With the growth of lithography and the rise of illustrated weekly magazines such as Harper’s and Frank Leslie’s, fame unlike anything seen in the years before the war was suddenly possible, and it became its own currency. Lavish balls and parties could be seen as an extension of a nationalist project, for even though the guest list was restricted, rampant coverage in the press meant that anyone with a penny to spare could read what Mrs. Astor had served her rich and glamorous guests for dinner.
