A Portrait of the Artist through an Audiotape: The Capote Tapes and Billie

Nearly a quarter century ago, legendary journo and The Paris Review co-founder George Plimpton published “Truman Capote: In which Various Friends, Enemies, Acquaintances, and Detractors Recall His Turbulent Career.” But it’s only been recently that the raw material behind that candid oral history has come to light – and formed the basis of filmmaker (and onetime Obama White House adviser) Ebs Burnough’s entrancing 2019 doc The Capote Tapes (available for streaming on Amazon Prime). By combining mesmerizing archival footage, an era-appropriate soundtrack, and the titular audiotapes of interviews that Plimpton conducted after Capote’s death – boxes of which Plimpton’s widow in turn handed over to the director – Burnough crafts a welcome revisitation of the rebel scribe who lived (and died) by the mantra, “Don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story.”

To read more on my recommendation for an all-archival double feature visit Global Comment.