While the country is still recovering from the death of the Lion of the Senate, Ted Kennedy, another celebrity died without much fanfare. Writer Dominick Dunne passed away yesterday at the age of 83 from bladder cancer.
Dunne was cited on CNN as a “celebrity crime writer,” but he actually didn’t start crime writing until after a personal tragedy occurred. Dunne worked as a movie producer in Hollywood in the ‘60s, but addiction to alcohol and drugs caused him to flee the town. Once he got sober, he wrote the best seller “The Two Mrs. Grenvilles” and followed that success with more novels. But, then Dunne’s actress daughter, Dominique, was murdered by her boyfriend in 1982. In his mid-50s, his daughter’s death sent him on a new career path.
After Dominique’s death, Dunne was stunned when his daughter’s murderer spent less than three years in prison. He wrote an article titled “Justice: A Father’s Account of the Trial of his Daughter’s Killer.” After that article was published in Vanity Fair, Tina Brown, the editor at the time, offered Dunne a full time job writing for the magazine.
Dunne covered all the high profile crime stories for the next 25+ years. He wrote about Claus von Bulow (accused of murdering his wife Sunny), William Kennedy Smith (accused of rape), O.J. Simpson (accused of murdering his wife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman), the Menendez Brothers (convicted of murdering their parents), Michael Skakel (a Kennedy cousin who was convicted of killing childhood neighbor Martha Moxley), and Phil Spector (convicted of murdering actress Lana Clarkson). What may have set Dunne apart from other crime writers was that, in many cases, he personally knew those about whom he was writing.
Dunne became so famous for his writings and passion for justice that he was given his own show on CourtTV titled “Dominick Dunne’s Power, Privilege, and Justice.” He also made many appearances on “Larry King Live.” Dunne frequently spoke at crime victim events.
Dunne is survived by his sons Alexander and Griffin, an actor/producer.