"In transcribing her letters, I found a woman who was far from a 'staunch character,' as she referred to herself during one scene in Grey Gardens. She now appeared more like a woman who was very much in touch with modern times, both politically and socially, who cared deeply for those close to her."
—Gretchen Hughes in Letters of Little Edie Beale: Grey Gardens and Beyond
Ages ago, I did an exhaustive post that included a lengthy review of Walter Newkirk's delightful MemoraBEALEia, all about his unique connection with Little Edie Beale following an interview he did with her to promote the Grey Gardens documentary back when he was a student at Rutgers.
Little did we know that Newkirk had much, much more up his sleeve—
he's now published Letters of Little Edie Beale: Grey Gardens and Beyond (Authorhouse, $25), which collects countless letters and notes from Beale to Newkirk from the period of August 13, 1977, to 1987 and from 2000 until October 10, 2001, just before she died. Handsomely decorated with fabulous art and boasting verbatim transcriptions of her correspondence,
this book is a must-have for fans of the original Grey Gardens documentary as well as of the recent, Emmy-winning HBO film starring Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore because while it allows us to embrace the harmless kooky side of Beale, it also documents her unique wit...and immortalizes some foibles.
I loved finding small gems, like her wry observation that Jackie O and Lee Radziwill probably avoided reaching her because "I suppose they didn't want to talk about my act!" This refers to her brief stint as a cabaret performer in Manhattan following the success of the documentary. She also gushed in 1981 about feeling "great today after seeing Grey Gardens for the 6th time," only to ponder both liking (for the attention and $5,000) and disliking the film that made her famous.
The most gossip-worthy aspect of the book has to be Beale's bad feelings towards Albert Maysles, one of the documentarians who made her an arthousehold name:
"[The Maysles Brothers] came into our house 'Grey Gardens' by order of Jackie and Lee. They started photographing my mother in her bed in her bedroom! We didn't know who they were! I was terrified...They gave me a Thanksgiving Dinner sent to our house - mother did not touch it I did free publicity going everywhere with them in NYC. My brother (lawyer) said it was silly and unnecessary...Not one cent in spite of the revival [of Grey Gardens] ever came from the Maysles. They wrote me a letter when the shooting was over and it said they were completely 'bankrupt' and convinced [Grey Gardens] would never earn a dime!"
Much later, the double-dip into Grey Gardens riled up these old ill feelings:
"Al Maysles is making a second Grey Gardens. I will sue unless I get the correct amount of money! It is a 'video!' (Secret Report) With an interview unpublished! I never said one unquestionable word (outside the film). Life the USA fills me with deep terror...I had a lawyer make a contract- I paid him $650. The Maysles took him over! They said he was their mother's cousin! (She was an Epstein.)...I do not want to be interviewed by Al Maysles. I do not want to say one word about anything. Besides- he will make me old and ugly and mean. I will have to avoid all this- but how? By writing a book about how absolutely ghastly everyone was? Publicity and money are their gods!"
Maybe the most shocking part of the book for me was the confirmation that Beale—famous for her griping about the "mean Republican town" in which she lived—voted for and adored George W. Bush after initially disliking him. This may have had more to do with the shock of September 11, and these warm feelings may well have dissipated over time, but as of her final note to Newkirk, she was smitten:
"I am still trying to get over the shock and horror of September 11th! The world never will! George W. is great - the Taliban must be removed. I am so worried about the dangerous Arabs who plant bombs and are all over different countries. Do not go in a bus of subway."
Her other political observations include initially loving the Clintons (before the Elian Gonzalez affair turned her off of him "forever") and offering a sharp rebuke for Jimmy Carter's "crazy" commando raid to win back the American hostages held by Iran:
"Jimmy C. will be out in the fall and Ronald Reagan will be in - Fascism at last!"
This hardly seems like the nonsensical rambling one might expect, remembering her odd demeanor on film. It's more like the correspondence of an inconsistent yet thoughtful pundit. I wonder if fans will have a hard time connecting the odd, balding, dancing lady from the documentary with the author of these fascinating if brief letters, filled with observances of Cher, Mae West and the birth of a Grey Gardens musical, but I have no doubt they will have a blast trying.
P.S. If you're interested in seeing Newkirk live, he's appearing at The ShowRoom, an independent cinema venue in Asbury Park, New Jersey, at 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 18, for a screening of the HBO Grey Gardens, a post-film discussion and a book-signing. Tickets here.
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