The Smoking Gun yesterday blew the lid off another literary scandal. Apparently fictionalizing your entire life story into something worse than what it is has become the new chic, completely unbeknownst to me. James Frey, author of A Million Little Pieces is, according to TSG, fabricating or wildly overstating large portions of his life story. The book has sold over 3.5 million copies since Oprah Winfrey included it as an official selection of “Oprah’s Book Club”. Hell, even my roommate Jen told me just the other day what an incredible book it was, and that story can be repeated by almost everyone reading this I’d imagine.
Police reports, court records, interviews with law enforcement personnel, and other sources have put the lie to many key sections of Frey’s book. The 36-year-old author, these documents and interviews show, wholly fabricated or wildly embellished details of his purported criminal career, jail terms, and status as an outlaw “wanted in three states.”
In additon to these rap sheet creations, Frey also invented a role for himself in a deadly train accident that cost the lives of two female high school students. In what may be his book’s most crass flight from reality, Frey remarkably appropriates and manipulates details of the incident so he can falsely portray himself as the tragedy’s third victim. It’s a cynical and offensive ploy that has left one of the victims’ parents bewildered. “As far as I know, he had nothing to do with the accident,” said the mother of one of the dead girls. “I figured he was taking license…he’s a writer, you know, they don’t tell everything that’s factual and true.”
I think we can safely say how that last bit is true about nearly everyone we know. The problem for people like me, who have unfortunately actually lived out some sembleance of the horrific tales told by Mr. Frey, is that it makes us look bad when he starts telling our stories. It’s almost as if he overheard me talking to a friend in a diner somewhere ten years ago or happened to sneak into one of those anonymous 12-step meetings. I feel fairly violated all around right now. Best you should go read The Smoking Gun’s six-week investigation report and expose. I gotta go to work.
Sphere: Related Content
For many years, I was understandably allured by the, by all accounts, fictional and mystical novel Sarah, a story about a boy who grows up living the life of a “lot lizard” working the truck stops of West Virginia. I was equally disturbed and touched by The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, a story of an abusive relationship between mother and child that goes beyond explanation here. There was the Yahoo! group called Terminator2 which I joined in hopes to learn more about the author. There were two films, one of which was finished and one of which was not. Thousands of people came into contact with JT Leroy, and I have to wonder how many of them actually knew JT so well. Tonight, I sit here horrified as I read the tale of the real JT Leroy. As with JT’s stories, the tale of JT himself does not end well.
JT Leroy, former prostitute, H.I.V. victim, literary author and recluse has become even more astonishing. Why? It turns out that JT Leroy is none of these things at all. JT Leroy isn’t even a man. JT Leroy does not exist and, I hate to say it, is one of the most clever hoaxes ever laid on the literary world. JT Leroy is the fictional, completely fictional, creation of a woman named Savannah Knoop who, according to several people close to the story, played the part so accurately and completely that nobody knew.
But the young man in the wig and sunglasses, it turns out, is not a man at all. The public role of JT Leroy is played by Savannah Knoop, Geoffrey Knoop’s half sister, who is in her mid-20’s.
A photograph of Ms. Knoop at a 2003 opening for a clothing store in San Francisco was discovered online. Five intimates of Mr. Leroy’s, including his literary agent, his business manager and the producer of a forthcoming movie based on one of his books, were shown the photograph and identified Ms. Knoop as the person they have known as JT Leroy.
“That’s JT Leroy,” said Ira Silverberg, Mr. Leroy’s literary agent, upon seeing the photograph. Mr. Silverberg said he had met Mr. Leroy a number of times in person. Lilly Bright, a producer of “The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things,” a 2004 film based on Mr. Leroy’s 2001 collection of stories, was no less certain. “It’s JT Leroy,” she said, adding that she had worked with Mr. Leroy extensively on the production.
The article closes with the most telling of quotes, and I think this might explain how I’m feeling right now.
But perhaps those most affected by the revelation that Ms. Knoop has been playing the public role of JT Leroy are those who went out of their way to help someone they thought was a troubled young man.
“To present yourself as a person who is dying of AIDS in a culture which has lost so many writers and voices of great meaning, to take advantage of that sympathy and empathy, is the most unfortunate part of all of this,” Mr. Silverberg said. “A lot of people believed they were supporting not only a good and innovative and adventurous voice, but that we were supporting a person.”
Take a few minutes to peruse this article. I want to make note that I am ashamed to have ever been duped by this hoax, that the numerous secretive moves and inconsistent public appearances of JT Leroy should have tipped me off. I will have more when I cool down. For now, go steam and tell me what you think.
Sphere: Related Content
