Inside the Murder of a Young ‘Poltergeist’ Actress — and How It Sparked a Literary Family Feud

Celebrity News

By Nicki Gostin

The tragic murder of young “Poltergeist” actress Dominique Dunne in 1982 nearly broke up her famous family.

Dunne was 22 and a rising Hollywood starlet when she was killed by her ex-boyfriend John Sweeney outside her West Hollywood home. The resulting trial made his film producer father, Dominick Dunne, a true crime literary star.

But as his brother, “This Is Us” actor Griffin Dunne, writes in his memoir “The Friday Afternoon Club,” out Tuesday, it also nearly ruined the relationship between Dominick and his novelist brother John Gregory Dunne and his sister-in-law Joan. Didion. The couple chose to travel to Europe rather than risk their teenage daughter being called to testify.

Griffin, 68, writes of his famous aunt and uncle: “The animosity between my father and his brother reached new heights with each passing day that John remained in Europe. »

In June 1982, the horror film “Poltergeist,” written by Steven Spielberg, was released and became a sensation, propelling Dominique – who played Dana and previously had roles on the TV shows “Family” and “Breaking Away” – to the rank of celebrity. with Craig T. Nelson and young actress Heather O’Rourke.

Griffin writes that his sister met Sweeney while the latter was working as a chef at the trendy Los Angeles restaurant, Ma Maison.

While the entire Dunne family disliked Sweeney, her first boyfriend, only Griffin and Dominique’s brother Alex spoke up, calling the leader a “fake, kissing star king,” according to the book .

Less than a month before Dominique’s 23rd birthday, she broke up with Sweeney and confided to Griffin that the chef was jealous, possessive and had once strangled her to the brink of passing out.

But she quickly began to question her decision, much to the chagrin of Griffin — who didn’t tell his sister that, just days earlier, Sweeney had called him to ask for reconciliation advice.

A furious Griffin told the chief to “stay away” from Dominique and if you “touch my sister again and I will kill you.”

On October 30, 1982, Sweeney showed up at Dominique’s house while she was rehearsing for the miniseries “V” with actor David Packer. After speaking to her ex through a locked door, Dominique went up to the porch while Packer stayed inside. The two men began arguing and Packer heard banging, yelling and a loud noise.

Dominique had been strangled and placed on life support with no signs of brain activity.

Sweeney, who was standing near the actress’s unconscious body when police arrived at her West Hollywood home, was charged with attempted murder and, after the Dunne family cut off Dominique’s life support, with murder. in the first degree. This was later downgraded to second degree murder.

When the trial began, Griffin writes, the defense attempted to have his and Dominique’s mother, Lenny, who was in a wheelchair due to MS, excluded from the courtroom “because his wheelchair was sufficiently detrimental to arouse the sympathy of the jury.”

The judge denied the request, which would be one of the few times he ruled in favor of the prosecution.

During the trial, Sweeney testified that he and Dominique had reconciled and talked about getting married and having children but that, on October 30, Dominique abruptly changed his mind. Sweeney claimed he “blew up and lunged at her” and did not remember attacking her.

Sweeney’s ex-girlfriend, Lillian Pierce, was expected to testify that he allegedly hospitalized her twice with injuries including a broken nose and collapsed lung. But the presiding judge granted the defense’s request to have the jury removed from the courtroom, ruling that Pierce’s testimony could be “prejudicial.”

As Pierce testified without the jury present, Sweeney jumped from his seat and attempted to flee the courtroom. Pinned down and handcuffed, he sobbed as he said he had not tried to escape. The judge not only accepted the apology, but even told the defendant, “We know how submissive you are, Mr. Sweeney. »

Meanwhile, Dominique’s aunt and uncle, Didion and John Dunne, chose to skip the trial and travel to Paris — because, Griffin writes, they feared their daughter, Quintana, would be called to testify .

Dominique sometimes babysat Quintana, who was then 16 and used to sneaking out of the house to party.

Griffin writes that he was “angry and hurt” that his uncle “never once checked in with my mother or me to see how we were holding up.” (Dominick and Lenny had divorced in 1965.)

During the trial, Griffin — who starred in “An American Werewolf in London” and “After Hours” — was filming the crime comedy “Johnny Dangerously” at night with Michael Keaton. He writes that he made friends with a few extras who were “connected.”

One of them took Griffin aside one night.

“’I just want you to know, Griffin, that there is a way to make this trial end by the end of the week,’” the extra, named Leo, said. “You and your family will never have to set foot in this courthouse again…I have friends who work where Piece of St (Sweeney) is being held, and they tell me he has a cell for himself all alone. »

While Leo told Griffin “you won’t owe me anything and you’ll never hear from me again after tomorrow night” if he accepted the offer, the actor ultimately refused.

Sweeney was found not guilty of second-degree murder and guilty of voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to six years in prison for the death of Dominique Dunne.

In March 1984, Vanity Fair published “Justice: A Father’s Account of the Trial of His Daughter’s Killer,” Dominick’s first article about the family’s nightmarish legal odyssey. This play made him a literary star and he went on to write popular novels such as “The Two Mrs. Grenvilles”, “People Like Us” and “An Inconvenient Woman”. He gained even more fame as a true crime author during the OJ Simpson trial.