Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s dinner with Richard Avedon. In preparation for his lauded role in Capote, Hoffman shared shellfish with the photographer who was by Capote’s side as he researched In Cold Blood.
Hoffman: “Avedon was there during the whole experience. He was there when the killers were caught. He was there with Truman, and Truman had him take all those pictures… [Avedon] talked about how at the top of his game Capote was, how sharp he was, how ingratiating and kind he was — all these things he remembered from that time. But then he was also very open about how Capote became later: He would come in and become drunk, and he started being very biting. Then they had a falling out about some photo Dick had taken of him…It helped me a lot — the idea of what happens to a person where, at one point, they have so many allies, then these ties are severed. In a way, he was powerless over his demons. That’s not an excuse; there are actions he took that are there to be criticized. But there was something about him that made him powerless to overcome his own compulsions.”
