History Main / TheRichHaveWhiteStuff

* ''Series/{{Daredevil 2015}}'': Wilson Fisk spends an absurd amount of money on an all-white painting called "Rabbit in a Snowstorm" in the episode of the same name.

In reality this is almost a ForgottenTrope, with white objects commonplace so no longer solely a form of ConspicuousConsumption, but they were so in the past. (If anything, it can often be a sign that the owner is a cheapskate or a new arrival to their home, and hasn't bothered to paint anything yet.) Fiction doesn't seem to have caught up yet, or - as per the nature of tropes - still finds it convenient to use white stuff as a signifier of wealth.

** [[OurVampiresAreDifferent The Cullens]] are shocking white vampires, in contrast to everyone but most startlingly to [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent the Quileutes]], who are dark tan with black hair. The Quileutes are obviously natives, and at one point Edward Cullen is referred to as "the freaky pale skinned boy". This may also play on the expectations of immortal vampires being wealthy and native peoples not.
** The ''Film/{{Twilight}}'' film ''Breaking Dawn pt. II'' has the Cullen vampire family, who are obscenely wealthy thanks to their sire Carlisle being a talented doctor and (apparently) good with money. At one point in the movie they casually gift newlywed vampires Edward and Bella with a fully furnished, decorated and wardrobed cottage. Where this trope comes in? The baby room is ''pure white''. While lovely to look at, anyone who is remotely familiar with a baby's tendency to make messes would instinctively cringe at the "gift." There may be some FridgeBrilliance in there when you consider that the Cullens would have been massively ignorant of childrearing so it may not have seemed impractical. Then again, maybe they consider the added workload of keeping the baby room pristine a worthwhile way to kill time?

* In ''Literature/TheGoblinEmperor'', the emperor traditionally wears white, to the extent that new emperor Maia soon anticipates he's going to get fed up with it. Also applies to the set of white lace hangings he receives for his birthday: obscenely expensive, produced by cruel labour practices (workers go blind making the stuff) and offensive because the giver deliberately spent far more money than appropriate on a gift the emperor didn't even want. [[spoiler:While also plotting to assassinate him.]]

* On ''Series/{{Friends}}'' when Joey lands a high paying gig on ''Days of Our Lives'' he buys a bunch of pointless expensive knickknacks, and when he loses the job it all gets repossessed. Ross offers to buy him ''one'' of his purchases back, and he picks a [[UndesirablePrize white dog statue]].
* In the fifth season of ''Series/MadMen'', Don and Megan Draper are shown to have a white carpet in their luxury penthouse apartment, that is constantly subject to abuse from children with ink pens, from party goers, and from general wear and tear. Don, being an ad man himself, [[DiscussedTrope actually points out that there is a reason white carpets appear mostly just in ads]]: they are almost impossible to keep clean.
* In ''Series/SecretGarden'' at least one of rich boy Hyun Bin's houses (he has ''several'') has all white decor.

* In Music/SamSmith's "I'm Not The Only One" music video there is a stark contrast between the literally everything is white-ness (including Creator/DiannaAgron's hair) of the cheater's idealised home life and the darkness of his late night (lower-class) rendezvous.

* Averted, inverted or ironic? Lennon/Ono Imagine video. John wears black throughout, Ono wears white through most of it. They walk to their white mansion and John sits at a white piano in a large very white room. Considering the lyrics...

* In ''VideoGame/{{Battleborn}}'', an occurring color in the colorscheme of a number of LLC characters is white. The sleek shiny white color goes along with their faction being characterized as rich.

* Apple products, which are notoriously more expensive than their Windows or Android-based counterparts, tended to be initially available only in white. Other colors are generally added to the lineup only later, after the price has dropped. The white iPhone is still, after this drop, more expensive than the black one. This design trend has been mostly replaced with silver metal, but it still tries to evoke the pure white of the Steve Jobs-era product lineup.

* Inverted with "white goods" - fridges, freezers, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers etc. The basic models are white with more expensive models available in black, brushed/burnished steel or more exotic colours.

* Lucius Malfoy owns albino peacocks in ''Literature/HarryPotter''.

* Averted, inverted or ironic? Lennon/Ono Imagine video. John wears black throughout, Ono wears white through most of it. They got to their white mansion and John sits at a white piano in a large very white room. Considering the lyrics...

* In ''Series/SecretGarden'' at least one of the male lead's houses (he has ''several'') has all white decor.

In reality this is almost a ForgottenTrope, with white objects commonplace so no longer solely a form of ConspicuousConsumption, but they were so in the past. Fiction doesn't seem to have caught up yet, or - as per the nature of tropes - still finds it convenient to use white stuff as a signifier of wealth.

-->-- '''Snoop Dogg''', ''Drop It Like It's Hot''

* Apple products, which are notoriously more expensive than their Windows or Android-based counterparts, tend to be initially available only in white. Other colors are generally added to the lineup only later, after the price has dropped. The white iPhone is still, after this drop, more expensive than the black one.

* In a mobile phone advert, there is a [[ManInWhite man dressed completely in white]]; sunglasses, cycle - everything - and the advert continues on to how the phone is available in white, but this version costs more.

People dressed accordingly will be the ManInWhite, or a FatSweatySouthernerInAWhiteSuit.

People dressed accordingly will be the ManInWhite and WomanInWhite, or a FatSweatySouthernerInAWhiteSuit.

* In ''Series/BreakingBad'', the more rich (and evil) the VillainProtagonist and his wife become, the whiter their wardrobe gets. His long-time 'rivals' Gretchen and Elliott, who are millionaires, are shown in the final episode to live in a very white household.

* [[RichBitch Chloe King]] from ''Unforgiven'' by Creator/LaurenKate lives in a big McMansion, surrounded by a moat with koi and inside filled with marble and almost exclusively white furniture.

* On ''Series/{{Friends}}'' when Joey lands a high paying gig on ''Days of Our Lives'' he buys a bunch of pointless expensive knickknacks, and when he loses the job it all gets repossessed. Ross offers to buy him ''one'' of his purchases back, and he picks a [[FlokatiRug white dog statue]].

-->-- '''Pharrell Williams''', ''Drop It Like It's Hot''

* Mentioned in the song "Uptown Girl" by Creator/BillyJoel:

More modernly, sleek and white homes (especially kitchens) and workplace lobbies or laboratories are very expensive to keep aseptically or professionally clean and also, because of the jobs they are required for, associated with financial and career success. Stereotypically it is also shown that rich and 'preppy' children are outfitted in tennis or cricket whites and polo shirts, even when not in the vicinity of the sport so potentially parents showcasing their wealth through their children and how pristine they can keep easily-grass stained clothes.

In reality this is almost a ForgottenTrope, with white objects commonplace so no longer solely a form of ConspicuousConsumption, but they were so in the past. The trope is specifically averted in the "white goods" market (fridges, freezers, washing machines, tumble dryers etc). The standard models are white, with upmarket models and makes now being black, burnished metal in the case of fridges, or other more exotic colours. Fiction doesn't seem to have caught up yet, or - as per the nature of tropes - still finds it convenient to use white stuff as a signifier of wealth.

Related to AsceticAesthetic and TheAestheticsOfTechnology, also GoldAndWhiteAreDivine. People dressed accordingly will be the ManInWhite and WomanInWhite, or a FatSweatySouthernerInAWhiteSuit. They may own a WhiteStallion and commit WhiteCollarCrime.

Compare CrystalSpiresAndTogas. See also EverythingIsAnIpodInTheFuture. Is a {{Luxury Trope|s}}.

* Averted with "white goods" - fridges, freezers, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers etc. The basic models are white with more expensive models available in black, brushed/burnished steel or more exotic colours.