I wish they had played up Lorelai's sewing more. I can rationalize her inability to cook - her parents never would have taught her and she probably got most of her meals free or at a seriously reduced price at the inn. Learning to sew, though, seems to be the practical skill she picked up to save money. It only comes up a couple of times, but Lorelai had became a pretty competent seamstress by the time she made Rory's prom dress in season one, and it seems like she started by turning old t-shirts into onesies for Rory.
@@invictus1961 I don't think it's implied early on she was making clothes from scratch. It sounds like she was just upcycling stuff she had. The only time we see her make stuff from scratch is the one dance dress amd when she's making costumes for town plays.
Truth! I've been watching for over 2 decades. My opinions and perspective have changed over the years, but I've always had them. There's always been something to complain about and lots to love.
I don't think it's inconceivable for Luke to have wealth: he's unmarried and no kids (pre-April), he's a sole owner of a thriving business, he has no rent/mortgage (early seasons), he was probably left money by his deceased parents, he fixes everything himself, he clearly doesn't go shopping, and he only does infrequent local traveling and has inexpensive hobbies like fishing
@@lalittlyup. And then people complain about affirmative action. If my boomer ancestors because of racism were blocked from home ownership, good paying jobs, makes sense that their descendants may have a harder time financially without the support of generational wealth
Unrelated. Rory not marrying Logan and then being is side chick in the reboot is CRAZYYYYYY. Not to mention, she didn’t marry him so she could be successful and proceeded to fail as a journalist. Mind you, Logan was never holding her back.
Logan could have set her up with a job!!! It didn’t have to be a forever job but real tangible experience in the field that she could’ve spun into anything she wanted! Like it kills me how much she fumbled every aspect of her life 😭
@@Iamjustherek right! Expecting to leave Yale and get a dream job on what merit? With what connection? Now she has to be in the shadow because she’s a side chick. He can’t even help her as a friend.
She didn't want to marry Logan because she didn't want to know how her life panned out. She was happy with not knowing. Despite being completely unhappy with not knowing what her life was going to be like before lol. I think she just couldn't handle the commitment at such a young age.
I really hated the treatment of Lane and public high school. Like oh, because Lane goes to public school she's going to be a towny with roommates and getting married and pregnant young, while Rory goes to Chilton and has this huge promising trajectory to Ivy League schools and beyond. Ridiculous.
agreed. like yes public school has stigma, but you cannot tell me stars hollow was a middle class town. they were upper middle at worst, and so that meant their public school had to be well funded
I think lane’s situation was too realistic and gilmore’s situation was too fairytale. I think what happened to lane and rory’s treatment of her are spot on for kids living in her conditions.
I’m surprised we didn’t touch on their constantly eating out. Also-whatever bill they were running up at Luke’s. I know this is a fictional show but I don’t remember ever seeing them pay for food or anything
In one of the episodes where Lorelai and Rory were fighting, Rory says "we have to pay for that" and we see Lorelai put down money. Also once she starts dating Luke there's a whole conversation about Lorelai not having to tip anymore and how much she used to tip in the past.
There was at least one episode where Rory and Lorelei have big list of music to buy because they are so quirky and love unique music from a specific store. I was in college at the time and rolled my eyes because CDs were expensive new and tended to not be in great condition used. I was decently comfortable in college with my VA pay with tuition/books covered and I never bought more than one CD every few months in an area with iffy access to radio stations. I also had a job.
I also always wondered how Lorelei could have afforded to buy a house by herself at a young age. (Her salary as a small town inn manager couldn’t have been too extravagant, and she wasn’t speaking to her parents at the time, so presumably they didn’t help her out.) There were a lot of things about Lorelei’s lifestyle that didn’t add up.
@@12harrypotterfan34 Especially in Connecticut, even in 1995. Not just any house either, but a big one. That's a freakin' mansion. But Lorelai's trust fund from her grandmother kicked in at 25, so... Wraparound porch and a lot larger on the outside than it is on the inside. Like they were two separate locations hahaha
@@squamish4244honestly any housing situation in every american show makes zero sense. Whole movie/show revolving about how the protagonist is poor but living in a two story three bedroom house with a patio.... The only somwhat believable I've seen so far is Jennifer Lopez in that Manhattan maid movie, small and messy... I believed that
They tried to portray Lorelai’s life like it was lower class but she got to raise her child with support & grew up to become a business owner who sent her child to a private high school & knew people who could pay for it. Please. That is the definition of upper middle class.
I disagree. It wasn’t a lower class life that they were trying to portray. It was an independent life. And that is an important difference. But then again I related to Lorelei. Not that my parents were uber wealthy. But they were well off and wanted their values to be my values. Turning away from financial comfort to succeed at your own path isn’t easy.
@@RealSigmaQueen But Lorelei didn't fully turn away from financial comfort. The show's main plot point is her going to her parents for money to give Rory an elite education. This video is examining the cognitive dissonance that results in coming from privilege while also pretending that class doesn't play a factor in one's success; which is a privilege in and of itself.
That was what lower class used to be in that timeframe Back before US had 20% working homeless people population Nowadays is unrealistic but back in the 90s totally realistic has most families were doing that on one income the middle class was full of single income families
As a former Financial Aid Counselor, the "Yale suddenly revoked Rory's financial aid" story line has always bugged me. Financial need for college used to be based on your previous year's tax returns (now it's two years prior), so if anything, Lorelai's sudden influx of money would have created a problem for Rory's sophomore year financial aid, not her freshman year. And you can request a professional judgement in a situation like that where your tax return doesn't accurately reflect the reality of your financial situation. It doesn't have anything to do with how expensive your high school was or how much money your grandparents have. It's all about how much money your parents have.
FAFSA still asks for the amount that is currently in yours and your parent's checking accounts at the time of application, so they would have absolutely known that Lorelai had that money
@@katiegorman8663 Yeah but she would have filled out the FAFSA in January/February of her senior year and Lorelai didn't get the money until April/May.
Also, Lorelei could be pretty self-centered when it came to other people spending time and money on her: the biggest one for me is the several times Sookie gave Lorelei catering/chef service for free as a gift and token of her friendship and Lorelei never said thank you. Like, when she broke up with Max Medina out of nowhere and Sookie had cooked a feast and had to toss it out. Like, hello, Lorelei, that cost Sookie a lot of her money and time, be grateful!
Or when Sookie had tickets to see the bangles, and Lorelai literally gave the tickets out to Rory, Paris, and the other two girls without consulting Sookie. Then they got the nosebleed seats, literally the last two seats available...
Yeah, we’re talking about an investment of hundreds of hours, and thousands of dollars, on the wedding cake alone. “You were a good cake, Clyde… Never should have named ya.” 😭
They’re also extremely rich in time on that show. They must have had like 35-hour days or something lol. They had time to go get a full breakfast in a dinner before school and work then worked a full hour day then still had plenty of time for shenanigans. I know in these shows no one has to sleep or clean. But time is money.
Obligatory minor correction: in season 7 Logan did not lose $1 million in Vegas. He lost millions on the business deal that he invested his trust fund into, and his investors' money as well. It was a rash business decision, but those happen. It wasn't pure Vegas gambling.
Doesn't seem that unlikely that Luke had all that money, honestly. He built an extremely successful business (the diner is always packed) and he did it on the back of his father's already established business, probably reducing the costs significantly. He is ridiculously frugal, to the point that it is a running joke. And he's the responsible type, probably investing for years. Also, let's remember this is the early aughts, not whatever this *gestures vaguely* economy nowadays is.
And also made an investmemt when he bough the next door bulding, made his apartment bigger and rented out the ground floor to Taylor (whom he promised would have to pay an arm and a leg for it). I'm pretty sure that was also a net positive because he likely bught that next door buillding without a mortgage as well and probably recovered the cost in a decade or two.
Luv-ah LUV-AH the take on Lorelei making Stars Hollow her own middle class fantasy. Especially given how hard she works to separate her 'worlds'. And it wasn't a spork household. She chose to leave privilege, she chose to leave her silver spoon. She also chose to eventually get a silver spoon for Rory (aka - Chilton).
Lorelei is a great example of an AWFUL mother. She's just the worst. Both Lorelei and Rory are clueless baby mamas. The whole show was Hollyweird pushing Baby mama programming while demonizing soft wife life (Emily).
@@freeinghumanitynow Do you know how stupid you sound? No one demonized Emily for being a wife. The criticism was directed at her constant attempts to push in and control her daughter's life. Your use of the words 'baby mama' and 'hollyweird' tell me everything I need to know about you.
Lorelei is the privileged kid, who can afford to screw up (teen mom), because she has a very big financial cushion to land on. It makes for a great story, because she can get into all kinds of trouble, and there is always enough money to get her out. Nice ups and downs.
I don’t understand why everyone that reviews GG says that Lorelei’s income and life style is unrealistic. I was a young single mom in the 90s (22 when I had my son) I was making $7.50 an hour at a customer service job not dissimilar to her. I was able to rent a small apartment (a converted garage) and by the time my son was 11 I was able to use part of my 401k for a down payment on a small house. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that comparing the show with today’s economy it would be VERY unrealistic, but as someone who was pretty much living that same life while the show was on air, it wasn’t really that unrealistic. BTW I am 3 years younger than Lauren Graham, I was 30 and my son was 8 when the first episode aired.
For me it was all the incidentals that were unrealistic. For example, eating out at Luke’s every day, or Lorelei buying Rory’s whole college dorm take out.
@@adapienkowska2605 but she didn’t buy her house or live alone until later in life. She was living rent free at the Independent Inn while working full time there until she was 20.
I visited a friends and her family in Colorado small town in the 1990's and it was very much like the Gilmore Girls - and the property and food was cheap. So cheap that I can still remember it. Her mom was a stay at home wife and her dad worked on a ranch. They are middle class and they lived very well. Unfortunately the bubble of the late 1990s changed that - I am told that the small town is deserted now.
Can we talk about how in the first season Richard and Emily said that they vacation to Europe once every two years because that's what they can afford in their budget, then in later seasons Emily rage buys a private plane and they fund an astonomy building so that Rory can have a legacy? I mean, I need to know that someone else noticed this, too.
Plus, I believe that when they travel they do it with unbelievably high standards on accommodation, food, whatever might be. This could ammount to a small fortune for a week or two in Europe. I would’t expect them to sleep in a hostel, but they probably sleep where royals do, in the fanciest hotels of the fanciest cities and they can’t fathom anything simpler. That’s my guess.
@@magalim5518 to be fair, that is how wealth works. People with that kind of money put it into investments, and you'd be shocked how quickly it can grow if those investments do well. Once you're rich, it's fairly easy to get richer, which is just one of many reasons it's ridiculous when they claim to have "earned" their wealth. A lot of what they do to "earn" more wealth is just owning property and putting their money into investments. It costs them basically nothing and provides more and more value over time.
I was Rory's age when the show aired. My mom and sisters would watch every week. My mom appreciated the Emily/Lorelei dynamic as someone with a very overbearing and manipulative parent. I of course wanted a relationship like Lorelei and Rory, but in actuality had more of a Mrs. Kim/Lane dynamic as my parents were very religious. When Mrs. Kim saved Lane's band it was one of my happiest moments, seeing then share a passion of Lanes. If only Dave hadn't moved to California I think we would have gotten a way better storyline for Lane.
They did lane SO DIRTY, I hate how she got pregnant and learnt to fear sex and basically everything to do with zac. Couldn't she have gotten a least a few years of life that is just her own, without doing things out of obligation?
One of the moments that bothered me most, and made me realise their money lives don't make sense, is when Rory shows disdain at the idea of Loralei using coupons to buy household supplies/food (she is horrified at the idea that her mum has bread and cheese to make her own sandwiches instead of ordering each meal). Non financially my biggest peeve is that they eat junk constantly, reject exercise, and yet stay super slim.
There are those of us who really can eat junk constantly, reject exercise, and yet stay super slim. It's not at all the most common body type, but some of us are just built that way. Which just further reveals that it's a lie that eating healthy and exercising are all you have to do to be skinny. Most bodies don't work quite that way.
@@thatjillgirlI have a cousin whose that way. 2 kids and she's still 110lbs at 5'4". And she eats more than most grown men. Her mom (who had 5 kids), aunt, and grandmother are the same way. Just a family of tall leggy blondes. Sometimes it makes me want to puke! 😂
@@thatjillgirl And some people eat as healthy as possible but can't lose weight due to medications/disability/genetics but still we are judged as being 'unhealthy', just as slim people are often assumed to be 'healthy' (which is awful when you consider eating disorders and disabilities/chronic illness that are ignored because outwardly someone 'must be healthy if they're slim'. No one wins with our obsession with weight and 'health'.
@@anyawillowfan Yep, exactly. Health does not equal thinness and vice versa. Some bodies stay thin easily and some don't. Weight is really complicated and doesn't always correlate perfectly with healthy habits.
Some financial things that bothered me about Gilmore Girls and Year in the Life: 1) Rory blows through her entire trust fund by the time A Year in the Life comes around. If she is as broke as she says she is, then how does she fly back and forth from London?! She doesn't have a real job - she was just contracted to basically ghostwrite a memoir. Does Logan pay for it (whole other issue with their relationship in the revive). She's also homeless - couch surfs from Paris' to Lane's to her Mother's house, Grandparents' house, and even Logan's. How does she pay for all of that when she is flat broke? 2) L&R don't live like a family in their means. On one hand Lorelai always says they're broke, but on the other hand they eat out every day, sometimes multiple times per day. They take trips (road trips, Vegas, Europe, etc.). As soon as anything comes up, L asks her parents for money and they are always happy to give it to her. They just want a relationship with their daughter and granddaughter and are painted as the villains. They're not perfect, but the love is there and you can see it. 3) Rory being so privileged, having everything paid for by her grandparents (school, clothes, car, complete dorm redecoration, etc.) and her acting like she's not one of the rich trust fund babies. She thinks she's better than them, and she's not. 4) Rory getting arrested and her grandparents basically cleaning everything up for her. They paid for her attorney, gave her a pool house and redecorated it, gave her a job at the DAR, and more. I could go on... but yeah.
I never saw the episode where Rory has to fill out the FAFSA. That’s how I know Amy Sherman-Palladino never met a poor person. I know Yale might not give merit scholarships but there’s not scholarship for inn keepers putting their kids through college or for tiny brunettes that everyone is obsessed with it or parentified children? When my poor ass was applying for scholarships just a few years before Rory, there were all kinds of scholarships for super specific things. Even if it’s only for one year or a couple thousand dollars, you stack a few of those up, you don’t go to Europe, and you take put some loans. You don’t have to pay for all of college at once.
Exactly. Rory was always so worried about getting good enough grades to get into Harvard or Yale, but never did I see her stress about how they were going to pay for it. I didn't see her applying for any scholarships, or, seeing how loathe her mom was to take money from her parents, consider other less expensive schools. Did Rory ever even have a part-time job? Dean worked at the grocery store, Lane worked at Luke's for a while. But Rory just got to hang out and read? She never even suggests, hey, let's make this Europe trip a 2-3-week thing instead of 3 months to try to save some money. Or, hey, maybe we can get jobs while we're traveling that'll help pay for the trip. Something!
@@cv8499 ugh this bothered me so much. Apparently she was obsessed with Harvard for years, but was also completely clueless about tuition fees and how to get into an Ivy league. She really thought just having perfect grades would get her in, it was Paris who had to tell her that she needed extracurriculars.
Emily and Richard paid for Yale until Christopher inherited a crap ton of money. Then Rory, in a childish rage against her grandparents, asked her father to pay for her school without telling her grandparents, which made things complicated for Richard (he had a conniption because he was afraid that the payments for his beloved granddaughter’s education got lost.) Such a passive-aggressive move. In any case, Rory never paid a cent for her education or had to worry about living expenses. She did “work” in the dining room, but she read or studied and let people swipe their meal cards. That is how little she had to worry about needing a job.
Also can we please talk about the huge disconnect when Christopher takes over paying for Yale and everyone acts like it's trading one for another but actually the grandparents had offered to pay Yale as a **loan** and Christopher was offering to pay it outright and that is an absolutely massive difference that's never acknowledged once?!!
Месяц назад+14
If I remember correctly, the grandparents would have paid for Yale as a gift but Rory insisted on paying them back.
By that point, she understood better what it meant to owe her grandparents money. In their family, borrowing money really worsened interpersonal relationships. But paying for her college tuition was literally the least Christopher could do after two decades of being an absent father.
As a Midwestern teen watching this show on the WB, I never bought Lorelei as being actually broke. Just the East Coast old money version of broke. Especially when she was complaining about money while wearing multiple Diane Von Furstenberg wrap dresses. Girl, come on. 😂
Similar background, for me I was completely confused by the setting. I didn't know if she was rich, not rich, or just that way people on TV are portrayed as rich because the house needs to be big to film a show in. I couldn't make any sense of it at all! Nothing was based on any reality I could imagine. And I kept watching lol.
The study tree moment for me is characteristic of Rory’s need for familiarity potentially because of her anxiety. The study tree feels a lot like when you see her in early seasons reading out in the centre of town near the gazebo or elsewhere outside. As someone with those tendencies myself I felt so seen. Countless times I have spent money in cafes for the ‘perfect’ work environment despite having a library or dorm. I even have a PHD student friend who actually booked a hotel for 2 days just to work and study in because she was overstimulated in her other environment despite it being financially irresponsible.
For #4, let's not forget how when she was dating Digger, she pooh-poohed the very expensive restaurant he first took to her, wasting his money. And THEN went to the stockroom of the supermarket and just starting eating from there, possibly getting the staff there in trouble. (And not to mention, dating Digger in the first place reeks of her being a trust fund baby!)
My number one complaint about Lorelai (whom I love as a character, truly) was just how similar she was to her mom in terms of treatment of service industry workers, while also pretending like she wasn't. She would steal stuff from the back stockroom, got the wedding planner fired, would just spout inane drivel to hotel/coffee shop workers in an "aren't I so cute; too much for mere mortals!" way, while these poor people are just trying to get through her coffee order making minimum wage. To say nothing of the whispered comments on their physical appearance. Everyone (rightly) digs on Emily for her treatment of her maids, but honestly I would absolutely dread having to serve *either* of these women.
The trouble with money on Gilmore Girls is it's used too liberally as a magic wand whether it comes from Emily and Richard or, Luke or Christopher whatever problem arises someone will show up with money to make it disappear. After a while the stakes just feel pretty low. The Chiltern fees in exchange for Friday night dinner is a good enough premise they should have just extended it for Yale rather than over complicating things with scholarships and then Christopher paying and then coming up with some other reason for Friday night dinner that I can't even remember.
That didn't change once Rory went to Yale, she didn't get the scholarships because Lorelai got a check from her dad, from a land he bought when Lorelai was born and then sold it. So Roru herself went to her grandparents to reinstate the Friday's dinners.
@@CrisOnTheInternet Yeah but then Christopher started paying for Yale making that plot point irrelevant and then they had to come up with some other reason for Friday night dinners. It's like the writers want to be like 'hey she doesn't always need her parents' help' so she just gets it from Luke or Christopher instead.
I came into this slightly touchy, like I wanted to make sure this video would be fair to a series that has meant so much to me. Then I saw Princess and all my fears evaporated instantly. Thank you for having her host, she was the perfect person for the job!
Some pushback here - it makes sense for Lorelei NOT to save for Harvard. Harvard actually covers a huge amount of students whose parents make under something like $100K, and admission is need blind, so if you get in and can't afford it, you're very likely to not actually pay tuition. Further, Rory's grandparents' money wouldn't be taken into account - they look at the parents' income. I also agree that Luke probably would have had more money than people think. He's a small business owner with no kids, no expensive habits who seems to avoid the primary overhead that most businesses have - labor. He works himself seemingly daily. That said, not asking for a big loan back seems really out there.
He also owns the building outright as he inherited it from his Dad and also lives there. So the biggest expense for most people rent/motgage is a non-factore for him. He probably eats on the dinners dime as well. So I would estimate that his personal expenses are probably below 1k a month, which is probably high as he seems to never buy anything for himself. 500 might even be more realistic. Even if his dinner only makes about 2k net profit a month. He can save a lot. So he probably had about 100k in savings when he did all that stuff with Lorelai and he really didn't care about money.
I also get frustrated in season 2 when they get termites and Lorelai says she doesn't have $15k to fix her house. 2 episodes later she is ready to it the Dragonfly. Like how?????
well I wouldnt have the money to fix my house thats not my business I would not spend it where I sleep if im saving for the thing thats gonna be my income and my source of capital thats not delusional to me ive made that choice
I am glad this wasn't yet another rant about how Lorelai could never have afforded her home, where all the arguments are based on wages and housing costs TODAY. It wasn't at all strange for a single-income household where the primary earner had a management job to be able to afford a two bedroom house in a small town in the mid-90s, especially considering that Lorelai started with no debt and probably a decent amount of savings on account of living for free at the inn for several years. I do agree Luke's money situation is a little hard to grasp. I can imagine it would be plausible (he doesn't spend much on himself, has very little in the way of housing costs, inherited some money from his dad, etc.). But it does seem like something where his financial resources just magically stretch to whatever the story needs them to be at a given time. But I do take issue with the complaints about Lorelai not taking more of her parents' money and insisting on paying them back when she did. I feel like this fundamentally misunderstands the dynamics of the kind of half-estranged relationship Lorelai had with her parents. She was reluctant to fully cut off contact with them, because on some level she did love them and desired a positive relationship with them. But what she craved and what they rarely gave her was for them to respect her as an autonomous adult and to be proud of her and her accomplishments, instead of constantly seeing her as nothing but an irresponsible, ungrateful child. She had grown as she became an adult, but they almost never were willing to acknowledge it. Borrowing money from them worsened that dynamic. With some parents, borrowing money wouldn't necessarily be so fraught, but with Richard and Emily it was further proof that Lorelai was immature and incapable of standing on her own, and they held it over her at any possible opportunity. They also used it as leverage to force a more personal relationship in spite of her feelings and desired boundaries. Money was not something she could just take from them consequence-free.
Princess Weekes! It's so fun to see you here, and so fun to see you here for this topic. And you're totally right. I think what frustrated me the most about $ ang GG was the way in which treating finances so glibly made the emotional moments ring hollow. I can't be invested in the idea of 'Oh no! Rory might not be able to afford to go to Yale! (without taking out ruinous loans)' when the lead-up to that has come with a near-constant stream of ridiculous financial decisions on Lorelei's part. *And* when the show has never held her accountable for those decisions. It became part of the whole 'TV illogic' side of the show, like everyone forgiving Richard for treating Jason like trash, and how every day had around 36 hours in it. But the ways that the storylines with Logan *almost* held her accountable make me see how - in hindsight - the show could have been even better than it was.
I LOVE The Gilmore Girls, but also recognize the problems with the show. I'm so glad there's others out there that also LOVE the show and see the same problems.
I love Gilmore Girls, but I also recognize and complain about their distorted reality of money. I've never seen someone talk about all the financial hypocrisy in this show, and you explained and commented on it so well. Thank you so much for talking about this! i feel heard lol
Watching as an adult, the moment I CANNOT believe is: Luke and Lorelai having the money *together* to massively renovate her house. So the assumption is that Luke must've paid for it cuz where would Lorelai be getting that money from. THEN THEY BREAK UP. AND NEVER HAVE TO SETTLE UP. It is so shady in my opinion. LIke I get it, asking money back from your ex would be awkward and uncomfortable as hell. But what do we think that was - like a MINIMUM $50k project? Probably much more. And she just gets to KEEP IT after they break up?!? Ooh yippee for me I got a free home renovation I just had to pretend to be engaged for awhile.
Rory actually would have qualified for financial aid in all likelihood. Financial aid offices generally only base it on the parents income and the students if they had a job. AB’s since Chilton was paid directly by Emily and Richard, not through Lorelai, that wouldn’t have counted against Rory.
I think there was a plot point about her being denied for aid because her mom had recently gotten an inheritance that made their income look much higher than it was. But that was $ Lorelai used to buy the inn, so couldn't go towards Yale.
@@lindsaysiler3076 yes, that’s why she got denied in the show. But in the video she mentions that Rory wouldn’t have gotten aid anyway (bringing up going to Chilton and the grandparents paying it). Which, having gone to a similar rich private school, I know isn’t info they gather on the financial aid application.
She would have had to also report Christophers income as well, i know the show cast him unstable job prospects, but had a huge trust fund. And that would have factored into the fasfa.
I love Princess's hair! The critical thinking part of my brain really turned off back when I watched Gilmore Girls on TV. The study tree thing did NOT make sense to me. And yeah, I hated mostly hated Logan cuz he never checked his privilege and I think he was a very bad influence on Rory. The Kim family was honestly the more realistic version of working middle class. In my house, we stan Lane Kim and Jess!
Im curious how much lorelai inherited when her grandmother the reigning lorelai died. The woman was renting out 1 of her houses to korn. I dont see her grandmother stiffing her completely when she died.
Rory got really annoying. I liked Lane a lot. I wish they made it the Lane Show instead of centering it around Rory who can’t make a sound decision to save her life.
Rory didn’t have any work skills. She never got an after school job. The one student job she had she complained about it being boring. Dean and Jess both had better work skills
Rory could still have likely qualified for aid. But most likely only at an Ivy or other school with a deep endowment. The income limit for Yale is $75k. All the Ivies have similar structures. Meaning any family making less than that, the parent is not expected to make a contribution and by being getting in you are guaranteed a tuition package covering the full need with a mix of scholarships m, student employment and loans. Which is wild considering the poverty threshold for a family of two is like $21k. The issue was that the family (Lorelei’s - not the grandparents) had that influx of money. Which if she’d been more knowledgeable about the whole college thing, she would have known to time differently. In fact the grandpa shoulda known and maybe on the sly did it to trap them for tuition again? Lorelei could have more properly contested the financial aid decision and might have gotten approved. Anywho, my biggest gripe is how Christopher’s income wasn’t considered. If anyone has dealt with financial aid and FAFSA apps, you know they are very stringent on counting your parents income regardless of if they are not willing to contribute to your education, are estranged, etc
Chris didn't have big money at that point but yes you are correct his income would have been considered. But honestly that money from Richard would not have been accounted for until the next year.
I also knew kids who were screwed because their parents were divorced and either one parent wouldn't sign the forms or they were wealthy but refused to pay anything. My sister had a classmate whose parents were abusive and he basically lived with his.classmates once her turned 18 but they were able to sabotage his college. They had to take him to the local law school's clinic to help get his documents and such from his abusive parents.
The biggest problem about the whole paying for Yale situation is that Yale would not have known about that money that quickly. I'm not sure about Yale but federal financial assistance is based on previous year's income. But that also brings the question back around, was Lorelai not saving for this "dream" of buying an inn? She had no money for termite repair and couldn't even qualify for a loan. So how was she EVER going to buy her own inn without the Richard money?
@@stacytompkins9274 The dinners were like interest. She intended to pay it back even if they didn't intend to get it back. That's why she paid it back in S3.
I can sort of accept Luke having a big stash of money because he has very little overhead costs since his family I think owned the building, his diner was usually very busy and he only had one employee and he didn't really have much expenses otherwise.
Luke being loaded is honestly not weird to me. He's a single man with no children and a thriving business. He doesn't appear to have more than even one person helping him in the diner (in fact no help in most seasons). Not spending money is a great way to increase your wealth. He doesn't really have a lot of expenses but likely a decent/lot of income. ETA: Lane and by extension Mrs. Kim were my favorite on the show. It was a shame that they did her no justice in terms of storylines or screen time.
Great video! I also hated when Loralei the First retracts her offer to set Rory up with a trust fund just because Lorelei and Emily fight about it. Like, WTF?
Trust fund is mentioned again by Richard when he goes to Lorelai after realizing Rory may not end up back at Yale, dropping off the dollhouse. So the fund is still in play I think.
The whole backpacking through Europe thing- how long had they been saving for that trip (because it didn't happen on a whim). How long had they been planning for them to go, and preparing for that experience? If they decided they wanted to do that before Rory went to high school (so 4 years) and begun saving then, it's not unrealistic- ESPECIALLY for the 90's!
The show did Lane so dirty. But the tour moment is sweet and I love it. And I have also wondered about what the hell Luke’s financial situation is. Like maybe because he doesn’t care much about extravagance, he just hoards any excess he earns so he has a lot lying around? That’s my best theory. Also doesn’t he own the building? Am I making that up? Like it was his dad’s? So maybe he doesn’t have to pay rent, which would save him funds. Idk I’m due for a rewatch, lol.
Never heard someone say they loved the Lorelei/ Christopher era. 😮
Месяц назад+4
I'm currently rewatching the series and to my surprise, I really like them together. It feels so natural, they totally understand how the other's thinking.
While for sure Luke being loaded is ridiculous and unrealistic, I always wiped it away with 1) he would die for Lorelei and 2) he’s a man with very few needs himself. I imagine his individual cost of living is very, very low. Like wearing his flannels until they are unwearable (assuming also he repairs them as they do experience damage, see him sewing his duffle bag before Anna gifts him a new bag for his trip with April). He doesn’t pay rent because he owns the building but also before Jess moved in he was living in a tiny office space. Honestly would love to see what this man spends his money on because apart from Lorelei, he doesn’t seem to have any major expenses.
Particularly #6, I think a big hole in this argument is Lorelei doesn't have any personal experience with what goes into financial aid for college; she never went. It doesnt seem unreasonable that she wouldn't consider Chilton or being a legacy as a reason why she couldn't get financial aid. Also, the backpacking trip was mentioned season 1 so if they didn't fit that into the storyline people would complain. Plus they could have been saving for that for years (maybe irresponsible to not be saving for school but Lorelei is not known for being responsible). PLUS Richard gave Rory a check in season 1 "for Fez" so who knows maybe all thst money paid for the trip!!!!!!! And the idea that 2 young women can't be safe staying in hostels is ignorant and a fear instilled from movies; I've done this multiple times without fearing safety. In the early 2000s, society wasn't as aware of the student loan crisis, I think we're judging the situation 20 years ago as if it was happening today. Video is just too nit picky for me and not founded on enough Gilmore Girls knowledge or context tbh. Appreciate the house not being brought up though
If I remember correctly, I think Lorelei’s dad gave Rory money for her 15/16th birthday I season 1 for the trip. If Rory was smart and just stuck it in the bank I could 100% see Rory being like “this money isn’t for COLLEGe it’s for this trip!” And not questioning using it any other way
I totally forgot about how Dean is actually blue collar and how that gets represented in the show as Rory just cant with his poor, working class ass. Hes literally normal 😂 like the most normal white kid!
Wait I just thought of something… Richard says in season 7 Rory is set to get her trust at 25 and she is super broke at 32.. so like… who did she blow through millions of dollars? What happened to trust fund? Lol
This was so cute and refreshing to watch. I haven’t seen a single episode of Gilmore Girls but this was super entertaining in part because of the financial focus and also largely because I enjoy the way Princess Weekes delivers social commentary. Awesome collab and feature!
I did a little math and their European trip would be $11,000 from 2024, or roughly $6,500 in 2003. That's a huge chunk of money. I'm certain they must have gotten help from Emily and Richard. (Remember when he handed two envelopes earlier on "for Fez," which funnily enough they never visit in canon.)
this is so interesting to be brought up because we know Rory ends up being unable to achieve her potential as she progressively acts more entitled and less aware of her all privileges as she moves on to university and while everyone always brings up how much lorelai is a go-getter and did things on her own, these little nuances, that went unnoticed could have shaped Rory's attitude later on. Also Lane and her moms relationship is shown in the negative repeatedly although her mom does say she is protecting Lane as she knows to. But that Lane comes to her as a safe space and her mom lifts her up, that does say alot w.r.t the other relationships in the show. They have boundaries and thats not entirely a bad thing
thank you for this retrospective. The idea that Lorelei created her "fantasy of a middle class" life sums the show so perfectly. I had not seen it that way because I was busy looking up at the fantasy of being a trust fund kid who could go backpacking in Europe, have wealthy stuffy grandparents and be as cool and fun as Lorelei. Even the first time around tho I felt Lorelei was a little oblivious to harp on her "I did it by myself" self image when in reality she always had a safety net. There wasn't real risk or real poverty, just teen rebellion in her choices to go earn a wage for awhile. A few missed things, I don't think it's plausible that Lorelei didn't have her own trust fund. Even with the scandal I don't think Richard and Emily would have cut her off from her money entirely. Even if they did, Lorelei certainly assumed she would inherit so things like saving for retirement isn't necessary. So yeah, a fantasy of middle class "I earned it" with all the fun trappings of ingratitude and casual slumming to make her relatable. Sigh, Still love the show. There is a playlist on YouthTube of just Friday night Dinners which is a lovely way to rewatch the show imo.
From what I understood, the sport reference was "having a utensil for many uses instead of just one" Being born with a silver spoon meaning we'll off. Sport meaning not well off. 🌸 I enjoyed that bit of writing
You can tell that the writers for GG haven't experienced being actually poor, just less wealthy than others. Even the way Lorelei and Rory eat out multiple times every day, and regularly waste meals because they don't like it or want it anymore, the way they over order time and time again and when they store leftovers they end up throwing most of it away. None of it is what someone with little money does.
I never thought about that Europe trip before, but you’re right, it makes zero financial sense. The other thing that really didn’t make sense was the amount of takeout they eat. I mean, I guess they save on groceries because they don’t seem to buy that much real food? But eating out that much isn’t cheap.
What worked me throughout Gilmore Girls was Lorelei being proud of being her own person while ignoring the fact that most folks do NOT have rich relatives as a backup source of funding in case of need.
You gave me goosebumps when you talked about Lane and Mrs. Kim’s relationship at the end 🥹 They are one of my absolute favorite parts of the show. Their arc is just SO meaningful
My biggest financial issue of the show is that Rory took a LOAN from her grandparents to go to Yale, with a repayment plan that Richard accepted so quickly (despite how mad Emily was at being repayed for Chilton). Rory was fine with her mom, who was functionally broke, paying at least some of the tuition - but planned to pay back her rich ass grandparents who spent more on fresh flowers every year than they spent on Rory’s Yale tuition. Not to mention that Rory would eventually get that money back in inheritance from Richard and Emily. I get Lorelai wanting to take out a loan for her pride, but that didn’t apply to Rory at all. And they could’ve kept the whole Friday Night Dinner setup regardless. And to make it worse, they would’ve been spending tens or hundreds of millions to build a planetarium in Rory’s name while she spent years paying back probably $150,000 to them. Stupid!!!
The seating chart scene drives me up the wall. For exactly the reasons you described. She's talking about ''vapid, irresponsible rich kids'' who live in a separate universe and don't realize or care about how they affect the people around them, WHILE she is (gleefully, might I add) messing with someone's livelihood! And yes, she is tipsy during this scene, she says herself that she's drunk, but she had enough presence of mind to have that entire discussion with Rory and didn't seem all that loopy to me. She was perfectly capable of controlling herself in my opinion. Barring that, she should've owned up to what she did the following day when she was no longer tipsy, but she didn't. An absolute L from her, one of her worst. Unrelated, but in regards to the ''let me take off my luke hater hat''...No no, please. I would very much like to hear that rant. I'm tired of the way people put him on a pedestal. The man has got serious flaws. Guess I should get ready to duck now.
yeah, agreed, I liked her more with Christopher - and dare I say - Lorelei did not deserve him. He was ready to marry her and step up but she always pushed him away, even when they actually got married. He loved her and wanted to make her happy. I really dont understand why she wanted to be with Luke who did not want to marry her for 10! years. Like, are you kidding me? And then they broke Lorelei and Chris up for the stupidest reasons and made him insufferable
Yeah they did her SO dirty getting her pregnant with twins with no thoughts about 'is it the right time, if we're trying to become real musicians' just the instant 'oh so I'm a mum now, I guess' bullshit.
With #6, I think that since they’ve been planning this for such a long time, and Rory has been getting money gifts from family and what not for a really long time, especially when they rekindled the relationship w the Gilmores. Also, Lorelai never truly understood what it means to be an Ivy League college applicant, and if we’re going to be honest, I feel like she would have relied on the Gilmores to just take care of the application process. She would just need to get good grades and that’s it.
i was never a gilmore girls girlie (probably bc i was a bit too young for it when it was popular). but im seated with my morning coffee here in australia, ready to listen 😅
So many good points. What a great breakdown. I lived in Europe 20 years ago, when this show was on. I had to watch it in reruns, never live. Anyways, it was a lot cheaper to travel and backpack through Europe. People’s travel standards have drastically changed since then.
To be fair, I can rationalise Luke being loaded pretty well. He inherited his diner from his dad and did the bare minimum renovations to convert it initially. He's very handy, which means he mostly does all of his own repairs. He was living in his dad's old office as an apartment. He wore the same clothes for years and hated shopping or buying things new. He didn't have any expensive habits or vices. He did a lot of the labour in the diner himself and only ever had one or two employees (it seemed like his wait staff were part time). He also got free business advice from his friend that also had a restaurant on how to set up his diner. It seems like he weighed up every purchase very carefully and was a natural saver. Plus we don't know how much money he inherited when his father passed away. It does make sense that he would be loaded.
Luke having money isn't unrealistic. He doesn't pay rent, or a mortgage. Also no car payment. He only have to pay for the costs of the diner, and his 2-3 employees. He'd definitely have a lot of money.
I feel like you have to mention their takeout habits and shopping habits! Like when she gets one of everything at the mall food court but they had no money to shop. That food court meal probably costed $100!
For me it was the FIRST EPISODE! Don't get me wrong, I love me some Lorelai (and early Rory) and I would sell every possession I own to live in Stars Hollow, but the whole premise of the show's conflict narrative is that Lorelai has been pumping up her kid to go to Chilton for quite some time, even submits an application, all while failing to determine how much it will cost or how to fund that commitment! What kind of parent does that to a kid? So she is forced to submit to her parents' demands, because she got her daughter's hopes up for something she had not anticipated providing. Does this not actually prove her Mother's point, that Lorelai is still little more than an irresponsible teenager with a mortgage to indicate adult status? Same conflict with Harvard. From the first episode we hear them talk about how Rory is going to Harvard, but there does not appear to be a jar on the kitchen counter for spare change marked "college fund,," and no talk of how she has to nail her grades to get scholarships. When the grandparents step in for Yale, it has enabled Lorelai to not crush the child she did not plan to educate. Huge mama-problems for me with this. But then I am also jealous that she eats at a diner daily, snarfs on ice cream, pizza, and candy for movie nights, and still wears a size 3 suit to work. That is just my insecurity and huge hips complaining.
The eating habits shown were ideal to pull in advertisers. If two good looking, likeable, slim characters who were supposedly on a fairly tight budget thought it was normal to spend money on junk food and eat out on a regular basis, then that primed the viewers to buy the products that sponsors were selling. I assume , in the show where they go in and buy loads of "back to school" post-its, high-lighters etc, there was an ad for stores selling back to school stuff.
I wish we could have seen the impact of Luke lending such a large sum of money to Lorelei, even if he never directly tells her. His character lives above the business he had inherited from his father, has no dependents aside from the few years he was responsible for Jess, and seems to have a very thrifty and money savvy lifestyle. It makes sense Luke would have savings, unlike Lorelei who seems to spend more as her income increases over time. However, Luke has no one to fall back on and clear long term financial goals. It would have been interesting for someone like Taylor to share Luke gave them the money he had been saving for something like college savings funds for April or Jess. Luke is smart with his money, but does not have an excess of disposable income and I wish they drew that out further than Emily disliking him and Luke’s discomfort when Richard wanted him to franchise the diner.
"If you hate them, take their money", yes! I've thought about this with different social situations where you'd really just want to not be there. Like let your crappy boss pay for the beer, let the self-centered date pay for the dinner. If they offer to pay, let them. It's asshole tax.
To the "get your bag from your rich parents" take: that is seriously not understanding the power dynamics and emotions at play. Old money families like these are highly hierarchical and structured with an enormous power differential between the matriarchal/patriarchal family head and the remainder family members. Children often grow-up feeling powerless given the lack of agency they have in their own lives - every behavior is monitored, expectations are set from birth, and all decisions are made for them. At the same time, they see their parents using their money and status outside the family to further gain power and control their circumstances. After (semi) successfully breaking free from this situation, accepting money is not only accepting renewed control but also subscribing to this way of viewing relationships and money. And you can see that throughout the show, as every little offer is viewed as quid pro quo, even when not clearly stated as such: the most obvious example is the control Emily and Richard assumed they would have on Rory’s life when she accepted their offer to move in with them. To me, these intricacies of how Money operates are actually one of the best written aspects of the show.
it really is wild, considering that even Emily did not have a Birkin (Richard probably thought it is frivolous amount of money to pay for a purse - and he is right)
The GG finances are ENDLESSLY irritating. It's like the writers set up this glamor and entertainment that could only be afforded by privileged life, but the story is driven by a poverty/broke narrative. Poverty is DARK AND HEAVY AND CRUEL. They had to choose between being real and being fun, and they chose fun. So wvery now and then they annoy the viewer with a poverty plot twist that we all buy into because the writing is great and we're being entertained.
I wish they had played up Lorelai's sewing more. I can rationalize her inability to cook - her parents never would have taught her and she probably got most of her meals free or at a seriously reduced price at the inn. Learning to sew, though, seems to be the practical skill she picked up to save money. It only comes up a couple of times, but Lorelai had became a pretty competent seamstress by the time she made Rory's prom dress in season one, and it seems like she started by turning old t-shirts into onesies for Rory.
Dude 1000000%
I came here to say this.
not really.....clothing (esp. second hand) is so cheap, that making your own clothing would not be cheaper at all.
@@invictus1961modifying it to fit is cheaper
@@invictus1961 I don't think it's implied early on she was making clothes from scratch. It sounds like she was just upcycling stuff she had. The only time we see her make stuff from scratch is the one dance dress amd when she's making costumes for town plays.
Loving Gilmore Girls and complaining about Gilmore Girls go hand in hand.
so true! I love the show, but i also hate it somehow!
Yes!
its like sex and the city (specfically carrie)
Truth! I've been watching for over 2 decades. My opinions and perspective have changed over the years, but I've always had them. There's always been something to complain about and lots to love.
me too!
I don't think it's inconceivable for Luke to have wealth: he's unmarried and no kids (pre-April), he's a sole owner of a thriving business, he has no rent/mortgage (early seasons), he was probably left money by his deceased parents, he fixes everything himself, he clearly doesn't go shopping, and he only does infrequent local traveling and has inexpensive hobbies like fishing
So generational wealth 😂
He's also a landlord. And he had enough money to buy that building on a whim.
It was his dad's old hardware store he turned into a diner, so he probably was only paying taxes on the building.
Yeah Luke just doest spend money I wasn't surprised when we find out he has great savings
@@lalittlyup. And then people complain about affirmative action. If my boomer ancestors because of racism were blocked from home ownership, good paying jobs, makes sense that their descendants may have a harder time financially without the support of generational wealth
Unrelated. Rory not marrying Logan and then being is side chick in the reboot is CRAZYYYYYY. Not to mention, she didn’t marry him so she could be successful and proceeded to fail as a journalist. Mind you, Logan was never holding her back.
Logan could have set her up with a job!!! It didn’t have to be a forever job but real tangible experience in the field that she could’ve spun into anything she wanted! Like it kills me how much she fumbled every aspect of her life 😭
@@Iamjustherek right! Expecting to leave Yale and get a dream job on what merit? With what connection? Now she has to be in the shadow because she’s a side chick. He can’t even help her as a friend.
Fax 😂
@@Iamjustherekshe took after her mom though 😂
She didn't want to marry Logan because she didn't want to know how her life panned out. She was happy with not knowing. Despite being completely unhappy with not knowing what her life was going to be like before lol. I think she just couldn't handle the commitment at such a young age.
I really hated the treatment of Lane and public high school. Like oh, because Lane goes to public school she's going to be a towny with roommates and getting married and pregnant young, while Rory goes to Chilton and has this huge promising trajectory to Ivy League schools and beyond. Ridiculous.
they did her character dirty tbh
It still was a very common outcome
agreed. like yes public school has stigma, but you cannot tell me stars hollow was a middle class town. they were upper middle at worst, and so that meant their public school had to be well funded
And the irony is that after that elite education, Rory still ends up pregnant out of wedlock and without the career she dreamed of.
I think lane’s situation was too realistic and gilmore’s situation was too fairytale. I think what happened to lane and rory’s treatment of her are spot on for kids living in her conditions.
I’m surprised we didn’t touch on their constantly eating out. Also-whatever bill they were running up at Luke’s. I know this is a fictional show but I don’t remember ever seeing them pay for food or anything
In one of the episodes where Lorelai and Rory were fighting, Rory says "we have to pay for that" and we see Lorelai put down money. Also once she starts dating Luke there's a whole conversation about Lorelai not having to tip anymore and how much she used to tip in the past.
There was at least one episode where Rory and Lorelei have big list of music to buy because they are so quirky and love unique music from a specific store. I was in college at the time and rolled my eyes because CDs were expensive new and tended to not be in great condition used. I was decently comfortable in college with my VA pay with tuition/books covered and I never bought more than one CD every few months in an area with iffy access to radio stations. I also had a job.
I also always wondered how Lorelei could have afforded to buy a house by herself at a young age. (Her salary as a small town inn manager couldn’t have been too extravagant, and she wasn’t speaking to her parents at the time, so presumably they didn’t help her out.) There were a lot of things about Lorelei’s lifestyle that didn’t add up.
@@12harrypotterfan34 Especially in Connecticut, even in 1995. Not just any house either, but a big one. That's a freakin' mansion. But Lorelai's trust fund from her grandmother kicked in at 25, so...
Wraparound porch and a lot larger on the outside than it is on the inside. Like they were two separate locations hahaha
@@squamish4244honestly any housing situation in every american show makes zero sense. Whole movie/show revolving about how the protagonist is poor but living in a two story three bedroom house with a patio.... The only somwhat believable I've seen so far is Jennifer Lopez in that Manhattan maid movie, small and messy... I believed that
They tried to portray Lorelai’s life like it was lower class but she got to raise her child with support & grew up to become a business owner who sent her child to a private high school & knew people who could pay for it. Please. That is the definition of upper middle class.
I disagree. It wasn’t a lower class life that they were trying to portray. It was an independent life. And that is an important difference. But then again I related to Lorelei. Not that my parents were uber wealthy. But they were well off and wanted their values to be my values. Turning away from financial comfort to succeed at your own path isn’t easy.
All of this
Yea, I never saw them as lower class. They lived very well for a single mother without much ambition (I didn’t watch all the seasons)
@@RealSigmaQueen But Lorelei didn't fully turn away from financial comfort. The show's main plot point is her going to her parents for money to give Rory an elite education. This video is examining the cognitive dissonance that results in coming from privilege while also pretending that class doesn't play a factor in one's success; which is a privilege in and of itself.
That was what lower class used to be in that timeframe
Back before US had 20% working homeless people population
Nowadays is unrealistic but back in the 90s totally realistic has most families were doing that on one income the middle class was full of single income families
As a former Financial Aid Counselor, the "Yale suddenly revoked Rory's financial aid" story line has always bugged me. Financial need for college used to be based on your previous year's tax returns (now it's two years prior), so if anything, Lorelai's sudden influx of money would have created a problem for Rory's sophomore year financial aid, not her freshman year. And you can request a professional judgement in a situation like that where your tax return doesn't accurately reflect the reality of your financial situation. It doesn't have anything to do with how expensive your high school was or how much money your grandparents have. It's all about how much money your parents have.
💯
FAFSA still asks for the amount that is currently in yours and your parent's checking accounts at the time of application, so they would have absolutely known that Lorelai had that money
@@katiegorman8663 Yeah but she would have filled out the FAFSA in January/February of her senior year and Lorelai didn't get the money until April/May.
@@katiegorman8663She had already given the money to her parents to pay back for Chilton so she didn't have it anymore. That was kinda the point.
Yes, thank you.
Also, Lorelei could be pretty self-centered when it came to other people spending time and money on her: the biggest one for me is the several times Sookie gave Lorelei catering/chef service for free as a gift and token of her friendship and Lorelei never said thank you. Like, when she broke up with Max Medina out of nowhere and Sookie had cooked a feast and had to toss it out. Like, hello, Lorelei, that cost Sookie a lot of her money and time, be grateful!
I agree
To be fair, Sookie lied & said she hadn't done very much yet
Or when Sookie had tickets to see the bangles, and Lorelai literally gave the tickets out to Rory, Paris, and the other two girls without consulting Sookie. Then they got the nosebleed seats, literally the last two seats available...
Yeah, we’re talking about an investment of hundreds of hours, and thousands of dollars, on the wedding cake alone. “You were a good cake, Clyde… Never should have named ya.” 😭
@@Lindsayloowhoo Tbf Sookie didn't actually buy those iirc they were a gift
They’re also extremely rich in time on that show. They must have had like 35-hour days or something lol. They had time to go get a full breakfast in a dinner before school and work then worked a full hour day then still had plenty of time for shenanigans. I know in these shows no one has to sleep or clean. But time is money.
Obligatory minor correction: in season 7 Logan did not lose $1 million in Vegas. He lost millions on the business deal that he invested his trust fund into, and his investors' money as well. It was a rash business decision, but those happen. It wasn't pure Vegas gambling.
Came to the comments to make sure someone had pointed this out
Doesn't seem that unlikely that Luke had all that money, honestly. He built an extremely successful business (the diner is always packed) and he did it on the back of his father's already established business, probably reducing the costs significantly. He is ridiculously frugal, to the point that it is a running joke. And he's the responsible type, probably investing for years. Also, let's remember this is the early aughts, not whatever this *gestures vaguely* economy nowadays is.
Also, he lived above the diner for most of his adult life meaning no real housing costs.
Yeah Luke having a decent chunk of money isn't far fetched at all
A lot of people who have money don't flaunt or spend it. That's how they get and keep their money.
And also made an investmemt when he bough the next door bulding, made his apartment bigger and rented out the ground floor to Taylor (whom he promised would have to pay an arm and a leg for it). I'm pretty sure that was also a net positive because he likely bught that next door buillding without a mortgage as well and probably recovered the cost in a decade or two.
Agree!
Luv-ah LUV-AH the take on Lorelei making Stars Hollow her own middle class fantasy. Especially given how hard she works to separate her 'worlds'. And it wasn't a spork household. She chose to leave privilege, she chose to leave her silver spoon. She also chose to eventually get a silver spoon for Rory (aka - Chilton).
Is stars hollow Lorelei’s version of Marie Antoinette’s fake farm? 🤔
Lorelei is a great example of an AWFUL mother. She's just the worst.
Both Lorelei and Rory are clueless baby mamas. The whole show was Hollyweird pushing Baby mama programming while demonizing soft wife life (Emily).
@@freeinghumanitynow Do you know how stupid you sound? No one demonized Emily for being a wife. The criticism was directed at her constant attempts to push in and control her daughter's life. Your use of the words 'baby mama' and 'hollyweird' tell me everything I need to know about you.
Lorelei is the privileged kid, who can afford to screw up (teen mom), because she has a very big financial cushion to land on. It makes for a great story, because she can get into all kinds of trouble, and there is always enough money to get her out. Nice ups and downs.
I don’t understand why everyone that reviews GG says that Lorelei’s income and life style is unrealistic. I was a young single mom in the 90s (22 when I had my son) I was making $7.50 an hour at a customer service job not dissimilar to her. I was able to rent a small apartment (a converted garage) and by the time my son was 11 I was able to use part of my 401k for a down payment on a small house. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that comparing the show with today’s economy it would be VERY unrealistic, but as someone who was pretty much living that same life while the show was on air, it wasn’t really that unrealistic. BTW I am 3 years younger than Lauren Graham, I was 30 and my son was 8 when the first episode aired.
For me it was all the incidentals that were unrealistic. For example, eating out at Luke’s every day, or Lorelei buying Rory’s whole college dorm take out.
@@larissatom6910 ok I can Agree with that; unless he was giver them a massive discount you are right that would be unrealistic.
Lorelei was 16 when she got pregnant, not 22. She had run away from home and had zero experience and knowledge about how to handle the household.
@@adapienkowska2605 but she didn’t buy her house or live alone until later in life. She was living rent free at the Independent Inn while working full time there until she was 20.
I visited a friends and her family in Colorado small town in the 1990's and it was very much like the Gilmore Girls - and the property and food was cheap. So cheap that I can still remember it. Her mom was a stay at home wife and her dad worked on a ranch. They are middle class and they lived very well. Unfortunately the bubble of the late 1990s changed that - I am told that the small town is deserted now.
Can we talk about how in the first season Richard and Emily said that they vacation to Europe once every two years because that's what they can afford in their budget, then in later seasons Emily rage buys a private plane and they fund an astonomy building so that Rory can have a legacy? I mean, I need to know that someone else noticed this, too.
Yeah they got richer and richer the more the seasons passed 😬
Plus, I believe that when they travel they do it with unbelievably high standards on accommodation, food, whatever might be. This could ammount to a small fortune for a week or two in Europe. I would’t expect them to sleep in a hostel, but they probably sleep where royals do, in the fanciest hotels of the fanciest cities and they can’t fathom anything simpler. That’s my guess.
@@magalim5518 to be fair, that is how wealth works. People with that kind of money put it into investments, and you'd be shocked how quickly it can grow if those investments do well.
Once you're rich, it's fairly easy to get richer, which is just one of many reasons it's ridiculous when they claim to have "earned" their wealth. A lot of what they do to "earn" more wealth is just owning property and putting their money into investments. It costs them basically nothing and provides more and more value over time.
when rich people say it is not in their budget , it doesn’t mean they can’t afford it. They have just planned how to spend their money ahead of time.
Also, Richard had his own business, so it was likely he was making more money.
I was Rory's age when the show aired. My mom and sisters would watch every week. My mom appreciated the Emily/Lorelei dynamic as someone with a very overbearing and manipulative parent. I of course wanted a relationship like Lorelei and Rory, but in actuality had more of a Mrs. Kim/Lane dynamic as my parents were very religious.
When Mrs. Kim saved Lane's band it was one of my happiest moments, seeing then share a passion of Lanes. If only Dave hadn't moved to California I think we would have gotten a way better storyline for Lane.
Aw Dave! I liked Lane and Dave's dynamic way more than the other guy... can't even remember his name!
They did lane SO DIRTY, I hate how she got pregnant and learnt to fear sex and basically everything to do with zac. Couldn't she have gotten a least a few years of life that is just her own, without doing things out of obligation?
Oh, Dave 💔
One of the moments that bothered me most, and made me realise their money lives don't make sense, is when Rory shows disdain at the idea of Loralei using coupons to buy household supplies/food (she is horrified at the idea that her mum has bread and cheese to make her own sandwiches instead of ordering each meal).
Non financially my biggest peeve is that they eat junk constantly, reject exercise, and yet stay super slim.
That moment really bothered me too. Why would she have given her mom a hard time about that?
There are those of us who really can eat junk constantly, reject exercise, and yet stay super slim. It's not at all the most common body type, but some of us are just built that way. Which just further reveals that it's a lie that eating healthy and exercising are all you have to do to be skinny. Most bodies don't work quite that way.
@@thatjillgirlI have a cousin whose that way. 2 kids and she's still 110lbs at 5'4". And she eats more than most grown men. Her mom (who had 5 kids), aunt, and grandmother are the same way. Just a family of tall leggy blondes. Sometimes it makes me want to puke! 😂
@@thatjillgirl And some people eat as healthy as possible but can't lose weight due to medications/disability/genetics but still we are judged as being 'unhealthy', just as slim people are often assumed to be 'healthy' (which is awful when you consider eating disorders and disabilities/chronic illness that are ignored because outwardly someone 'must be healthy if they're slim'. No one wins with our obsession with weight and 'health'.
@@anyawillowfan Yep, exactly. Health does not equal thinness and vice versa. Some bodies stay thin easily and some don't. Weight is really complicated and doesn't always correlate perfectly with healthy habits.
Some financial things that bothered me about Gilmore Girls and Year in the Life:
1) Rory blows through her entire trust fund by the time A Year in the Life comes around. If she is as broke as she says she is, then how does she fly back and forth from London?! She doesn't have a real job - she was just contracted to basically ghostwrite a memoir. Does Logan pay for it (whole other issue with their relationship in the revive). She's also homeless - couch surfs from Paris' to Lane's to her Mother's house, Grandparents' house, and even Logan's. How does she pay for all of that when she is flat broke?
2) L&R don't live like a family in their means. On one hand Lorelai always says they're broke, but on the other hand they eat out every day, sometimes multiple times per day. They take trips (road trips, Vegas, Europe, etc.). As soon as anything comes up, L asks her parents for money and they are always happy to give it to her. They just want a relationship with their daughter and granddaughter and are painted as the villains. They're not perfect, but the love is there and you can see it.
3) Rory being so privileged, having everything paid for by her grandparents (school, clothes, car, complete dorm redecoration, etc.) and her acting like she's not one of the rich trust fund babies. She thinks she's better than them, and she's not.
4) Rory getting arrested and her grandparents basically cleaning everything up for her. They paid for her attorney, gave her a pool house and redecorated it, gave her a job at the DAR, and more.
I could go on... but yeah.
Not only do they go on the trip, but they buy everyone in town a personalized gift
I never saw the episode where Rory has to fill out the FAFSA. That’s how I know Amy Sherman-Palladino never met a poor person. I know Yale might not give merit scholarships but there’s not scholarship for inn keepers putting their kids through college or for tiny brunettes that everyone is obsessed with it or parentified children? When my poor ass was applying for scholarships just a few years before Rory, there were all kinds of scholarships for super specific things. Even if it’s only for one year or a couple thousand dollars, you stack a few of those up, you don’t go to Europe, and you take put some loans. You don’t have to pay for all of college at once.
Exactly. Rory was always so worried about getting good enough grades to get into Harvard or Yale, but never did I see her stress about how they were going to pay for it. I didn't see her applying for any scholarships, or, seeing how loathe her mom was to take money from her parents, consider other less expensive schools. Did Rory ever even have a part-time job? Dean worked at the grocery store, Lane worked at Luke's for a while. But Rory just got to hang out and read? She never even suggests, hey, let's make this Europe trip a 2-3-week thing instead of 3 months to try to save some money. Or, hey, maybe we can get jobs while we're traveling that'll help pay for the trip. Something!
@@cv8499 ugh this bothered me so much. Apparently she was obsessed with Harvard for years, but was also completely clueless about tuition fees and how to get into an Ivy league. She really thought just having perfect grades would get her in, it was Paris who had to tell her that she needed extracurriculars.
Emily and Richard paid for Yale until Christopher inherited a crap ton of money. Then Rory, in a childish rage against her grandparents, asked her father to pay for her school without telling her grandparents, which made things complicated for Richard (he had a conniption because he was afraid that the payments for his beloved granddaughter’s education got lost.) Such a passive-aggressive move.
In any case, Rory never paid a cent for her education or had to worry about living expenses. She did “work” in the dining room, but she read or studied and let people swipe their meal cards. That is how little she had to worry about needing a job.
Also can we please talk about the huge disconnect when Christopher takes over paying for Yale and everyone acts like it's trading one for another but actually the grandparents had offered to pay Yale as a **loan** and Christopher was offering to pay it outright and that is an absolutely massive difference that's never acknowledged once?!!
If I remember correctly, the grandparents would have paid for Yale as a gift but Rory insisted on paying them back.
Omg so true. That, to me, is *wild*
By that point, she understood better what it meant to owe her grandparents money. In their family, borrowing money really worsened interpersonal relationships. But paying for her college tuition was literally the least Christopher could do after two decades of being an absent father.
As a Midwestern teen watching this show on the WB, I never bought Lorelei as being actually broke. Just the East Coast old money version of broke. Especially when she was complaining about money while wearing multiple Diane Von Furstenberg wrap dresses. Girl, come on. 😂
Similar background, for me I was completely confused by the setting. I didn't know if she was rich, not rich, or just that way people on TV are portrayed as rich because the house needs to be big to film a show in. I couldn't make any sense of it at all! Nothing was based on any reality I could imagine. And I kept watching lol.
The study tree moment for me is characteristic of Rory’s need for familiarity potentially because of her anxiety. The study tree feels a lot like when you see her in early seasons reading out in the centre of town near the gazebo or elsewhere outside. As someone with those tendencies myself I felt so seen. Countless times I have spent money in cafes for the ‘perfect’ work environment despite having a library or dorm. I even have a PHD student friend who actually booked a hotel for 2 days just to work and study in because she was overstimulated in her other environment despite it being financially irresponsible.
100% I'm just tonight looking at local air bnbs to study just to have my own space as I have young kids 😂
Logan did not lose millions in Vegas 😂 he lost it in his business deal.
Don't get me wrong he is majorly privileged but still.
Actually he did both. By going gambling after losing money in his business.
The hair is out of this world today. Space bun perfection.
For #4, let's not forget how when she was dating Digger, she pooh-poohed the very expensive restaurant he first took to her, wasting his money. And THEN went to the stockroom of the supermarket and just starting eating from there, possibly getting the staff there in trouble. (And not to mention, dating Digger in the first place reeks of her being a trust fund baby!)
My number one complaint about Lorelai (whom I love as a character, truly) was just how similar she was to her mom in terms of treatment of service industry workers, while also pretending like she wasn't. She would steal stuff from the back stockroom, got the wedding planner fired, would just spout inane drivel to hotel/coffee shop workers in an "aren't I so cute; too much for mere mortals!" way, while these poor people are just trying to get through her coffee order making minimum wage. To say nothing of the whispered comments on their physical appearance. Everyone (rightly) digs on Emily for her treatment of her maids, but honestly I would absolutely dread having to serve *either* of these women.
as someone from Hartford county i really do wish star's hollow existed...they made CT look way cooler than it is :/
The trouble with money on Gilmore Girls is it's used too liberally as a magic wand whether it comes from Emily and Richard or, Luke or Christopher whatever problem arises someone will show up with money to make it disappear. After a while the stakes just feel pretty low. The Chiltern fees in exchange for Friday night dinner is a good enough premise they should have just extended it for Yale rather than over complicating things with scholarships and then Christopher paying and then coming up with some other reason for Friday night dinner that I can't even remember.
That didn't change once Rory went to Yale, she didn't get the scholarships because Lorelai got a check from her dad, from a land he bought when Lorelai was born and then sold it. So Roru herself went to her grandparents to reinstate the Friday's dinners.
@@CrisOnTheInternet Yeah but then Christopher started paying for Yale making that plot point irrelevant and then they had to come up with some other reason for Friday night dinners. It's like the writers want to be like 'hey she doesn't always need her parents' help' so she just gets it from Luke or Christopher instead.
@@kinolibby6580 and what's the other reason? I don't even remember 😅
I came into this slightly touchy, like I wanted to make sure this video would be fair to a series that has meant so much to me. Then I saw Princess and all my fears evaporated instantly. Thank you for having her host, she was the perfect person for the job!
I DID NOT EXPECT TO SEE PRINCESS!! THIS IS A SURPRISING BUT WELCOME CROSSOVER!!
YESSSSSSSSSSSS
Some pushback here - it makes sense for Lorelei NOT to save for Harvard. Harvard actually covers a huge amount of students whose parents make under something like $100K, and admission is need blind, so if you get in and can't afford it, you're very likely to not actually pay tuition. Further, Rory's grandparents' money wouldn't be taken into account - they look at the parents' income.
I also agree that Luke probably would have had more money than people think. He's a small business owner with no kids, no expensive habits who seems to avoid the primary overhead that most businesses have - labor. He works himself seemingly daily. That said, not asking for a big loan back seems really out there.
He also owns the building outright as he inherited it from his Dad and also lives there. So the biggest expense for most people rent/motgage is a non-factore for him. He probably eats on the dinners dime as well. So I would estimate that his personal expenses are probably below 1k a month, which is probably high as he seems to never buy anything for himself. 500 might even be more realistic. Even if his dinner only makes about 2k net profit a month. He can save a lot. So he probably had about 100k in savings when he did all that stuff with Lorelai and he really didn't care about money.
I also get frustrated in season 2 when they get termites and Lorelai says she doesn't have $15k to fix her house. 2 episodes later she is ready to it the Dragonfly. Like how?????
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
well I wouldnt have the money to fix my house thats not my business I would not spend it where I sleep if im saving for the thing thats gonna be my income and my source of capital thats not delusional to me ive made that choice
Richard gave her the money, from her trustfund when she was born
@@nancypineda3973 that was 2 seasons later
I am glad this wasn't yet another rant about how Lorelai could never have afforded her home, where all the arguments are based on wages and housing costs TODAY. It wasn't at all strange for a single-income household where the primary earner had a management job to be able to afford a two bedroom house in a small town in the mid-90s, especially considering that Lorelai started with no debt and probably a decent amount of savings on account of living for free at the inn for several years.
I do agree Luke's money situation is a little hard to grasp. I can imagine it would be plausible (he doesn't spend much on himself, has very little in the way of housing costs, inherited some money from his dad, etc.). But it does seem like something where his financial resources just magically stretch to whatever the story needs them to be at a given time.
But I do take issue with the complaints about Lorelai not taking more of her parents' money and insisting on paying them back when she did. I feel like this fundamentally misunderstands the dynamics of the kind of half-estranged relationship Lorelai had with her parents. She was reluctant to fully cut off contact with them, because on some level she did love them and desired a positive relationship with them. But what she craved and what they rarely gave her was for them to respect her as an autonomous adult and to be proud of her and her accomplishments, instead of constantly seeing her as nothing but an irresponsible, ungrateful child. She had grown as she became an adult, but they almost never were willing to acknowledge it. Borrowing money from them worsened that dynamic. With some parents, borrowing money wouldn't necessarily be so fraught, but with Richard and Emily it was further proof that Lorelai was immature and incapable of standing on her own, and they held it over her at any possible opportunity. They also used it as leverage to force a more personal relationship in spite of her feelings and desired boundaries. Money was not something she could just take from them consequence-free.
Princess Weekes! It's so fun to see you here, and so fun to see you here for this topic. And you're totally right. I think what frustrated me the most about $ ang GG was the way in which treating finances so glibly made the emotional moments ring hollow. I can't be invested in the idea of 'Oh no! Rory might not be able to afford to go to Yale! (without taking out ruinous loans)' when the lead-up to that has come with a near-constant stream of ridiculous financial decisions on Lorelei's part. *And* when the show has never held her accountable for those decisions.
It became part of the whole 'TV illogic' side of the show, like everyone forgiving Richard for treating Jason like trash, and how every day had around 36 hours in it. But the ways that the storylines with Logan *almost* held her accountable make me see how - in hindsight - the show could have been even better than it was.
I LOVE The Gilmore Girls, but also recognize the problems with the show. I'm so glad there's others out there that also LOVE the show and see the same problems.
I love Gilmore Girls, but I also recognize and complain about their distorted reality of money. I've never seen someone talk about all the financial hypocrisy in this show, and you explained and commented on it so well. Thank you so much for talking about this! i feel heard lol
Watching as an adult, the moment I CANNOT believe is: Luke and Lorelai having the money *together* to massively renovate her house. So the assumption is that Luke must've paid for it cuz where would Lorelai be getting that money from. THEN THEY BREAK UP. AND NEVER HAVE TO SETTLE UP. It is so shady in my opinion. LIke I get it, asking money back from your ex would be awkward and uncomfortable as hell. But what do we think that was - like a MINIMUM $50k project? Probably much more. And she just gets to KEEP IT after they break up?!? Ooh yippee for me I got a free home renovation I just had to pretend to be engaged for awhile.
Rory actually would have qualified for financial aid in all likelihood. Financial aid offices generally only base it on the parents income and the students if they had a job. AB’s since Chilton was paid directly by Emily and Richard, not through Lorelai, that wouldn’t have counted against Rory.
I think there was a plot point about her being denied for aid because her mom had recently gotten an inheritance that made their income look much higher than it was. But that was $ Lorelai used to buy the inn, so couldn't go towards Yale.
@@lindsaysiler3076 yes, that’s why she got denied in the show. But in the video she mentions that Rory wouldn’t have gotten aid anyway (bringing up going to Chilton and the grandparents paying it). Which, having gone to a similar rich private school, I know isn’t info they gather on the financial aid application.
She would have had to also report Christophers income as well, i know the show cast him unstable job prospects, but had a huge trust fund. And that would have factored into the fasfa.
I love Princess's hair! The critical thinking part of my brain really turned off back when I watched Gilmore Girls on TV. The study tree thing did NOT make sense to me. And yeah, I hated mostly hated Logan cuz he never checked his privilege and I think he was a very bad influence on Rory. The Kim family was honestly the more realistic version of working middle class.
In my house, we stan Lane Kim and Jess!
Remember when Rory acted like coupons were bad??
"mom, are you doing okay? cuz we have bread and tomatoes in the kitchen 🤔🤔"
Im curious how much lorelai inherited when her grandmother the reigning lorelai died. The woman was renting out 1 of her houses to korn. I dont see her grandmother stiffing her completely when she died.
Rory got really annoying. I liked Lane a lot. I wish they made it the Lane Show instead of centering it around Rory who can’t make a sound decision to save her life.
Rory didn’t have any work skills. She never got an after school job. The one student job she had she complained about it being boring. Dean and Jess both had better work skills
Rory could still have likely qualified for aid. But most likely only at an Ivy or other school with a deep endowment. The income limit for Yale is $75k. All the Ivies have similar structures. Meaning any family making less than that, the parent is not expected to make a contribution and by being getting in you are guaranteed a tuition package covering the full need with a mix of scholarships m, student employment and loans. Which is wild considering the poverty threshold for a family of two is like $21k.
The issue was that the family (Lorelei’s - not the grandparents) had that influx of money. Which if she’d been more knowledgeable about the whole college thing, she would have known to time differently. In fact the grandpa shoulda known and maybe on the sly did it to trap them for tuition again? Lorelei could have more properly contested the financial aid decision and might have gotten approved. Anywho, my biggest gripe is how Christopher’s income wasn’t considered. If anyone has dealt with financial aid and FAFSA apps, you know they are very stringent on counting your parents income regardless of if they are not willing to contribute to your education, are estranged, etc
And Christopher definitely had large trust fund
Chris didn't have big money at that point but yes you are correct his income would have been considered. But honestly that money from Richard would not have been accounted for until the next year.
I also knew kids who were screwed because their parents were divorced and either one parent wouldn't sign the forms or they were wealthy but refused to pay anything. My sister had a classmate whose parents were abusive and he basically lived with his.classmates once her turned 18 but they were able to sabotage his college. They had to take him to the local law school's clinic to help get his documents and such from his abusive parents.
The biggest problem about the whole paying for Yale situation is that Yale would not have known about that money that quickly. I'm not sure about Yale but federal financial assistance is based on previous year's income. But that also brings the question back around, was Lorelai not saving for this "dream" of buying an inn? She had no money for termite repair and couldn't even qualify for a loan. So how was she EVER going to buy her own inn without the Richard money?
Well said, I was also thinking about this!
Plus, it didn’t seem like she was saving money for paying back the money her parents gave her for Chilton.
No, because wasn't the "payment" Friday Night Dinners? @larina023
@@stacytompkins9274 The dinners were like interest. She intended to pay it back even if they didn't intend to get it back. That's why she paid it back in S3.
They were glamorizing pretending to be poor, whilst not ACTUALLY being poor.
“Laugh along with the common people, laugh along even though they’re laughing at you, and the stupid things you do, cause you think poor is cool….”
I can sort of accept Luke having a big stash of money because he has very little overhead costs since his family I think owned the building, his diner was usually very busy and he only had one employee and he didn't really have much expenses otherwise.
Luke being loaded is honestly not weird to me. He's a single man with no children and a thriving business. He doesn't appear to have more than even one person helping him in the diner (in fact no help in most seasons). Not spending money is a great way to increase your wealth. He doesn't really have a lot of expenses but likely a decent/lot of income.
ETA: Lane and by extension Mrs. Kim were my favorite on the show. It was a shame that they did her no justice in terms of storylines or screen time.
Great video! I also hated when Loralei the First retracts her offer to set Rory up with a trust fund just because Lorelei and Emily fight about it. Like, WTF?
Trust fund is mentioned again by Richard when he goes to Lorelai after realizing Rory may not end up back at Yale, dropping off the dollhouse. So the fund is still in play I think.
She doesn't get rid of the trust fund. She just reconsiders allowing Rory to have early access to it.
The whole backpacking through Europe thing- how long had they been saving for that trip (because it didn't happen on a whim). How long had they been planning for them to go, and preparing for that experience? If they decided they wanted to do that before Rory went to high school (so 4 years) and begun saving then, it's not unrealistic- ESPECIALLY for the 90's!
honorable mention: lorelai buying a full haul of hartford airport swag!! must have been so expensive
The show did Lane so dirty. But the tour moment is sweet and I love it. And I have also wondered about what the hell Luke’s financial situation is. Like maybe because he doesn’t care much about extravagance, he just hoards any excess he earns so he has a lot lying around? That’s my best theory. Also doesn’t he own the building? Am I making that up? Like it was his dad’s? So maybe he doesn’t have to pay rent, which would save him funds. Idk I’m due for a rewatch, lol.
I did not expect to tear up about Mrs. Kim and Lane working together on a Friday morning. Sweet storytelling really resonates.
Never heard someone say they loved the Lorelei/ Christopher era. 😮
I'm currently rewatching the series and to my surprise, I really like them together. It feels so natural, they totally understand how the other's thinking.
I liked them together and preferred them.
4:50 I’ll never not be mad that Chris didn’t just watch them knit for a few hours before donating a huge chunk of money.
While for sure Luke being loaded is ridiculous and unrealistic, I always wiped it away with 1) he would die for Lorelei and 2) he’s a man with very few needs himself. I imagine his individual cost of living is very, very low. Like wearing his flannels until they are unwearable (assuming also he repairs them as they do experience damage, see him sewing his duffle bag before Anna gifts him a new bag for his trip with April). He doesn’t pay rent because he owns the building but also before Jess moved in he was living in a tiny office space. Honestly would love to see what this man spends his money on because apart from Lorelei, he doesn’t seem to have any major expenses.
Well I find even more ridiculous and unrealistic that Kirk is loaded, like how? He had many jobs but I doubt he would be paid a lot.
It was also his dad's tool store before it was his diner. There's every possibility his dad left him some money that just never gets brought up.
Fishing equipment and beers with Kiefer Sutherland :D
@@CrisOnTheInternet he was living with his mom not paying rent.
Particularly #6, I think a big hole in this argument is Lorelei doesn't have any personal experience with what goes into financial aid for college; she never went. It doesnt seem unreasonable that she wouldn't consider Chilton or being a legacy as a reason why she couldn't get financial aid. Also, the backpacking trip was mentioned season 1 so if they didn't fit that into the storyline people would complain. Plus they could have been saving for that for years (maybe irresponsible to not be saving for school but Lorelei is not known for being responsible). PLUS Richard gave Rory a check in season 1 "for Fez" so who knows maybe all thst money paid for the trip!!!!!!! And the idea that 2 young women can't be safe staying in hostels is ignorant and a fear instilled from movies; I've done this multiple times without fearing safety. In the early 2000s, society wasn't as aware of the student loan crisis, I think we're judging the situation 20 years ago as if it was happening today. Video is just too nit picky for me and not founded on enough Gilmore Girls knowledge or context tbh. Appreciate the house not being brought up though
If I remember correctly, I think Lorelei’s dad gave Rory money for her 15/16th birthday I season 1 for the trip. If Rory was smart and just stuck it in the bank I could 100% see Rory being like “this money isn’t for COLLEGe it’s for this trip!” And not questioning using it any other way
I totally forgot about how Dean is actually blue collar and how that gets represented in the show as Rory just cant with his poor, working class ass. Hes literally normal 😂 like the most normal white kid!
Wait I just thought of something… Richard says in season 7 Rory is set to get her trust at 25 and she is super broke at 32.. so like… who did she blow through millions of dollars? What happened to trust fund? Lol
1:37 the bad haircut gets even worse when you realize she did it to copy Lindsay
oh, that is even worse
i have to disagree. she looked very good and mature with that haircut
This was so cute and refreshing to watch. I haven’t seen a single episode of Gilmore Girls but this was super entertaining in part because of the financial focus and also largely because I enjoy the way Princess Weekes delivers social commentary. Awesome collab and feature!
I did a little math and their European trip would be $11,000 from 2024, or roughly $6,500 in 2003.
That's a huge chunk of money. I'm certain they must have gotten help from Emily and Richard.
(Remember when he handed two envelopes earlier on "for Fez," which funnily enough they never visit in canon.)
You didn't talk about them eating out everyday because Lorelei doesn't cook?!?
this is so interesting to be brought up because we know Rory ends up being unable to achieve her potential as she progressively acts more entitled and less aware of her all privileges as she moves on to university and while everyone always brings up how much lorelai is a go-getter and did things on her own, these little nuances, that went unnoticed could have shaped Rory's attitude later on. Also Lane and her moms relationship is shown in the negative repeatedly although her mom does say she is protecting Lane as she knows to. But that Lane comes to her as a safe space and her mom lifts her up, that does say alot w.r.t the other relationships in the show. They have boundaries and thats not entirely a bad thing
thank you for this retrospective. The idea that Lorelei created her "fantasy of a middle class" life sums the show so perfectly. I had not seen it that way because I was busy looking up at the fantasy of being a trust fund kid who could go backpacking in Europe, have wealthy stuffy grandparents and be as cool and fun as Lorelei. Even the first time around tho I felt Lorelei was a little oblivious to harp on her "I did it by myself" self image when in reality she always had a safety net. There wasn't real risk or real poverty, just teen rebellion in her choices to go earn a wage for awhile. A few missed things, I don't think it's plausible that Lorelei didn't have her own trust fund. Even with the scandal I don't think Richard and Emily would have cut her off from her money entirely. Even if they did, Lorelei certainly assumed she would inherit so things like saving for retirement isn't necessary. So yeah, a fantasy of middle class "I earned it" with all the fun trappings of ingratitude and casual slumming to make her relatable. Sigh, Still love the show. There is a playlist on YouthTube of just Friday night Dinners which is a lovely way to rewatch the show imo.
From what I understood, the sport reference was "having a utensil for many uses instead of just one"
Being born with a silver spoon meaning we'll off. Sport meaning not well off. 🌸 I enjoyed that bit of writing
You can tell that the writers for GG haven't experienced being actually poor, just less wealthy than others. Even the way Lorelei and Rory eat out multiple times every day, and regularly waste meals because they don't like it or want it anymore, the way they over order time and time again and when they store leftovers they end up throwing most of it away. None of it is what someone with little money does.
I never thought about that Europe trip before, but you’re right, it makes zero financial sense. The other thing that really didn’t make sense was the amount of takeout they eat. I mean, I guess they save on groceries because they don’t seem to buy that much real food? But eating out that much isn’t cheap.
What worked me throughout Gilmore Girls was Lorelei being proud of being her own person while ignoring the fact that most folks do NOT have rich relatives as a backup source of funding in case of need.
On backpacking through Europe: How much money do we think Richard gave Rory “for Fez” in season 1? Maybe they used that? 👀
You gave me goosebumps when you talked about Lane and Mrs. Kim’s relationship at the end 🥹 They are one of my absolute favorite parts of the show. Their arc is just SO meaningful
My biggest financial issue of the show is that Rory took a LOAN from her grandparents to go to Yale, with a repayment plan that Richard accepted so quickly (despite how mad Emily was at being repayed for Chilton). Rory was fine with her mom, who was functionally broke, paying at least some of the tuition - but planned to pay back her rich ass grandparents who spent more on fresh flowers every year than they spent on Rory’s Yale tuition. Not to mention that Rory would eventually get that money back in inheritance from Richard and Emily. I get Lorelai wanting to take out a loan for her pride, but that didn’t apply to Rory at all. And they could’ve kept the whole Friday Night Dinner setup regardless. And to make it worse, they would’ve been spending tens or hundreds of millions to build a planetarium in Rory’s name while she spent years paying back probably $150,000 to them. Stupid!!!
The seating chart scene drives me up the wall. For exactly the reasons you described. She's talking about ''vapid, irresponsible rich kids'' who live in a separate universe and don't realize or care about how they affect the people around them, WHILE she is (gleefully, might I add) messing with someone's livelihood! And yes, she is tipsy during this scene, she says herself that she's drunk, but she had enough presence of mind to have that entire discussion with Rory and didn't seem all that loopy to me. She was perfectly capable of controlling herself in my opinion. Barring that, she should've owned up to what she did the following day when she was no longer tipsy, but she didn't. An absolute L from her, one of her worst.
Unrelated, but in regards to the ''let me take off my luke hater hat''...No no, please. I would very much like to hear that rant. I'm tired of the way people put him on a pedestal. The man has got serious flaws. Guess I should get ready to duck now.
yeah, agreed, I liked her more with Christopher - and dare I say - Lorelei did not deserve him. He was ready to marry her and step up but she always pushed him away, even when they actually got married. He loved her and wanted to make her happy. I really dont understand why she wanted to be with Luke who did not want to marry her for 10! years. Like, are you kidding me? And then they broke Lorelei and Chris up for the stupidest reasons and made him insufferable
Princess Weekes always has the cutest outfits. I love that shirt!
I’m so glad to hear someone else hates Rory’s haircut in season 4 lol
Lane should've been a rock star 😢
Yeah they did her SO dirty getting her pregnant with twins with no thoughts about 'is it the right time, if we're trying to become real musicians' just the instant 'oh so I'm a mum now, I guess' bullshit.
This is by far the best video on this channel. I love Financial Diet, but y'all took it to the NEXT level with Princess Weekes
I’m so glad you called out racism about Lane!
I wanna know why Christopher never paid child support?
With #6, I think that since they’ve been planning this for such a long time, and Rory has been getting money gifts from family and what not for a really long time, especially when they rekindled the relationship w the Gilmores. Also, Lorelai never truly understood what it means to be an Ivy League college applicant, and if we’re going to be honest, I feel like she would have relied on the Gilmores to just take care of the application process. She would just need to get good grades and that’s it.
i was never a gilmore girls girlie (probably bc i was a bit too young for it when it was popular). but im seated with my morning coffee here in australia, ready to listen 😅
So many good points. What a great breakdown. I lived in Europe 20 years ago, when this show was on. I had to watch it in reruns, never live. Anyways, it was a lot cheaper to travel and backpack through Europe. People’s travel standards have drastically changed since then.
Why is princess Weekes in the Financial diet? What is going on? xD
I'm not mad, this is awesome! But also very unexpected.
I think because analysis of fictional media is Princess Weeke’s area of expertise, and not so much the case for anyone else on TFD
To be fair, I can rationalise Luke being loaded pretty well. He inherited his diner from his dad and did the bare minimum renovations to convert it initially. He's very handy, which means he mostly does all of his own repairs. He was living in his dad's old office as an apartment. He wore the same clothes for years and hated shopping or buying things new. He didn't have any expensive habits or vices. He did a lot of the labour in the diner himself and only ever had one or two employees (it seemed like his wait staff were part time). He also got free business advice from his friend that also had a restaurant on how to set up his diner. It seems like he weighed up every purchase very carefully and was a natural saver. Plus we don't know how much money he inherited when his father passed away. It does make sense that he would be loaded.
Luke having money isn't unrealistic. He doesn't pay rent, or a mortgage. Also no car payment. He only have to pay for the costs of the diner, and his 2-3 employees. He'd definitely have a lot of money.
I feel like you have to mention their takeout habits and shopping habits!
Like when she gets one of everything at the mall food court but they had no money to shop. That food court meal probably costed $100!
For me it was the FIRST EPISODE! Don't get me wrong, I love me some Lorelai (and early Rory) and I would sell every possession I own to live in Stars Hollow, but the whole premise of the show's conflict narrative is that Lorelai has been pumping up her kid to go to Chilton for quite some time, even submits an application, all while failing to determine how much it will cost or how to fund that commitment! What kind of parent does that to a kid? So she is forced to submit to her parents' demands, because she got her daughter's hopes up for something she had not anticipated providing. Does this not actually prove her Mother's point, that Lorelai is still little more than an irresponsible teenager with a mortgage to indicate adult status?
Same conflict with Harvard. From the first episode we hear them talk about how Rory is going to Harvard, but there does not appear to be a jar on the kitchen counter for spare change marked "college fund,," and no talk of how she has to nail her grades to get scholarships. When the grandparents step in for Yale, it has enabled Lorelai to not crush the child she did not plan to educate. Huge mama-problems for me with this. But then I am also jealous that she eats at a diner daily, snarfs on ice cream, pizza, and candy for movie nights, and still wears a size 3 suit to work. That is just my insecurity and huge hips complaining.
The eating habits shown were ideal to pull in advertisers. If two good looking, likeable, slim characters who were supposedly on a fairly tight budget thought it was normal to spend money on junk food and eat out on a regular basis, then that primed the viewers to buy the products that sponsors were selling. I assume , in the show where they go in and buy loads of "back to school" post-its, high-lighters etc, there was an ad for stores selling back to school stuff.
Princess! Love your Gilmore girls takes, what a delightful surprised you were hosting this video
I wish we could have seen the impact of Luke lending such a large sum of money to Lorelei, even if he never directly tells her. His character lives above the business he had inherited from his father, has no dependents aside from the few years he was responsible for Jess, and seems to have a very thrifty and money savvy lifestyle. It makes sense Luke would have savings, unlike Lorelei who seems to spend more as her income increases over time. However, Luke has no one to fall back on and clear long term financial goals. It would have been interesting for someone like Taylor to share Luke gave them the money he had been saving for something like college savings funds for April or Jess. Luke is smart with his money, but does not have an excess of disposable income and I wish they drew that out further than Emily disliking him and Luke’s discomfort when Richard wanted him to franchise the diner.
I can't handle watching myself, but thank you all for watching #TeamLogan xx
"If you hate them, take their money", yes! I've thought about this with different social situations where you'd really just want to not be there. Like let your crappy boss pay for the beer, let the self-centered date pay for the dinner. If they offer to pay, let them. It's asshole tax.
So we’re not talking about the amount spent on takeout?
To the "get your bag from your rich parents" take: that is seriously not understanding the power dynamics and emotions at play. Old money families like these are highly hierarchical and structured with an enormous power differential between the matriarchal/patriarchal family head and the remainder family members. Children often grow-up feeling powerless given the lack of agency they have in their own lives - every behavior is monitored, expectations are set from birth, and all decisions are made for them. At the same time, they see their parents using their money and status outside the family to further gain power and control their circumstances. After (semi) successfully breaking free from this situation, accepting money is not only accepting renewed control but also subscribing to this way of viewing relationships and money. And you can see that throughout the show, as every little offer is viewed as quid pro quo, even when not clearly stated as such: the most obvious example is the control Emily and Richard assumed they would have on Rory’s life when she accepted their offer to move in with them. To me, these intricacies of how Money operates are actually one of the best written aspects of the show.
Great people, Great topic, great discourse. LFGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
Hi Pokhraj! :)
@@coolbanana7 Hello
Never stop making Gilmore girls content!
I love Princess so much! This was such a treat, thanks so much ❤
The 30k Birkin bag that Logan got her in season 6? I think, was wild too. I didn’t realize it until I rewatched it recently.
I mean Logan and his sister are mega rich, so him giving his girlfriend a Birkin bag doesn't seem to far fetched.
it really is wild, considering that even Emily did not have a Birkin (Richard probably thought it is frivolous amount of money to pay for a purse - and he is right)
loved most of this video, but am curious to know why you'd say lane's story was curtailed due to racism?
The GG finances are ENDLESSLY irritating. It's like the writers set up this glamor and entertainment that could only be afforded by privileged life, but the story is driven by a poverty/broke narrative. Poverty is DARK AND HEAVY AND CRUEL. They had to choose between being real and being fun, and they chose fun. So wvery now and then they annoy the viewer with a poverty plot twist that we all buy into because the writing is great and we're being entertained.