The Swans of Fifth Avenue

C.Z. Guest hangs up the phone in her Palm Beach house after listening to Truman rant about how the other swans won’t take his calls. She read “La Côte Basque 1965” and didn’t think much of it—it was certainly no In Cold Blood. She and the other swans had read that book when it came out, and it made them shy around him, like they had just realized that their charming friend was an actual artist. It’s not that Truman hadn’t been famous before that, C.Z. reflects; after all, she has a vivid memory of watching the film version of Breakfast at Tiffany’s with him. But they all—even Babe—were uncomfortable with Truman after In Cold Blood. C.Z. thinks back on her own checkered past, of her privileged childhood in Boston and of her years sowing “wild oats” with the Ziegfeld Follies and in Mexico with Diego Rivera. Her thoughts turn back to Truman, and she wonders again whether it was In Cold Blood that made him dangerous.

In the summer of 1966, Babe reads In Cold Blood—Truman’s “nonfiction novel” that depicts the murders of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, by Richard Hickock and Perry Smith. Babe is surprised by how much she identifies with the reclusive and melancholy wife, Bonnie Clutter. Thinking about Bonnie leads Babe to consider her distant relationship with her own four children, whom she has largely left alone in favor of Bill—and Truman. Thinking of Truman reminds her of how much she fears losing him, even as she struggles to connect the image of her friend with the masterful author of In Cold Blood. As if on cue, Truman calls her and sounds, Babe realizes, just like her friend always has. He knows that she would identify with Bonnie, he said, because he knows her better than anyone. Still, he is too busy to see her, given an upcoming television interview, and Babe feels at loose ends when they hang up.

To lift her spirits, Babe makes an unscheduled trip to Bergdorf Goodman. A salesperson offers assistance, embarrassed that it’s Mrs. Paley’s personal shopper’s day off, but Babe insists on being allowed to “wander.” Despite making a number of purchases, she is still feeling restless when she runs into Slim. Slim, now divorced from Leland Hayward, has recently married an Englishman with a title but no money. Babe insists on buying Slim a gift of lingerie. Their conversation periodically turns to Truman, and Slim assures Babe that he still loves them. On the way to buy Truman an extravagant present, Babe tells Slim she had pretended to be a “normal person” that day; Slim tells her not to do that very often—she and Truman love her the way she is.

In the summer of 1966, Truman resolves to throw himself a lavish masked ball to celebrate the wealth and prominence he has enjoyed since the publication of In Cold Blood. The ball will take place at the Plaza Hotel and will force the rich to “amuse” him for once; more than that, it will provide him with a sense of satisfaction that he couldn't achieve in any other way, not even by moving from Brooklyn to an apartment in the fashionable UN Building.

Truman cannily decides not to throw the party explicitly for himself. Rather, he resolves to honor Kay Graham, the recently widowed publisher of the Washington Post. He likes Kay—“Poor Kay!”—because of her “plainness” and her distance from the world of New York; he ranks her among the more “ordinary” people who fascinate him almost as much as the rich. He spends the summer crafting the guest list for his intimate soiree of some 500 people. The people he doesn’t invite are almost as interesting as those he does. Ann Woodward will not be invited, though not entirely because she murdered her husband. Her most recent crime was throwing a drink in Truman’s face and calling him a homophobic slur at the Duchess of Windsor’s party.

Working on the party is a welcome relief from the “agonizing” process of writing In Cold Blood. The bulk of the story was surprisingly easy to compose, but getting to the last part—Perry and Dick’s execution—had been horrible, as stays and appeals delayed the carrying out of the sentence, and made it impossible for Truman to finish the book. Truman knows he used them, then “deserted” them—and he knows that Perry and Dick knew it too. Bearing witness to the execution had been one of the hardest things he’d ever done, and left him with the disturbing knowledge that an artist and a killer are not always so different. These are the thoughts that he keeps at bay while he plans his party.

Babe and her two sisters, Betsey Cushing Roosevelt Whitney and Minnie Cushing Astor Fosburgh, have afternoon tea at the Plaza’s Palm Court. They regularly hold “summits” to discuss family and social matters; the subject of this particular meeting is the clothing they will wear to the Black and White Ball the next evening. The sisters are bonded by a shared upbringing and similar social outlooks. The one subject on which they disagree is Truman. Betsey is uncomfortable about the publicity surrounding the party and the rumors that Truman leaked his own guest list. Betsey thinks that Truman has a “sting”—he has always been nice to them, but not others. She warns Babe that any bad publicity from the party will reflect poorly on her, but Babe is unconcerned.

Chapter 14 documents the day of the Black and White Ball and the party itself through a series of perspectives, beginning with Kay Graham. Truman had insisted that she get her hair done, so she goes to Kenneth Battelle’s legendary hair salon. At first, they assign her to a junior stylist, but when they realize she is the guest of honor, Kay is whisked upstairs to see Kenneth himself. Kay is surprised by how much she likes the “sleek” and “simple” style that Kenneth gives her; feeling like Cinderella, she now looks forward to the ball.

Slim was also styled by Kenneth, whose staff ensured that she didn’t run into Pamela. She goes over the list of exes she’ll probably meet at the ball. Truman once said to her that every good party has a good fight, but Slim doubts that’s what he has in mind for tonight.

Truman is “all aflutter” with preparations, basking in the attention the ball is getting. As he dresses, he hopes that Jack is doing the same, even though he has been generally negative about this endeavor, telling Truman he should be writing instead.

Babe surveys her Fifth Avenue apartment before her guests arrive for a pre-ball dinner. She feels “shaky,” not quite able to set aside her dissatisfaction about having had such a limited role in planning the party. Physically, too, she has been feeling off, as though something has changed, even though Bill remains the same. She thinks about getting older, and about Truman’s recent behavior. Though he hadn’t “abandoned” his swans like they’d feared, she know he’s been drinking more. As she walks through the apartment, she’s tempted to think of herself as just another one of Bill’s art objects, but Truman’s arrival puts an end to her worries.

Alvin Dewey and his wife Marie came all the way from Kansas to attend the ball. Alvin is a detective for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation who featured in In Cold Blood. He didn’t like Truman at first, but he “charmed” everyone eventually. Marie is in awe of the beautiful gowns and the famous guests, basking in the generous compliments from the swans. Babe had been particularly kind at her dinner, and, as they arrived at the Plaza, she’d shepherded Marie through the crowds. Although her husband doesn’t dance, Marie does the foxtrot with a handsome young man. The next day she finds out it is the famous dancer Rudolf Nureyev.

Gloria’s jewels weigh her down, but she’s pleased to see that she’s the most elegantly dressed of her friends. Still, she’s feeling the effects of her age. Not every wrinkle can be hidden, and preparing to be seen at an event like this is now a weeklong process. She thinks about everything it took to get here, and wonders how she’ll survive without her youth.

Jack attends the ball, but he is resolved not to have fun. He hates the whole idea of the ball and despises the “sycophants” Truman has for friends. He regrets how much Truman has changed since they first met and fears that this night is the end of Truman’s literary career. Even though he has written a truly “great book,” Truman seems determined to waste his talents on frivolity and drink. Their relationship will never be the same either. Truman pulls him over to a table where Lauren “Betty” Bacall is sitting, and Jack dances with her. He and Truman exchange a tender glance.

Frank Sinatra only came to the ball because his new wife, Mia Farrow, insisted. He hates the whole scene, particularly because he isn’t the center of attention. He decides it’s time for them to leave for a more congenial atmosphere. Truman begs him not to leave, but Sinatra ignores him. His departure marks the end of the party.

Although everyone had been so gracious and complimentary about the ball, it is all over. In his Plaza suite, Truman feels “empty” and “unloved.” He drinks some vodka and closes his eyes. He wishes his mother would tell him a story, but his mother isn’t with him.