News_OFFmag: Truman Capote (30 September 1924

30 September 1924, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Date of Death

25 August 1984, Los Angeles, California, USA (liver complications)

Birth Name

Truman Streckfus Persons

Height

5' 3" (1.60 m)

Trade Mark

His characters were often emotionally isolated and/or confused about their sexuality

Trivia

Frequently visited legendary New York disco Studio 54 in the late '70s.
Is the inspiration for the character "Dill" in Harper Lee's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird". He and Harper Lee were childhood friends.
His most famous work is the book, "In Cold Blood."
He is one of several famous and tragic figures from history to be featured on the front and back sleeves of rock band Marillion's "Clutching at Straws" album (released 1987).
Longtime partner was Jack Dunphy.
His 7th cousin once removed is playwright Tennessee Williams.
Although he wrote only a handful of books during his lifetime, he produced 25 full-length plays, 2 novels, 60 short stories, more than 100 poems and an autobiography.
The film rights to his novella, "Hand Carved Coffins" were held by producer Dino De Laurentiis and the project was offered to directors Michael Cimino and David Lynch but to date, the project has not been produced.
Rests in a mausoleum next to Heather O'Rourke and Mel Tormé.
His aunt, who helped raise him as a boy, is Marie Rudisill, aka The Fruitcake Lady from the "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" (1992).
Was called as a defense witness in the second trial of Claus von Bülow, testifying about Sunny's [Martha Sunny von Bulow] history of substance abuse.
Portrayed by Sam Street in Ella es única (2000), Philip Seymour Hoffman in Truman Capote (2005), by Toby Jones in Historia de un crimen (2006), by Michael J. Burg in La vida de Audrey Hepburn (2000) (TV) and by Robert Morse in the award-winning one-man show "Tru" (and the subsequent made-for-TV film, "American Playhouse: Tru (#12.1)" (1992)).
According to George Plimpton's biography "Truman Capote: In Which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintences and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career," one of Capote's eccentricities was to walk into a liquor store and ask for a bottle of "Justerini and Brooks" scotch, which is more familiarly known as J&B, which is one of the most famous brand names in the liquor business. Even if a merchant told him the store did not carry the brand (as most people didn't know what the initials stood for), even when it was likely it did carry the brand, Capote would not call it "J&B", even if it meant that he went without it.
Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume One, 1981-1985, pages 128-130. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998.
Mentioned in Walter Kirn's novel "Thumbsucker".
His mother committed suicide.
Capote was actually his step-father's last name.
Despite his diminutive size, Capote was said to be an excellent arm wrestler.

Personal Quotes

It's a scientific fact ... For every year a person lives in Hollywood, they lose two points of their IQ.
I think I've written one masterpiece in my career and that's "In Cold Blood". It is a masterpiece and I don't care what anyone says. I think I've also written three or four short stories that are as good as anything written in the English language.
The greatest thing about masturbation is that you don't have to dress up for it.
[on Meryl Streep] She looks like a chicken!
[on Marilyn Monroe] She is pure Alice in Wonderland, and her appearance and demeanor are a nicely judged mix of the Red Queen and a flamingo.
New York is a diamond iceberg floating in river water.
[on Marlon Brando] No actor of my generation has possessed greater natural gifts; but none other has transported intellectual falsity to higher levels of hilarious pretension.
[on Humphrey Bogart] He had an image of sophisticated virility and he projected it remarkably well. And with such humor. At last, he had such style that it doesn't wither, it doesn't age, it doesn't date. Like Billie Holiday.
Do you want to know the real reason why I push my hair down on my forehead? Because I have two cowlicks. If I didn't do that it would make me look as though I had two feathery horns.