Lee Israel
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Leonore Carol "Lee" Israel (December 3, 1939 – December 24, 2014) was an American author known for committing
literary forgery Literary forgery (also known as literary mystification, literary fraud or literary hoax) is writing, such as a manuscript or a literary work, which is either deliberately misattributed to a historical or invented author, or is a purported memoir ...
. Her 2008 confessional autobiography ''Can You Ever Forgive Me?'' was adapted into the 2018 film of the same name starring
Melissa McCarthy Melissa Ann McCarthy (born August 26, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Melissa McCarthy, numerous accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Award ...
as Israel.


Early life and education

Israel was born in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, New York, to a Jewish family. Her parents were Jack and Sylvia Israel; she also had a brother, Edward. She graduated from
Midwood High School Midwood High School is a high school located at 2839 Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, New York City, administered by the New York City Department of Education. It has an enrollment of 3,938 students. Its H-shaped building, with six Ionic order, Ioni ...
, and in 1961 from
CUNY The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...
's
Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...
.


Career

Israel began a career as a freelance writer in the 1960s. Her profile of
Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...
, whom Israel had visited in California shortly before the death of
Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Classical Hollywood cinema, Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the ...
, ran in the November 1967 edition of ''
Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...
'' magazine. Israel's magazine-writing career continued into the 1970s. In the 1970s and 1980s, Israel published biographies of the actress
Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's ''Lifeboat (194 ...
, the journalist and game-show panelist
Dorothy Kilgallen Dorothy Mae Kilgallen (July 3, 1913 – November 8, 1965) was an American columnist, journalist, and television game show panelist. After spending two semesters at the College of New Rochelle, she started her career shortly before her 18th bir ...
, and the cosmetics tycoon Estée Lauder. The Kilgallen book was well received upon its publication in 1979, and appeared on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller List. Novelist and book reviewer
Rita Mae Brown Rita Mae Brown (born November 28, 1944) is an American feminist writer, best known for her coming-of-age autobiographical novel, '' Rubyfruit Jungle''. Brown was active in a number of civil rights campaigns and criticized the marginalization of l ...
told readers of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' in 1979 that Kilgallen had expressed much curiosity about
Lee Harvey Oswald Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963. Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at age 12 for truan ...
and
Jack Ruby Jack Leon Ruby (born Jacob Leon Rubenstein; March 25, 1911January 3, 1967) was an American nightclub owner who murdered Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963, two days after Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Born in Chicago, R ...
, despite the prevalence of show business gossip in her newspaper column. Brown added that Israel's book "deserves to be ranked with serious biography just as its subject deserves to be ranked a serious journalist" despite the possibility that some "political movements would probably find even the mention of ilgallen'sname a cause for hilarity." "Despite Israel's deceptive practices more than twelve years after finishing her 485-page Kilgallen book," notes conspiracy theorist Mark Shaw, "there is no indication she fabricated any portion of the book. Some material is incomplete but reference notes at the end of the book appear credible. Ms. Israel's citations of old newspaper articles, magazine pieces and her quotations from numerous books, all check out. Unfortunately, this author was unable to speak with her before she died in 2014." In her 2008 memoir ''Can You Ever Forgive Me?'', Israel claimed that in 1983, four years after the ''Kilgallen'' publication, she received an advance from
Macmillan Publishing Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd in the United Kingdom and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC in the United States) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be on ...
to begin a project on Estee Lauder, "about whom Macmillan wanted an
unauthorized biography An unauthorized biography, sometimes called a kiss-and-tell, or a tell-all, is a biography written without the subject's permission or input. The term is usually restricted to biographies written within the subject's lifetime or shortly after ...
— warts and all. I accepted the offer though I didn't give a shit about her warts." Israel also claimed that Lauder repeatedly attempted to bribe her into dropping the project. In the book, Israel discredited Lauder's public statements that she was born into European aristocracy and attended church regularly in Palm Beach, Florida. In 1985, Lauder wrote an autobiography that her publisher timed to coincide with Israel's book. Israel's book was panned by critics and was a commercial failure. "I had made a mistake," Israel said of the episode. "Instead of taking a great deal of money from a woman rich as
Oprah Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954) is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and media proprietor. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', broadcast from Chic ...
, I published a bad, unimportant book, rushed out in months to beat auder's own memoirto market." After this failure, Israel's career went into decline, compounded by alcoholism and a personality that some found difficult.


Literary forgery

By 1991, Israel's career as a writer of books and magazine articles had ended. She had tried and failed to support herself with
wage labor Wage labour (also wage labor in American English), usually referred to as paid work, paid employment, or paid labour, refers to the socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer in which the worker sells their labour power under ...
. To make money, she began forging letters (estimated to total more than 400) of deceased writers and actors. Later, she began stealing actual letters and autographed papers of famous persons from libraries and archives, replacing them with forged copies she had made. She and an accomplice, Jack Hock, sold forged works and stolen originals (Hock had been released from prison a short time earlier for the armed
robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person o ...
of a taxicab driver). This continued for over a year, until two undercover
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
agents questioned Israel on a Manhattan sidewalk outside a delicatessen from which they saw her exit, according to her memoir. It is unclear how her forgeries were detected, but in her memoir Israel indicates that her ability to sell letters ended abruptly and universally. Israel mentions in her memoir that a
Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...
expert insisted that Coward would not have referenced his homosexual activities so enthusiastically in letters at a time when such behavior would be punished with a prison sentence. Researchers have doubted that Coward believed authorities in
Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
, where he lived from 1956 until his death, in his native United Kingdom or in the United States might tamper with his mail. These researchers have noted that Israel never had Coward make an explicit reference to a sexual act. They believe the sheer abundance of letters being sold by Israel aroused suspicion among autograph collectors, dealers and used bookstore owners. Other researchers believe they became suspicious of paper with
anachronistic An anachronism (from the Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time periods. The most common typ ...
watermarks. Some researchers suspect Israel's use of very ordinary (aged) paper raised an alarm because the sophisticated letter writers were likely to have owned the finest stationery. Israel's memoir makes clear that her name suddenly became toxic among autograph collectors, dealers and used book merchants no matter exactly how they caught on. Moreover, she criticizes the guild of autograph brokers: Before they became suspicious, they never required her to recite her prepared lies about how a letter came into her hands. Israel points out that their own code of conduct required all of them to be able to attest unquestioningly to a detailed account of the
provenance Provenance () is the chronology of the ownership, custody or location of a historical object. The term was originally mostly used in relation to works of art, but is now used in similar senses in a wide range of fields, including archaeology, p ...
of each document. Her criminal prosecution was set in motion not over the forgeries she was selling to collectors, but over the forgeries she was slipping into library and museum files to replace the genuine letters she was stealing. The forgeries she sold had not involved interstate commerce or great sums of money and so were overlooked by the FBI and other law enforcement. But when autograph dealer David Lowenherz learned that an
Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...
letter he had purchased from Israel's accomplice, Jack Hock, was supposed to be in the
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
archives, it was discovered that Columbia's letter had been replaced by a forgery and Israel had signed the register for examining the relevant archive folder. At this point, the FBI was called in and an investigation showed that Israel had stolen authentic letters, replacing them with forged copies, from several institutional collections. According to David Lowenherz, Israel and Hock were arrested together by the FBI when they met at a bank to cash Lowenherz's check from a sale. In Israel's memoir, where she cites FBI documents from her case file, her story of her encounter with the FBI differs from the account by Lowenherz. She describes her encounter with two FBI agents on a sidewalk outside a Manhattan delicatessen where she had waited for Jack Hock to meet her so they could count the cash from a sale he had made (she had caught him stealing when they had met at her home several weeks earlier). Israel claims Hock failed to show up at the delicatessen and she decided to return to her home in case he had gone there, instead. When Israel exited the delicatessen, her memoir goes on to say, she was startled by a man's voice shouting "Lee!", and she noticed that another man "appeared to be with him". "The man in my face showed me a big star affixed to his wallet that glinted in the sunlight. The lunch-hour crowd milled around us." She told them she needed to consult with her lawyer. The two agents on the sidewalk left without arresting her or telling her what was going to happen next. They did tell her that Jack Hock was in federal custody and he had requested that she never try to contact him again. She immediately returned to her apartment and started to destroy all evidence of her crimes, discarding in public trash cans more than a dozen typewriters she had used to emulate the look of the famous writers' letters. By the time she was served with a federal warrant ordering her to save this evidence, it had already been destroyed. Israel also claims she was never arrested or handcuffed, instead receiving
summons A summons (also known in England and Wales as a claim form or plaint note, and in the Australian state of New South Wales as a court attendance notice (CAN)) is a legal document issued by a court (a ''judicial summons'') or by an administrative ag ...
es for federal court dates, though Lowenherz's account contradicts hers on this point. In June 1993, Israel pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to transport stolen property, for which she served six months under house arrest and five years of federal probation. Additionally, she was barred by almost all libraries and archives, ending any opportunity to resume her career as a biographer. She eventually supported herself
copy editing Copy editing (also known as copyediting and manuscript editing) is the process of revising written material (" copy") to improve quality and readability, as well as ensuring that a text is free of errors in grammar, style, and accuracy. '' The C ...
for '' Scholastic'' magazines. Even after her exposure and sentencing, some of her forgeries were still being sold by reputable dealers as authentic—and at substantially greater prices than she had been paid for them. Some were even quoted in published books as if they were real. Israel later expressed pride in her criminal accomplishments, especially the forgeries.


Memoir controversy

Some reviewers of Israel's memoir questioned
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's decision to publish it, because she would profit from the sales. One reviewer wrote, "What this is is a hilarious memoir of a self-described miscreant and her pursuit of a meal ticket. Ironically, in a joke the reader will share, by purchasing her book we all participate in buying her that meal." Upon the publication of the memoir in 2008, Naomi Hample, a New York City bookstore owner who had purchased some of Israel's forged letters in 1992, was quoted by ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' as saying, "I'm certainly not angry anymore, though it was an expensive and very large learning experience for me. And she's really an excellent writer. She made the letters terrific."


Death

Lee Israel died in New York City on December 24, 2014, from
myeloma Multiple myeloma (MM), also known as plasma cell myeloma and simply myeloma, is a cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell that normally produces antibodies. Often, no symptoms are noticed initially. As it progresses, bone pain, a ...
, a
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
of
plasma cell Plasma cells, also called plasma B cells or effector B cells, are white blood cells that originate in the lymphoid organs as B cells and secrete large quantities of proteins called antibodies in response to being presented specific substances ca ...
s. According to a ''New York Times'' obituary, she had lived alone and had no children. Regarding her family, she wrote in her memoir, "I had a brother with whom I had never had much in common."


Biopic

In April 2015, it was announced that a film version of ''
Can You Ever Forgive Me? ''Can You Ever Forgive Me?'' is a 2018 American biographical drama film directed by Marielle Heller, with a screenplay by Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty based on the 2008 confessional memoir of the same name by Lee Israel. Melissa McCarthy s ...
'', starring
Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and children's author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent ...
and directed by
Nicole Holofcener Nicole Holofcener ( ; born March 22, 1960) is an American film and television director and screenwriter. She has directed seven feature films, including '' Walking and Talking'', '' Friends with Money'' and '' Enough Said'', as well as various t ...
, would be produced. In July 2015, Moore said she had been fired from the project. In May 2016, it was confirmed that
Melissa McCarthy Melissa Ann McCarthy (born August 26, 1970) is an American actress, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Melissa McCarthy, numerous accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Award ...
would play Israel, while
Marielle Heller Marielle Stiles Heller (born October 1, 1979) is an American filmmaker and actress best known for directing the comedy drama film '' The Diary of a Teenage Girl'' (2015), the biographical drama films '' Can You Ever Forgive Me?'' (2018) and ''A ...
would direct the film. Filming of ''Can You Ever Forgive Me?'' took place in New York City in early 2017. The film held its world premiere at the
Telluride Film Festival The Telluride Film Festival (TFF) is a film festival held annually in Telluride, Colorado, during Labor Day, Labor Day weekend (the first Monday in September). The 51st Telluride Film Festival, 51st edition took place on August 30–September ...
on September 1, 2018, and was theatrically released in the United States on October 19, 2018. For her portrayal of Israel, McCarthy was nominated for the
Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a lead ...
.


Bibliography

* ''Miss Tallulah Bankhead'' (1972), a biography of
Tallulah Bankhead Tallulah Brockman Bankhead (January 31, 1902 – December 12, 1968) was an American actress. Primarily an actress of the stage, Bankhead also appeared in several films including an award-winning performance in Alfred Hitchcock's ''Lifeboat (194 ...
* ''Kilgallen'' (1980), a biography of
Dorothy Kilgallen Dorothy Mae Kilgallen (July 3, 1913 – November 8, 1965) was an American columnist, journalist, and television game show panelist. After spending two semesters at the College of New Rochelle, she started her career shortly before her 18th bir ...
* ''Estée Lauder: Beyond the Magic'' (1985), an unauthorized biography of Estée Lauder * ''Can You Ever Forgive Me?: Memoirs of a Literary Forger'' (2008)


References


Further reading

*


External links

* Lee Israel research notes, Billy Rose Theatre Division,
The New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...
: *
1970s
*
Files on Vanessa Redgrave, 1982–1987
{{DEFAULTSORT:Israel, Lee 1939 births 2014 deaths 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American LGBTQ people 20th-century American journalists 20th-century American memoirists 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American LGBTQ people American biographers American women journalists American women memoirists American women non-fiction writers Brooklyn College alumni Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from multiple myeloma in the United States Jewish American journalists Jewish American memoirists Jewish American non-fiction writers Jewish women writers Journalists from New York City Literary forgeries Writers from Brooklyn