A very funny tale of growing up and knowing pretty much everyone anyone has ever heard of in Hollywood. Griffin Dunne was best friends and shared an apartment with Carrie Fisher and hung out with a long list of bold-faced names. It didn't hurt that his father was Dominick Dunne and his uncle and aunt were John Gregory Dunne and Joan Didion. Each had their own star turns and opened up Griffin's world. Yes, this guy lived in the ultimate privileged cocoon but he is very funny and tells some great tales and what more do you want in a memoir. Of course, the Dunne family did not escape tragedy. Griffin's sister was killed by an abusive boyfriend. When his father Dominick Dunne attended the trial and took notes for a magazine piece, it launched Dominick's career as a true crime writer extraordinaire. A fascinating life and memoir. Recommended.

Some people are destined to write great memoirs. Griffin Dunne is one of them.
He orbits some of the most famous people in the world, and to have a series of anecdotes of his interactions with them would have been enough. Instead, he wrote a deeply felt, thoughtful personal reflection that was equally amusing and genuine.

Heartfelt and moving memoir. I was interested in reading about Dominick Dunne as well as I have read many of his magazine pieces and a few of his books.

An interesting history of the Dunne family concentrating on Griffin's parents, especially his father Dominick.

Born into a well known family, Griffin gives background on his parents and especially the aftermath of the murder of his sister. Part of the Hollywood elite, his family experienced many ups and downs. The death of his sister gave his father a purpose and helped bring him back into society. Griffin does a good job of describing his parents marriage, the struggles the family went through and ultimately making peace with them.

This book is a story of the times, bringing back memories of stars, circumstances, and places from the past. However,, it is an interesting book for the younger readers (twenties and thirties) as there is a lot of personal stories from Mr., Dunne, but it would be easy to read it as a story--albeit a wide-ranging one with many characters and plots. This book made me laugh and let me cry, but it is also a story of being at the heights of society and having to sell everything that is owned just to eat. It is a family story of famous people--Dominique Dunne's murder, Dominick Dunne and his writings, Griffin Dunne and his Hollywood career (and I found the memories of Carrie Fisher and her friendship with Griffin particularly engaging). his aunt and uncle John Dunne and Joan Didion, and the woman who held them all together--Griffin's mother Lenny. Her bravery through the antics of her children, her divorce, the murder of her daughter, the mental problems of one of her sons, and her battle with MS she faced them all with grace and dignity. No matter if the reader knows the principle players in this story, there is something to be gleaned from it for everyone.

A terrific look into the complicated life of Griffin Dunne. Most of us knew Griffin in reference to other people who grabbed the headlines; his famous father Dominic Dunne who was a fixture at the OJ trial, close friend of actress/writer Carrie Fisher of Star Wars fame, sister of Dominique Dunne who was tragically murdered by her boyfriend. This was a look into Griffin's life and dreams and how he pursued them. Highly recommend it Five stars.

For fans of This Is Us, you know the character of Nicky. The humor, dry acerbic mic drops, tragic sadness, and inappropriate over sharing. Reading through the actor's memoir evokes the character he portrayed so beautifully and memorably. Griffin Dunne is a treasure for that acting, alone. In the Friday Afternoon Club he gives us a wide-ranging tale, not solely of his life it is truly a "family memoir." While I haven't read any of Didion's work yet, I'm sure she would be proud of her nephew, as all his family should be. In spite of the OMG why is he over sharing parts of the book, it is a great history of Hollywood and culture at that time, too. Griffin has survived tragedy and given *us* the best pieces of himself. Though, having read his memoir that will probably give him a big head (on his shoulders!).

An interesting dive into the life of Griffin Dunne, son of the famous crime writer Dominick Dunne. It begins by reeling you in with the murder of Griffin's sister by her partner and the machinations that click into place as he and his family face this impossible tragedy. The memoir then moves backward and shows the life of Griffin and his famous father as they live in California mingling with the rich and famous; as author Joan Didion joins their family; as his parents divorce; as his father deals with his bisexuality; as Griffin is sent to boarding school to improve his academic performance and makes new friends amid devastating loneliness; and eventually winds its way back to the murder that triggers the start of the memoir.

I found myself reading this memoir and feeling shocked at how the authors life unfolded, seeing famous actors, actresses, singers, directors, and more appearing throughout as if it was just a regular occurrence. Griffin Dunne is a gifted writer and storyteller, and readers will love this book. As one reads, it feels as if he is just conversating with you. Don't miss a chance to pick up this delightful, poignant, and emotional memoir.

I love Dominick Dunne so I was thrilled to read this memoir of his son, Griffin, however, I was quickly disappointed. It was an expose of someone who only achieved things in life due to the proximity of celebrity, success, and fame that his father's talent introduced. Just as heartedly as the bloated and arrogant lifestyle was described, how cruel and callously the author wrote about his father, exposing his father for all the things he had kept hidden. It felt dirty and shameful to read this and it made me sorry for Dominick, John and Joan, and all those whose secrets were spilled.

Actor and producer Griffin Dunne grew up in New York and Los Angeles with the glitterati all around. His father, Dominick Dunne, a television executive and film producer when Dunne was young, liked to hobnob with the rich and famous. His uncle, journalist and screenwriter John Gregory Dunne, married writer Joan Didion and they became an L.A. power couple.

Growing up in the 1960s and early 1970s, he attended seemingly endless parties with Sean Connery, Warren Beatty and many others, even Judy Garland. Celebrity hobnobbing continued when Dunne moved to New York to try to make it as an actor. For his 27th birthday, Susan Sarandon brought him premium LSD from Timothy Leary. He roomed with his best friend Carrie Fisher until she hit it big with “Star Wars.”

But tragedy was always brewing close under the surface of Dunne’s seemingly idyllic life. Even as he began to make a name for himself as a producer and then an actor in movies like “An American Werewolf in London” and Martin Scorsese’s “After Hours,” his mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, his brother battled mental illness and his father decamped to rural Oregon to fight his substance abuse issues.

But the biggest tragedy came in 1982 when his sister, Dominique Dunne, herself an up-and-coming actress with a role in “Poltergeist,” was murdered on her front lawn by an abusive ex-boyfriend. Dunne’s family attended the trial every day, which ended in a light sentence for Dunne’s killer. Griffin’s father later chronicled the trial for Vanity Fair, kicking off his second career as a writer and novelist.

With a breezy style, Dunne chronicles how his family got through good times and bad — despite interfamilial spats — by coming together as a family when it counted.

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I always followed Dominick Dunne in Vanity Fair & love Joan Didion, so I couldn't miss this one. Dunne balances the heartbreak of family tragedies with the wild Hollywood stories of his youth. There is something here for everyone and it would be a juicy beach read this summer.

This is a very open and honest memoir, and is full of fascinating characters. Though the author and his family have been through tragic and difficult times, he manages to share it all with a healthy sense of humor. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I found Dunne's book to be amazingly candid. He leaves nothing out -- his own bad behavior, his father's, his uncles. I learned so much more than the headlines revealed about this family -- and oh my goodness, SO much tragedy and pain. A mother with MS, a closeted gay father, a brother with mental illness, and a murdered sister (whose killer got a slap on the wrist!). I read this book in about 12 hours... couldn't put it down. I'd read virtually all of Dominick Dunne's work in Vanity Fair, and these insights into the family he came from and created made me respect him more -- for the strength it took to just keep living & working. But it also described what a shallow, egotistical, self-centered person he could be. Recommended highly for all Dunne fans & movie fans.

A fun and telling look behind the scenes of one of Hollywood’s royal families, this memoir by Griffin Dunne is perfect. Thank you Netgalley and publisher.

In his candid memoir " The Friday Afternoon Club: A Family Memoir," Griffin Dunne offers a compelling glimpse of life behind the glitz of Hollywood. With remarkable honesty, Dunne navigates the complexities of fame, family, and self-discovery. What sets this memoir apart is its poignant exploration of family dynamics amidst family tragedy. I recall the murder of Dunne’s sister, Dominique and the absolute miscarriage of justice that took place following her death. Through heartfelt anecdotes and raw emotions, Dunne delves into the struggles and triumphs of balancing fame with familial bonds.

Many thanks to NetGalley and PENGUIN PRESS The Penguin Group for the opportunity to read and review " The Friday Afternoon Club: A Family Memoir," before its publication date.

I received this as an egalley from NetGalley.

Came for the Joan Didion/John Gregory Dunne goss and instead *loved* the mid-1980s Hollywood goss.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Press for the ARC of Griffin Dunne’s The Friday Afternoon Club (released in June 2024).

I could not put this book down. Dunne grabs your attention from page 1. He tells of his life and his talented loving dysfunctional family. He also includes the story of his sister’s murder and the effect it had on his entire family. He highlights the solitary experience of a family dealing with the justice system in such a horrible tragedy.

Griffin Dunne, actor, producer, but perhaps more importantly based on this memoir, son of Dominick, nephew of Joan Didion, brother of Dominique has lived a game adjacent life. His father was a big movie producer, his aunt and uncle famous writers and his sister a famous murder victim. Carrie Fisher was his longtime roommate and best friend. His book reflects all this. Fully a third is about his parents and another third is about his sister and the trial of the man who murdered her. All that said I find his story quite interesting and he says at the outset that his story is a family story versus being just the story of himself, so he isn’t playing hide the ball. Enjoyable.