time! / Ehrhart. Abstract/medium: 1 print&#160;: chromolithograph.
context_page_description: The Four Hundred was a list of New York society during the Gilded Age, a group that was led by Caroline Schermerhorn Astor, the Mrs. Astor, for many years. After her death, her role in society was filled by three women: Mamie Fish, Theresa Fair Oelrichs, and Alva Belmont, known as the "triumvirate" of American society.
  On February 16, 1892, The New York Times published the "official" list of those included in the Four Hundred as dictated by social arbiter Ward McAllister, Mrs. Astor's friend and confidante, in response to lists proffered by others, and after years of clamoring by the Press to know who, exactly, was on the list.
context_section_description: After McAllister released the names of The Four Hundred in The New York Times, there was significant backlash, both against the idea of a definitive list of "acceptable society" and McAllister himself.  The papers dubbed him "Mr. Make-a-Lister" and, in combination with his memoirs published in 1890, entitled Society as I Have Found It, further ostracized him from the "old guard", who valued their privacy in an era when the leaders of society were the equivalent of modern movie stars.  William d'Alton Mann, who owned the Town Topics, a gossip magazine, considered it his duty to expose the sins of society and regularly criticized the Four Hundred.
  Several years later, author O. Henry released a collection of short stories, entitled The Four Million, a reaction to this phrase, expressing O. Henry's opinion that every human being in New York was worthy of notice.
  In 2009, the Museum of the City of New York compiled its own list, entitled “The New York City 400,” of the 400 "movers and shakers" who made a difference in the 400 years of New York City history since Henry Hudson arrived in 1609.  McAllister was "the only person on the original Four Hundred to also make the museum’s list."
caption: "The European Svengali and the trilbys of the "Four Hundred" - He hypnotizes 'em every time!"
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