There's insistence the literary merit stands apart from the contrived backstory, but it seems like Albert, the woman behind JT Leroy, played alot of folks like a fiddle -- a lot of the folks that helped usher along the career of this "Dickensian Tiny Tim" (I think those were the words Bright used) were just hip-seeking, trend-chasing celebs eager for street cred (Marilyn Manson, Ryder, etc), drawn to the (manufactured) "grit" and "raw authenticity" that Leroy represented.
Either way, looks like Albert got her wish to start a rock band out of it all, Thistle ("JT writes the lyrics" -- uh huh), with a lot of insider, A-list connections other start up bands would kill for. "Owned," indeed. Part of it's brilliant, part of it's lame.
-B.
Doug Henwood wrote:
> But I was also wondering if there was an intention
to put one over on on the liberal cultural elite - to
reveal how their political sympathies would overwhelm
their weak intellects showing them as hopeless
softies, etc.