Max's The Gilded Age just returned to the streamer for Season 2 on October 29, and though the series is loosely based on real people, did Jack Trotter invent the alarm clock? Here's what you need to know.
Did Jack Trotter Invent the Alarm Clock?
The American Gilded Age period lasted from 1877 to the 1900s, a time of rapid growth when it came to inventions, and The Gilded Age doesn't stray far from it.
In season 2 episode 6 titled Never Propose in Public, Jack Trotter (Ben Ahlers) wakes up to the sound of the alarm clock. The first of their time to be invented.
To his surprise, his invention of a clock alarming a person to wake is a breakthrough. He makes haste and announces he has "cracked the code."
According to Jack, here's how his alarm clock worked, "A lot was just servicing [the alarm clock to work], but I have made a new kind of escape wheel." A device that cannot be bought unless he sells his idea to their society.
Unfortunately, his request to have his invention deemed under his name was rejected for not being a member of a horological institute or society.
His story sounded awfully familiar. Is Jack Trotter the inventor of the first alarm clock? As Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) said, "Hardly."
If not, then who is Jack Trotter based on in real life?
Who is the Real Inventor of Alarm Clocks?
The true inventor of an alarm clock is a man by the name of Levi Hutchins, an American who invented his alarm device in 1787. His main reason was to keep up his routine of waking at exactly 4 AM before the sun could rise.
The only difference is that Hutchins invented this to have the alarm ring at 4, while Jack tweaked his invention to wake him up at 6.
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Is The Gilded Age Based on a True Story?
The Gilded Age shares similarities with many period projects. However, at most, the show is inspired by real-life events that have been fictionalized for the series.
One of the prominent examples is Bertha Russell (Carrie Coon).
Bertha was based on Alva Vanderbilt, who married William K. Vanderbilt in 1875, which made the Vanderbilt family one of the wealthiest families in the world (via Rhode Island Monthly).
It is also worth mentioning that Max's The Gilded Age series is not entirely based on Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner's novel, The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today.
Instead, the ongoing series aims to highlight the aforementioned era in American history through fictional portrayal of the characters.
All seasons of The Gilded Age are available to stream on Max.
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