Comments on: True Story! http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/ Writing.Life Fri, 16 Jul 2010 16:15:52 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: tlitchfo http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/comment-page-1/#comment-5668 tlitchfo Thu, 17 Apr 2008 20:21:58 +0000 http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/#comment-5668 Margaret B. Jones (nice use of quotes, John, by the way) is a different story. She manufactured her memoir out of whole cloth, as they say. There's a difference between tweaking a few details to tighten a narrative and just plain making the whole damn thing up. Margaret B. Jones (nice use of quotes, John, by the way) is a different story. She manufactured her memoir out of whole cloth, as they say. There’s a difference between tweaking a few details to tighten a narrative and just plain making the whole damn thing up.

]]> By: ja3 http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/comment-page-1/#comment-5667 ja3 Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:41:25 +0000 http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/#comment-5667 And I thought I was too cynical! Obviously not, since when I read Bringing Down the House I assumed that characters and events would be merged, but didn't think they'd be invented out of thin air. There's definitely something to the "want to believe" idea, though. I happened to be on a long road trip right after "Love and Consequences" was published, so I became a captive audience for an hour-long NPR interview with "Margaret B. Jones" about a week before that controversy broke. I was certain she'd made it all up about 30 minutes into the interview. So I spent the last 30 minutes wondering why the host, probably better read and a better interviewer than me, never caught on. I reached pretty much the same conclusion -- he really WANTED all the terrible things in that book to be true. I can't say whether he wanted a gripping hour of radio time or proof that George Bush doesn't care about black people, but once I decided she was lying, the host's desire to believe her just poured out of the radio. And I thought I was too cynical! Obviously not, since when I read Bringing Down the House I assumed that characters and events would be merged, but didn’t think they’d be invented out of thin air.

There’s definitely something to the “want to believe” idea, though. I happened to be on a long road trip right after “Love and Consequences” was published, so I became a captive audience for an hour-long NPR interview with “Margaret B. Jones” about a week before that controversy broke.

I was certain she’d made it all up about 30 minutes into the interview. So I spent the last 30 minutes wondering why the host, probably better read and a better interviewer than me, never caught on.

I reached pretty much the same conclusion — he really WANTED all the terrible things in that book to be true. I can’t say whether he wanted a gripping hour of radio time or proof that George Bush doesn’t care about black people, but once I decided she was lying, the host’s desire to believe her just poured out of the radio.

]]> By: tlitchfo http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/comment-page-1/#comment-5666 tlitchfo Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:06:26 +0000 http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/#comment-5666 Nan, you're probably right about people looking to 'true stories' as sources of hope. Why else are so many movie-of-the-week type movies tagged with a 'based on true events' blurb? Has life really been sapped of all hope except that which is conferred upon us by True Stories? Nan, you’re probably right about people looking to ‘true stories’ as sources of hope. Why else are so many movie-of-the-week type movies tagged with a ‘based on true events’ blurb?

Has life really been sapped of all hope except that which is conferred upon us by True Stories?

]]> By: NanMel http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/comment-page-1/#comment-5665 NanMel Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:14:16 +0000 http://thomaslitchford.com/blog/2008/04/14/true-story/#comment-5665 I just want to mention that "21" was a pretty awful movie. Regardless of the facts, or how much truth was actually in the book and thereby transfered to the movie, the movie was just plain bad. Save your money. Also, mostly, yes, I believe everything I read. At least, I believe everything you tell me, Tom. Because why would you lie? But on a more serious note, not that I disagree, but I understand why people get so darned upset when they find out a memoir wasn't 100% true. They wanted to believe that this wonderful amazing story actually happened to someone, thereby giving their own pathetic lives hope. When they find out part of it was a lie, they feel duped, and then discredit the whole thing. You're right, we may have lost the inquisitive spirit. And that is not good. But I think people are just sick and tired of being lied to. And at the base of it, that's what they feel is happening. In summary: "21" is bad. You are mostly right. Stop lying to me. I just want to mention that “21″ was a pretty awful movie. Regardless of the facts, or how much truth was actually in the book and thereby transfered to the movie, the movie was just plain bad. Save your money.

Also, mostly, yes, I believe everything I read. At least, I believe everything you tell me, Tom. Because why would you lie? But on a more serious note, not that I disagree, but I understand why people get so darned upset when they find out a memoir wasn’t 100% true. They wanted to believe that this wonderful amazing story actually happened to someone, thereby giving their own pathetic lives hope. When they find out part of it was a lie, they feel duped, and then discredit the whole thing.

You’re right, we may have lost the inquisitive spirit. And that is not good. But I think people are just sick and tired of being lied to. And at the base of it, that’s what they feel is happening.

In summary: “21″ is bad. You are mostly right. Stop lying to me.

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