Clifford Irving became involved in forgery when he wrote and published a memoir as told by Elmyr de Hory titled Fake! The Story of Elmyr de Hory, the Greatest Art Forger of Our Time. Irving grew more famous for a literary hoax, his forged autobiography of wealthy hermit Howard Hughes. This project was fraudulent from the start, as Irving approached McGraw-Hill about another collaborative book project claiming that Hughes had asked him to write his life story. While Irving claimed motives aside from money, he received large advance payments for the book (until he was found out as a fraud). His writing career continued despite this infamous fake, and he went on to write several books. Irving published his own autobiography, What Really Happened, in which he declared: “I had never realized I was committing a crime—I had thought of it as a hoax.” The story of Irving’s forged letters and memoir appear in the 2006 movie titled The Hoax.
By Molly George
Sources:
Hallström, Lasse. The Hoax, 2007.
Anderson, John. “A Forger’s Impressions of Impressionism.” New York Times. 22 March 22.