The Real Housewives of Truman Capote's New York
Time|February 12, 2024
WHAT IS IT THAT MAKES RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN queer men and glamorous women so intimate-and so volatile? Consider Jennifer Coolidge's tragic White Lotus character, Tanya, who wandered off with a crew of fortune hunters she memorably described as "high-end gays." Or Andy Cohen playing ringmaster to a universe of pugnacious Real Housewives.
JUDY BERMAN
The Real Housewives of Truman Capote's New York

Half a century ago, the Andy Cohen of the Upper East Side was Truman Capote, and the women whose world he insinuated himself into were A-list socialites. For two decades, the author of In Cold Blood and Breakfast at Tiffany's heard their confessions and dried their tears. Then, in 1975, he published a story in Esquire that exposed their deepest humiliations. FX's Feud: Capote vs. the Swans, the long-awaited second season of a Ryan Murphy anthology that began with 2017's Bette and Joan, traces the friendships and eventual schism. It's a messy rendering that, at times, reverts to cliché. But beneath the distracting artifice is a psychologically rich, wonderfully acted portrait of an artist torn between his work and the life that fueled it.

Tom Hollander (the lead villain in Lotus) is well cast as the diminutive Truman, in a story that spans from the mid-'50s through his death in 1984, hopping between eras with confusing frequency. At ladies-who-lunch mecca La Côte Basque, he charms the adventurous C.Z. Guest (Chloë Sevigny), banters with brassy Slim Keith (Diane Lane, excellent), and taunts wild-eyed Ann Woodward (Demi Moore), who he insists killed her husband. A standout episode, framed as footage for a Maysles brothers documentary, revisits Truman's exclusive 1966 Black and White Ball, which marked the height of his influence.

This story is from the February 12, 2024 edition of Time.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the February 12, 2024 edition of Time.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM TIMEView All
Exhibition showcases ancient splendor
Time

Exhibition showcases ancient splendor

A captivating exhibition at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco offers a clue to the vibrant Bronze Age cultures that flourished along the Yangtze River more than 2,000 years ago.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 27, 2024
Flights of kites
Time

Flights of kites

An ancient folk craft tradition floats across time and still soars to new heights in modern times

time-read
4 mins  |
May 27, 2024
What does a biopic owe its subject?
Time

What does a biopic owe its subject?

AMY WINEHOUSE WROTE SONGS THAT CUT TO THE CORE of heartbreak and sang them in a voice as supple and sturdy as raw silk.

time-read
5 mins  |
May 27, 2024
On the road again with Mad Max's mastermind
Time

On the road again with Mad Max's mastermind

GEORGE MILLER HAS SPENT MORE THAN 40 YEARS swerving in and out of the post apocalyptic world of Mad Max.

time-read
6 mins  |
May 27, 2024
TV'S ENDLESS HOLOCAUST
Time

TV'S ENDLESS HOLOCAUST

A surge of World War II dramas fails to connect with the present

time-read
6 mins  |
May 27, 2024
your toxic life
Time

your toxic life

AN INDEPENDENT LAB HAS MADE A BUSINESS OF EXPOSING WHAT’S REALLY INSIDE EVERYDAY PRODUCTS

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 27, 2024
NEXT GENERATION LEADERS
Time

NEXT GENERATION LEADERS

11 trailblazers who are challenging the status quo, leading with empathy, and forging solutions for a brighter future

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 27, 2024
Uranium dreams
Time

Uranium dreams

The promise of clean nuclear power brings the West to Mongolia

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 27, 2024
Why the Westminster Dog Show made me appreciate mutts
Time

Why the Westminster Dog Show made me appreciate mutts

I SPENT THREE YEARS AMONG DOGS WITH BLOODLINES like British royalty.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 27, 2024
CO₂ Leadership Brief
Time

CO₂ Leadership Brief

ON MAY 1, FEDERAL RESERVE CHAIR Jerome Powell offered a two-part message to eager interest- rate watchers.

time-read
2 mins  |
May 27, 2024