Oprah on James Frey: "I Feel Duped"

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 11:37am

"I feel duped," she said. "I don't know what is true and I don't know what isn't," she said, before addressing Mr. Frey with the question, "Why did you lie?"

---

Wow. After she helped him sell over 4 million copies.
Oprah Winfrey Calls Defense of Author 'a Mistake'

[mominator]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 11:47am

Once again why I don't take my reading list from a talk show host!

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 11:50am

Indeed, Mominator!
Although that "Anna Karinina" was kinda good.

My isn't this quite the soap opera? I quote Kathy Griffin: "All the crazy sh*t is goin' down on Oprah."

[mominator]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 11:54am

Did she recommend that one? Well since I read that one in high school (long before Ms. W) I can not give her credit for that one!

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:03pm

"I feel duped"

That's what I've been saying about Oprah's show for years.

[Stagedoor2]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:03pm

Am I the only one who won't read/buy a book if it's got the Oprah sticker on it? I mean, I think it's great that she's getting people that maybe weren't readers in the past to pick up a book, but the marketing turns me off. I actually bought Jonathan Franzen's book, "The Corrections" because he refused to have an Oprah sticker placed on it.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:05pm

Aw, she's picked some good ones...at least she's inspiring people to READ.

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:06pm

I agree, Borstal. Oprah's even gotten my mother, who never, ever reads, to pick up some of the books she's fawned over (including Mr. Frey's... hmm).

[Stagedoor2]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:12pm

Oh, I agree. It's fantastic that people are reading -- I am completely in favor of that. And I suppose that if the marketing blitz and opinion of one woman is what it takes for it to happen, fine. I just wish that the selling of the book club wasn't so...obnoxious isn't quite the word I'm looking for, but it's close.

[EvelynNesbit1906]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:26pm

The guy did nothing wrong. Most memoirs are a mixture of fact and fiction. Oprah is making a fool of herself.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:30pm

I agree, Evelyn.

I guess the question people want answered is what is true and what is fiction -- and frankly, it does Frey no good to not answer the specifics of the claims, so he should fess up.

However, if people are unbelievably hurt or disappointed or thrown into turmoil by this, they should be on medication, and reading shouldn't be their first concern.

[jakebloke]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:36pm

I read the book long before Oprah made it her book of the month. (just had to clarify that) And I don't really care if some of it is made up. I thought it was an excellent read. I thought it could be very inspiring for someone who may be dealing with addictions. I've read several memoirs and I think most involve some "additions" to make it more interesting. So what....who cares. Get over it people. Maybe he should call it a novel based on real experiences.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:41pm

Because of Oprah's endorsement, Frey's book will sell close to 4 million copies, putting approximately $12 million dollars in his pocket. That is before the movie sale.

Absent her endorsement, he would have made 1/10 that or less.

If had published it as a first novel, he would have probably made less than $50,000.

He lied to her. She made him a millionaire, ten times over.

Ya think she's maybe a little pissed?

[erikaamato]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:48pm

Exactly, PalJoey... The main selling point - at least to Oprah - was that this was a TRUE STORY. Not a novel. And although yes, most memoirs embellish the facts, we're talking HUGE fiction here. If he'd called it a novel, or said "based on true events," I'd have no quibble with him. But I saw that episode of Oprah when he was originally pushing the book, and he was lying through his teeth about his whole life.

Here's the Reuter's story:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060126/tv_nm/frey_dc
Updated On: 1/26/06 at 12:48 PM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 12:53pm

I beg to differ on the point that "most memoirs embellish the facts."

They do not.

Yes, a memoir tells a life story through an unavoidable individual prism, but no memoirist--no REAL memoirist, no GOOD memoirist--sets out to embellish the facts. Or to lie.

Frey is a fraud. Plain and simple.

[touchmeinthemorning]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:03pm

A wonderful article from the New Republic that discusses the book:


link

[EvelynNesbit1906]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:05pm

"Yes, a memoir tells a life story through an unavoidable individual prism, but no memoirist--no REAL memoirist, no GOOD memoirist--sets out to embellish the facts."

I guess neither of us could know this for sure, having only led our own lives and all that jazz...

Oprah should be less naive and trusting.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:08pm

Nicely written article, but it takes that trendy-cynical oh-they-ALL-lie attitude. This situation is different.

[erikaamato]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:09pm

PalJoey: I was simply stating that - from what I've heard from my many friends in the publishing business - most memoirs and autobiograhies embellish certain facts and events at least the smallest bit if it will help make the book more interesting. I'm not syaing I approve of it, or that they do it do a large degree. My point was that even taking that into consideration, Mr. Frey is a fraud. There is an enormous difference from, say, changing the location where a conversation occurred (e.g, in a celebrity memoir, having it happen at a swanky club that the celebrity often frequented as opposed to in the bathroom of their apartment) and changing a 2 day jail stay into months-long incarceration.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:25pm

Why didn't Frey sell the book as fiction? Did he want to get sympathy from people by saying it really happened to him?

[EvelynNesbit1906]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:32pm

LOL. I'd assume the answer is yes. Smart guy. Too bad he got caught. I wonder what the impact of this controversy will be on reception to his other books.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 1:39pm

He basically said that everything that The Smoking Gun reported pretty acurate. How could he think he would not get found out? It's like the Milli Vanilli thing. I assume he had no idea it would get THIS big. I mean, a few hours in jail is a bit different than a few months.

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 2:51pm

Frey is supposed to be on Oprah again today.

Also- you can watch a little video about this, it's called "A Million Little Truths." It is on this website: http://abcnews.go.com/

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 3:07pm

SweetQ--today's Oprah show is actually the one this thread is about. It aired live this morning in Chicago and the Times article describes that live airing.

Goth--he says he originally tried to sell it as fiction but the publisher persuaded him to do it as nonficton. The publisher vociferously denies that.

[RachLaura]

Posted: 1/26/06 at 5:09pm

I don't know, i'm a little iffy about the whole thing. I agree Oprah is making a bigger deal out of it than it is. I think that it was pretty bad that he made millions off a book, like PJ was saying, and probably would've made a much less amount of money if categorizing it as fiction. However, in the whole "truth" matter, I don't see the big deal. Whether he was in jail for 3 months, or 3 hours, the main ideas and themes of the book that many seemed to identify with stay true even with the fabricated details. He had an addiction, he got through it. I think it's ridiculous that people can change their whole opinion of a book just because of how much time he spent in jail. I don't see how that makes his struggle any less or more powerful. They are making the new copy with him stating what parts are true and false, thats that.