This article is more than 5 months old

This article is more than 5 months old

As the claustrophobic reality of self-isolation under the coronavirus outbreak begins to bite for millions of families confined to their homes, spare a thought for the billionaire record producer David Geffen, currently suffering off the Grenadines aboard his mega-yacht Rising Sun.

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Geffen, net worth $7.7bn according to Forbes, sent a virtual postcard to his 84,000 Instagram followers on Saturday morning, to let them know he too was feeling the hardships of enforced solitude.

“Sunset last night…” Geffen wrote, to accompany a travel brochure-quality photograph of his vessel resting at anchor in the picturesque Caribbean sea.

“Isolated in the Grenadines avoiding the virus. I hope everybody is staying safe.”

Social media users were quick to leap on the tone-deaf post.

“David Geffen sends a message: You poor plebs can suck it. It’s fabulous to be rich! Look at me!” stock market analyst Sven Henrich wrote on Twitter.

Others referred to the Geffen’s background as a producer and record label owner who has worked with hundreds of big-name artists.

“There’s a reason people thought Carly Simon’s You’re So Vain was about David Geffen,” one Twitter user wrote, referring to the decades-long guessing game over the protagonist of the singer’s 1972 hit.

Another suggested that Geffen, 77, could be doing more to counter the pandemic.

“David Geffen is out of touch,” the Twitter user wrote. “Maybe if he made a large donation for medical protective gear for our overworked nurses, doctors & medical staff, he wouldn’t come off as an elitist jerk.”

In the mogul’s defense, the David Geffen Foundation has over the years directed many hundreds of millions of dollars to philanthropic causes including medical and health clinics and charities for the homeless. The school of medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles is named for him.

Still, a self-pitying missive from the Caribbean hinting at the adversity of staring down the Coronavirus aboard a $590m floating palace with a crew of 45 will hardly resonate with the harsh reality now facing millions of Americans.

“Can I come?” Showbiz 411 journalist Roger Friedman wondered. “Where do I pick up the launch … or do I just ‘copter down onto the landing pad?”