Truman Capote on Natural Stage Talent | The Dick Cavett Show

Dick Cavett is joined by American novelist Truman Capote who discusses the natural talent that some actors possess when appearing on stage. Featuring American Oscar-winner films star Lee Marvin and French actress Jeanne Moreau.
Date aired - October 9th 1970 - Truman Capote, Lee Marvin and Jeanne Moreau
For clip licensing opportunities please visit www.globalimageworks.com/the-...
Subscribe for more Dick Cavett Show: bit.ly/3ao6ZNy
More from Truman Capote:
Truman Capote on Taking Intelligence Tests in His Youth: • Truman Capote on Takin...
Truman Capote Questions Jeanne Moreau About The Pain Of Separation: • Truman Capote Question...
Dick Cavett has been nominated for eleven Emmy awards (the most recent in 2012 for the HBO special, Mel Brooks and Dick Cavett Together Again), and won three. Spanning five decades, Dick Cavett’s television career has defined excellence in the interview format. He started at ABC in 1968, and also enjoyed success on PBS, USA, and CNBC.

His most recent television successes were the September 2014 PBS special, Dick Cavett’s Watergate, followed April 2015 by Dick Cavett’s Vietnam. He has appeared in movies, tv specials, tv commercials, and several Broadway plays. He starred in an off-Broadway production ofHellman v. McCarthy in 2014 and reprised the role at Theatre 40 in LA February 2015.

Cavett has published four books beginning with Cavett (1974) and Eye on Cavett (1983), co-authored with Christopher Porterfield. His two recent books -- Talk Show: Confrontations, Pointed Commentary, and Off-Screen Secrets (2010) and Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic moments, and Assorted Hijinks(October 2014) are both collections of his online opinion column, written for The New York Times since 2007. Additionally, he has written for The New Yorker, TV Guide, Vanity Fair, and elsewhere.
#thedickcavettshow #TrumanCapote #LeeMarvin #JeanneMoreau

[@TheDickCavettShow]

Want to see more of Truman Capote on the Dick Cavett Show? Here he discusses taking intelligence tests during his youth: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6qrcpetfrmJadE

[@jintzie1950jth]

"I think cruelty for cruelty's sake is the only unforgivable thing." Truth.

[@brutusalwaysminded]

Tennessee Williams line.

[@TRRyan]

This is the level of intelligence and sophistication that once existed in television talk shows, though it was uncommon even then.

[@AgentSeventyOne]

Are they gonna do carpool karaoke? Lol I've been on a Truman Capote talkshow binge.

[@lynngregory393]

Agree. Hard to imagine today.

[@drewhunter8558]

I used to watch TDCS as s young teen. So many good talk shows then...Mike Douglas, Dina Shore..etc...today it is all tripe......

[@5thdimension625]

@@drewhunter8558me as well. Today,, not so much

[@kevinwhelan9607]

No truer words. Now it's fatuous guests being flattered by equally fatuous hosts: and on and on and on...

[@EagleRockers]

I could listen to Truman all day. What a brilliant writer he was.

[@MrArthurAxe]

I just love Truman Capote's style of commentary. He could not come across as more original in the way he explains his point of view. Amazing guest.

[@davidgoulden5956]

Agree. Very interesting mind. Have you seen T C being interviewed by W F Buckley? Quietly intense footage.

[@LifeisFUB]

What an amazing show, and what amazing guests. There’s nothing like it today.

[@andrewbaumann2661]

Find a decent podcast.

[@johndickson9542]

@@andrewbaumann2661 Still, the class is missing.

[@arundelmercure553]

Even when he was half in the bag, Truman was always eloquent and interesting. You see it a lot in these great clips from old talk shows, and from reading accounts of everyone who knew him. Very gallant of him to stand up for actresses subjected to really horrid reviews back then based sheerly on looks. It was accepted, people laughed at a review calling a young actress ugly. The bad old days. He's also right about the inexplicable beauty and charisma some people have on screen that they may not have in real life. No one's figured it out, it's not science, it's magic and very rare actually.

[@user-ur3qq9zx3f]

IT AMAZES ME HOW TOM HOLLANDER WAS ABLE TO AT LEAST IN MY OPINION 99.9% REPLICATE TRUMAN'S VOICE I LOVE FEUD BTW THE COSTUME THE STORIES THE DRAMA EVERYTHING ITS PERFECT.. PERFECT

[@probi99]

Me too! Love the portrayal. Just binged the last 3 episodes

[@user-ur3qq9zx3f]

@@probi99 I Binged The First 4 This Past week

[@OhGollyItsLolly]

TOM HOLLANDER should, and needs, to get an award for this role. This was the best portrayal of Capote I have ever seen on film...not that the others were bad....but this was the best in my opinion.

[@devonk298]

Watching this clip - you realize just how much Phillip Seymour Hoffman absolutely nailed every nuance of this guy.

[@ronmackinnon9374]

Unfortunate that Toby Jones' great portrayal of Capote in the film 'Infamous', released the year following Hoffman's, was so overshadowed.

[@lisaanderson9682]

He has alway fascinated me, even when I was 8 years old. Just could not take my eyes off of him.

[@mariat4812]

Film makers want to make sure we know him in 2024, kudos Truman 🔥

[@michaelweinstein3056]

Capote is working on so many levels. It's quite stunning. His entire 7-minute monologue regarding his theory of particular people's rapport with the camera, was delivered with the exact rapport he was describing. Capote's theory and the anecdotes he relates are, well, mildly interesting, but because he's demonstrating and proving this theory as he talks and gesticulates about it, a mildly interesting idea is transformed into a riveting spectacle. Magical. And of course he ends the whole thing with a quip delivered, structured, and true as anything that can possibly be said.

[@Schizopantheist]

Agreed, except I would not say he does it with his face but rather with his voice. An unusual voice. Peculiar even, but he makes it work, and his delivery is poised and precise.

[@jadezee6316]

the anecdotes he describes here are not mild not by a long shot they are very appealing...on their own..who doesnt want to see those pictures of Garbo he describes?

[@jadezee6316]

@@Schizopantheist its none of that.....if you are focused on that you are lost....it is the PERCEPTIONS..he brings to life that make him and all others fascinating....that he may use tools are secondary.....every great performer to broaden it a bit needs to start with a script....nothing can sell a bad one nothing can sell a bad perception.....thats why you remember things you read.....where there are no actors at all....

[@terri6854]

What was the quip? You don't mean the Tennessee Williams quote about cruelty, do you?

[@terri6854]

@jadezee6316 No, the anecdotes are mild. It's just a very common idea of some people in entertainment having "it" and being photogenic, or coming alive in front of the camera. You might be lost because you're focused on "perceptions" which aren't overly insightful.

[@tomjones2202]

I think he just taught a whole month of classes in about 7 minutes!! An amazing and yet different kind of man, Truman Capote,,,,,

[@cesarelombroso6735]

Agreed. Incredible insight.

[@haaasful]

Truman Capote such talented and tortured artist. What a raconteur.

[@tetepeb]

Truman Capote is one of these persons you could listen to for hours that just draws you in like Orson Welles, Stephen King and Quentin Tarantino.

[@schmittyhanrahan8126]

Tarantino? Lol

[@scorpionstingprod.8276]

@@schmittyhanrahan8126 why not? He s an encyclopedia.

[@johnpauljones6229]

Cruelty for creulty's sake is an unforgivable thing.

[@jadezee6316]

cruelty for cruelty's sake ......is THE ONLY......unforgivable thing. if you are going to quote capote make sure you do it correctly.....

[@coreycox2345]

@@jadezee6316 I have never read a book that gave me as much of a sense of that as "In Cold Blood." He was an amazing writer. He did it clinically with small facts and details, leaving the emotions to the reader, and horrified me with images I will never forget.

[@TRRyan]

@@jadezee6316 Truman himself is quoting his friend Tennessee Williams, who has Blanche Dubois say this in "Streetcar Named Desire."

[@Deliquescentinsight]

@@jadezee6316 Accuracy is very important, agreed!

[@ronmackinnon9374]

@@coreycox2345 So that sounds like he did a good job applying the dictum, 'show, don't tell.'

[@MarilynMonday]

I could listen to his observations about beauty and perception forever 😍

[@j1st633]

Wow! Capote was really knowledgeable. Great interview.

[@sopronunciareglignocchi7255]

Philip Seymour Hoffman did an amazing job on playing Truman Capote in Capote (2005). From this clip here, he really nailed the voice and the mannerisms.

[@ronmackinnon9374]

As did Toby Jones in 'Infamous,' released the following year.

[@joancorr447]

Life was so much more interesting when Truman was with us.♥️😊

[@rob_4227]

As a kid, In Cold Blood was one of the first “classics” that totally blew away my expectations after hearing it built up so much.

[@KloiePicot]

"I think cruelty for cruelty sake is the only unforgivable thing"

[@terri6854]

Tennessee Williams quote.

[@larrywexner4163]

that last line.....

[@2Majesties]

Capote was right about critic John Simon. While I agreed with many of Simon's critical assessments of films and plays of that time and enjoyed the wit and erudition he brought to his writing, he was downright mean sometimes. And needlessly so.

[@outtathyme5679]

Brilliant guy

[@catherinedennis3892]

The gentleman Hollander n my opinion is simply marvelous in playing Truman Copote Excellent Excellent he did that.

[@stgraham111]

In this interview, and in others, you can tell that Cavett thinks that Capote can be kind of tedious, and he is not completely wrong

[@sherry3612]

The Swans should find him unforgivable based on his own assessment of “cruelty for cruelty sake”…ironic

[@MrJoseoz]

i wanted to hate him for his betrayal of friends, but he's really profound

[@mikeletaurus4728]

Look how HIGH Truman is.

[@nancystevens7447]

Wonderful writer,damaged human being! A brilliant viper…..

[@andrewbrendan1579]

Fascinating comments about how something happens to some people when they're in front of a camera. John Huston, whom Truman Capote mentioned here, talked about how he found both Humphrey Bogart and Marilyn Monroe not all that much in person, but when seeing them onscreen...very different. I think Marilyn was at her most charismatic in photos rather than in movies, appealing though she was. In the PBS series "American Masters" one episode was about Marilyn Monroe as a photographic subject, not an actress. One of the people interviewed said that if you try to understand the popularity of Marilyn Monroe by watching her movies, "...it doesn't add up", but if you see her in photos, then you see why she continues to be of interest. I agree. I've seen most of Marilyn's films and most of them I wouldn't care to watch a second time. --- Mr. Capote's comment about "...cruelty for cruelty's sake..." reminded me of the line in "A Streecar Named Desire" in which Blanche says that "...deliberate cruelty..." is unforgivable.

[@timfranczyk3293]

Two interesting voices.

[@nickgrant2906]

I think capote has this same fascination as david lynch of the darkness of glamour

[@Luzanne.]

“Cruelty for cruelty’s sake is the only unforgivable thing.” Yes, see e.g. Answered Prayers. I don’t want to be pedantic about his use or the word “theory” for what seems to have been an established fact since the beginning of motion pictures with Brooks and Garbo. I’d like to hear what he would have to say about those who take an above average photograph, but absolutely luminous in motion pictures. Greer Garson immediately springs to mind. Why does the have rapport with one medium and not the other? Mannerisms and voice, or is it something more?

[@jadezee6316]

Capote is Magnificent!....., here......and completely right about how certain people have that "thing"..with a camera...go watch Marylyn Monroe...in All About Eve...just standing in a scene with Bette Davis...not yet a star,, her second picture..i believe...and you CAN NOT take your eyes off her....i can actually sense just looking at it how un-nerved Bette Davis was having to do that scene...knowing Monroe was the star there!

[@andrewbrendan1579]

I've read the Marilyn Monroe was a nervous wreck while making "All About Eve" and that some of the people involves said they didn't think she would succeed in movies. Bette Davis said, and I think this is verbatim, "She'll be bigger than any of us".

[@valerieramos7964]

"..cruelty for cruelty's sake is the only unforgivable thing."

[@cesarelombroso6735]

I wish more people believed this.

[@CadeCYC]

Great last line

[@user-ef6xx8uk6k]

Trueman capote used to call Andy Warhol ‘A sphinx without a secret’

[@acastrohowell]

Is called charismatic

[@Jonathan-dq8hb]

Lee Marvin on the left ?

[@okjoe5561]

I'm surprised Lee Marvin kept his mouth shut. He could be incredibly cruel with his comments, even when sober.

[@MissPerriwinkle]

i treasure our walks down by the river, ebb on sweet swan.....

[@carter358]

Toby Jones really did nail his characterization. Much more so than Hoffman.

[@anotherarmchairhistorian2831]

I wish we could have shows like this instead of all the propaganda we're being force fed.

[@YewrinePish]

Yeah. I've been talking about this with friends. We can't figure out who would be the host, though. We agreed the closest we have now is Joe Rogan and his podcast.

[@jadezee6316]

@@YewrinePish lol...Cavett was exceptional because of his wit..his intelligence..he was a writer for Johnny Carson, etc...don't compare him to joe rogan because that's as far as your intellect is capable of reaching...rogan has no wit...only average intelligence and wouldn't even know who Truman capote was..let alone be able to interview him....

[@YewrinePish]

@@jadezee6316 I was referring to Rogan's interview ability and style. No one's talking wit or intelligence.

[@ericblair7279]

@@YewrinePish Agree. Rogan's appeal is that he's an everyman and asks questions or has conversations that aren't packaged for your typical talk shows and that's refreshing for the average listener.

[@DeanLeonard1]

"Cruelty for cruelty's sake is the only unforgivable thing."

[@pamcornelius9122]

Googling Zoe Caldwell now!

[@GDug-rs5sh]

he’s completed bombed. but sounds sophisticated

[@stillkicking2445]

the art of run on sentences…..

[@jochenstossberg5427]

Best to let him go. He's so interesting. He was a one off!

[@rickack8176]

All he wanted was some stability growing up.

[@Herfinnur]

So he actually sounded like that

[@Rayoscope]

Paraphrases Tennessee Williams at the tail end of the cilp.

[@Gannooch]

i have nothing against the other celebs that were on this show but is this channel ever going to show the Dick Cavett shows where he interviews Jackie Gleason or Art Carney? How about any Honeymooners actors that were part of the main cast? These are rare much like the other Cavett ones.

[@tahaahamed4316]

5:38

[@kevinwhelan9607]

What a contrast with today: fatuous guests being flattered by fatuous hosts: and so on and so on. When was the last time you saw a REAL writer and artist on a chat show, someone say of the calibre of Richard Price or Marilynne Robinson? Long time ago.

[@Mr-E.]

There is a current actor who resembles Truman Capote... short maybe 4'11 to 5'1 in height. I see him in random movies but I can't remember which. Usually isn't a main character... This is going to bother me until I figure it out. EDIT: I'm thinking of Toby Jones!! Photo: www.filmibeat.com/img/2017/01/daunting-idea-to-join-sherlock-says-toby-jones-13-1484292638.jpg

[@funnyvoicesman7169]

Leslie Jordan?

[@Mr-E.]

@@funnyvoicesman7169 You reminded me to search again just now. Finally found the dude after Googling "short English actors". His name is Toby Jones. Here is a photo www.filmibeat.com/img/2017/01/daunting-idea-to-join-sherlock-says-toby-jones-13-1484292638.jpg

[@ghostofguy]

@@Mr-E. ha ha I've thought that too.

[@lilchaos4792]

He played capote in a movie lol

[@Mr-E.]

@@lilchaos4792 Really?! Oh wow that's perfect casting then lol

[@Gannooch]

Is this channel ever going to show Dick Cavett shows where he interviews Jackie Gleason and/or Art Carney? I don’t have the Decades. I got nothing against the celebs that appeared on this show BTW.

[@michaelburke5907]

Drugs and booze really did a number on Capote later, turning him into a sad caricature.

[@rakhmire2]

Zoe who? I wanna have a look at that article.

[@EagleRockers]

Zoe Caldwell, a brilliant actress. She was great on stage.

[@binkiebabe416]

Magic and tragic.…....

[@jamesagwe2981]

I always thought truman capote was a novelist or poet from edgar allan poe's era

[@somethingyousaid5059]

I bet Edgar Allan Poe would have made for a great interview on television.

[@acchaladka]

So did Truman Capote, sometimes.

[@jadezee6316]

@@acchaladka capote was one of the most perceptive intelligent men ever ..even under the influence his words were well worth listening to

[@QuadMochaMatti]

@@somethingyousaid5059 it would have been swell to see him show up on the set with a talking Raven on his shoulder.

[@somethingyousaid5059]

@@QuadMochaMatti hahaaha, absolutely. What a great touch that would have been.

[@aux8344]

Sad that you will never see this format again on a "talk show". Now its childish hype over everything that anyone does with momentary passion - loud, interrupting applause breaks every 20 seconds. No interviewer today would ever leave such gaps for a brilliant man such as Truman Capote to go on long enough to really make his point and explain himself. our attention spans are so short that in modern times this interview would have been edited down to < 5 minutes and would feature some sort of spectacle stunt. Nothing so boring now days as a "talk show" where they actually talk. Things change I guess...

[@craigsmith4105]

ironic that he woud become known as the most vicious critic of human behavior...

[@Methilde]

What a revelation, successful actress has a control of their image, what a genius theory!

[@user-xh7zh4hw1x]

He ended up cruel for cruelty sake....🙄😂

[@randycushman1669]

Every interview with Capote was, generally, condescending, in this interview they let him role.

[@djamesv]

Phillip Seymour Hoffman did Truman Capote better than Truman Capote.

[@grahamhill9499]

Didnt think he did a good job , overacted

[@ronmackinnon9374]

Toby Jones did a great performance as Capote in 'Infamous,' released the year after Hoffman's film.

[@felixgelukonstantinescu4751]

today - at one move - i naturally then compositionally beat puschin, 2 times same verse...

[@felixgelukonstantinescu4751]

it s like you beating griffith one move two times in soul and reason

[@DavidRoss-lo7kz]

Mannerisms

[@marcelomarquez2089]

I don't know if the tall man is really tall, or is just that the others are like hobbits.

[@pierrekiroule2827]

Lee Marvin...6' 3 or 6'3. Great actor and very charismatic man.

[@quornflake]

Ok, "Darling of the beautiful people"? Does anyone know what that actually means? Google search's just bring up Marylin Manson. Who/what are the beautiful people in this context?

[@diegopitbull7580]

Beautiful people = influential, rich, fashionable people that are objects of admiration.

[@ronmackinnon9374]

The rich and famous, the kind of people those who aren't famous dream about meeting and knowing. Capote once threw a big party consisting of a variety of such guests. It was called 'the Black-&-White Ball,' in 1966.

[@HG-pi3qp]

Cruelty for cruelty’s sake

[@lenering1084]

His voice is so weird!

[@pantera29palms]

Holy F that dude was effeminate...

[@jadezee6316]

he is more man than you

[@Jazzsingingapple]

He was, apparently, quite the arm wrestler.

[@lilchaos4792]

More of a man then u ever will be hahaha

[@caidyc]

Truman was the worst sort of human. Viciously insecure and just relentlessly cruel.

[@rozz7531]

Mysogynist under auspices of intellectual theory dismisses the very idea of female beauty and uses female iconic actors to "prove" his er theory whilst making bit chy comments and we idiots lap it up without question.

[@shanegreen1677]

Yer not makin' much sense, Roz.

[@tahaahamed4316]

5:40