THE LATEST INSTALLMENT in Ryan Murphy’s anthology series inspired by real-life beef, Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, offers up a juicy take on the souring of the friendship between author Truman Capote and the circle of high society women he affectionately dubbed his “Swans.”
After welcoming Capote into their confidence, these wealthy socialites later swore bitter revenge on the writer when an extract from his unfinished novel Answered Prayers was published, and was revealed to include thinly-fictionalized versions of them—and their closely guarded secrets. As retribution for their tarnished reputations, the Swans exiled Capote from their world, and the majority of them never spoke to him again.
One exception is C.Z. Guest, the actress, writer, and fashion designer portrayed in Feud by Chloë Sevigny.
Who was C.Z. Guest?
Like many of the Swans, Lucy Douglas Guest (née Cochrane) was a part of the upper crust of American society. After being presented as a debutante in 1937, she went on to win a beauty pageant and had a brief career on the stage. The initials “C.Z.” were a moniker rather than her actual name, and are believed to have been derived from her childhood nickname “Sissy.”
In 1947, she married Winston Frederick Churchill Guest, a national polo champion and second cousin of British prime minister Winston Churchill. The writer Ernest Hemingway was the best man at the ceremony, which was held at Hemingway’s residence in Havana, Cuba.
Considered a great beauty, Guest was painted by many significant artists in her life, including Andy Warhol, Salvador Dalí, and Diego Rivera, for whom she is believed to have posed nude. She was also something of a fashion icon, and was dressed by Givenchy, Mainbocher, and Adolfo, for whom she would design a cashmere sweater collection in the ’80s. She was inducted into the International Best Dressed Hall of Fame in 1959.
Much like her polo-playing husband, Guest was an accomplished equestrian in her own right, until a riding accident in 1976, after which she began a career as a writer. An avid gardener, she penned a column for the New York Times on the subject, which ended up being syndicated across more than 300 newspapers.
She later published a book, entitled First Garden. It included illustrations by her friend, artist Cecil Beaton, and the foreword was written by none other than Truman Capote, showing that their friendship was able to endure the scandal and pain depicted in Feud.
C.Z. Guest died on November 8, 2003.
Philip Ellis is News Editor at Men’s Health, covering fitness, pop culture, sex and relationships, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV, and he is the author of Love & Other Scams.
