Author: The JT LeRoy Story
A film about the bizarre literary hoax — opening in theaters September 9
In 1999, two books were published, Sarah and The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things, which developed a cult reputation in literary circles. The author was JT LeRoy, and the books were said to be autobiographical fiction; LeRoy allegedly was born in 1980 in West Virginia, the son of a prostitute, and his childhood and teens were filled with sex work, drug addiction, mental illness and gender identity struggles.
The author was rarely seen in public, and when he was, he had an androgynous appearance, wearing a blond wig and sunglasses. He was embraced by celebrities, such as Bono, Lou Reed and Garbage singer Shirley Manson. LeRoy was credited with the screenplay to Gus Van Sant’s provocative film, Elephant (2003). Then, in 2005, reporters started closing in on the real story of JT LeRoy, and eventually the truth came out: LeRoy was the creation of writer Laura Albert, who penned all his books. She had a friend, Savannah Knoop, portray LeRoy in public: Albert called LeRoy an “avatar,” a persona she needed in order to be free to write books in that voice.
The revelation of LeRoy not being real caused a sensation. It was called “one of the great literary hoaxes of our day.” And now a probing documentary, written and directed by Jeff Feuerzeig, will help to bring all the facts to light. Author: The JT LeRoy Story was in competition at Sundance last January and will open in theaters on September 9. PROVOKR presents the trailer above.
