Truman Capote was a genius and a complicated yet unforgettable writer in his own right. Capote developed an original voice when it came to writing stories, and Truman Capote was the creator of the true crime genre when “In Cold Blood” was published.

Capote rose to prominence to the point that he spent time with wealthy socialites that he coined his “Swans.” Capote was a homosexual who never hid his orientation from anyone. Capote also had mother issues and this element is key in his connection to the Swans. In a very obvious and symbolic way, Capote found his missing mother amongst his Swans, particularly Babe Paley.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-d0kbQZDvE

The Show

“Feud: Capote vs The Swans” is a phenomenal mini-series that explores the relationship between Truman Capote and his Swans; but, since the show is called “Feud,” this season will focus on the tragedy that occurred after Truman Capote published his short story “La Côte Basque, 1965” where he revealed the secrets of his beloved Swans, and in response, his Swans or “best friends” rejected him from their exclusive circle and Capote spent his last remaining days drinking and making a fool out of himself on live tv only to die at 59.

6 of the 8 episodes were directed by Gus Van Sant, the same director that gave us gems like “To Die For,” and “My Own Private Idaho.” Mr. Van Sant is an expert in using the camera for getting inside the character’s heads. The viewer doesn’t just see the actions. The shots make the viewer feel the character’s emotion. The perspective of “Capote vs The Swans” changes constantly because the viewer empathizes with both Capote and his Swans.

The art direction and cinematography are perfectly executed. There’s not a single show (since Mad Men) that has captured perfectly the sophistication of NY’s high society like this show. The costumes, the pacing all feel like a beautiful Greek tragedy that unfolds slowly leading the viewer to wonder: why did Capote write about his Swans?

The Reality of Feud: Capote vs The Swans

Just like Capote himself, I am gay, but unlike Capote himself, I’m not a writer nor a genius. I used to be one, but it’s not my calling. And last but not least, just like Capote, I had my own male version of Babe Paley. He wasn’t a Cob though, he was a peafowl at best. My peafowl’s nickname was Beto, and just like Babe, he married a powerful banker who worked at JP Morgan Chase, and is also a big, a huge Dem party donor; however, unlike Babe, this peafowl came from a small town in Mexico, a town so small that there were no toilets.

When Truman spent time with his Swans, he became their confidante. His advice mattered to these women, and sometimes, Capote was just their sin eater. Capote wasn’t naive at all. He knew he had a power over these women, and this power is shown on the 3rd episode of the show: “Masquerade, 1966.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sD3t0_3ZmiQ

I felt a similar connection with Beto. I became his confidant when he told me he was HIV positive and was the main reason why his husband married him. They never had sex. I became his sin eater whenever we went to NYC sex clubs, and he made me see him have sex with others, then we went shopping and finally we’d be home for dinner, the 3 of us. I became his secret holder when he told me he wasn’t allowed back in the US for 7 years and when I found out he had a career as a gay porn star back in the early 2000’s. When Beto came to the US, gay marriage wasn’t legal yet, and one of the few ways to get a green card back then was by being well connected, and when your significant other is best buddies with Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, you can, and you will get a green card.

The pilot episode from “Feud: Capote vs The Swans” opens with Capote calming down Babe by giving her an antidepressant and two gulps of scotch, and just like Capote, Beto did the same, only that he intended to kill himself. His husband called me on a Sunday morning, and asked me to check on his husband. (I was 27, and both of them were twice my age), and when I opened the door, there he was, the peafowl, not being able to stand and told me in a very slurry way that he took an entire bottle of sleeping pills. I called 911 and the ambulance arrived. I was 27 and never had a boyfriend, but I did save a peafowl from drowning.

What happens when you witness hypocrisy? Was Capote really a traitor or did he hold a mirror in front of his swans and they didn’t like what they saw? The show explores the motivations of a writer when he witnesses duplicity. Capote’s greatest asset was his memory, the small details and that intimacy in his writing is what broke their Swans’s heart, but were these women really his friends?

“We see the importance of presentation.”

The quote above is from the 3rd episode of “Feud: Capote vs The Swans.” A fictional version of Albert Maysles asks Babe Paley what’s the connection between gay men and glamorous women, and the quote itself is Babe’s response.

Beto always “taught” me how to flirt, or how to dress, or how to get a man, but I’ve always preferred thinking. There’s something beautiful that I see in not seeing the importance of presentation, but in thinking: why should presentation matter?