Kitty Kelley

Kitty Kelley (born April 4, 1942) is an American investigative journalist and author of several best-selling unauthorized biographies of celebrities and politicians. Described as a "poison pen" biographer,^[1][2] her profiles frequently contain unflattering personal anecdotes and details, and their accuracy is often questioned.^[3][4] Though many of her books have topped the best sellers list, Kelley's credibility and sources have been called into question multiple times.^[5]

Time magazine reported that most journalists believe Kelley "too frequently fails to bring perspective or analysis to the fruits of her reporting and at times lards her work with dollops of questionable inferences and innuendos."^[6] In addition, Kelley has been described by Joe Klein as a "professional sensationalist"^[7] and her books have been described as "Kitty litter."^[8]

Her past subjects have included Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Nancy Reagan, the British Royal Family, and the Bush family. Although Kelley has been criticized and her books hotly debated, she has never been successfully sued for libel and has never been forced to retract a written statement.

Personal life

Born in Spokane, Washington, Kitty Kelley received a B.A. in English from the University of Washington. She worked at the New York World's Fair in 1964 and went on to become a receptionist/press secretary for Senator Eugene McCarthy.^[9]

Once in Washington D.C., Kelley became a freelance journalist writing for publications such as The Washington Star.^[9] Her first book was The Glamour Spas (Pocket Books, 1975), based on an article she had written about the "fat farm" industry. The book included gossip about the celebrities who attended these spas.

Books

Jacqueline Onassis, Elizabeth Taylor and Frank Sinatra biographies

Kelley's first celebrity biography was Jackie Oh! (1978), a life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, which was written on the request of Lyle Stuart, an independent publishing maverick who promoted Kelley's 'Washington insider' angle and launched the book into the New York Times Best Seller List. In the book, Kelley describes John F. Kennedy's womanizing and includes personal revelations about Jackie Kennedy's psychological treatment.

This book was followed by Elizabeth Taylor: The Last Star (1981), which was also a New York Times Best Seller in paperback and hardcover.

In Kelley's next book, His Way: The Unauthorized Biography of Frank Sinatra (1986) she discussed Sinatra's tumultuous marriages, alleged affairs and his links to the Mob. Sinatra initiated a $2 million lawsuit to prevent it from being published. He accused Kelley of character defamation and misrepresenting herself as his authorized biographer. He later withdrew his lawsuit. The book was number one on the New York Times Best Seller List, and hit best-seller lists in England, Canada, Australia and even France.

People magazine story

In 1990, Kelley wrote a piece for People magazine based on interviews she had conducted with Judith Campbell Exner, a former girlfriend of Frank Sinatra's who claimed to have had an affair with John F. Kennedy.^[9] Exner told Kelley that she had arranged ten meetings between Kennedy and a Mafia gangster Sam Giancana, and they discussed having the mob kill Fidel Castro.^[9] The story made national headlines, but it soon fell apart: it emerged that Exner had been paid $50,000 to talk with Kelley, was terminally ill, and did not mention these revelations in her own autobiography, which had been published years earlier.^[9] A former FBI agent also came forward and said that Giancana had been under a federal wiretap, so these multiple meetings with President Kennedy would have been impossible to cover up.^[9]

Nancy Reagan biography

In 1991 Kelley published Nancy Reagan: The Unauthorized Biography. She was paid $3.5 million to write the book.^[10][11] The book claimed that the first lady had engaged in multiple affairs with Frank Sinatra,^[3] that she frequently relied on astrology, that she had lied about her age, and that she had a very poor relationship with her children, even alleging that she hit her daughter, Patti.^[9] The reliability and sources were questioned.^[9] As Slate magazine writer Michael Crowley said, "During the Reagan years Nancy cultivated an image as a doting wife and skillful hostess, a reputation Kelley mercilessly diced with the zest of a Benihana chef."^[9]

The book endured more far scrutiny than any of Kelley's others.^[9] The book's thin sourcing and heavy innuendo were picked up upon and heavily criticized.^[9] Media coverage included cover stories in Time magazine ("Is She Really That Bad?", referring to Nancy Reagan), Newsweek, Entertainment Weekly ("The Kitty and Nancy Show") and People magazine ("Inside Kitty's Dish"). Kelley was also spoofed on Saturday Night Live. Kelley appeared on many news shows and interviews promoting the book, some of which were very critical.

Former President Ronald Reagan, aged 80 and who was to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease three years later, issued a brief statement, in which he said: "While I am accustomed to reports that stray from the truth, the flagrant and absurd falsehoods cited in a recently published book clearly exceed the bounds of decency. They are patently untrue–everything from the allegation of marijuana use [by Nancy and me] to marital infidelity to my failure to be present at the birth of my daughter Patti. Many of my friends have urged me to issue a point-by-point denial of the book's many outrages. To do so would, I feel, provide legitimacy to a book that has no basis in fact and serves no decent purpose."^[12]

Poison Pen

Partly as a result of Kelley's notoriety due to the Nancy Reagan book, she herself became the subject of a critical book, Poison Pen: The Unauthorized Biography of Kitty Kelley (1991), written by journalist George Carpozi, Jr.^[13][14] Carpozi said that the book was "full of sex, sin, and scandal", reminiscent of Kelley's own work.^[11]

British Royal family and the Bush family

In September 1997, Kelley turned her attention to the British Royal Family in The Royals (Warner Books, New York, ISBN 0-446-51712-7). In the book, Kelley stated that the Windsors obscured their German ancestry and described scandals surrounding the members of the Royal Family.

Kelley's most recent book, The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty, was published on September 14, 2004, less than two months before the 2004 U.S. Presidential election. Kelley announced plans for the book shortly after George W. Bush's election in 2001 and worked on it for four years. In "The Family", Kelley claimed that George W. Bush snorted cocaine with his brothers at Camp David during his father's presidency. Kelley cites Sharon Bush, the divorced ex-wife of George W. Bush's brother Neil Bush, as her source for these statements, but Sharon Bush denied making the allegations.^[15]

Planned biographies

On December 13, 2006, Crown announced that it will publish a biography of Oprah Winfrey, written by Kitty Kelley. The Oprah tell-all will follow the Kitty Kelley modus operandi and be unauthorized.

Political views

On March 19, 2007 The Los Angeles Times ran an op-ed by Kelley. In it she wrote that President George H.W. Bush, "enlisted at 18 to fly torpedo bombers. He flew 58 missions in two years and returned home a war hero. Since then, no one in his large family has seen fit to follow his sterling example of service and patriotism."^[16] Two days later the elder President Bush's grandson George P. Bush announced he had joined the United States Navy Reserve primarily because, as he said, "My grandfather's my hero, and what really sold me on the ultimate decision was having the chance to see the CVN-77 be commissioned under his name."^[17]

Kelley is listed on the Republic campaign of the UK's website as a supporter of a republic to replace the British monarchy.^[18]

Additional notoriety

She is listed as #80 in Bernard Goldberg's bestselling book 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America. ^[19]

References

External links

• "Kitty Kelley: Colonoscopist to the stars", Slate.com
• "The Cat that Roared" by Sally Denton
• "New York Times Book Review - No stone unthrown"
• New York Times Book Review "The Family: 'Here Comes the Son'"
• Village Voice "Kitty Galore"