Walter Keane

Walter Stanley Keane (October 7, 1915 – December 27, 2000) was an American plagiarist who became famous in the 1960s as the claimed painter of a series of widely reproduced paintings depicting vulnerable subjects with enormous eyes. The paintings are now accepted as having been painted by his then-wife, Margaret Keane.

Walter and Margaret had married in 1955, where Walter soon became jealous of Margaret's artwork. He soon began claiming her artwork as his, making her work 16 hours a day to provide art that he would present as his own. Per Margaret: ""When he wasn’t home he’d usually call every hour to make sure I hadn’t gone out,” she sa[id]. “I was in jail.”" The money acquired from this artwork went to Walter instead of Margaret, and he lived extravagantly while she was left unrecognized. Even when she offered to teach him how to paint it himself, he failed to be able to do so. Margaret felt trapped in this relationship and felt she needed to stay to support herself and her daughter. In the meantime, Walter continuously cheated on his wife and drank alcohol in excess. He threatened to have her "knocked off" if she left and didn't allow her to have friends.

Margaret and Walter divorced in 1965, which finally gave Margaret the freedom to live a more peaceful life in Hawaii. In 1970, Margaret shared everything with a UPI reporter - to which Walter called her a "boozing, sex-starved psychopath." Eventually, the situation escalated when USA Today ran a story stating the Margaret claimed Walter's paintings as her own. In 1986, Margaret Keane sued Walter and USA Today. In the subsequent slander suit, the judge demanded that the litigants paint a painting in the courtroom, but Walter declined, citing a sore shoulder. Margaret then produced a painting for the jurors in 53 minutes. The jury awarded her damages of $4 million.