A few days ago, the trustees and administrators of the Metropolitan Museum tried to swat away Rogues’ Gallery as a “so-called history” and a “highly misleading” book, but refused (or were unable?) to point out a single error in it. A lawyer for one of its trustees went further, claiming that it contains “false statements” that show an “absolute disregard for the truth.” Strong stuff! In the month since the book was published, however, a mere four errors (in 486 pages) have been pointed out by readers, all of which will be corrected in future printings. For the record, they are:
Page 200: Hermann Göring is described as Nazi Germany’s SS master. That was Heinrich Himmler. Göring was the head of the Luftwaffe.
Page 390: Dienststelle Muehlmann, the Nazi art looting organization, is mis-spelled.
Page 402: The Roger Mehle who married the supermodel Dorian Leigh was the society columnist Suzy‘s ex-husband, not her son (who is also named Roger Mehle)
Page 466: Obituaries of museum trustee Jane Engelhard omitted two of her proudest accomplishments, not four as stated in the text.
This is an invitation for eagle-eyed readers to alert me to other errors in the book. Further corrections, once confirmed, will be posted immediately.