James Frey And Nan Talese: Oprah Duped Us!

Amid the Miley Cyrus hoopla, it's easy to forget that there's a whole issue of Vanity Fair that comes out today. And one article in the magazine that is a must-read is Evgenia Peretz' interview with James Frey (supposedly the last interview he will ever give).

The article attempts to be the definitive account of how Frey went from addict to screenwriter to best selling author to public enemy, and how he picked up his million little pieces to write another novel, Bright Shiny Morning.

As Peretz details in the following excerpt, Frey and his publisher Nan Talese claim that Oprah — who went from champion to critic in a matter of weeks — duped them, tricking them to get on her show under false pretense and then attacking them as soon as the cameras began to roll:

As Talese recounted at a televised publishing conference last July, the show invited her and Frey together. Talese initially resisted. Then they were approached with a new pitch. The topic was going to be "Truth in America," and they wanted Talese on a panel with columnists Frank Rich, of The New York Times, and Richard Cohen, from The Washington Post. Given this scenario, Talese agreed. But when she and Frey arrived at Harpo Studios, in Chicago, they were told that the program was not, in fact, about Truth in America; it was about the James Frey controversy. Winfrey told Frey it would be rough, but said there would be redemption in the end. There was no redemption. From beginning to end, it was, according to Talese, "a public scourge."

Oprah, who just two weeks before had stood by the "essential truth" of Frey's story, now pounced on his every other word, while the audience booed him.

"I've struggled with the idea of it and ... " began Frey, in a typical exchange.

"No, the lie of it," snapped Oprah. "That's a lie. It's not an idea, James. That's a lie."

"I feel like I came here, and I have been honest with you," he said at the end of the hour. "I have, you know, essentially admitted to ... " "Lying," Oprah broke in....

"He felt trapped and cornered," recalls Talese today. A spokesperson for Oprah claims that "Truth in America" was always the topic for the show and that Talese had been informed of the full range of questions in the pre-interview. Talese maintained (as she still does) that memoirs have always been personal impressions, and didn't seem to realize that, for better or for worse, the game was now up. She was disgusted at the spectacle Oprah was making, appalled at her manners and at what she allegedly told Frey after the show was over: "I know it was rough, but it's just business." Winfrey denies ever making such a comment. "Once again, the truth is not being served here," she says in a statement to Vanity Fair. "In 22 years of doing this show, I have never said to anyone, 'I know it was rough, but it's just business.' This was beyond business. This was about the trust I share with the audience who faithfully supports the Book Club and buys the books I recommend; and based on that trust, I thought we were owed an explanation about the truth of this memoir."

Read the entire article online here or pick up this month's copy of Vanity Fair.

Alternatively, watch the video of the controversial Oprah appearance at Oprah's website.

Comments

[Anne1776]

After Oprah's tabloid episode "World's First Pregnant Man"- which by the way turned out to be a woman pretending to be a man, I've lost all respect for her. I will not watch any of her shows, nor will I buy her magazine.

[goodtomeetyou]

You never did.

[shinybear]

If Americans actually read anything other than blogs, they would know that the vast majority of memoirs are self-aggrandizing, egocentric and not to be trusted.

Some of them are notorious- people claim to be friends with people they barely know or never met, they claim to be straight when they aren't, they claim to have been invited to the Tate house the night of the Manson massacre but something told them not to, it goes on and on.

You want the ultimate dubious memoir? Check out "I Was a White Slave in Harlem" by Margo Howard-Howard.

An autobiography is supposedly factual, a memoir is a memory- distorted and never intended to be taken as absolute fact.

We've all been through this argument.

I know this reality of the written word leaves angry Americans feeling deceived and ripped off but they are morons to think that way.

I met James Frey- he was a nice guy- whatever.

Go take your righteous anger out on your government instead.

[NicoleAnonymous]

There is a difference between memories which is the way a person honestly remembers an event in their life although it's obviously distorted because we usually don't remember things as they actually happened and BLATANTLY LYING and making up stories about your life that never happened so you can sell books. Why is it so hard for you to tell the difference?

Eli Weisel has written about his experience in concentration camps and we accept it as truth. He mentions reading a certain book in yiddish but it turns out that is impossible because the book he mentions was never translated to yiddish. But that is a trivial point because we know that his overall story and experiences are based on truth.

Another woman lies and claims she was raised by animals in a forest when she was a child because she was Jewish but it turns out she made up the whole story. She isn't Jewish and she wasn't raised by animals in the forest during the Holocaust but she did manage to sell lots of books before people found out she was lying.

Do you understand the difference between those two people? The truth is important but trivial details are not.

[sickofhypocrisy]

I've never understood the self-righteousness of Frey's critics. It was a great book. What difference does it make if it was called a memoir vs. a novel? Seriously. Does it change the quality of the story?

Grow up. If this is the sort of thing that gets your panties in a knot, you desperately need a life.

[strandwolf]

YOU accept Weasel's maundering eructations as truth; I do not, necessarily. Interesting that any of his falsehoods can only be viewed as trivial mistakes. Who are you to dictate for all what is trivial and what is to be deemed in the realm of importance and therefore to be scrutinized for its 'truth'?

[Trittydi]

Huffington Post duped me. I thought the article would be about the physicist Frey.
*

[sickofhypocrisy]

i thought it was going to be about french fries.

[HighPlainsJoker]

Hell, I thought it was about British author and actor Stephan Frey, and thought the whole thread made perfect sense. Don't make me reread it, please. I have never seen Oprah nor read this book. Honest.

[Politiking]

I don't and would never understand the fascination with Oprah. Many a number of women made this person rich by watching her show. As evidence of Oprah's credibility on word of honor or simply just honor, she practically betrayed Tom Cruise by showing the overjoyed Tom making a fool of himself in front of the camera, instead of shelving it or re-shoot the "pre-tape" show to edit out the "jumping on the couch." However, Oprah opted to betray her friendship with Tom and show the pre-tape show as is. Oprah is a showperson and a business person who would do anything to make her show sensational, relevant and of course controversial. I do not doubt that they convince Frey and Talese to be on the show under some pretense to get the "show" on.

I hope they sue the Oprah and get some of the dough they probably don't deserve.

[NicoleAnonymous]

I've always thought that the problem with what Tom Cruise did is that he didn't have competant PR people working for him. All he had to do was go on SNL and be involved in some skit making fun of what he did the way Drew Barrymore did after she wore that horrile dress without a bra - it would have made him seem more down to earth as if he just got carried away but has a sense of humor about it.

The problem is not that Oprah showed it - the problem is after that when she made some remark about how it didn't seem real as though it was all an act.

[avicenna]

I like the timing of his "Oprah bombshell" - I'm sure it will garner more publicity for his new fictious novel then him just talking about it. Seeing his track record for credibility (and his publisher's), I am sure they speak the truth as they see it.... The good news is that this is the last interview. Right.

[dvdoff]

Frey and Talese laughed all of the way to the bank after Oprah's initial endorsement. It makes me sick to think that these two perpetrators of the largest literary hoax since Clifford Irving are trying to come off as victims. If not for the Smoking Gun, the talentless Frey would still be living off his "street cred". While I am in no way a fan of Oprah, I applaud the shellacking she gave these two frauds.

[NicoleAnonymous]

I think lots of people here are getting the issues mixed up - Frey isn't trying to make excuses for lying. His publisher is saying when they were invited on a major TV show they should be allowed to be prepared the same way as any guest and deicide if they want to participate. She told them they would simply be on a panel where they would have a discussion about "truth" in this country in a general way but in reality they only wanted Frey there so everyone could gang up on him and call him a liar.

Of course they have a right to do that but Frey and his publisher also have the right to be told what the show will be about so that they can decide if they want to be part of it. The point is really that they were tircked and that is just unprofessional.

[fishsandwichesr2good]

He should have known that you never trust a cow.

[Eric8869]

If his book was a good read - it was a good read. If people got something out of it then they got something out of it. So he exaggerated his story. Maybe if he didn't it would have been boring. Do you really think everything in these books is 100% the truth?

Oprah supporting him at first then going against him once her fans got mad was worse than him lying. I expect her to go with her "truth" and not pander to the whims of her audience. Shame on her - not him.

[TXFreedomFighter]

WOW. This rich, lying guy is mad for being called out on his lie!!! Where was the outrage during or after the interview? He should man up and face it - he brought it on himself!!! Don't blame Oprah, own it!

[slobone]

Those who live by the Oprah shall die by the Oprah. They thought she was just great when she was praising his book to the skies.

But there is a valid point here. There's definitely a double standard when it comes to memoirs. Celebrities can get away with telling all the lies they want in their books, while a writer like Frey can have his whole life pretty much ruined.

There's an easy solution for publishers and authors, just use the disclaimer Shelley Winters did in her autobiography. It was something like, "Some of this is my life just as it happened, and some of it is the way I wish it had happened."

[preatorius]

He lied and she called him on it. This is great press for Oprah. She is being taken to task for challenging his dishonesty.

I am sure he expects us to back him for being a dope-head and a liar!

[ndifference]

Seems she lied to him as well. Watching a pot point her finger at a kettle - now that's riveting television!

[antaeus]

Why do we expect an author's words to have the same function as a sworn witness in a court room? One is by definition a creator, the other is a testifier.

Oprah was just protecting her brand in the face of public mob mentality, but if she's as smart as her fans believe, then she understands the difference.

[blueshift]

Let me get this right. This liar is calling her....what? I couldn't have read this right.

[SouthpawSass]

I've never seen an entire Oprah show... and I don't really think I've ever missed out...