Voting Station

Elaine Dundy

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Author

The Resume

    (August 1, 1921-May 1, 2008)
    Born in New York City, New York
    Birth name was Elaine Rita Brimberg
    Sister of award winning independent filmmaker Shirley Clarke
    Wrote the novels 'The Dud Avocado' (1958), 'The Old Man and Me' (1964) and 'The Injured Party' (1974)
    Wrote the plays 'My Place' (1962), 'Death in the Country' and 'The Drowning' (1976)
    Wrote the biographies 'Finch, Bloody Finch: A Biography of Peter Finch' (1980), 'Elvis and Gladys' (1985) and 'Ferriday, Louisiana' (1991)
    Wrote the autobiography 'Life Itself!' (2001)
    Died of a heart attack in Los Angeles at age 86

Why she might be annoying:

    She grew up in wealth and privilege.
    She tried her hand at acting and failed.
    Her thirteen-year marriage to British theatre critic Kenneth Tynan was tumultuous and filled with infidelities on both sides.
    She endured his taste of sexually flagellating (whipping) her.
    When her first novel was a hit, her jealous husband raged, 'I married an actress, not a writer!'
    In the '60 and '70s she was addicted to booze and pills.

Why she might not be annoying:

    Her grandfather invented a self-tapping screw that was used to hold together Charles Lindbergh's plane, Spirit of St. Louis.
    Her free spirit blossomed at 15 when she rode topless in taxis, with her head through the roof.
    Her first novel was a critical and commercial success, and she recieved a personal letter of high praise from Groucho Marx.
    Her high society friends included Ernest Hemingway, Orson Welles, Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote and one time lover Gore Vidal.
    Tired of her husband's tantrums and threats of suicide, she broke free of him in 1964 and wrote her second novel.
    She overcame her addictions.
    Her biography about Elvis and his mom was a critical hit - fans of The King gave it high marks and The Boston Globe hailed it as 'nothing less than the best Elvis book yet.'
    Toward the end of her life, she lived with her daughter and developed macular degeneration, rendering her nearly blind.

Credit: Scar Tactics


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 4 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 19 Votes: 42.11% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 154 Votes: 73.38% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 15 Votes: 53.33% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 22 Votes: 68.18% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 24 Votes: 41.67% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 29 Votes: 41.38% Annoying