What I Read #6: Capote's Women

 

I suppose this is also a "What I Watched" post because I bought the book to go along with watching Feud: Capote vs. the Swans. 

So this is basically the OG version of the Real Housewives of NYC - a peek into the lives of the super-rich society women who ruled the social scene in the 1950s and 60s. If you love vintage high fashion and glamour -- it's a lot of fun.  

The FX show is based on Laurence Leamer's 2021 book. And even though it pulls in a bevy of amazing actresses to play legendary socialites such as Babe Paley ("you can never be too rich or too thin"), CZ Guest, and Lee Radziwill, it actually narrows down the cast of swans considerably, mostly leaving out several of the women profiled in the book (Pamela Harriman, Marella Agnellli, Gloria Guinness) who became confidantes of Truman Capote and were the focus of his final, largely unpublished novel. 

Neither Capote nor any of the women come across as particularly admirable characters in the book or the show (the book is actually a little grittier and less forgiving). Still, they make for an interesting story that has been fun to read and watch. 

What I Watched #1: Shōgun Premiere

 

While my days of taping pages from Tiger Beat to the wall have long passed, I think most grown-ass women still have our swoony crushes on certain celebs. I know I do (looking at you, Bradley Cooper), and I know my mother did. 

For my mom's generation, Richard Chamberlain was at the top of the list of drool-worthy dudes. This was the era of the mini-series, and I have vivid memories of watching The Thorn Birds and Shōgun with her. 

Revisiting The Thorn Birds as an adult a few years ago was jarring. Yeah, Richard Chamberlain was a hottie... but the story of a Catholic priest obsessing over a teenage girl that was wildly romantic to a 12-year-old girl struck me as kind of creepy from today's viewpoint.

But I've been intrigued by the trailers for FX's new adaptation of Shōgun, and was excited to have a date night with Tim last night to attend a sneak-peek preview of the first two episodes. 

All I can say is WOW.  I'm impressed! Visually, it's absolutely stunning and seems to have been made with amazing attention to sets and costumes. It's just simply gorgeous to watch each scene and take in the details.

The story is pulling me in also and I can't wait to see how it unfolds. Watching the original in 1980, I'm sure I was laser-focused on the romance, but this is shaping up to be a fantastic and complicated story of politics and power, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

And yeah, if Tiger Beat still existed, I could happily stare at pictures of Cosmo Jarvis taped to my wall!