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Bennett CerfBennett Cerf
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Session:         Page of 1029

comes up from New Orleans and makes up great tales about all of the famous people that he's met. It's Truman, obviously Truman. When you've met Truman and read this book again, you realize that it's absolutely accurate and a faithful picture of him as a little boy. He's been that way all of his life. He tells about some of his early years in Other Voices, Other Rooms.

His mother is a perfectly plain, normal person and so is his step-father. They live on Park Avenue. She can't understand how she produced something like Truman Capote. Of course he treats her with amused tolerance.

Q:

Have you ever felt when reading Capote's work--I think maybe with the exception of In Cold Blood--that his treatment of women...I mean, even in “Miriam,” every one is making fun of the women and the role.

Cerf:

No. I don't agree with you. As a matter of fact, Holly Golightly is a very charming girl in Breakfast at Tiffany's. If you remember the way that Audrey Hepburn played it in the movie, it was with utter charm.

Of course when David Merrick tried to make a musical of it, it was a disaster. It never even came to New York, as you know. That happened with the next Merrick show too, Mata Hari. I saw him the other night and said, “How is the show that you're bringing in Thursday, Happy Times?” Very defensively he said, “At least I'm going to open it.” I





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