Glo's Girl Crushes of the Week: Capote's Favorites

Babe Paley

By Natasha Burton

Babe was Truman’s most beloved “swan.” A former Vogue editor, she was inducted into the Fashion Hall of Fame in 1958 for an impeccable style many women tried to emulate. Truman reportedly said of her, “Babe Paley had only one fault: She was perfect. Otherwise, she was perfect.”

Lee Radziwill

The younger sister of former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Caroline Lee Bouvier Canfield Radziwill Ross, as she was officially named, led quite the varied life. On one end of the social spectrum, she was once married to Polish prince Stanislaw Albrecht Radziwill; on the other, she accompanied Truman to The Rolling Stones’ 1972 American tour.

Carol Grace

Before she married actor Walter Matthau, Carol (far left in the photo with Gloria Vanderbilt, middle, and Shirley Cowan, right) served, according to Truman, as the inspiration for the Holly Golightly character in his novella Breakfast at Tiffany's. (Truman’s friend Gloria Vanderbilt, as well as his mother, Nina Parsons, also served as muses for Holly.)

Marilyn Monroe

When it came to who would play the part of Holly for the movie adaptation of Breakfast at Tiffany's, Truman wanted his friend Marilyn to take the role. However, because of the somewhat controversial nature of the character (she was a call girl after all!), Paramount studio execs wanted to go with a more innocent-looking actress.

Audrey Hepburn

The woman chosen for the part was none other than Audrey, whose portrayal of Holly Golightly made her both a cinematic and a fashion icon. While Truman reportedly wasn’t happy with this casting choice, he and Audrey eventually became friends.

Harper Lee

When Truman and Harper grew up together in Monroeville, Alabama, playing together as kids, they probably never figured they would both grow up to be famous writers. They even had a part in each other’s works: Harper helped Truman with his investigation of the Clutter family murder for his book In Cold Blood, and Truman was reportedly the inspiration for the character Dill in Harper’s To Kill a Mockingbird.

Katherine Graham

In 1966 Capote threw his legendary Black and White Ball in the Grand Ballroom at what used to be the Plaza Hotel in New York City. His guest of honor? None other than Katherine, who famously ran The Washington Post for over 20 years. As you can see, this event had a specific dress code: men in black tie, women in either black or white, with everyone required to don a mask. (Truman must have taken his off for this photo op.)

Liza Minnelli

Following the trends of the time, Truman began frequenting Studio 54 in the ’70s, where he hung out with Liza Minnelli, who won the Oscar in ’72 for her role as Sally Bowles in the movie Cabaret, and artist Andy Warhol. We would have loved to be a fly on the wall for that scene: On one New Year’s Eve in the late-’70s, event planner Robert Isabell allegedly dumped four tons of glitter on the dancing crowd.