Widely considered the greatest literary hoax of modern times, the story of JT Leroy seems almost impossible to believe. Bursting onto the scene in 2001 with a bestselling book and heartbreaking life story, JT Leroy was a 20-year-old writing prodigy who quickly became the celebrity of the hour. He was photographed at A-List parties. Profiled in magazines. Gus Van Sant wanted to make a movie about him. Winona Ryder cried while giving a speech about him. The Smashing Pumpkins welcomed him backstage at their concerts. Madonna wanted him to join Kabbalah. 

But JT Leroy didn’t exist. 

So who was this person? And how did they dupe not just Hollywood, but the entire world?

(TW: although JT Leroy turned out to be a fiction, this episode includes brief references to the physical and child sexual abuse described in his books.)

Skip to the story! Approx 11:30

We give you Just The Gist, but if you want more, there’s this:

‘The Boy Who Cried Author’ piece in Vanity Fair: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2006/04/jtleroy200604/amp

The first article to bust things wide open: https://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/features/14718/

Interview with Savannah Knoop:https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/apr/23/my-life-as-jt-leroy-savannah-knoop-on-playing-the-great-literary-hoaxer

Vanity Fair Confidential episode, Season 4, Ep 2 (this one is a great overall summary): available to watch on Amazon Prime in Aus

The Cult of JT Leroy doco trailer: https://youtu.be/ARPXyCqq1YI

Author: The JT Leroy Story doco trailer (this is the nutso one with lots of interviews with Laura Albert): https://youtu.be/hvSwcE32VKg

If this episode brought up any issues for please contact the following:

Lifeline: 13 11 14 https://www.lifeline.org.au/

Beyond Blue:1300 224 636https://www.beyondblue.org.au/

LGBTQI support: 1800 184 527https://qlife.org.au/

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