Truman Capote

Introduction

Truman Capote

Truman Capote’s greatest success and biggest downfall was In Cold Blood. When the book was published in 1966, the never-modest Capote hailed it as a new genre, “the nonfiction novel.” The book was well-received, commercially successful, and spawned a film adaptation the following year. Despite this, Capote was dogged by rumors that he exaggerated, twisted, or fabricated large portions of the work. Capote naturally denied these rumors, and though his own penchant for hyperbole and self-promotion have led some critics to continue to doubt the truthfulness of In Cold Blood, it remains a towering literary achievement and a staple of true-crime literary studies. Although his later years were marked by scandal and substance abuse, Capote’s body of work ensured his reputation as a literary and cultural icon.

Essential Facts

1. Summer Crossing, an unpublished romance that was Capote’s first novel, was rediscovered and received its first printing in 2005.
2. Despite his reputation as a brilliant intellectual with blistering wit, Capote never attended college. He also believed that writing could not be taught.
3. The character of Dill in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird is based on Capote.
4. Capote, in a bit of ironic casting, appeared in Neil Simon’s mystery spoof Murder by Death as a millionaire trying to outwit the world’s most famous mystery characters.
5. Capote’s research for In Cold Blood was the subject of two concurrently produced films, 2005’s much-lauded Capote (featuring Phillip Seymore Hoffman) and 2006’s Infamous.