Phillip Dunne

Philip Ives Dunne was born in New York City on February 11 1908. His father was Finley Peter Dunne, the famous Chicago humorist and syndicated newspaper columnist. His mother was Margaret Ives Abbott, the daughter of the Chicago Tribune's book reviewer, Mary Ives Abbott, a newspaper woman and novelist.

Related Topics:
February 11 - 1908 - Finley Peter Dunne

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Philip attended Harvard University from 1925 to 1929. Immediately following his graduation, he boarded a train and headed for Hollywood. His first screenplay (uncredited) was Me and My Gal, released in 1932. His first credited screenplay was The Count of Monte Cristo, released in 1934. Other screenplays he wrote include: The Rains Came (1939); Stanley and Livingston (1940); How Green Was My Valley (1941); The Late George Apley (1946); The Ghost and Mrs Muir (1947); Pinky (1950); David and Bathsheba (1951); The Robe (1953) and The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965).

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He was producer and director of Prince of Players (1955), writer, producer and director of The View from Pompey's Head (1956) and writer and director of Ten North Frederick (1958); Blue Denim (1961); Blindfold (1965). In 1961, he directed the Elvis Presley movie Wild in the Country, and in 1963, he directed Lisa.

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His books include Mr Dooley Remembers (1963); Take Two-A Life in Movies and Politics (1980). He also co-authored stage plays, Mr. Dooley's America (1976) and Politics (1980). His short stories appeared in the New Yorker Magazine and his essays have been regular features of Time Magazine, the Los Angeles Time, and the Harvard Review. He was a winner of Laurel Award (1962) and Valentine Davies Award (1974).

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He was a member of the Board of Governors of the Motion Picture Academy, 1946-48, and vice president of the Screen Writers Guild, 1938-1940.

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Dunne's wife, Amanda Duff, was the daughter of "a Kentucky-bred dentist and his Canadian wife." She was brought up in Santa Barbara, attended the Santa Barbara School for Girls and studied music at Mills College. She went to New York for further music studies, and starred in amateur musicals in school. Later, in New York, she appeared as Dorothy in a Junior League presentation of The Wizard of Oz. "Discovered" by playwright Robert E. Sherwood, she played the lead in his English-language version of Jacques Duval's Tovarich. She was a hit and was offered a motion picture contract in 1938 by 20th Century Fox (Dunne's studio).

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He died June 2 1992 at his home in the hills above Malibu, California after a prolonged bout with cancer.

Related Topics:
June 2 - 1992

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