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Joey, We Hardly Interviewed Ye

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Joey, We Hardly Interviewed Ye Joey, We Hardly Interviewed Ye Editor's Note: This week, "The Last Brother," a biography of Ted Kennedy, was published to raucously unfavorable re- . views, which criticized author Joe McGinniss for making up the thoughts of his subjects and for sloppy research. We were going to interview McGinniss for his views on the sub- ject, but t i we figured, what the hell, why bother? 93 By Ken Ringle Washington Post Staft$Vnter s the small plane jounced through the darkness, Joe McGinniss, with increasing impatience, kept glancing A at his watch. It wasn't the time he was worried about; it was the date. His Rolex, purchased with the advance of "Blind Faith" (or was it "Fatal Vision"? No matter) showed the date and there it was. He was a day late and several hundred thousand dollars short. He'd just been sued by Jef- frey MacDonald (or was it Janet Malcolm?) whose trial he had written about in either a book or an article for Vanity Fair, he couldn't remember which, and they'd settled out of court for a sum that made him pale. He was already pale enough. The Irish are often pale and McGinniss is the sort of tousle-headed Irish that wears his shamrock on his sleeve, as if to emphasize the pallor. He has the eyes of an Irish wolfhound, with just enough irregu- larity in his canine incisors to hint at rabies. He's been emo- tionally rabid since childhood. He was born in Bemidji, Minn. (or was it New York City?) of a father whose middle name was Aloysius, for which he'd been shunned and ridi- culed by the Italian boys in the neighborhood. He'd never gotten over it. But now he needed another book. He'd written "The Selling of the President" in 1968, which had launched him to best See McGINNISS, C6, CoL 1 •C6 THURSDAY, JULY 29,1993 THE WASHING' Carl Bernstein had put words in Nix- on's head in "The Final Days," based You Say So, Joe on dozens of interviews. That had been controversial. Their book had MeGINNISS, From Cl fia"? It was a good title, but he sold even more than his own. wasn't committed to it. But that seemed, well, passe. Teddy se lerdom from the obituary desk of Kennedy books. McGinniss had al- the Port Chester, N.Y., Daily Item, would just deny the thoughts, and ways had a thing about the Kenne- Teddy had denied so much over the DOW he didn't have Richard Nix- dys. He was Irish like the Kennedys. years that it was no longer news. He teto kick around anymore, and he He'd been born in New York City was supporting not only MacDonald needed to put thoughts somewhere like Jack Kennedy. He'd beaten up no writer had put them before, - rid his lawyers but his own law- on Nixon like a Kennedy. He'd even -yer/agent Morton Janklow, who moved to Massachusetts like the Wait a minute. The Kennedy fkher! drank royalties like Dracula drank Kennedys. But he wasn't a Kennedy. He had been mute with a stroke blood. Those remaindered copies of It's hard to be if your father's middle when Jack (or was it Bobby?) was tii§ 1972 effort "The Dream Team" name is Aloysius. killed: silent but thinking! He could Neiren't nourishing Janklow, who The book would need controversy. never deny anything! And you was threatening to open a bigger The one thing Simon & Schuster had wouldn't need all those tiresome in- McGinniss looked at his watch always impressed on him was that terviews, which took too long any- akaini and cursed silently in Celtic. good books don't sell. Controversial way. Why check things out? He'd C me novels were barely paying the books sell. He'd need something in it done that in Port Chester. That was ony. He needed something big- beyond the ordinary Camelot-bash- journalism. This was art. .ier. He thought of all the books he ing of the era, something to make The Kennedy father. He loved it. It could, the sort of knee-jerk books the press gabble and the talk shows even had the mob connection, the Ital- -that made New York publishers ex- babble. Something to make Janet ian put-down that always sold! He crete in their Calvin Kleins and vom- Malcolm write about him without su- would write a biography of Teddy that it' large advances. Diet books. Hole- ing him. (Or had he sued her? Or -Oust books. Hitler books. How-to included Teddy's father's thoughts! It maybe he had sued Jeffrey Masson? was perfect. That was one father -books. Madonna books. Mafia books. Or . ? No matter.) 0n-Who-Won't-Commit-and-the- Teddy wouldn'Valk. He could write whose middle name wasn't Aloysius. Women-Who-Love-Them books. it anyway, putting words in Teddy's He was a Kennedy named Joe. Aganedy books. How about "How to mouth. But that wouldn't work. Ev- Diet Your Way Through the Next erybody did that. 'Holocaust With Hitler and Madonna, He could put words in Teddy's head. as Told to Ted Kennedy by the Ma- That was better. Bob Woodward and .
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