The main conflict in The Hoax is illustrated in the second scene when we hear an executive at McGraw-Hill publishing discuss Clifford Irving's book about the infamous art forger Elmyr de Hory. The executive juggles his words, determining whether to call de Hory an artist or an art forger. We too are often juggling our own thoughts when it comes to Irving, who attempts to publish a fake autobiography about Howard Hughes. Is he just a liar, or is he a damn good liar, worthy of admiration? In the hands of actor Richard Gere, the character Irving is, in fact, an artist who works in lies.
The lies start quickly after McGraw-Hill rejects a fiction novel written by Irving. Desperate to do something, to be someone, Irving barges into the McGraw-Hill offices and tells them that he is working on the most important book of the century. It's a lie. He has no book in mind, but it gets the publisher interested. So he, his friend Dick (Alfred Molina) and his wife (Marcia Gay Harden) throw around ideas until one finds him.
Howard Hughes. The eccentric, reclusive billionaire, who is more intriguing than any other man on the planet, and who has little contact with the outside world, is the perfect subject.
When Irving lies, he lies big. He perfectly forges letters from Hughes saying he is authorized to write the billionaire hermit's autobiography. He has Dick go to the Bahamas and mail forged letters from Hughes. He listens to tapes and illegally copies government documents, all to make his book the perfect fraud. Every time it looks like the jig is up, Irving schemes his way out of it. But finally having the book printed doesn't mean he'll make it out of this one.
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1 - Howard Hughes a Quarter a Story and a Picture
I am looking for a picture taken of Howard Hughes. Please listen to a phone message on the story page, that was left by one of the Howard Hughes aides in September 2005.