Capote (2005) Movie Script
Hello?
Nancy?
Exactly.
But at least be honest about the facts.
- That's what I'm saying.
- Who's honest?
I'm honest.
I am honest about what I write about.
I'll let you know if it's autobiographical,
or if it's about me, or if it's not.
And I find autobiographical stories
at this juncture of my life to be quite boring.
...say I'm one thing,
but actually you're another thing.
I think being true to who you are
is important.
I'm not saying you need to be
psychoanalytical about the whole mess.
- But don't be afraid.
- Yeah, I... But don't be afraid.
I had lunch with Jimmy Baldwin
the other day.
- How is he?
- He's a lovely man.
And he told me the plot of his new book.
And he said to me, "But I just want to make
sure it's not one of those problem novels."
And I said, "Jimmy...
"your novel's about a Negro homosexual
who's in love with a Jew.
"Wouldn't you call that a problem?"
And he looked at me and he laughed
because he knew I was right.
I'm saying, you know,
if you're gonna write something like that...
at least be honest why you're writing it.
Can't we just be honest?
Well, I don't think
you actually need to be honest.
But don't come asking
some white man from the South...
whether your book
about a black man fucking some Jew...
when they're both of the same sex...
is an issue!
Don't ask me that!
Oh, no, it's not an issue, Jimmy.
Everyone's gonna be quite pleased
with that topic.
So how about you, Truman?
Do you admit it?
Well, I'm not nearly that controversial.
I'm not! I'm not! I am not.
I'm not nearly that controversial.
Oh, come on.
Hi. It's Truman for William Shawn, please.
Have you read the article
about the killings in Kansas...
in the front section of The New York Times?
I think that's what I want to write about.
I want to go tonight.
- I figured you'd missed it.
- I'm sorry.
That's all right. I thought
I was heading to Kansas by myself.
God, I'm glad you agreed to come.
You're the only one I know
with the qualifications...
to be both a research assistant
and a personal bodyguard.
Thank you.
Now I'm nervous.
Yes?
Mr. Truman Capote
and Miss Nelle Harper Lee?
- That's us.
- Where would you like these, sir?
You can put that right there
between the doors.
What all did you bring?
Just a few things.
- Thank you greatly, sir.
- Thank you.
You're welcome.
It's an honor to have you with us, sir...
and I hope you won't mind me saying...
but I thought your last book
was even better than the first.
Thank you.
I mean, just when you think
they've gotten as good as they can get.
- Thank you very much.
- Ma'am.
You're pathetic.
- What?
- You paid him to say that.
You paid him to say that.
How did you know?
"Just when you think
they've gotten as good as they can get"?
I thought that was a good line.
- Do you think that was too much?
- Yeah, a bit.
Your keys.
- Sign here, please.
- Thank you.
Alvin Dewey...
Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
KBI.
KBI.
Hi. I'm looking for Alvin Dewey.
Hi.
Mr. Dewey.
Truman Capote, from The New Yorker.
- Bergdorf's.
- Sorry?
- The scarf.
- Oh.
- Nice.
- Thank you.
Mr. Dewey, I wonder when we could
arrange an interview, some time to talk.
About what?
Well, we're not looking
for any inside information.
You know, I don't care one way or another
if you catch whoever did this.
I'm writing an article on how
the Clutter killings are affecting the town.
You know, how you all are bearing up.
I care.
- Excuse me?
- I care.
I care a great deal
if we catch whoever did this.
Oh, I see.
- As do a lot of folks around here.
- Oh, of course.
Do you have press credentials?
- What's a New Yorker?
- Magazine.
Magazines don't give out...
You can come to the news conference
with the rest of them.
Sears, Roebuck.
The boy was 16?
He was 15.
Nancy was 16.
And it's her friend that found them?
- Laura Kinney.
- Can you spell that?
I assume you're okay with the Laura part.
K-I-N-N-E-Y.
But, please, leave her be.
There's talk of a bunch of Mexicans.
A whole bunch of Mexicans.
Hello, George.
It's good to see you again.
I do have an opinion
whether this was the work of one man...
or "a whole bunch," as you said...
but it doesn't matter a whole lot...
whether it was Mexicans
or Methodists or Eskimos.
We're gonna find whoever did this.
Now, four good people
from our community are dead.
So let's remember that.
The West Kansas Farm Committee...
is offering a $1,000 reward...
for information leading to an arrest.
Please print that.
And thank you all for coming.
He was foxy with that old man.
This make you miss Alabama?
Not even a little bit.
- You lie.
- I don't lie.
- Good morning.
- Hi.
Can any of you tell me
where I'd find Laura Kinney?
Is that her? With the boy?
Yeah, with Danny Burke.
Danny Burke?
Laura?
Thank you.
Truman.
I'm gonna find out where that girl lives.
Can I do that alone?
All right?
Okay.
I think I scared a friend of yours
this morning.
She came looking for you
when I was writing.
- You hate my friends.
- No, I wouldn't say "hate."
Just as long as they don't
knock on my door.
I saw the bodies today.
- Which?
- The Clutters.
I looked inside the coffins.
That's horrifying.
It comforts me.
Something so horrifying...
It's a relief.
Normal life falls away.
But then, I was never much for normal life.
No.
Yeah, people here won't talk to me.
They want someone like you, like Nelle.
Me, they hate.
I can't think of a single quality
I share with Nelle.
- Well...
- Maybe manliness.
- Good morning, Henry.
- Good morning, sir.
Let's go.
Bye.
Hi, Danny. I'm Harper Lee.
Nancy was your best friend?
Yeah, she was my best friend.
How has Danny been?
Pretty shattered.
Nothing terrible
has ever happened to him before.
Danny was the last one at the house
that night.
That's why Mr. Dewey
keeps interviewing him.
They don't think
that he had anything to do with it.
It's just to see
if he remembers anything unusual.
People in town do seem to wonder
if he was involved.
Yeah. That's been really hard for Danny.
Oh, it's the hardest
when someone has a notion about you...
and it's impossible
to convince them otherwise.
Ever since I was a child,
folks have thought they had me pegged...
because of the way I...
The way I am.
You know, the way I talk.
And they're always wrong.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
I wanna show you something.
Maybe this will give you a better picture
of what happened.
- What is this?
- It's your diary.
"Danny here tonight and we watched TV.
"So nice just having him sit with us.
"Left at 11:00.
"P.S. He's the only one I really love."
And that was that.
Did Laura say "shattered"?
"Pretty shattered. Nothing terrible
has ever happened to him before."
You know I have 94% recall
of all conversations?
I've tested myself.
Well...
how did that happen?
Apparently Detective Foxy's wife
has read fiction.
That's great.
We're in.
- We are in.
- In.
- You came.
- Hi.
- Thank you for having us.
- Thank you.
Get yourselves in here.
Alvin, get your pants on. They're here.
- Hey, little Deweys.
- Hi.
Hi.
Shake it with your wrist.
Use your whole arm.
More.
You think I'm kidding around,
but I'm serious.
Mama would've put in half the bottle.
She had to buy it by the crate.
Alvin's gonna hate this.
I have to stop.
Oh, I cannot believe
you're from New Orleans.
I miss it so much.
Well, I only lived there for a short while,
but my mama was born and bred.
You know something?
Alvin pretends he doesn't know who
you are, but the minute you came to town...
- he read your books.
- No!
He had one of his men pick up
Breakfast at Tiffany's in Kansas City...
'cause it's banned in the library here.
And he said, "I feel like you're spiting me."
I said,
"Do you think I took this job to spite you?"
I was writing the script as they were filming,
all that time in Italy...
and I'd work like mad all day long...
and then dash down to the bar
around midnight...
to hand in the next day's scenes.
And Humphrey had just about
moved into the hotel bar...
Humphrey Bogart.
...where he and John...
John Huston.
...had...
They drank every night.
And I mean drank, you know,
like famished water buffaloes.
Well...
I'd only just handed them the final scene
when the bellhop told me I had a phone call.
And it was my stepfather, Joe Capote...
calling to say that my mother had died.
I flew home to New York,
terribly distraught...
but when I got to the apartment...
I could see that Joe
was in even worse shape than I was.
He grabbed my hand and he said to me...
"Talk.
"Talk about anything." You know?
"I mean, any subject in the world.
"Don't worry whether it'll interest me or not.
"Just talk...
"so I won't break down."
He couldn't bear to be alone
with his thoughts.
It was too painful.
It's been a hard couple of weeks for Alvin.
He and Herb Clutter were good friends
from church.
Oh, Marie.
Oh, come on, Alvin. These are good people.
Why would they put a pillow
under the boy's head just to shoot him?
Why would they tuck Nancy in?
So many of my friends
would love to meet you.
- Oh, that'd be fine.
- You don't have to worry...
'cause I'm not going to write about this
till everything's over.
Well, I'm not worried.
I know what room you're in at the hotel,
and I know where you live in Brooklyn.
You're celebrating.
Well, remember Nelle's manuscript
she sent me in New York?
Yeah. Mockingbird. Killing a Mockingbird.
- You said it was good.
- And I was right.
She just heard
Lippincott wants to publish it.
Well, Jesus.
Jesus, well, that's terrific.
Tell her congratulations from me.
Congratulations.
- Thank you.
- Jealous.
- Will you be home by Christmas?
- I wanna come home.
I wanna come home. I do. I just...
thought if they catch whoever did this,
who knows what?
- I'll probably be here till next Christmas.
- I'm gonna let you go.
I...
No, don't go.
We'll go away next spring to write.
- Maybe Spain.
- Yeah.
- Okay, I'm gonna let you go.
- Jack...
Jack, I promise.
We'll go away this spring to write.
- Maybe Spain.
- Okay.
All right.
My wife worked there, too.
What did she do in the house?
Cleaning. Cooking a little bit.
Quiet, quiet. Quiet, quiet.
"Girdle up. No extra bulges.
"If you're dressed right,
when he gets home...
"the rest of the evening
should be smooth sailing.
"Bon voyage, gals."
I can't believe you got that whole page.
I only read it once.
- I've tested my...
- Tested myself.
- I have 94%...
- Percent recall.
- Cut that out.
- Cut that out.
Cut that...
Cut that out.
Isn't that something, Alvin?
Oh, it's impressive.
Thank you.
- I'm sorry. He's upset.
- What's he upset about?
They know who did it.
Two men.
You know, they passed through Kansas City
last week writing bad checks.
By the time Alvin's boys got up there,
they were gone.
Skipped out.
Yeah. They don't know where.
No idea.
One of them had a cellmate
who gave him up for the $1,000 reward.
Do they know the name of the cellmate?
No. No, I don't know. Alvin knows.
I guess this isn't the appropriate time
to go ask him.
He's beside himself.
Hello?
Alvin, get in here.
- Dad, it's the telephone.
- Not now, Alvin.
God damn it.
Get over here.
- Dad!
- Alvin, not now.
Sit.
Dad? Dad?
You need to call the Chief of Police
in Las Vegas.
- Alvin, what'd you say?
- He said you need to call them immediately.
- Truman Capote.
- Dorothy Sanderson.
I figured you'd be left alone this morning
by that hardworking husband of yours...
so I have breakfast, and I have news,
and I have literature.
My friend, Jack, mailed me
that book you wanted...
and I inscribed it myself.
"To the maiden of the Midwest,
the priestess of the plains...
"the queen of the kitchen,
my first novel. Truman."
- You're too much. Come on in.
- Oh, thank you.
Go into the living room. Have a seat.
Let me get that.
It's been ringing all morning.
Hello?
Truman, I meant in here.
That's the women's cell.
It's hardly ever used,
but they wanted them separate.
Let's sit in the living room.
They put you in the women's cell.
Do you have any aspirin?
My legs.
Truman?
Please.
I'm sorry.
In the matter of the State of Kansas
v. Richard Eugene Hickock...
and Perry Edward Smith...
this court has been informed
by counsel, Mr. Weeks...
that the defendants wish to waive their right
to a preliminary hearing.
His mind is somewhere else.
Mr. Hickock, is that your wish?
Yes, sir.
Why are they doing that?
Mr. Smith.
I ask that the waiver be effectuated.
"Effectuated"?
So noted.
Remove the prisoners.
Was it your choice to waive the hearing?
Do you still need some?
Give me your hand.
I could kill you if you got too close.
Now, would you like some water, or...
Mrs. Sanderson lent you my book.
He said we'd curry favor with the judge...
if we waived our rights.
Who did?
The lawyer.
Your picture's undignified.
People recall first impressions.
What's been your first impression?
Hello.
- Mr. Shawn.
- Truman.
I'm writing a book.
It's too much for a single article.
This town, the killers most of all.
You will be stunned by Perry Smith.
Why, what's happening?
Well, not much yet, but I know.
I can sense him.
He's desperately Ionely, frightened.
I have a question.
Are you ready?
- Would it matter?
- No.
How much more money can you send me?
And how quickly could you get Dick Avedon
out here to take some pictures?
Who are you smiling at right now?
I'm smiling at you.
You know, Dick's a very famous
fashion photographer.
World-famous.
Am I gonna be in a fashion magazine?
So there's no worry of having a bad picture.
Who were you closer to,
your mom or your dad?
- What's that?
- Who were you closer to...
- your mom or your dad?
- Well, both.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
- Have you talked to them?
- Yeah.
Who'd you talk to first?
Perry, honey, you look terrific, baby.
That was good.
Can you show us the tattoo
on your chest then?
Yeah.
Where did Perry get the art set?
Members of the jury,
have you reached a verdict?
Yes, sir.
Defendants, rise.
Perry Edward Smith
and Richard Eugene Hickock...
you stand accused of four counts
of the crime of murder in the first degree.
Have you reached a unanimous verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
What is your verdict?
Guilty on all four counts.
Have you unanimously reached a sentence?
We have, Your Honor.
What is the sentence?
Death.
I need to see him before we go.
Perry.
They're going to transfer you
up to Lansing today.
You'll have to make sure
to put me on the visitors list.
Otherwise I can't see you.
I'm going to help find you a proper lawyer.
You need a serious lawyer for an appeal.
Now they took Dick last night.
And I need you to get him
to do the same thing...
and just put me on the visitors list.
And I thought, "Where does the family eat?"
You know?
I mean, does he, like,
reach his hand through the bars...
and have dinner
with everyone around the table?
Nelle, kudos on... Kill the Bird, is it?
- That's close. Thank you.
- That's marvelous. Who's your publisher?
- Lippincott.
- Yes. It's a children's book, right?
- Yes.
- No, no. It's about children.
- Yes.
- Yes, I've heard a lot about it.
- Good.
- Congratulations.
- Thank you.
- I didn't even know she wrote.
He's sad and he's shy.
And he's terrified.
They shotgunned the entire family
in the face.
And I thought, at first,
"I'm gonna be scared of these men.
"I'm gonna run, run right home."
Actually, the brother in the family...
Kenyon is his name...
they had placed a pillow under his head...
and then shot him point-blank in the face.
Almost as if
they were putting him to sleep...
and then shot him.
This is the start of a great love affair.
Yeah. Truman in love with Truman.
The book I'm writing will return him
to the realm of humanity.
It's the book I was always meant to write.
Well, he hasn't actually
written a word of it yet...
but he says it's the nonfiction book
of the decade...
so...
So...
what have you been doing?
And I'll tell you...
I was in Marilyn's apartment just last week,
talking about movies, art.
Finally I had to break it to her that
of the four Matisses hanging on her wall...
two were upside down.
Can I have another, please?
To answer your question,
I'm following Breakfast at Tiffany's...
by blazing a different path.
By inventing an entirely new kind of writing.
The nonfiction novel.
- You have a subject?
- Yes.
On the night of November 14...
two men broke into a quiet farmhouse
in Kansas and murdered an entire family.
Now, why did they do that?
Two worlds exist in this country.
The quiet, conservative life,
and the life of those two men.
The underbelly. The criminally violent.
And those worlds converged
that bloody night.
Now, I spent the past three months...
interviewing everyone in Kansas
touched by that violence.
Now I spent hours talking to the killers...
and I'll spend more.
'Cause researching this work
has changed my life.
You know, it's altered my point of view
about almost everything.
Yeah.
And I think those who read it
will be similarly affected.
So you find them a new lawyer.
Well, they're facing execution in six weeks.
You know, they need someone
to argue whether or not that's right.
Okay.
And I'd also like to see them alive.
- Well...
- Yeah.
Yeah, I need to hear their stories.
Well, just be careful what you do
to get what you want.
I'm finding them a lawyer.
- Truman, you're finding yourself a lawyer.
- No, I'm finding them a lawyer.
There's a difference.
The Warden will see you now.
Well, we do all right by our boys.
Showers once a week. Feed them good.
We'll be feeding Perry Smith
in the infirmary soon if he don't eat.
Try and get the food in through his arm.
I'm sorry, what are you talking about?
Well, he hasn't eaten in a month.
It ain't his right to kill himself.
It's the right of the people.
The people of this state.
And that's who I work for, the people.
- No one told me.
- Yeah, he won't eat.
- When can I see him?
- Well, let me see.
How about you coming 3:00,
Thursday afternoon?
No.
That's no good.
I need to see them now.
Then whenever I want, for as long as I want.
Well, that's just not how we do things
around here, Mr. Capote.
Yeah, I understand what a burden...
unlimited visitation might be
on this institution...
and on the people who pay for it.
And I want to be clear...
that I don't expect the citizens
of Leavenworth County...
to have to shoulder that burden.
This is to be dispensed as you see fit.
You know, I didn't know
where to count your boy at first...
him being half-Indian.
But I did him a favor.
I counted him as a white man.
You're a kind and generous man.
Spread your feet.
This way.
- Hey, hey.
- Yeah, hello.
Hey, thanks a lot for your help
with the lawyer.
Oh, that's fine.
Wow. You must be really desperate
for a story to come all the way out here.
You want to go see Perry, go ahead.
Thank you.
You want my advice, though, Mr. Capote...
he's just trying to prove
the insanity defense.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's Truman. It's your friend.
It's okay.
This is before she had us.
Before she started drinking.
Who took care of you as a child?
Orphanage.
Me and Linda.
And that's your sister?
You know, we're not so different
as you might think.
Yeah, I was abandoned repeatedly
as a child.
My mama would drag me along
to some new town...
so she could take up
with another man she'd met.
Night after night,
she'd lock me in the hotel room alone.
Mama would turn the latch and tell the staff
not to let me out no matter what.
And I was terrified.
And I'd scream my head off...
until finally I'd collapse...
on the carpet next to the door
and I'd fall asleep.
Then after years of this...
she just left me...
with relatives in Alabama.
Who raised you up?
My aunts.
And that's where I met Nelle.
And she lived next door.
Your mother was Indian?
Cherokee.
So drinking was not a good thing for her.
No tolerance for it.
We're on suicide watch.
That's why they leave the lights on at night.
I hope we're past that now.
I do.
Be careful of Ricardo.
I think he wants you all to himself.
All right.
But he's naturally mendacious.
Not to be trusted.
If he had $100,
he'd steal a stick of chewing gum.
Perry, I want to take your notebooks
with me.
I want to read them.
If I leave here without understanding you...
the world will see you as a monster...
always.
I don't want that.
'Cause he trusts me.
I mean, that's why he gave it to me.
And he's given me absolutely everything.
And he wants so badly
to be taken seriously...
to be held in some esteem.
Do you?
Do I what?
Do you hold him in esteem, Truman?
Well...
he's a gold mine.
And he's told me his entire life.
His dead mother.
He had a brother and a sister
kill themselves.
Awful.
Did you tell him
your mama did the same thing?
See, I can't tell him everything.
We've been talking our heads off
for the past month.
And sometimes...
when I think how good my book can be,
I can hardly breathe.
Anyway, this is what
I wanted to read to you.
"If called upon to make a speech"...
"If called upon to make a speech"?
I mean, this is exactly
what I'm talking about.
A speech, just in case
he's ever recognized for an achievement.
"I can't remember what I was going to say
for the life of me.
"I don't think ever before have so many
people been so directly responsible...
"for my being so very, very glad.
"It's a wonderful moment and a rare one.
"Thank you!"
There's an exclamation point
at the end of that "thank you"...
in case you didn't catch it.
Where'd you go?
I guess it stopped being funny.
I never said it was.
Wait, listen to this.
I was 14.
One day I said to her, "Mom's dead."
I could see it.
A week later we got the news.
She finally drunk herself...
Found her shivering...
She hit me so many times
with that flashlight...
she broke it.
That night,
I dreamed about that big yellow bird.
Clawed that nun's eyes, bright like the sun.
Lifted me to the sky.
Sometimes you see a thing how it really is.
Well, you're nothing if not hardworking.
Hey, you look good. Healthy again.
You know,
I've decided on a title for my book.
I think you'll like it.
It's very masculine.
In Cold Blood.
Isn't that good?
And that refers to the crime or the fact
that you're still talking to the criminals?
The former, among other things.
I see.
I wanted to ask...
if you'd let me look
at your investigation notes.
That lawyer you helped find
for your friends...
got them a hearing
at the Kansas Supreme Court...
I heard this morning.
...on the issue of inadequate counsel.
Alvin...
I mean,
do you not want me to look at your notes?
You are permitted to say no.
I'll tell you what.
If those boys get off...
I'm coming to Brooklyn to hunt you down.
I have to be in court at 9:00...
but you call Roy Church
and he'll show you what you want to see.
Thank you.
It's as much for me as for anyone.
I couldn't bear the thought
of losing you so soon.
We're gonna be able to use your book
for our case.
You'll write
we never got to raise an insanity plea.
You wrote how terrible the lawyers was.
I haven't written a word yet.
What have you been doing?
Research. Talking to you.
All right.
- I had hoped...
- What are you calling it?
The book?
I have no idea.
Perry...
if I'm going to write about you...
if I'm going to determine
how to write about you...
we need to talk about...
you know, why you're here.
You know, the murders...
and that night...
at the Clutter house.
Do you worry what I'll think?
Is that it?
Dick says you know Elizabeth Taylor.
I know a lot of people.
Perry, I have invitations
to be in Morocco, Greece...
and I prefer to be here...
with you.
Jack, be patient with me.
I'm just missing this one piece.
Well, how long is that gonna take?
Why don't you just try leaving him alone
for a while?
Come to Spain.
You can always visit him later.
I don't know.
Well, I'm off. I'm just...
I've got my own writing to do.
Well, do it in Brooklyn. Wait for me.
There's too many people around. I've...
I'll leave the address on the kitchen table.
Well, think about what I said,
and join me when you can.
I will.
- I will.
- Okay?
Bye.
Hi.
Truman.
We never intended on killing that family.
Capote, will you get that straight
in your book, please?
No premeditation.
What are you doing?
I have to fly back East.
When?
An hour. I miss you already.
Write me every five minutes.
Hey, you know,
we never did intend on killing that family.
Capote?
Capote?
What?
Truman...
I've not been able to tear myself
away from your book.
It's that good.
It's not good, it's astonishing.
- This first half is astonishing.
- Oh, thank you.
When will you be done, do you think?
Yes, I'm already well into the third part.
But...
I can't finish that till I convince Perry
to describe the night of the killings to me.
I was planning to visit this fall, see?
Then I think you need to talk to him now.
And we all need to see how this ends
for the final part.
I can't finish the book
till I know what happens.
If Perry and Dick are executed,
it's one thing.
And if not, well...
Truman, you got your ending.
I really don't know.
The Kansas Court denied their appeal.
It came over the wire on Friday.
I mean, you need to talk to Perry now.
He'll be dead by September.
I mean, I'm sorry.
I know how much
you've come to care about him.
Right. Yes, right.
So I want to set up a reading for you
in the fall, in New York...
and, well, we'll build some interest,
and we'll publish in the fall.
Thank God. There's nothing in the house.
Why aren't you working?
Well, I knew you couldn't be counted on
to stock the kitchen.
What are we going to feed
our famous guest?
Oh, Jesus, I completely forgot.
Plus, I finished my novel yesterday.
What?
When was the last time you wrote to him?
I don't know.
What's this?
It's a letter for Truman
I was asked to deliver.
It's from Perry.
Let's have it.
"Dear friend Truman, where are you?
"Read this item in a medical dictionary.
"'Death by hanging is caused by asphyxia...
"'by fracture of the cervical vertebrae...
"'by laceration of the trachea.'
"Not too comforting, as we lost our appeal.
"Missing you.
"Alone and desirous of your presence.
"Your amigo, Perry."
Mr. Shawn told me
about the court decision yesterday.
I was wondering
why you were in such a good mood.
That's a terrible thing to say.
I write him all the time. I've just...
I've been so focused on the book lately.
So Jack thinks I'm using Perry...
but he also thinks I fell in love with him
when I was in Kansas.
Now, how both of those things can be true
is beyond me.
Thank you.
Well, did you?
Did you fall in love with him?
I don't know how to answer that.
Truman.
It's as if Perry and I grew up
in the same house...
and one day he stood up
and went out the back door...
while I went out the front.
- Are you kidding me?
- No.
Listen, you be nice to Jack.
Sometimes I think
he's what I like about you best.
I'll see you at the reading in New York.
- 16th.
- 16th.
Adis.
What was he in jail for?
Well, they said
it was for not paying his taxes...
but really, for being an outsider.
Refusing to go along.
Lowell, you're being moved.
- Why?
- You're going to final holding.
No.
Come on, Lowell. Open the door.
Stand up.
- Put your arms behind your back.
- Okay, last chance.
Get up.
Turn around.
Put your arms behind your back.
Now Dick and me, we're next in line.
I'm so sorry I've been away.
It was a long time.
I know.
How's the book coming along?
Very slowly.
Will you show it to me?
I've hardly written anything.
Good evening, New Yorkers...
the first offering of any kind...
of Truman Capote's new work,
In Cold Blood.
Hello. My name is Truman Capote.
For this evening's program,
I'm going to read some passages...
from the first three parts of my new book.
"The village of Holcomb stands on
the high wheat plains of western Kansas...
"a Ionesome area
that other Kansans call 'out there. '
"Until one morning in mid-November, 1959...
"few Americans, in fact, few Kansans,
had ever heard of Holcomb.
"Like the waters of the Arkansas River...
"like the motorists on the highway...
"exceptional happenings
never stopped there.
"Perry Smith's voice
was both gentle and prim.
"A voice that, though soft...
"manufactured each sound exactly...
"ejected it like a smoke ring
issuing from a parson's mouth.
"The four coffins, which quite filled
the small, flower-crowded parlor...
"were to be sealed at the funeral services...
"very understandably...
"for the effect was disquieting.
"Nancy wore her dress of cherry-red velvet...
"her brother a bright plaid shirt.
"The parents were more sedately attired...
"Mr. Clutter in navy-blue flannel,
his wife in navy-blue crepe.
"And it was this especially
that lent the scene an awful aura...
"the head of each
was completely encased in cotton.
"A swollen cocoon twice the size
of an ordinary blown-up balloon.
"And the cotton...
"because it had been sprayed
with a glossy substance...
"twinkled like Christmas tree snow.
"One Tuesday at dawn,
a carload of strangers...
"ignorant of the local disaster...
"were startled by what they saw
as they crossed the prairies...
"and passed through Holcomb.
"Windows ablaze.
"Almost every window
in almost every house...
"and in the brightly-lit rooms,
fully-clothed people...
"even entire families...
"who had sat the whole night wide awake,
watchful, listening.
"Of what were they frightened?
"It might happen again."
Thank you.
And I slipped and I ripped a hole...
from the bottom of my scrotum...
all the way up
to the top of the crack of my ass.
And I sat there.
And I didn't know it. All I felt was a...
I didn't know it. All I felt
was a cool breeze, you know, between my...
Sorry. If I may...
Yes.
Your portrait of those men was terrifying.
Terrifying.
Thank you.
Stop that man! Come back here!
Dad!
Have any of you met my father?
He hasn't spanked me in years.
George didn't come backstage.
He had... He had a...
Something that his wife
had to rush him off to.
- But he made a point of...
- Well, I'm still waiting for a call.
It was beautiful.
And everybody came. Everybody came.
- Tennessee loved it.
- Of course he loved it.
Should we do more?
No, we just sit and wait
while people talk about it...
and we let them do the work.
I mean,
this book is going to change everything.
It's gonna change
how people see your writing.
I think it's going to change
how people write.
- Are you gonna be finished by October?
- I think so.
You know,
they're scheduled for next month.
To hang.
Yeah.
We're gonna commit as many issues
as it takes to publish.
Whatever it takes.
Well, I'm going to Kansas tomorrow...
- and I'll get Perry to talk.
- What's he got to lose?
Sorry, but...
Hey, this may sound strange to you...
but I'm going to miss him.
You'll be able to finish now.
Need to check your papers, sir.
This is what we've been waiting for.
A stay of execution
to make a federal appeal.
All thanks to you.
Thank you!
They're not gonna corner me now.
Not unless the U.S. Government says so.
Kansas has had it in for me for 10 years.
They can't corner me now.
Hey, Perry, sit down...
for a minute.
I need you to talk to me.
We've got all the time in the world to talk.
I've been thinking about Ricardo.
You really need to stop sending him
those trashy books.
I won't even mention the pornography.
Now, I realize that Dick probably can't grasp
the literature that you gave me.
And the books you send him only...
They only exacerbate the problem.
They only heighten or intensify it.
Maybe we can get him started on a program.
Perry, I know what "exacerbate" means.
Okay, well, just thinking...
There's not a word or a sentence
or a concept that you can illuminate for me.
There is one singular reason
I keep coming here.
- Truman.
- November 14, 1959.
Three years ago. Three years.
And that's all I want to hear from you.
Now I asked you not to. Ever.
This is absurd.
Do you know what absurd means?
I'm ready. I have a plane to catch.
I found your sister in Tacoma.
Maybe she'll talk to me
about something useful.
Please don't go out there.
Hey, this is my work, Perry. I'm working.
And when you want to tell me
what I need to hear, you let me know.
June's dead. Frank shot himself.
Now Perry did what he did.
I used to love him. He was my little doll.
He scares me now.
- When was the last time you saw him?
- Ten years ago.
Ten years.
Could I borrow one of these pictures?
Take the whole thing.
I don't want them anymore.
Don't be taken in by my brother.
He's got this sensitive side he'll show.
You believe he's gentle and so easily hurt...
but he'd just as soon kill you
as shake your hand. I believe that.
Hello, handsome.
What's the name of your book?
What's the name of your book?
I don't know what you're talking about.
"Truman Capote read last night
before a packed audience...
"from his nonfiction book In Cold Blood."
"The true-crime novel
tells of killers Richard Hickock...
"and Perry Smith...
"who brutally murdered a Kansas family
three years ago."
- Wait, who sent that to you?
- That's not your goddamn business.
It is my business, because it's not true.
The organizers of the reading needed a title.
They picked one,
a sensational one, I admit...
to attract a crowd.
- They picked it?
- Yes.
- It's not your title.
- Perry, I haven't chosen one yet.
How could I choose a title when we still
haven't talked about that night?
How could I? I couldn't possibly.
You pretended to be my friend.
I'm sorry.
I should have told you.
And I couldn't pretend to be your friend...
'cause the truth is,
I can't help wanting to be.
You don't have to tell me anything...
if you don't want to.
I have something...
from your sister.
She misses you.
Look at my belly.
There must be something wrong with us,
to do what we did.
We heard there was $10,000 in that house.
Once we tied up everybody
and searched all over...
I knew the guy that told us about it
was wrong.
There was no money.
Dick wouldn't believe it...
so he went tearing through the house,
banging on the walls...
Iooking for a safe.
When he was done...
he said he was gonna go up
to Nancy's room and have his way with her.
I wouldn't allow it.
And I told him that.
So I sat with her.
Dick came up and got me.
We turned off the lights
and went down to the basement...
where Mr. Clutter and the boy was.
He kept saying, "No witnesses"...
but I figured if I waited him out, he'd...
He'd give up
and we'd leave them tied up there.
And we'd drive all night.
They'd never find us.
We tied Mr. Clutter's wrists
to a pipe over his head.
And he looked hurt, so I cut him down.
I put a box out there
so he'd be more comfortable.
He asked how his wife and daughter was
and I said they were fine...
and they were getting ready for sleep,
and it wouldn't be long...
till morning when they'd find him.
He was just looking at me.
Looking into my eyes.
Like he expected me to kill him.
Like he expected me to be
the kind of person who would kill him.
I was thinking,
"This nice man is scared of me."
I was so ashamed.
I mean, I thought he was a very nice...
gentle man.
And I thought so right up till I slit his
throat.
I didn't know what I did
till I heard the sound.
Added up...
how much money
did you get from the Clutters that night?
Between $40 and $50.
I mean, the truth is,
I'm desperate to be done with it.
I've spent four years of my life on this book.
They got a stay of execution yesterday.
Another, yes.
Supreme Court.
It's harrowing.
Me, all I want to do is to write the ending
and there's no end in sight.
No, thank you.
"Dear friend Truman,
haven't heard from you in such a long while.
"Please help find new lawyer.
"If not, Dick will have to write
the Supreme Court brief himself.
"Our last appeal.
What a pair of wretched creatures.
"Please help. Your amigo?"
"Perry."
Just put it with the others.
You know, at least for Nelle...
you should try and pretend
you're having a good time tonight.
I thought I'd find you here.
Oh, Nelle.
Thank you.
I'll have another, please.
- How are you?
- Terrible.
I'm sorry to hear that.
I mean, it's torture the way...
What they're doing to me.
And now it's the Supreme Court.
And can you believe it?
If they win this appeal...
I will...
have a complete nervous breakdown.
I may never recover...
and I'll just pray that it turns my way.
- It must be difficult.
- It's torture.
They're torturing me.
I see.
And how'd you like the movie, Truman?
I frankly don't see what all the fuss is about.
Hello.
- Mr. Truman Capote?
- Yeah.
I have a call from Mr. Perry Smith
in the Kansas Correctional System.
Will you accept charges?
Yes.
Mr. Smith, you're on the line.
Hello.
Hello?
Hello, Perry.
They let me make a couple of phone calls
before I go down to holding.
You heard
the Supreme Court rejected the appeal?
No, I didn't. I hadn't heard that.
Yeah.
I'm sorry.
Yeah. They let me make two phone calls.
We got a date set for the warehouse,
Dick and me.
Two weeks and finito.
April 14.
Will you visit me?
Truman?
It's him again.
It is utterly inappropriate for me
to talk to him.
Yes?
I'm sorry, he won't be able to make it.
- Hello?
- Mr. Shawn, it's Nelle.
I just got this telegram. Has he seen it?
He won't read it.
- Would you put him on, please?
- Nelle, he won't talk.
Mr. Shawn, if you have to hold him down
and put the phone on his ear...
I need to speak to him.
All right.
It's Nelle.
Truman.
"Miss Nelle Harper Lee and Truman Capote.
"Sorry that Truman was unable to make it
here to the prison...
"for a brief word prior to necktie party.
"Whatever his reason for not showing up...
"I want him to know
that I cannot condemn him for it.
"Not much time left...
"but want you both to know
that I've been sincerely grateful...
"for your friendship through the years
and everything else.
"I'm not very good at these things.
"I have become extremely affectionate
toward you both. "
"But, harness time."
"Adios, amigos. Your friend, Perry."
Well, I didn't expect to see you again.
You can visit for a few minutes.
- Yeah.
- No.
Five minutes.
Well, well.
He returns.
I don't know what you must think of me.
Well, you haven't been foremost
on my mind lately...
as you can probably imagine.
You got the letter?
Yes, I did.
It's true.
I understand why you didn't want to come.
I wouldn't be here either if I didn't have to.
You got that right.
You know Ricardo donated his eyes
to science?
Next week, some blind man will be seeing
what Dick used to see.
Yeah, you could be walking in Denver
or somewhere, Truman...
and suddenly these eyes
will be staring at you.
That would be something, wouldn't it?
It would be. It would be.
You'll be watching?
I don't know, I'll be...
Do you want me to?
I'd like to have a friend there.
Okay. Then I will.
It's all right.
I did everything I could.
It's okay.
I truly did.
I know.
It's time.
Mr. Capote.
Goodbye.
You're not rid of us yet.
- We'll see you in a few minutes.
- I wish I had...
Mr. Capote.
- Mr. Capote.
- Goodbye.
Nice to see you.
Perry Edward Smith.
For the crime of murder in the first degree,
by order of the Court of Finney County...
and the Supreme Court
of the sovereign state of Kansas...
you are sentenced to hang until you die.
"I will fear no evil: For thou art with me.
"Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me."
You can say something if you want.
Is there anybody from the family here?
No, Perry.
Well, tell them...
I can't remember what I was gonna say
for the life of me.
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
It was a terrible experience...
and I will never get over it.
They're dead, Truman. You're alive.
And there wasn't anything
I could have done to save them.
Maybe not...
but, the fact is, you didn't want to.
Nancy?
Exactly.
But at least be honest about the facts.
- That's what I'm saying.
- Who's honest?
I'm honest.
I am honest about what I write about.
I'll let you know if it's autobiographical,
or if it's about me, or if it's not.
And I find autobiographical stories
at this juncture of my life to be quite boring.
...say I'm one thing,
but actually you're another thing.
I think being true to who you are
is important.
I'm not saying you need to be
psychoanalytical about the whole mess.
- But don't be afraid.
- Yeah, I... But don't be afraid.
I had lunch with Jimmy Baldwin
the other day.
- How is he?
- He's a lovely man.
And he told me the plot of his new book.
And he said to me, "But I just want to make
sure it's not one of those problem novels."
And I said, "Jimmy...
"your novel's about a Negro homosexual
who's in love with a Jew.
"Wouldn't you call that a problem?"
And he looked at me and he laughed
because he knew I was right.
I'm saying, you know,
if you're gonna write something like that...
at least be honest why you're writing it.
Can't we just be honest?
Well, I don't think
you actually need to be honest.
But don't come asking
some white man from the South...
whether your book
about a black man fucking some Jew...
when they're both of the same sex...
is an issue!
Don't ask me that!
Oh, no, it's not an issue, Jimmy.
Everyone's gonna be quite pleased
with that topic.
So how about you, Truman?
Do you admit it?
Well, I'm not nearly that controversial.
I'm not! I'm not! I am not.
I'm not nearly that controversial.
Oh, come on.
Hi. It's Truman for William Shawn, please.
Have you read the article
about the killings in Kansas...
in the front section of The New York Times?
I think that's what I want to write about.
I want to go tonight.
- I figured you'd missed it.
- I'm sorry.
That's all right. I thought
I was heading to Kansas by myself.
God, I'm glad you agreed to come.
You're the only one I know
with the qualifications...
to be both a research assistant
and a personal bodyguard.
Thank you.
Now I'm nervous.
Yes?
Mr. Truman Capote
and Miss Nelle Harper Lee?
- That's us.
- Where would you like these, sir?
You can put that right there
between the doors.
What all did you bring?
Just a few things.
- Thank you greatly, sir.
- Thank you.
You're welcome.
It's an honor to have you with us, sir...
and I hope you won't mind me saying...
but I thought your last book
was even better than the first.
Thank you.
I mean, just when you think
they've gotten as good as they can get.
- Thank you very much.
- Ma'am.
You're pathetic.
- What?
- You paid him to say that.
You paid him to say that.
How did you know?
"Just when you think
they've gotten as good as they can get"?
I thought that was a good line.
- Do you think that was too much?
- Yeah, a bit.
Your keys.
- Sign here, please.
- Thank you.
Alvin Dewey...
Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
KBI.
KBI.
Hi. I'm looking for Alvin Dewey.
Hi.
Mr. Dewey.
Truman Capote, from The New Yorker.
- Bergdorf's.
- Sorry?
- The scarf.
- Oh.
- Nice.
- Thank you.
Mr. Dewey, I wonder when we could
arrange an interview, some time to talk.
About what?
Well, we're not looking
for any inside information.
You know, I don't care one way or another
if you catch whoever did this.
I'm writing an article on how
the Clutter killings are affecting the town.
You know, how you all are bearing up.
I care.
- Excuse me?
- I care.
I care a great deal
if we catch whoever did this.
Oh, I see.
- As do a lot of folks around here.
- Oh, of course.
Do you have press credentials?
- What's a New Yorker?
- Magazine.
Magazines don't give out...
You can come to the news conference
with the rest of them.
Sears, Roebuck.
The boy was 16?
He was 15.
Nancy was 16.
And it's her friend that found them?
- Laura Kinney.
- Can you spell that?
I assume you're okay with the Laura part.
K-I-N-N-E-Y.
But, please, leave her be.
There's talk of a bunch of Mexicans.
A whole bunch of Mexicans.
Hello, George.
It's good to see you again.
I do have an opinion
whether this was the work of one man...
or "a whole bunch," as you said...
but it doesn't matter a whole lot...
whether it was Mexicans
or Methodists or Eskimos.
We're gonna find whoever did this.
Now, four good people
from our community are dead.
So let's remember that.
The West Kansas Farm Committee...
is offering a $1,000 reward...
for information leading to an arrest.
Please print that.
And thank you all for coming.
He was foxy with that old man.
This make you miss Alabama?
Not even a little bit.
- You lie.
- I don't lie.
- Good morning.
- Hi.
Can any of you tell me
where I'd find Laura Kinney?
Is that her? With the boy?
Yeah, with Danny Burke.
Danny Burke?
Laura?
Thank you.
Truman.
I'm gonna find out where that girl lives.
Can I do that alone?
All right?
Okay.
I think I scared a friend of yours
this morning.
She came looking for you
when I was writing.
- You hate my friends.
- No, I wouldn't say "hate."
Just as long as they don't
knock on my door.
I saw the bodies today.
- Which?
- The Clutters.
I looked inside the coffins.
That's horrifying.
It comforts me.
Something so horrifying...
It's a relief.
Normal life falls away.
But then, I was never much for normal life.
No.
Yeah, people here won't talk to me.
They want someone like you, like Nelle.
Me, they hate.
I can't think of a single quality
I share with Nelle.
- Well...
- Maybe manliness.
- Good morning, Henry.
- Good morning, sir.
Let's go.
Bye.
Hi, Danny. I'm Harper Lee.
Nancy was your best friend?
Yeah, she was my best friend.
How has Danny been?
Pretty shattered.
Nothing terrible
has ever happened to him before.
Danny was the last one at the house
that night.
That's why Mr. Dewey
keeps interviewing him.
They don't think
that he had anything to do with it.
It's just to see
if he remembers anything unusual.
People in town do seem to wonder
if he was involved.
Yeah. That's been really hard for Danny.
Oh, it's the hardest
when someone has a notion about you...
and it's impossible
to convince them otherwise.
Ever since I was a child,
folks have thought they had me pegged...
because of the way I...
The way I am.
You know, the way I talk.
And they're always wrong.
You know what I mean?
Yeah.
I wanna show you something.
Maybe this will give you a better picture
of what happened.
- What is this?
- It's your diary.
"Danny here tonight and we watched TV.
"So nice just having him sit with us.
"Left at 11:00.
"P.S. He's the only one I really love."
And that was that.
Did Laura say "shattered"?
"Pretty shattered. Nothing terrible
has ever happened to him before."
You know I have 94% recall
of all conversations?
I've tested myself.
Well...
how did that happen?
Apparently Detective Foxy's wife
has read fiction.
That's great.
We're in.
- We are in.
- In.
- You came.
- Hi.
- Thank you for having us.
- Thank you.
Get yourselves in here.
Alvin, get your pants on. They're here.
- Hey, little Deweys.
- Hi.
Hi.
Shake it with your wrist.
Use your whole arm.
More.
You think I'm kidding around,
but I'm serious.
Mama would've put in half the bottle.
She had to buy it by the crate.
Alvin's gonna hate this.
I have to stop.
Oh, I cannot believe
you're from New Orleans.
I miss it so much.
Well, I only lived there for a short while,
but my mama was born and bred.
You know something?
Alvin pretends he doesn't know who
you are, but the minute you came to town...
- he read your books.
- No!
He had one of his men pick up
Breakfast at Tiffany's in Kansas City...
'cause it's banned in the library here.
And he said, "I feel like you're spiting me."
I said,
"Do you think I took this job to spite you?"
I was writing the script as they were filming,
all that time in Italy...
and I'd work like mad all day long...
and then dash down to the bar
around midnight...
to hand in the next day's scenes.
And Humphrey had just about
moved into the hotel bar...
Humphrey Bogart.
...where he and John...
John Huston.
...had...
They drank every night.
And I mean drank, you know,
like famished water buffaloes.
Well...
I'd only just handed them the final scene
when the bellhop told me I had a phone call.
And it was my stepfather, Joe Capote...
calling to say that my mother had died.
I flew home to New York,
terribly distraught...
but when I got to the apartment...
I could see that Joe
was in even worse shape than I was.
He grabbed my hand and he said to me...
"Talk.
"Talk about anything." You know?
"I mean, any subject in the world.
"Don't worry whether it'll interest me or not.
"Just talk...
"so I won't break down."
He couldn't bear to be alone
with his thoughts.
It was too painful.
It's been a hard couple of weeks for Alvin.
He and Herb Clutter were good friends
from church.
Oh, Marie.
Oh, come on, Alvin. These are good people.
Why would they put a pillow
under the boy's head just to shoot him?
Why would they tuck Nancy in?
So many of my friends
would love to meet you.
- Oh, that'd be fine.
- You don't have to worry...
'cause I'm not going to write about this
till everything's over.
Well, I'm not worried.
I know what room you're in at the hotel,
and I know where you live in Brooklyn.
You're celebrating.
Well, remember Nelle's manuscript
she sent me in New York?
Yeah. Mockingbird. Killing a Mockingbird.
- You said it was good.
- And I was right.
She just heard
Lippincott wants to publish it.
Well, Jesus.
Jesus, well, that's terrific.
Tell her congratulations from me.
Congratulations.
- Thank you.
- Jealous.
- Will you be home by Christmas?
- I wanna come home.
I wanna come home. I do. I just...
thought if they catch whoever did this,
who knows what?
- I'll probably be here till next Christmas.
- I'm gonna let you go.
I...
No, don't go.
We'll go away next spring to write.
- Maybe Spain.
- Yeah.
- Okay, I'm gonna let you go.
- Jack...
Jack, I promise.
We'll go away this spring to write.
- Maybe Spain.
- Okay.
All right.
My wife worked there, too.
What did she do in the house?
Cleaning. Cooking a little bit.
Quiet, quiet. Quiet, quiet.
"Girdle up. No extra bulges.
"If you're dressed right,
when he gets home...
"the rest of the evening
should be smooth sailing.
"Bon voyage, gals."
I can't believe you got that whole page.
I only read it once.
- I've tested my...
- Tested myself.
- I have 94%...
- Percent recall.
- Cut that out.
- Cut that out.
Cut that...
Cut that out.
Isn't that something, Alvin?
Oh, it's impressive.
Thank you.
- I'm sorry. He's upset.
- What's he upset about?
They know who did it.
Two men.
You know, they passed through Kansas City
last week writing bad checks.
By the time Alvin's boys got up there,
they were gone.
Skipped out.
Yeah. They don't know where.
No idea.
One of them had a cellmate
who gave him up for the $1,000 reward.
Do they know the name of the cellmate?
No. No, I don't know. Alvin knows.
I guess this isn't the appropriate time
to go ask him.
He's beside himself.
Hello?
Alvin, get in here.
- Dad, it's the telephone.
- Not now, Alvin.
God damn it.
Get over here.
- Dad!
- Alvin, not now.
Sit.
Dad? Dad?
You need to call the Chief of Police
in Las Vegas.
- Alvin, what'd you say?
- He said you need to call them immediately.
- Truman Capote.
- Dorothy Sanderson.
I figured you'd be left alone this morning
by that hardworking husband of yours...
so I have breakfast, and I have news,
and I have literature.
My friend, Jack, mailed me
that book you wanted...
and I inscribed it myself.
"To the maiden of the Midwest,
the priestess of the plains...
"the queen of the kitchen,
my first novel. Truman."
- You're too much. Come on in.
- Oh, thank you.
Go into the living room. Have a seat.
Let me get that.
It's been ringing all morning.
Hello?
Truman, I meant in here.
That's the women's cell.
It's hardly ever used,
but they wanted them separate.
Let's sit in the living room.
They put you in the women's cell.
Do you have any aspirin?
My legs.
Truman?
Please.
I'm sorry.
In the matter of the State of Kansas
v. Richard Eugene Hickock...
and Perry Edward Smith...
this court has been informed
by counsel, Mr. Weeks...
that the defendants wish to waive their right
to a preliminary hearing.
His mind is somewhere else.
Mr. Hickock, is that your wish?
Yes, sir.
Why are they doing that?
Mr. Smith.
I ask that the waiver be effectuated.
"Effectuated"?
So noted.
Remove the prisoners.
Was it your choice to waive the hearing?
Do you still need some?
Give me your hand.
I could kill you if you got too close.
Now, would you like some water, or...
Mrs. Sanderson lent you my book.
He said we'd curry favor with the judge...
if we waived our rights.
Who did?
The lawyer.
Your picture's undignified.
People recall first impressions.
What's been your first impression?
Hello.
- Mr. Shawn.
- Truman.
I'm writing a book.
It's too much for a single article.
This town, the killers most of all.
You will be stunned by Perry Smith.
Why, what's happening?
Well, not much yet, but I know.
I can sense him.
He's desperately Ionely, frightened.
I have a question.
Are you ready?
- Would it matter?
- No.
How much more money can you send me?
And how quickly could you get Dick Avedon
out here to take some pictures?
Who are you smiling at right now?
I'm smiling at you.
You know, Dick's a very famous
fashion photographer.
World-famous.
Am I gonna be in a fashion magazine?
So there's no worry of having a bad picture.
Who were you closer to,
your mom or your dad?
- What's that?
- Who were you closer to...
- your mom or your dad?
- Well, both.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
- Have you talked to them?
- Yeah.
Who'd you talk to first?
Perry, honey, you look terrific, baby.
That was good.
Can you show us the tattoo
on your chest then?
Yeah.
Where did Perry get the art set?
Members of the jury,
have you reached a verdict?
Yes, sir.
Defendants, rise.
Perry Edward Smith
and Richard Eugene Hickock...
you stand accused of four counts
of the crime of murder in the first degree.
Have you reached a unanimous verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
What is your verdict?
Guilty on all four counts.
Have you unanimously reached a sentence?
We have, Your Honor.
What is the sentence?
Death.
I need to see him before we go.
Perry.
They're going to transfer you
up to Lansing today.
You'll have to make sure
to put me on the visitors list.
Otherwise I can't see you.
I'm going to help find you a proper lawyer.
You need a serious lawyer for an appeal.
Now they took Dick last night.
And I need you to get him
to do the same thing...
and just put me on the visitors list.
And I thought, "Where does the family eat?"
You know?
I mean, does he, like,
reach his hand through the bars...
and have dinner
with everyone around the table?
Nelle, kudos on... Kill the Bird, is it?
- That's close. Thank you.
- That's marvelous. Who's your publisher?
- Lippincott.
- Yes. It's a children's book, right?
- Yes.
- No, no. It's about children.
- Yes.
- Yes, I've heard a lot about it.
- Good.
- Congratulations.
- Thank you.
- I didn't even know she wrote.
He's sad and he's shy.
And he's terrified.
They shotgunned the entire family
in the face.
And I thought, at first,
"I'm gonna be scared of these men.
"I'm gonna run, run right home."
Actually, the brother in the family...
Kenyon is his name...
they had placed a pillow under his head...
and then shot him point-blank in the face.
Almost as if
they were putting him to sleep...
and then shot him.
This is the start of a great love affair.
Yeah. Truman in love with Truman.
The book I'm writing will return him
to the realm of humanity.
It's the book I was always meant to write.
Well, he hasn't actually
written a word of it yet...
but he says it's the nonfiction book
of the decade...
so...
So...
what have you been doing?
And I'll tell you...
I was in Marilyn's apartment just last week,
talking about movies, art.
Finally I had to break it to her that
of the four Matisses hanging on her wall...
two were upside down.
Can I have another, please?
To answer your question,
I'm following Breakfast at Tiffany's...
by blazing a different path.
By inventing an entirely new kind of writing.
The nonfiction novel.
- You have a subject?
- Yes.
On the night of November 14...
two men broke into a quiet farmhouse
in Kansas and murdered an entire family.
Now, why did they do that?
Two worlds exist in this country.
The quiet, conservative life,
and the life of those two men.
The underbelly. The criminally violent.
And those worlds converged
that bloody night.
Now, I spent the past three months...
interviewing everyone in Kansas
touched by that violence.
Now I spent hours talking to the killers...
and I'll spend more.
'Cause researching this work
has changed my life.
You know, it's altered my point of view
about almost everything.
Yeah.
And I think those who read it
will be similarly affected.
So you find them a new lawyer.
Well, they're facing execution in six weeks.
You know, they need someone
to argue whether or not that's right.
Okay.
And I'd also like to see them alive.
- Well...
- Yeah.
Yeah, I need to hear their stories.
Well, just be careful what you do
to get what you want.
I'm finding them a lawyer.
- Truman, you're finding yourself a lawyer.
- No, I'm finding them a lawyer.
There's a difference.
The Warden will see you now.
Well, we do all right by our boys.
Showers once a week. Feed them good.
We'll be feeding Perry Smith
in the infirmary soon if he don't eat.
Try and get the food in through his arm.
I'm sorry, what are you talking about?
Well, he hasn't eaten in a month.
It ain't his right to kill himself.
It's the right of the people.
The people of this state.
And that's who I work for, the people.
- No one told me.
- Yeah, he won't eat.
- When can I see him?
- Well, let me see.
How about you coming 3:00,
Thursday afternoon?
No.
That's no good.
I need to see them now.
Then whenever I want, for as long as I want.
Well, that's just not how we do things
around here, Mr. Capote.
Yeah, I understand what a burden...
unlimited visitation might be
on this institution...
and on the people who pay for it.
And I want to be clear...
that I don't expect the citizens
of Leavenworth County...
to have to shoulder that burden.
This is to be dispensed as you see fit.
You know, I didn't know
where to count your boy at first...
him being half-Indian.
But I did him a favor.
I counted him as a white man.
You're a kind and generous man.
Spread your feet.
This way.
- Hey, hey.
- Yeah, hello.
Hey, thanks a lot for your help
with the lawyer.
Oh, that's fine.
Wow. You must be really desperate
for a story to come all the way out here.
You want to go see Perry, go ahead.
Thank you.
You want my advice, though, Mr. Capote...
he's just trying to prove
the insanity defense.
It's okay.
It's okay.
It's Truman. It's your friend.
It's okay.
This is before she had us.
Before she started drinking.
Who took care of you as a child?
Orphanage.
Me and Linda.
And that's your sister?
You know, we're not so different
as you might think.
Yeah, I was abandoned repeatedly
as a child.
My mama would drag me along
to some new town...
so she could take up
with another man she'd met.
Night after night,
she'd lock me in the hotel room alone.
Mama would turn the latch and tell the staff
not to let me out no matter what.
And I was terrified.
And I'd scream my head off...
until finally I'd collapse...
on the carpet next to the door
and I'd fall asleep.
Then after years of this...
she just left me...
with relatives in Alabama.
Who raised you up?
My aunts.
And that's where I met Nelle.
And she lived next door.
Your mother was Indian?
Cherokee.
So drinking was not a good thing for her.
No tolerance for it.
We're on suicide watch.
That's why they leave the lights on at night.
I hope we're past that now.
I do.
Be careful of Ricardo.
I think he wants you all to himself.
All right.
But he's naturally mendacious.
Not to be trusted.
If he had $100,
he'd steal a stick of chewing gum.
Perry, I want to take your notebooks
with me.
I want to read them.
If I leave here without understanding you...
the world will see you as a monster...
always.
I don't want that.
'Cause he trusts me.
I mean, that's why he gave it to me.
And he's given me absolutely everything.
And he wants so badly
to be taken seriously...
to be held in some esteem.
Do you?
Do I what?
Do you hold him in esteem, Truman?
Well...
he's a gold mine.
And he's told me his entire life.
His dead mother.
He had a brother and a sister
kill themselves.
Awful.
Did you tell him
your mama did the same thing?
See, I can't tell him everything.
We've been talking our heads off
for the past month.
And sometimes...
when I think how good my book can be,
I can hardly breathe.
Anyway, this is what
I wanted to read to you.
"If called upon to make a speech"...
"If called upon to make a speech"?
I mean, this is exactly
what I'm talking about.
A speech, just in case
he's ever recognized for an achievement.
"I can't remember what I was going to say
for the life of me.
"I don't think ever before have so many
people been so directly responsible...
"for my being so very, very glad.
"It's a wonderful moment and a rare one.
"Thank you!"
There's an exclamation point
at the end of that "thank you"...
in case you didn't catch it.
Where'd you go?
I guess it stopped being funny.
I never said it was.
Wait, listen to this.
I was 14.
One day I said to her, "Mom's dead."
I could see it.
A week later we got the news.
She finally drunk herself...
Found her shivering...
She hit me so many times
with that flashlight...
she broke it.
That night,
I dreamed about that big yellow bird.
Clawed that nun's eyes, bright like the sun.
Lifted me to the sky.
Sometimes you see a thing how it really is.
Well, you're nothing if not hardworking.
Hey, you look good. Healthy again.
You know,
I've decided on a title for my book.
I think you'll like it.
It's very masculine.
In Cold Blood.
Isn't that good?
And that refers to the crime or the fact
that you're still talking to the criminals?
The former, among other things.
I see.
I wanted to ask...
if you'd let me look
at your investigation notes.
That lawyer you helped find
for your friends...
got them a hearing
at the Kansas Supreme Court...
I heard this morning.
...on the issue of inadequate counsel.
Alvin...
I mean,
do you not want me to look at your notes?
You are permitted to say no.
I'll tell you what.
If those boys get off...
I'm coming to Brooklyn to hunt you down.
I have to be in court at 9:00...
but you call Roy Church
and he'll show you what you want to see.
Thank you.
It's as much for me as for anyone.
I couldn't bear the thought
of losing you so soon.
We're gonna be able to use your book
for our case.
You'll write
we never got to raise an insanity plea.
You wrote how terrible the lawyers was.
I haven't written a word yet.
What have you been doing?
Research. Talking to you.
All right.
- I had hoped...
- What are you calling it?
The book?
I have no idea.
Perry...
if I'm going to write about you...
if I'm going to determine
how to write about you...
we need to talk about...
you know, why you're here.
You know, the murders...
and that night...
at the Clutter house.
Do you worry what I'll think?
Is that it?
Dick says you know Elizabeth Taylor.
I know a lot of people.
Perry, I have invitations
to be in Morocco, Greece...
and I prefer to be here...
with you.
Jack, be patient with me.
I'm just missing this one piece.
Well, how long is that gonna take?
Why don't you just try leaving him alone
for a while?
Come to Spain.
You can always visit him later.
I don't know.
Well, I'm off. I'm just...
I've got my own writing to do.
Well, do it in Brooklyn. Wait for me.
There's too many people around. I've...
I'll leave the address on the kitchen table.
Well, think about what I said,
and join me when you can.
I will.
- I will.
- Okay?
Bye.
Hi.
Truman.
We never intended on killing that family.
Capote, will you get that straight
in your book, please?
No premeditation.
What are you doing?
I have to fly back East.
When?
An hour. I miss you already.
Write me every five minutes.
Hey, you know,
we never did intend on killing that family.
Capote?
Capote?
What?
Truman...
I've not been able to tear myself
away from your book.
It's that good.
It's not good, it's astonishing.
- This first half is astonishing.
- Oh, thank you.
When will you be done, do you think?
Yes, I'm already well into the third part.
But...
I can't finish that till I convince Perry
to describe the night of the killings to me.
I was planning to visit this fall, see?
Then I think you need to talk to him now.
And we all need to see how this ends
for the final part.
I can't finish the book
till I know what happens.
If Perry and Dick are executed,
it's one thing.
And if not, well...
Truman, you got your ending.
I really don't know.
The Kansas Court denied their appeal.
It came over the wire on Friday.
I mean, you need to talk to Perry now.
He'll be dead by September.
I mean, I'm sorry.
I know how much
you've come to care about him.
Right. Yes, right.
So I want to set up a reading for you
in the fall, in New York...
and, well, we'll build some interest,
and we'll publish in the fall.
Thank God. There's nothing in the house.
Why aren't you working?
Well, I knew you couldn't be counted on
to stock the kitchen.
What are we going to feed
our famous guest?
Oh, Jesus, I completely forgot.
Plus, I finished my novel yesterday.
What?
When was the last time you wrote to him?
I don't know.
What's this?
It's a letter for Truman
I was asked to deliver.
It's from Perry.
Let's have it.
"Dear friend Truman, where are you?
"Read this item in a medical dictionary.
"'Death by hanging is caused by asphyxia...
"'by fracture of the cervical vertebrae...
"'by laceration of the trachea.'
"Not too comforting, as we lost our appeal.
"Missing you.
"Alone and desirous of your presence.
"Your amigo, Perry."
Mr. Shawn told me
about the court decision yesterday.
I was wondering
why you were in such a good mood.
That's a terrible thing to say.
I write him all the time. I've just...
I've been so focused on the book lately.
So Jack thinks I'm using Perry...
but he also thinks I fell in love with him
when I was in Kansas.
Now, how both of those things can be true
is beyond me.
Thank you.
Well, did you?
Did you fall in love with him?
I don't know how to answer that.
Truman.
It's as if Perry and I grew up
in the same house...
and one day he stood up
and went out the back door...
while I went out the front.
- Are you kidding me?
- No.
Listen, you be nice to Jack.
Sometimes I think
he's what I like about you best.
I'll see you at the reading in New York.
- 16th.
- 16th.
Adis.
What was he in jail for?
Well, they said
it was for not paying his taxes...
but really, for being an outsider.
Refusing to go along.
Lowell, you're being moved.
- Why?
- You're going to final holding.
No.
Come on, Lowell. Open the door.
Stand up.
- Put your arms behind your back.
- Okay, last chance.
Get up.
Turn around.
Put your arms behind your back.
Now Dick and me, we're next in line.
I'm so sorry I've been away.
It was a long time.
I know.
How's the book coming along?
Very slowly.
Will you show it to me?
I've hardly written anything.
Good evening, New Yorkers...
the first offering of any kind...
of Truman Capote's new work,
In Cold Blood.
Hello. My name is Truman Capote.
For this evening's program,
I'm going to read some passages...
from the first three parts of my new book.
"The village of Holcomb stands on
the high wheat plains of western Kansas...
"a Ionesome area
that other Kansans call 'out there. '
"Until one morning in mid-November, 1959...
"few Americans, in fact, few Kansans,
had ever heard of Holcomb.
"Like the waters of the Arkansas River...
"like the motorists on the highway...
"exceptional happenings
never stopped there.
"Perry Smith's voice
was both gentle and prim.
"A voice that, though soft...
"manufactured each sound exactly...
"ejected it like a smoke ring
issuing from a parson's mouth.
"The four coffins, which quite filled
the small, flower-crowded parlor...
"were to be sealed at the funeral services...
"very understandably...
"for the effect was disquieting.
"Nancy wore her dress of cherry-red velvet...
"her brother a bright plaid shirt.
"The parents were more sedately attired...
"Mr. Clutter in navy-blue flannel,
his wife in navy-blue crepe.
"And it was this especially
that lent the scene an awful aura...
"the head of each
was completely encased in cotton.
"A swollen cocoon twice the size
of an ordinary blown-up balloon.
"And the cotton...
"because it had been sprayed
with a glossy substance...
"twinkled like Christmas tree snow.
"One Tuesday at dawn,
a carload of strangers...
"ignorant of the local disaster...
"were startled by what they saw
as they crossed the prairies...
"and passed through Holcomb.
"Windows ablaze.
"Almost every window
in almost every house...
"and in the brightly-lit rooms,
fully-clothed people...
"even entire families...
"who had sat the whole night wide awake,
watchful, listening.
"Of what were they frightened?
"It might happen again."
Thank you.
And I slipped and I ripped a hole...
from the bottom of my scrotum...
all the way up
to the top of the crack of my ass.
And I sat there.
And I didn't know it. All I felt was a...
I didn't know it. All I felt
was a cool breeze, you know, between my...
Sorry. If I may...
Yes.
Your portrait of those men was terrifying.
Terrifying.
Thank you.
Stop that man! Come back here!
Dad!
Have any of you met my father?
He hasn't spanked me in years.
George didn't come backstage.
He had... He had a...
Something that his wife
had to rush him off to.
- But he made a point of...
- Well, I'm still waiting for a call.
It was beautiful.
And everybody came. Everybody came.
- Tennessee loved it.
- Of course he loved it.
Should we do more?
No, we just sit and wait
while people talk about it...
and we let them do the work.
I mean,
this book is going to change everything.
It's gonna change
how people see your writing.
I think it's going to change
how people write.
- Are you gonna be finished by October?
- I think so.
You know,
they're scheduled for next month.
To hang.
Yeah.
We're gonna commit as many issues
as it takes to publish.
Whatever it takes.
Well, I'm going to Kansas tomorrow...
- and I'll get Perry to talk.
- What's he got to lose?
Sorry, but...
Hey, this may sound strange to you...
but I'm going to miss him.
You'll be able to finish now.
Need to check your papers, sir.
This is what we've been waiting for.
A stay of execution
to make a federal appeal.
All thanks to you.
Thank you!
They're not gonna corner me now.
Not unless the U.S. Government says so.
Kansas has had it in for me for 10 years.
They can't corner me now.
Hey, Perry, sit down...
for a minute.
I need you to talk to me.
We've got all the time in the world to talk.
I've been thinking about Ricardo.
You really need to stop sending him
those trashy books.
I won't even mention the pornography.
Now, I realize that Dick probably can't grasp
the literature that you gave me.
And the books you send him only...
They only exacerbate the problem.
They only heighten or intensify it.
Maybe we can get him started on a program.
Perry, I know what "exacerbate" means.
Okay, well, just thinking...
There's not a word or a sentence
or a concept that you can illuminate for me.
There is one singular reason
I keep coming here.
- Truman.
- November 14, 1959.
Three years ago. Three years.
And that's all I want to hear from you.
Now I asked you not to. Ever.
This is absurd.
Do you know what absurd means?
I'm ready. I have a plane to catch.
I found your sister in Tacoma.
Maybe she'll talk to me
about something useful.
Please don't go out there.
Hey, this is my work, Perry. I'm working.
And when you want to tell me
what I need to hear, you let me know.
June's dead. Frank shot himself.
Now Perry did what he did.
I used to love him. He was my little doll.
He scares me now.
- When was the last time you saw him?
- Ten years ago.
Ten years.
Could I borrow one of these pictures?
Take the whole thing.
I don't want them anymore.
Don't be taken in by my brother.
He's got this sensitive side he'll show.
You believe he's gentle and so easily hurt...
but he'd just as soon kill you
as shake your hand. I believe that.
Hello, handsome.
What's the name of your book?
What's the name of your book?
I don't know what you're talking about.
"Truman Capote read last night
before a packed audience...
"from his nonfiction book In Cold Blood."
"The true-crime novel
tells of killers Richard Hickock...
"and Perry Smith...
"who brutally murdered a Kansas family
three years ago."
- Wait, who sent that to you?
- That's not your goddamn business.
It is my business, because it's not true.
The organizers of the reading needed a title.
They picked one,
a sensational one, I admit...
to attract a crowd.
- They picked it?
- Yes.
- It's not your title.
- Perry, I haven't chosen one yet.
How could I choose a title when we still
haven't talked about that night?
How could I? I couldn't possibly.
You pretended to be my friend.
I'm sorry.
I should have told you.
And I couldn't pretend to be your friend...
'cause the truth is,
I can't help wanting to be.
You don't have to tell me anything...
if you don't want to.
I have something...
from your sister.
She misses you.
Look at my belly.
There must be something wrong with us,
to do what we did.
We heard there was $10,000 in that house.
Once we tied up everybody
and searched all over...
I knew the guy that told us about it
was wrong.
There was no money.
Dick wouldn't believe it...
so he went tearing through the house,
banging on the walls...
Iooking for a safe.
When he was done...
he said he was gonna go up
to Nancy's room and have his way with her.
I wouldn't allow it.
And I told him that.
So I sat with her.
Dick came up and got me.
We turned off the lights
and went down to the basement...
where Mr. Clutter and the boy was.
He kept saying, "No witnesses"...
but I figured if I waited him out, he'd...
He'd give up
and we'd leave them tied up there.
And we'd drive all night.
They'd never find us.
We tied Mr. Clutter's wrists
to a pipe over his head.
And he looked hurt, so I cut him down.
I put a box out there
so he'd be more comfortable.
He asked how his wife and daughter was
and I said they were fine...
and they were getting ready for sleep,
and it wouldn't be long...
till morning when they'd find him.
He was just looking at me.
Looking into my eyes.
Like he expected me to kill him.
Like he expected me to be
the kind of person who would kill him.
I was thinking,
"This nice man is scared of me."
I was so ashamed.
I mean, I thought he was a very nice...
gentle man.
And I thought so right up till I slit his
throat.
I didn't know what I did
till I heard the sound.
Added up...
how much money
did you get from the Clutters that night?
Between $40 and $50.
I mean, the truth is,
I'm desperate to be done with it.
I've spent four years of my life on this book.
They got a stay of execution yesterday.
Another, yes.
Supreme Court.
It's harrowing.
Me, all I want to do is to write the ending
and there's no end in sight.
No, thank you.
"Dear friend Truman,
haven't heard from you in such a long while.
"Please help find new lawyer.
"If not, Dick will have to write
the Supreme Court brief himself.
"Our last appeal.
What a pair of wretched creatures.
"Please help. Your amigo?"
"Perry."
Just put it with the others.
You know, at least for Nelle...
you should try and pretend
you're having a good time tonight.
I thought I'd find you here.
Oh, Nelle.
Thank you.
I'll have another, please.
- How are you?
- Terrible.
I'm sorry to hear that.
I mean, it's torture the way...
What they're doing to me.
And now it's the Supreme Court.
And can you believe it?
If they win this appeal...
I will...
have a complete nervous breakdown.
I may never recover...
and I'll just pray that it turns my way.
- It must be difficult.
- It's torture.
They're torturing me.
I see.
And how'd you like the movie, Truman?
I frankly don't see what all the fuss is about.
Hello.
- Mr. Truman Capote?
- Yeah.
I have a call from Mr. Perry Smith
in the Kansas Correctional System.
Will you accept charges?
Yes.
Mr. Smith, you're on the line.
Hello.
Hello?
Hello, Perry.
They let me make a couple of phone calls
before I go down to holding.
You heard
the Supreme Court rejected the appeal?
No, I didn't. I hadn't heard that.
Yeah.
I'm sorry.
Yeah. They let me make two phone calls.
We got a date set for the warehouse,
Dick and me.
Two weeks and finito.
April 14.
Will you visit me?
Truman?
It's him again.
It is utterly inappropriate for me
to talk to him.
Yes?
I'm sorry, he won't be able to make it.
- Hello?
- Mr. Shawn, it's Nelle.
I just got this telegram. Has he seen it?
He won't read it.
- Would you put him on, please?
- Nelle, he won't talk.
Mr. Shawn, if you have to hold him down
and put the phone on his ear...
I need to speak to him.
All right.
It's Nelle.
Truman.
"Miss Nelle Harper Lee and Truman Capote.
"Sorry that Truman was unable to make it
here to the prison...
"for a brief word prior to necktie party.
"Whatever his reason for not showing up...
"I want him to know
that I cannot condemn him for it.
"Not much time left...
"but want you both to know
that I've been sincerely grateful...
"for your friendship through the years
and everything else.
"I'm not very good at these things.
"I have become extremely affectionate
toward you both. "
"But, harness time."
"Adios, amigos. Your friend, Perry."
Well, I didn't expect to see you again.
You can visit for a few minutes.
- Yeah.
- No.
Five minutes.
Well, well.
He returns.
I don't know what you must think of me.
Well, you haven't been foremost
on my mind lately...
as you can probably imagine.
You got the letter?
Yes, I did.
It's true.
I understand why you didn't want to come.
I wouldn't be here either if I didn't have to.
You got that right.
You know Ricardo donated his eyes
to science?
Next week, some blind man will be seeing
what Dick used to see.
Yeah, you could be walking in Denver
or somewhere, Truman...
and suddenly these eyes
will be staring at you.
That would be something, wouldn't it?
It would be. It would be.
You'll be watching?
I don't know, I'll be...
Do you want me to?
I'd like to have a friend there.
Okay. Then I will.
It's all right.
I did everything I could.
It's okay.
I truly did.
I know.
It's time.
Mr. Capote.
Goodbye.
You're not rid of us yet.
- We'll see you in a few minutes.
- I wish I had...
Mr. Capote.
- Mr. Capote.
- Goodbye.
Nice to see you.
Perry Edward Smith.
For the crime of murder in the first degree,
by order of the Court of Finney County...
and the Supreme Court
of the sovereign state of Kansas...
you are sentenced to hang until you die.
"I will fear no evil: For thou art with me.
"Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me."
You can say something if you want.
Is there anybody from the family here?
No, Perry.
Well, tell them...
I can't remember what I was gonna say
for the life of me.
Our Father who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
It was a terrible experience...
and I will never get over it.
They're dead, Truman. You're alive.
And there wasn't anything
I could have done to save them.
Maybe not...
but, the fact is, you didn't want to.