(Finally) Entering the Frey

I’ve been following the whole Jim Frey thing very carefully, and just want to say he knew full well his stories were embellished past the provenience of ‘memoir’ and yet he enjoyed profiting from the lies.

Yes, memoir is an unreliable form that lends itself to flattering its author – look at any politician’s book.

Yes, people who are addicts have real issues with perception. But Frey shopped his book as fiction prior to its acceptance at Random House. (Hey, didn’t I just see Nan Talese’s resume on Monster.com? Right where it belongs)

I applaud Oprah for changing her stance on Frey and the book. Yes, it was just ‘good business’ and perhaps a bow to fan pressure, but I’m glad she changed her tune. We should not allow writers and publishers to make any claims they want to sell books. Right now, Frey is just one little (extremely successful) guy taken to task.

There is much work to be done, so the next time a Clinton memoir makes a similarly outrageous claim or glaring omission, they too should be taken to task. Look at Eli Wiesel. He published Night as an ‘autobiographical novel’. Was every word true? No. But his unmistakable sense of place let you know he had truly lived the horrors of which he wrote. He profited from his book with out lying, shopping it as non-fiction, or trying to defend it until the facts piled up to high to ignore. Kudos to the Smoking Gun and others who try to bring the truth to light – whether anyone wants to hear it or not.

Locally we are experiencing a liar of another sort, one much worse; yet he has attracted less attention. Why? Because he didn’t tell his lies to Oprah? Perhaps. But see if you agree his are worse than exaggerating a trip to the dentist…

Marengo Alderman Werner “Jack” Genot, 69, admitted he fabricated a decades old war hero story and acquired military license plates with forged discharge papers. He wins the “Most Fabricated Service Record Since George W. Bush” award hands-down. Genot claims to have participated in battles that took place long before he was old enough to serve, and hid his 1956 less-than-honorable discharge due to a stolen car. He appeared in area schools trumpeting his falsehoods and was the local contact for Toys for Tots. Among his claims: A Bronze Star, Silver Star, two Purple Hearts and a ten-month stint as a prisoner of war. It’s amazing he was able to keep up the façade for as long as he did. Shame on us for not investigating sooner!


Yet the public outcry has been muted, at best. Some say Americans just love to tear down their heroes, reveal their feet of clay. I disagree! Only in America are the “heroes” shown to be beneath contempt, yet they rise again and again. Look at D.C. Mayor Marion Barry! The average American didn’t uncover his true nature; they did however, vote for him again in spite of it. We as a nation are too forgiving. The cult of celebrity trumps any attempt to shun or shame these people to the fringes of society, where they belong. Any country where Tonya Harding and Joey Buttafuco can continue to make a living is much too forgiving indeed. Genot should have resigned the moment his lies came to light. Any citizens who did not immediately start proceedings to recall him gets the government they deserve.