Truman Capote leaves a reception at The Four Seasons with Lee Radziwill on November 5, 1969 in New York City..Photo:Bettmann
Bettmann
Ryan Murphy’sFeud: Capote vs. The Swansfollows the real-life drama between author Truman Capote and his group of socialite friends, who he nicknamed the Swans.
“He ingratiated himself with the richest and most elegant women in the world,” Leamer told PEOPLE of Capote in 2021. “He decided he was going to write a book about them. He was going to learn everything he could about them for a number of years, and then write a masterpiece.”
However, things went south between the Swans and Capote when an expert from his unfinished novel,Answered Prayers, was published in 1975, and though “fictionalized,” the chapter contained the real-life secrets of the women in his life, including infidelity and murder accusations. It was easy to tell which character was supposed to portray which Swan, and ultimately, the betrayal would follow Capote for the rest of his life.
Gone were the days of living it up at high society parties. Capote was ultimately shunned from the community he once thrived and lost his friends, his lifestyle and his success as a writer.
FX’sFeud: Capote vs. the Swansfeatures Tom Hollander as the legendary author and a star-studded group of Swans includingNaomi Watts,Diane Lane,Chloë Sevigny,Demi Moore,Calista FlockhartandMolly Ringwald. The series also marks the lateTreat Williams' final project.
From integrating himself into New York’s high society to the project that would cause his demise, the true story behindFeud: Capote Vs. The Swansis gripping.
Ahead of the show’s series finale, which airs March 13, here is everything to know about Truman Capote, the Swans and the deepest secrets the author revealed about his friends.
Who was Truman Capote?
Truman Capote during the mid-1960s. ; Tom Hollander as Truman Capote in ‘Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans’.Bettmann ; Pari Dukovic/FX
Bettmann ; Pari Dukovic/FX
However, a young Capote would be reunited with his mother and her new husband, Joe Capote, when he went to live with her in New York as a teenager. He had loved writing from a young age and became serious enough about the craft that when he dropped out of high school, he quickly landed a job atThe New Yorkerat just 17 years old.
His stories caught the eyes of publishers, and two of his greatest creations,In Cold BloodandBreakfast at Tiffany’s, became not only successful novels but also critically acclaimed motion pictures. When writingBreakfast at Tiffany’s, Capote immersed himself in high society life. Being seen at all the best parties and gatherings, he claimed he was brainstorming for the novel, but his life in the spotlight would continue long after he put down the pen.
Who were Capote’s Swans?
C. Z. Guest at her ocean-front estate in Palm Beach, circa 1955. ; Chloe Sevigny as C.Z. Guest in ‘Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans’. ; Lee Radziwell on March 4, 1976. ; Calista Flockhart as Lee Radziwill in ‘Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans’.Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty ; Pari Dukovic/FX ; Bettmann ; Pari Dukovic/FX
Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty ; Pari Dukovic/FX ; Bettmann ; Pari Dukovic/FX
The Swans were a group of socialites who ran in New York City’s high society that included fashion darlings like Barbara “Babe” Paley (Naomi Watts), Nancy “Slim” Keith (Diane Lane) and C.Z. Guest (Chloë Sevigny) and even royalty like Lee Radziwill (Calista Flockhart).
Paley was the grande dame of the group and the wife of CBS founder William S. Paley (Treat Williams). Having previously worked as a fashion editor forVogue, Paley was the leading force of Manhattan’s elite from the 1950s through the 1970s. In 1958, she made the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame. She continued her life of glamor until she died in 1974 from lung cancer.
Finally, there was Radziwill, the younger sister of former first lady Jackie Kennedy, who was married to Polish aristocrat Prince Stanislaw Albrecht Radziwill from 1959 to 1972.
“Lee Radziwill wasrich and deserving of being considered a swan. She was a beautiful woman,” Leamer, the author ofCapote’s Women, told PEOPLE of Radziwill, who died in 2019. “She was married to Prince Radziwill, a fallen Polish prince; and she lived a totally glamorous life and Truman just loved her.”
Other Swans included Ann Woodward (Demi Moore), Gloria Guinness, Marella Agnelli and Pamela Harriman, who all lived lives of luxury.
What caused their feud?
Capote and his Swans lived a glamorous life in New York City’s high society, jet setting everywhere from the Hamptons, N.Y., to Paris and Venice, Italy. Whether they were throwing a party, attending events with celebrities, or sailing on yachts, they were the talk of the town.
However, Capote’s intentions shifted. He started to take notes on the lives of his socialite friends, preparing to write a tell-all novel calledAnswered Prayers.While the book would remain unpublished, three excerpts — “La Côte Basque 1965,” “Unspoiled Monsters” and “Kate McCloud” — were printed inEsquirein the mid-1970s, and once the Swans read what their friend had written, the feud began.
What did Capote write about the Swans in his tell-all book?
Truman Capote and Barbara “Babe” Paley ca. 1957. ; Lee Radziwill and Truman Capote pose for the camera at the Emmy Awards on June 4, 1967.ullstein bild/ullstein bild/Getty ; Bettmann
ullstein bild/ullstein bild/Getty ; Bettmann
Capote revealed whatreallywent on in the lives of his famous friends in “La Côte Basque 1965,” which was published inEsquirein November 1975. The story centered around a group of high society women living double lives, from marital affairs to family in-fighting.
The story is supposedly about his closest friends, with Paley at the center of the controversies. Some Swans were in the published piece under pseudonyms, while the real names of others were given for all to see.
Capote wrote about Radziwill, too, claiming that fellow Swans referred to her as “unrefined, exaggerated.”
By and large, no Swan was safe from Capote’s wrath in his writing.
What happened toAnswered Prayers?
However, when Capote died in 1984, so did the manuscript ofAnswered Prayers,though the unfinished version was published posthumously in the United States in 1987.
His friends hoped to find the manuscript, but many believed he never finished writing it. Joanne Carson (Molly Ringwald), a close friend of Capote’s, believed that the author did finish writing the book and hid it in a safe deposit box. She claimed he had given her a key but never shared the location of the alleged box.
In 2012,Vanity Fairdiscovered another unfinished chapter titled “Yachts and Things.”
What happened to Truman Capote?
Truman Capote in his Upper Eastside apartment living room in 1980.George Rose/Getty
George Rose/Getty
“He then became a social outcast,” Leamer told PEOPLE of Capote’s life after publishing his excerpts. “It was after that he began drinking heavily and taking drugs and dissipated and really never wrote what he could have written. The book never existed. He pretended he was writing it, but he didn’t write it.”
In 1984, Capote died of liver disease. He was 59 years old.
source: people.com
