Truman Capote

A literary genius who crafted tight, flawless prose and displayed keen insight into human nature, author Truman Capote belied his level-headed approach to writing by adopting a flamboyant public persona. Capote was the toast of high society and one of literature's most promising young authors when he emerged with two of his most revered novels, Other Voices, Other Room (1948) and The Grass Harp (1951). His literary prowess grew with arguably his best work of fiction, Breakfast at Tiffany's (1958), which introduced the world to the independent and social-climbing Holly Golightly. But Capote reached his greatest achievement with In Cold Blood (1966), a "non-fiction novel" that covered the gruesome murder of the Clutter family in Holcomb, KS, which was hailed as a groundbreaking work in the true crime genre. But by the time of his premature death in 1984, Capote had lost his social and literary appeal, thanks in large part to crippling drug and alcohol addiction. Capote attributed much of his personal decline to being snubbed by his jet set friends after he wrote several damning stories for Esquire magazine. But some believe his slide into personal destruction was traced to writing In Cold Blood, which nonetheless turned Capote into an international star and enhanced his reputation as one of the 20th century's finest literary talents.