Early in 1971, McGraw-Hill passes on Clifford Irving's (Richard Gere) new novel. He's desperate for money, so, against the backdrop of Nixon's reelection calculations, Irving claims he has Howard Hughes's cooperation to write Hughes's autobiography. With the help of friend Dick Suskind (Alfred Molina) and his wife Edith (Marcia Gay Harden), Irving does research, lucks into a manuscript written by a long-time Hughes associate, and plays on corporate greed. He's quick-thinking and outrageously bold. Plus, he banks on Hughes's reluctance to enter the public eye. At the same time, he's trying to rebuild his marriage and deflect the allure of his one-time mistress, Nina Van Pallandt (July Delpy). Can he write a good book, take the money, and pull off the hoax?

Cast & Characters: Richard Gere (Clifford Irving), Alfred Molina (Dick Suskind), Hope Davis (Andrea Tate), Marcia Gay Harden (Edith Irving), Stanley Tucci (Shelton Fisher), Julie Delpy (Nina van Pallandt), Eli Wallach, Zeljko Ivanek, John Carter, Christopher Evan Welch, Peter McRobbie, John Bedford Lloyd, David Aaron Baker, Mamie Gummer (Dana)
View the gallery for more pictures "The Hoax" is based on the true story of writer Clifford Irving, who was sent to prison in 1972 when it was determined that his "authorized" biography of reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes was a fake. Irving had claimed in 1971 that he had tapes, letters and manuscripts from Hughes, and that Hughes had authorized him to write a biography. Irving's tale was greeted with excitement until Hughes, who had not been heard from publicly in over a decade, held a telephone press conference to say that he didn't know Irving and that the whole story was phony. Irving stood by his tale, but experts said the voice they had heard was indeed Hughes', and Irving's handwritten documents were deemed fakes. Irving, his wife Edith and collaborator Richard Suskind all were convicted for their part in the hoax, and Irving spent 14 months in federal prison. After his release from jail, Irving returned to work as a novelist.

Mamie Gummer mentioned her professional movie debut in an article by Entertainment Weekly: "I had two lines. One I nailed, the other I hope they cut. Hope Davis was like a mother/sister to me, pointing out my mark and making sure I could get from point A to B without tripping. People might assume I know something about movies, and I don't! I know how to be really bored in a trailer and eat at craft services, but that was my only experience with moviemaking." Internet Movie Database additional information
Clifford Irving on Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Marcia Gay Harden Archives fansite on the actress