Truman Capote dies in Los Angeles
The writer Truman Capote lived openly as a gay man long before queer visibility was taken for granted.
On 25 August 1984, Truman Capote died at the age of 59 in the home of his friend Joanne Carson in Bel Air, Los Angeles. With works such as "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and "In Cold Blood", Capote was one of the best-known American writers of his time. Just as public as his literary success was a part of his personality that many others still had to hide: Capote lived openly as a gay man.
Decades before queer celebrities were a matter of course in the USA, Capote made no secret of his homosexuality. His high voice, his manner and his relationships attracted public attention, and not infrequently ridicule and homophobia too. Even so, he did not try to present himself in a way that "suited" a heterosexual audience better. The writer Jack Dunphy was his partner for a long time; their relationship began at the end of the 1940s and, despite later changes, remained of great importance until the end of Capote's life.
Capote was not, however, a classic activist of the gay movement. His significance for queer history lies rather in his visibility: a world-famous author and media star spoke openly about his sexuality at a time when this could have professional and social consequences.
He summed up his taste for unsparing self-portrayal in a sentence from "Music for Chameleons" (1980) that became famous: "I'm an alcoholic. I'm a drug addict. I'm homosexual. I'm a genius."