It turns out that the famous writer JT Leroy is a middle-aged mom from New Jersey who calls herself "Speedy."The "guy" who went to all those parties was her sister-in-law in drag.
Just in time for the movie version to come out, the famous author of "The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things" has been uncovered as a bit of a fraud. While the use of pseudonyms is has a long and honorable history, the author generally admits to being the author at the earliest opportunity. After all, Sam Clemmons immediately owned up to being Mark Twain and Eric Blair George Orwell. But as far as I know, nobody has gone as far as Laura "Speedy" Albert to distinguish her pseudonym from her actual person.
Since the early `90s, Albert has been promoting herself in two ways: First as a member of a small punk band based in San Francisco, then as JT LeRoy, the former child male prostitute and phone freak, who for ten years faxed and telephoned his way into the hearts of the intelegensia on both coasts.
LeRoy's story was heart wrenching. Stolen by his birth-mother from loving foster parents, he was forced into a life of drugs, prostitution and evangelism. Turning to writing in therapy, his short stories and article became stuff of legend. In 2001, after ten years in hiding, JT LeRoy finally made his public appearance, doing readings and interviews.
But something wasn't right. Why did he insist on going around wearing a weird white wig? Why did he insist on changing sexual orientation from time to time? Why did he insist on always being followed by Speedy Albert, her husband Jeff Knoop and their son Thor? Were the Knoops keeping JT as a love slave of sorts?
Or was JT LeRoy merely, like Pete Logand in Armastad Maupin's "The Night Listener" a figment of some demented imagination.
New York Magazine and The New York Times did investigation, and outed Speedy and her husband and sister-in-law as the perpetrators of a massive hoax. The autobiographical fiction wasn't autobiographical at all!
All this a week before the movie comes out. Perfect timing.