“The Friday Afternoon Club: A Family Memoir” by Griffin Dunne
Review by Laura Frantz, collection development librarian
Griffin Dunne is an actor, director and producer known for his roles in “An American Werewolf in London” and “After Hours.” He is also the son of writer and producer Dominick Dunne, who chronicled the rich and famous most notably in the pages of “Vanity Fair.” He is the nephew of literary giants John Gregory Dunne and Joan Didion. He is the brother of actress Dominique Dunne, whose star was on the rise before she was murdered by her ex-boyfriend in the 1980s. And he is also an astute writer who delves into a rich family history that has known its fair share of fortune and tragedy.
Dunne spent his formative years in Hollywood and Manhattan playing witness to larger-than-life people and parties as he tried to carve out a path in the entertainment industry. He also recounts the family’s darker moments: the unraveling of his parent’s marriage, illness, addiction, estrangements, and the death of his sister and subsequent trial of her killer. Dunne knows how to successfully weave together the pain and privilege found in his life. Readers will find a lot of love and levity in this memoir.
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