This is a bizarre little book. Talese is known for his vignettes of people from sports stars to gangsters. He's also been intrigued by the sexual habits of Americans (Thy Neighbors Wife raised more than a few eyebrows as he inserted himself into the story to write his book.) This book came out long after TNW but only because he was waiting for permission from the ostensible author to reveal himself.
Talese had received a hand-written letter from a man who claimed to have purchase a 21-room motel so he could watch what went on in those rooms. He cut holes in the ceiling which were covered with screening to appear to be part of the ventilation system. He carpeted the floor of the attic with thick carpet so he could move about silently. And then he kept detailed journals of the sexual habits of those who stayed in his rooms.
Put off at first, Talese rationalized his interest in pursuing the story, with his observation that journalists are really just voyeurs of the human condition, and he had kept detailed journals himself of people's activities while writing Thy Neighbors Wife among others.
Most of the time, Foos (the owner of the motel) realized how bored people were, and he developed a very negative view of people in general.
“People are basically dishonest and unclean; they cheat and lie and are motivated by self-interest,” he commented, continuing, “They are part of a fantasy world of exaggerators, game players, tricksters, intriguers, thieves, and people in private who are never what they portray themselves as being in public.” The more time he spent in the attic, he insisted, the more disillusioned and misanthropic he became. As a result of his observations, he claimed to have become extremely antisocial, and when he was not in the attic he tried to avoid seeing his guests in the parking area or anywhere around the motel, and in the office he kept his conversations with them to a minimum. . . 'Conclusion: My observations indicate that the majority of vacationers spend their time in misery. They fight about money; where to visit; where to eat; where to stay; all their aggressions somehow are immeasurably increased, and this is the time they discover they are not properly matched. Women especially have a difficult time adjusting to both the new surroundings and their husbands. Vacations produce all the anxieties within mankind to come forward during this time, and to perpetuate the worst of emotions.' "
After it was published, the Washington Post wrote a story attacking the premise, arguing that several details could not be corroborated or were incorrect. Talese had noted in the book of the unreliability of the Voyeur, but given the concurrence in personal interviews of Foos's two wives and photographs obtained by Talese, I have to conclude the majority of it holds up.
Perhaps ironically, we are now under almost constant surveillance from innumerable cameras that someone is watching. The government and big business have become the Everest of voyeurism. And who's to say how all that material is used?
It's a short book, guaranteed to appeal to the voyeur in all of us.
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