What a great pic of Capote. What was going through his mind?Over the weekend, I caught a documentary about Truman Capote on Ovation (a great channel). It was part of Ovation's American Revolutionaries series and will be shown again on Sunday, August 15, 2010 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time.
The infamous American novelist, short story writer and social commentator projected a compelling and often controversial public image right up until his death, from drugs and alcohol abuse in 1984.
Filmed in America, the profile reflects the dark and light of Capote's life and work. It draws on his outspoken often outrageous television appearances and includes recollections from many of his closest friends, as well as a dramatization from his unfinished novel, Answered Prayers.
The "tiny terror" as he was known, Capote could be as flamboyant and acerbic as he was poignant and articulate, crafting fiction and non fiction into masterpieces like "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and "In Cold Blood."
Yet, as Capote often wrote about the controversies of his own life, his friends began to distance themselves and Truman turned inward toward a world of prescription drugs and alcohol.
In the clip below, the writer talks briskly about his addiction to tranquilizers and is confronted on air about his alcoholism.
The picture says a thousand words. My thought is, why do writers write?
ReplyDeleteWhat's really amazing is that he was the inspiration for the character, Dill, the boy who visits Scout and Jem during the summer, in "To Kill a Mockingbird". He and Harper Lee were great friends, and if I remember correctly, she was a big help to him when he was interviewing people for "In Cold Blood".
ReplyDeleteFunny thing... the documentary made no mention of Harper Lee at all... I found that to be odd.
ReplyDeleteOk I am about to step out of the closet.. I have never read Capote.. This makes me want to catch the show..
ReplyDeleteThank you for this post....
I know they were great friends when they were younger. Was the show primarily about Capote's later years? His addictions were supposedly a source of friction between them as they got older. I would imagine her need for a life lived in seclusion was as foreign to him as his need to live his life as the center of attention was to her. Sad.
ReplyDeleteDude, you're killing me telling about stuff like that! I'd love to watch it, but we don't get Ovation up in Canada (at least not in the Atlantic region). Sound like it would be great. The photo of Capote in bed was very cool.
ReplyDeleteAlan, it didn't work for you, either, eh?
ReplyDeleteLynne, you HAVE to read In Cold Blood. Have to! It's THE classic crime story. The original. And it's unbelievably good.
Hey Ant, how's it going?
What a great pic. I've read a few of Capote's works. My brother gave me "In Cold Blood" several years ago and I couldn't put it down. I had heard of the case before reading the book, but the writing of it was what captured me.
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