Tuman Capote's Black & White Ball

Party of the Century: The Fabulous Story of Truman Capote and His Black and White Ball by Deborah Davis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you are an historian of the Sixties, you know that Capote's timing for his extravagant ball on November 28, 1966 was perfect. It was the probably the last possible moment of the twentieth century that he could have had a party with a guest list of jet-setters of this magnitude. Within months the world would change profoundly--the beginning of the world we know today. Even the black & white color schemes and geometric shapes so much associated with the mid-60s were about to explode into psychedelic bouquets of color and the organic forms of the last years of the decade.

If I can find any fault with this book it is in that the historical context of that decade was not explored and how the party fit into the decade. Ms. Davis gives us the back story on each facet of Capote's Black & White Ball, including the attendees, their attire and the journalists covering it, but we don't get much in the way of historical backdrop or the big picture, if you will, and she seems to be of the opinion that the party itself was an anomaly. It was such an interesting and pivotal time period and the party couldn't have happened, successfully, at least, during any other time in that decade or even in that century. Exploring that aspect of the party would have made it a five-star book instead of four.

Of course Capote himself would soon burn bridges that would make it impossible for him personally to ever throw a party such as that again and, although Davis doesn't address this point either, Capote was probably the only person in the world at the time with the means, the desire and, more importantly, the social connections to pull off a party with such an impressive guest list of socialites.

View all my reviews

On the Newsstand - April 1954

Happiness is a Dry Martini

This little book, full of cocktail napkin-style jokes, was the fifth bestselling non-fiction book of 1965. It is, of course, a parody of the Charles Schulz Peanuts book Happiness is a Warm Puppy.

Postcard of the Week #4

Poster of the Week #4

Click on the poster if you're interested in
purchasing a copy or to check out our gallery on

The First True Crime Book

In Cold Blood: A True Account of a Multiple Murder and Its Consequences by Truman Capote
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Written in 1966, In Cold Blood is the mother of all non-fiction true crime books. Every book in the genre owes something to this book, which set the bar high for everything that came after such as the true crime books of Vincent Bugliosi.

What Capote did was to turn crime reporting into form resembling fiction, so that, rather than dry crime writing, the facts unfold like they would in a well-written novel.

When reading In Cold Blood, you get the feeling that Capote was conscious of creating a new genre in the way he presents the facts. It's not surprising that it took him six years to write the book, which was, not coincidentally, the time frame of the book itself.

The book tells of the murder of the Clutter family on a remote farm in western Kansas, which appeared to have had no motive. Eventually two young men, Perry Smith and Dick Hickok were tried and convicted of the crime and ultimately hanged for the crime. Those are the facts, but what the book reveals are the stories of the two men and how their lives led them to this violent act.

View all my reviews

On the Newsstand - March 1954

New Styles from Shuron

Sidewinder in crystal

Freeway in black fade

I noticed that Shuron, my favorite vendor for eyeglasses has two new styles in their Sidewinder and Freeway lines. About a year or so ago they added a clear plastic frame, which they call "crystal" to their Freeway line and a "black fade" to their Sidewinder line. They now have both fame color options in both lines.

The main difference between these two styles is that the Sidewinder (left) has a slightly heavier frame overall and much thicker sides than the Freeway (right). The thicker sides are something to take into consideration when buying sunglasses as they block out more of the sun. Also the crystal frames, although they look really cool with tinted lenses, aren't the best choice for sunglasses in that the clear plastic tends to reflect light into the eyes around the lenses and though the sides.

All in all you wont find a more durable frame than Shuron. Check with your local retailer or favorite website for eyeglasses. You can check out the all the Shuron styles on Shuron's Website