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Bloomberg

David Geffen’s picture-perfect self-seclusion is highlighting ugly divisions in the age of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus,” the billionaire, 77, said in an Instagram post. “I’m hoping everybody is staying safe.”
The photos of his luxury confinement aboard the 138-metre Rising Sun, one of the world’s biggest private vessels, triggered an immediate social-media backlash over the weekend.
“This is just shameful and grotesque,” Meghan McCain tweeted Saturday, one of thousands of critical comments.

David Geffen sends a message:

You poor plebs can suck it.
It's fabulous to be rich.
Look at me!
h/t @litcapital pic.twitter.com/q1hELQa3H3
— Sven Henrich (@NorthmanTrader) March 28, 2020


Thanks, David Geffen, for your thoughts. pic.twitter.com/5XTRhGX5OP
— southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) March 28, 2020

Geffen’s Caribbean excursion is the latest revelation of how the crisis is affecting people unequally across the globe. While the world’s wealthy have fled to holiday homes, specially made bunkers or floating palaces, rank-and-file workers from nurses to supermarket cashiers have been left juggling childcare and risking infection working jobs deemed essential.
American ‘preppers’ have been waiting for a moment like this
The Rising Sun has been in the Caribbean since mid-November and has sailed back and forth between Grenada, St Vincent and the Grenadines since February. Built for Oracle Corp founder Larry Ellison, the yacht comes with a gym, cinema and wine cellar. It’s not the only billionaire’s boat in the Caribbean, with Roman Abramovich’s Eclipse and Ernesto Bertarelli’s Vava II also dropping anchor in the region.

The music and movie producer Geffen, who has a net worth of US$9 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
While the ship may seem like a floating haven, there’s the risk of a guest or crew member becoming ill. The getaway could “quickly turn into a quarantine nightmare,” according to industry publication Superyacht Times.
That has already been demonstrated by cruise-line companies, some of whose ships have been denied entry to ports after virus outbreaks among passenger and crew.
Masks and test kits donated by Jack Ma arrive in US
Those fears have also affected the superyacht industry, which employs more than 160,000 people worldwide. Geffen is an exception in an environment where few of the world’s rich are willing to spend huge sums on buying or renting extravagant vessels during the pandemic and market rout.
“Our market has basically come to a standstill overnight,” said Jonathan Beckett, chief executive officer of yacht broker Burgess. “It’s a matter of sitting it out and being able to afford to sit out.”

“You walked in... to the party
Like you were walking onto a yacht...”

There’s a reason people thought Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain” was about David Geffen. https://t.co/KoVjuePEPI
— The Hoarse Whisperer (@HoarseWisperer) March 28, 2020

The number of yachts in the US in recent weeks has swelled from a month earlier, while those in the Bahamas and Sint Maarten declined. Italy, a Covid-19 hotspot, also saw a steep drop in the number of yachts in its waters.
Many Caribbean islands “have shut down,” said Raphael Sauleau, CEO of yacht broker Fraser. “We had a charter that was supposed to disembark in one place but couldn’t.”
The yacht season in the Mediterranean is struggling before it even starts. The Monaco Grand Prix in May has been cancelled, and regular attendees to the principality’s yacht show in September are hesitant about making financial commitments while many of the super-rich are in isolation.
“We would sign a contract, but we’re not going to be paying non-refundable deposits – that’s for sure,” Beckett said. The pandemic “is going to have a big impact on our industry this year. You’ve got to ride out the storm and do the very best you can.”
Geffen isn’t likely to reveal when he steps ashore. The billionaire made his Instagram account private soon after Saturday’s post.


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Coronavirus pandemic

Coronavirus: Billionaire David Geffen blasted for his Instagram-perfect isolation on a luxury yacht

David Geffen, philanthropist and entertainment mogul, has made his Instagram account private File photo: AFP

US challenger Oracle giant trimaran (L) sails next to Oracle's owner Larry Ellison 's motor yacht Rising Sun during the second race of the 33rd America's Cup on February 14, 2010 off Valencia's coast. US side Oracle beat defending Swiss champion Alinghi in the second race of the best-of-three series of the 33rd America's Cup to claim sailing's oldest and most prestigious trophy. AFP PHOTO POOL DANIEL OCHOA DE OLZA (Photo by DANIEL OCHOA DE OLZA / POOL / AFP)

Coronavirus: American ‘preppers’ have been waiting for a moment like this

Fortitude Ranch Chief Operating Officer Steve Rene inside a storage room stacked with food. Photo: AFP

A bunker is seen at Fortitude Ranch in Mathias, West Virginia, on March 13, 2020. - The narrow, worn track in West Virginia, close to the foothills of the Appalachians, leads to a camp set back in the woods, where a group of US survivalists began preparing for the collapse of civilization long before the arrival of the new coronavirus that has brought so much of the world to a halt. The Fortitude Ranch's motto embraces both End Times and more normal times: "Prepare for the Worst... Enjoy the Present!" Members have up to two weeks each year to revel in this rural retreat, enjoying nature, hiking or trout fishing in the appropriately named Lost River. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP)

Face masks are seen inside a bunker at the Fortitude Ranch in Mathias, West Virginia, on March 13, 2020. - The narrow, worn track in West Virginia, close to the foothills of the Appalachians, leads to a camp set back in the woods, where a group of US survivalists began preparing for the collapse of civilization long before the arrival of the new coronavirus that has brought so much of the world to a halt. The Fortitude Ranch's motto embraces both End Times and more normal times: "Prepare for the Worst... Enjoy the Present!" Members have up to two weeks each year to revel in this rural retreat, enjoying nature, hiking or trout fishing in the appropriately named Lost River. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP)

Guns are seen inside a lodging at the Fortitude Ranch in Mathias, West Virginia, on March 13, 2020. - The narrow, worn track in West Virginia, close to the foothills of the Appalachians, leads to a camp set back in the woods, where a group of US survivalists began preparing for the collapse of civilization long before the arrival of the new coronavirus that has brought so much of the world to a halt. The Fortitude Ranch's motto embraces both End Times and more normal times: "Prepare for the Worst... Enjoy the Present!" Members have up to two weeks each year to revel in this rural retreat, enjoying nature, hiking or trout fishing in the appropriately named Lost River. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP)

A guard post is seen at the Fortitude Ranch in Mathias, West Virginia, on March 13, 2020. - The narrow, worn track in West Virginia, close to the foothills of the Appalachians, leads to a camp set back in the woods, where a group of US survivalists began preparing for the collapse of civilization long before the arrival of the new coronavirus that has brought so much of the world to a halt. The Fortitude Ranch's motto embraces both End Times and more normal times: "Prepare for the Worst... Enjoy the Present!" Members have up to two weeks each year to revel in this rural retreat, enjoying nature, hiking or trout fishing in the appropriately named Lost River. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP)

Bunk beds are seen inside a bunker at the Fortitude Ranch in Mathias, West Virginia, on March 13, 2020. - The narrow, worn track in West Virginia, close to the foothills of the Appalachians, leads to a camp set back in the woods, where a group of US survivalists began preparing for the collapse of civilization long before the arrival of the new coronavirus that has brought so much of the world to a halt. The Fortitude Ranch's motto embraces both End Times and more normal times: "Prepare for the Worst... Enjoy the Present!" Members have up to two weeks each year to revel in this rural retreat, enjoying nature, hiking or trout fishing in the appropriately named Lost River. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP)

Coronavirus: Masks and test kits donated by Jack Ma arrive in US

A medical worker stores test kits at a drive-through testing site for coronavirus for employees at UW Medical Center Northwest in Seattle. Photo: Reuters

DUNKIRK, MARYLAND - MARCH 13: Shelves normally stocked with water and Gatorade sit empty at a Giant Supermarket store as people stockpile supplies due to the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) March 13, 2020 in Dunkirk, Maryland. The U.S. government is racing to make more coronavirus test kits available as schools close around the country, sporting events are canceled, and businesses encourage workers to telecommute where possible. Mark Wilson/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

Workers loading donated medical supplies bound for the US. Photo: Handout

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Photos of movie producer’s luxury confinement aboard the 138-metre Rising Sun triggers social-media backlash
The billionaire has since made his Instagram account private



Music and movie producer’s picture-perfect self-seclusion is highlighting ugly divisions in the age of the coronavirus pandemic.


Coronavirus pandemic: All stories

Social media

Coronavirus: Billionaire David Geffen blasted for his Instagram-perfect isolation on a luxury yacht

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Photos of movie producer’s luxury confinement aboard the 138-metre Rising Sun triggers social-media backlash The billionaire has since made his Instagram account private

Photos of movie producer’s luxury confinement aboard the 138-metre Rising Sun triggers social-media backlash

The billionaire has since made his Instagram account private