Yuppies were part of the “new rich” generation
that lavished in extravagance by purchasing lux-
ury items. Conspicuous consumption was typical
for this segment of American society. Marketing
campaigns and advertisements targeted this demo-
graphic group, raised on popular culture and rock
music. Yuppies “dressed for success” by wearing the
latest designer fashions; men wore suits from Brooks
Brothers and shirts by Perry Ellis, purchased expen-
sive Rolex watches, and drove BMW cars. Casual style
was achieved by wearing clothes from Banana Re-
public and L.L.Bean, while women would often wear
Nike running shoes while scurrying from one place
to another, even if they were dressed in a tweed skirt
and jacket. Yuppies, because of their hectic sched-
ules, ate out at trendy ethnic restaurants while sipping
the best house wine. However, despite their expensive
tastes, these professionals remained health-conscious
with low-fat diets, all-natural fruit drinks, and bot-
tled water. For exercise, they were often found jog-
ging. Self-help books became best sellers, and a
New Age guru, the Reverend Terry Cole-Whittaker,
spread the yuppie-inspired message, “You can have it
all—now!” Yuppies were obsessed with technologi-
cal gadgets that would make their hectic lives more
efficient. They were voracious consumers of video-
cassette recorders (VCRs), personal computers, cord-
less phones, answering machines, microwave ovens,
food processors, and fax machines.
Television shows such asDynastyandDallas, which
depicted powerful families who continued to amass
wealth by any means, appealed to the yuppie genera-
tion. On the other hand,Hill Street Blueswas popular
among yuppies because the show centered on their
liberal political ideology concerning social justice.
Movies portrayed yuppies and their relationships in
The Big Chill(1983),Baby Boom(1987), andWhen
Harr y Met Sally...(1989). Personal relationships
were often secondary to career goals, and this di-
chotomy was portrayed as “Yuppie angst” in the tele-
vision programthirtysomething. Yuppies had decided
to defer marriage and children until they were firmly
established in their professional positions. Those
who married but decided not to have children were
referred to as “dinks” (double income, no kids),
while couples who did have children often hired
nannies to care for them.
Impact Radical antiwar activists who epitomized
the counterculture movement in previous decades
started to work for corporate America as the 1970’s
drew to an end. The idealism of the late 1960’s began
to be replaced as the baby-boom generation became
older. The yuppies agreed with President Ronald
Reagan’s supply-side economics and its promotion
of free market capitalism, rejecting the socioeco-
nomic liberalism of the New Deal. They favored cuts
in social spending and rejected high taxes and gov-
ernment regulation, but, despite their fiscal con-
servatism, yuppies remained liberal on positions
that involved personal freedom and lifestyle choices.
Many yuppies were in favor of the Equal Rights
Amendment (ERA), were pro-choice regarding abor-
tion, and opposed discrimination in the workplace.
The superficial and selfish nature of yuppiedom
created fodder for parody by journalists and come-
dians. However, economic prosperity came to an
abrupt halt when a stock market crash (Black Mon-
day) occurred on October 19, 1987. The fast money
that yuppies had accumulated in Wall Street invest-
ments suddenly disappeared, and by the early 1990’s
businesses began to suffer financially as globaliza-
tion, massive layoffs, and downsizing in the market-
place occurred. In 1991,Timemagazine officially
proclaimed the death of the yuppie.Further Reading
Adler, Jerry, et al. “The Year of the Yuppies.”News-
week104, no. 31 (December, 1984): 14-24. The
popular magazine proclaimed 1984 as the year in
which the yuppie generation dominated in poli-
tics, advertising, and business.
Bondi, Victor, ed. “Baby Boomers Become Yuppies.”
InAmerican Decades: 1980-1989. Detroit: Gale
Research, 1995. The entry provides good back-
ground information and a general overview of
yuppies.
Burnett, John, and Alan Bush. “Profiling the Yup-
pies.”Journal of Advertising Research26 (April/
May, 1986): 27-35. Authors study the lifestyle dif-
ferences, purchasing behavior, and media habits
of yuppies in order to formulate strategies for ad-
vertising to this segment of the American popula-
tion.
Ehrenreich, Barbara.Fear of Falling: The Inner Life
of the Middle Class. New York: HarperPerennial,- Ehrenreich provides a social analysis of the
insecurities and anxieties that plagued the mid-
dle class from 1970 to 1990.
Hammond, John L. “Yuppies.”The Public Opinion
The Eighties in America Yuppies 1073