DOMINICK DUNNE Biography - People in the News and Media

 
 

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DOMINICK DUNNE

Name: Dominick Dunne                                                                 
Born: 29 October 1925                                                               
                                                                                     
Dominick Dunne (born October 29, 1925) is an American writer and investigative       
journalist whose subjects frequently hinge on the ways high society interacts       
with the judiciary system. He was a producer in Hollywood and is also known from     
his frequent appearances on television.                                             
                                                                                     
Dunne was born in Hartford, Connecticut to Dorothy Frances (Burns) and Richard       
Edwin Dunne, a "well to do" Irish Catholic family. He is the older brother of       
John Gregory Dunne, an American novelist, screenwriter and literary critic, who     
was the husband of author Joan Didion.                                               
                                                                                     
After Dominick's studies at Williams College and service in World War II,           
including the battle of Metz, he moved to New York, then to Hollywood, where he     
directed Playhouse 90 and became vice president of Four Star Pictures. He           
hobnobbed with the rich and the famous of those days. In 1979, he left Hollywood,   
moved to Oregon, and wrote his first book, The Winners. In November 1982, his       
actress daughter, Dominique Dunne, was murdered. Dunne attended the trial of her     
murderer (John Thomas Sweeney) and subsequently wrote Justice: A Father's           
Account of the Trial of his Daughter's Killer.                                       
                                                                                     
This poignant report showed his ability to penetrate the outward screen of the       
court proceedings giving insights into the complex stories of victims and           
perpetrators and the curious working of the law. He went on to write articles       
for Vanity Fair, books, and eventually issued a TV series, Dominick Dunne's         
Power, Privilege, and Justice on CourtTV (later truTV) to dissect justice and       
injustice at their intersection with the activities of celebrities. Famous           
trials he covered include those of O.J. Simpson, Claus von Bulow, Michael Skakel,   
William Kennedy Smith, and the Menendez brothers. While it was rumored in early     
2006 that he intended to cease writing for Vanity Fair magazine, Dunne stated       
the opposite in a February 4, 2006, interview with talk show host Larry King. "Oh,   
I am at Vanity Fair. I'll be in the next issue and the issue after that. We went     
through, you know, a difficult period. That happens in long relationships and,       
you know, you either work your way through them or you get a divorce. And I didn't   
want a divorce and we've worked our way through and Graydon (E. Graydon Carter)     
and I are close and he's a great editor and I'm thrilled to be there."