Making up legends

Grey Gardens is now a classic. Opening to mixed reviews in 1975, the documentary has since been adapted to Broadway and dramatized into a television feature; it has inspired pop songs and received a sequel. The lives of Edith Bouvier Beale and her daughter Edie have spread through a variety of media to an array of audiences. ¹ However, when Grey Gardens first came out, it was met with accusations of unethical filmmaking and inauthenticity. The directors David and Albert Maysles were blamed for framing the Beales in a manner that took advantage of the women and presented them in an inopportune light. ²