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Hoax, The
by Clifford Irving
Product Group: Book
Publisher: Miramax (2007-03-06)
ISBN: 1401308546
EAN: 9781401308544
Dewey Decimal #: 813.54
Paperback: 400 pages
Release Date: 2007-02-28
SKU: 102208000099
Condition: New
Comments: 1401308546 New, never read, may have minor wear on cover.
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Editorial Reviews
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Product Description
Soon to be a major motion picture -- a no-holds-barred account of the most notorious literary hoax of the twentieth century, written by the perpetrator himself Before Oprah and TheSmokingGun.com had ever heard of James Frey, there was Clifford Irving. In 1971, he burst onto the literary scene, claiming to have been granted the right to pen the authorized biography of the famously reclusive icon Howard Hughes. Forged documents seemed to bear out his claims, and McGraw-Hill awarded him a contract for the then-enormous sum of $750,000. When Hughes himself emerged from seclusion to denounce Irving as a charlatan, McGraw-Hill stood by their author. It wasn’t until Hughes filed suit, and Swiss bank officials got involved, that Irving finally confessed. The Hoax, first published in 1981, is Irving’s explosive account of his own misdeeds -- and the inspiration for a soon-to-be released movie starring Richard Gere.
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Customer Reviews
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A hoax within a hoax?
Rating  (4)
Date: 2008-12-31
This is the story of a man's scam to write the biography of Howard Hughes. He was able to scam his New York publishing house (McGraw Hill) by convincing them that Howard Hughes had commissioned him to write his authorized biography. His `hoax' made global newspaper headlines and was heralded as the biggest media scam of all time.
This book will relate how Clifford Irving almost pulled out this stunt by opening fake Swiss accounts, writing forged letters, using false passports, and conducting faked interviews. He almost pulled it off!
I liked this book, but I found the beginning a bit slow. The part where the author relates his life story was a bit boring for my taste. However, I did like his narrative on how he almost pulled out this stunt.
The goal of writing the authorized biography of Howard Hughes was to make money; in fact, over one million dollars. Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for us and the estate of Howard Hughes, he got caught. But the irony is that he probably ended up amassing more than the million dollars he had hoped for. The `Hoax', written by him, became a worldwide sensation, and is now a major motion picture starring Richard Gere.
In French there is a saying that says, "Rira bien qui rira le dernier". Basically, he who laughs first laughs last. Clifford Irving might have conned us after all!
Afterthought: For a man who almost conned us, how do we know his story of how he pulled the scam is real? Did all the events he described in the book `The Hoax' really happen, or is this a hoax within a hoax?
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Irving's audio Hoax
Rating  (5)
Date: 2008-08-23
2 out of 2 customers found this reveiw helpful
Before James Frey bogus biography of A Million Little Pieces, there was Clifford Irving!
Now unlike Frey, Irving tried to write an autobiography of Howard Hughes. In the 1970, Irving was a hack spy novelist and Hughes was a reclusive millionaire who was in hiding. Irving prayed upon the Cloistered Hughes mythos, thinking that he would never come out and state Irving's book was a fake and a fraud. However the literary liar was exposed for what and who he was...And It didn't take Oprah to do it!
Irving's biography showcased how he and a few other did a bogus con game on the publishing industry, which amazed many..and still does today. His book is a great tale of how he perpetrated his scam. This book read like a mystery story, but its all true. What amazes me is that it really happened.
Narrative talent Joe Barrett is a marvel at creating verbal characters that seem real. I know I have never heard Clifford Irving speak... but in listening to him create Irving on audio, i assume I have.
The biography is better on audio. It give this book more diamensions to this literary shell game and will amaze the audio listeners. Barrett tone is fast paced. I do not know who the director of this production was, but I would love to shake his/her hand on a job well done.
The Hoax is no lie..it is a true chance to hear a con man spit cider in your ear as he did with the press and the publishing industry in the 1970's. In the audio format, this memoir makes the listener a willing partner on the plans and keeps you riveted like a great mystery novel, but its actually happened.
Don't be fooled, the Hoax is not a fix at all. It is a sure bet to get on audio
Bennet Pomerantz AUDIOWORLD
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Pretty good description of a con
Rating  (3)
Date: 2008-06-23
A pretty good description of a con. The author details how he hoodwinked McGraw Hill and was eventually caught. The coup of this story is how far he was able to go with his cleverness.
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Review
Rating  (1)
Date: 2008-02-17
0 out of 15 customers found this reveiw helpful
Well I can't review this book silly Amazon, your website is so non-surfer friendly I didn't see that it automatically defaults to my last SENT address, rather than MY current address which is my billing address. Would make sense don't you think to default to the billing address. So I never recieved this product. I'm still drilling for oil up above the Arctic circle (-60F), hope your car is running nicely.
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A ripping good yarn
Rating (5)
Date: 2007-10-09
1 out of 1 customers found this reveiw helpful
Love him or hate him, Clifford Irving sure can write. The Hoax is an absolute page turner from start to finish; I am about three quarters of of the way through the book and counting the minutes until I can return home and dive into it again. Clifford Irving lived an incredible life even before turning to forgery: living on a houseboat in Kashmir, living in Mexico, a couple of European wives, an internationally famous mistress, and then fleecing a major US corporation. It is just a great read!
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