There are lots of membership-only oak-paneled private clubs in this city, former Gawker Joshua Stein reports in Page Six magazine. And you're probably not a member! But why not? There's been a thinning of the (dues-paying) herd lately: the olds who run and populate the places are "dying off." In order to attract youngs, they're going absolutely wild: "relaxing dress codes, holding mixers, staying open past 10 pm." Sounds stuffy, but... how would you like the cushy surroundings of your very own private club?

It's not entirely clear what the requirements to join are, other than (often, but not always) being an Ivy League alum and paying about a grand a year. Basically it seems to require one to be sort of pompous and self-obsessed, so that doesn't sound too difficult.

New York's grown-up fraternities, which also include the Harvard, Montauk, University, Century, Lotos and National Arts Clubs, need members like them to stay alive. Twenty blocks south, the National Arts Club—founded in 1898—is housed in a classic brownstone on the southern edge of Gramercy Park. The bohemian answer to the Yale Club... of the 2,000 National Arts Club paying members, 190 of them are under 35. [One pays] an annual dues of $650 plus a one time initiation fee of $400.

And sometimes the literary salon Accompanied Library has sexy events there, events that involve Heatherette. Gather your friends, and throw on a jacket or something, for chrissakes. It's time the youth took over!

The New Old Boy's Club [Page Six magazine]