Given how Netflix’s Monsters has received mixed reviews like its predecessor, not everyone seems to be on board with the show’s approach towards true crime. However, it is still interesting to see how the Netflix drama not only walks through Erik and Lyle Menendez’s true story but also refers to several other real crimes that happened around the same time or had connections with the case. In episode 7, Monsters also draws connective threads to the Dominique Dunne murder trial, which unfolded nearly a decade before José and Kitty Menendez’s deaths.
Who Dominique Dunne Was & What Roles She Was Best Known For
Dominique Dunne Was An Active Actress Between 1979 & 1982
Born in Santa Monica, California, Dominique Dunne was Ellen Beatriz “Lenny” and Dominick Dunne’s youngest child. After studying at Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, Taft School in Connecticut, and Fountain Valley School in Colorado, she moved to Florence, Italy, to learn Italian and study art. Her acting career began after she honed her craft at Milton Katselas’ Workshop and started playing roles in myriad productions, including The Mousetrap and West Side Story.
Dunne made her television debut with 1979’s Diary of a Teenage Hitchhiker, which paved the way for her to land supporting roles in other shows like Family, Fame, and Lou Grant in the 1980s. Her big break came in 1981 when she got the opportunity to play Dana Freeling in the acclaimed horror classic Poltergeist, allowing her to garner more mainstream attention. She was also set to reprise her role in Poltergeist II: The Other Side, but she passed away before the film’s shooting. Dominique Dunne’s last acting role was in the miniseries V, which premiered in 1983.
Dominique Dunne Was Killed At Age 22 By John Thomas Sweeney In 1982
She Was In A Coma For Five Days Before She Passed Away
Dominique Dunne was at her West Hollywood home on October 30, 1982, when her ex-boyfriend, John Thomas Sweeney, showed up at her place. Although actor David Packer was with her at the time, rehearsing lines for their upcoming TV show V, he stayed inside the house while Dunne stepped out to talk to Sweeney. Packer grew concerned when he heard a loud thud outside and called the police. However, when the police informed him the house was outside their jurisdiction, he left a message on his friend’s answering machine saying (via Vanity Fair), “If I die tonight, it was by John Sweeney.”
When Packer finally left the home, he found Sweeney kneeling over Dunne. The police eventually arrived and found Dunne in the home’s driveway, where he said, “I killed my girlfriend, and I tried to kill myself.” Reports later revealed that Sweeney had strangled Dunne after an argument. Dominique Dunne was moved to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, where she was on life support for five days. However, when she did not regain consciousness, and her brain scans confirmed zero brain activity, her parents agreed to have her removed from life support on November 4.
Dominick Dunne’s Response To John Thomas Sweeney’s Conviction & Prison Sentence Explained
Dominisk Dunne Initially Wanted Revenge
John Thomas Sweeney only served two and a half years in prison, which, for obvious reasons, infuriated Dominique Dunne’s father. Therefore, to keep tabs on Sweeney, he hired a private investigator. Dominick Dunne later disclosed that he did not just recruit the investigator to keep a close eye on Sweeney. Instead, he hired private investigator Anthony Pellicano because he hoped Pellicano would help him arrange a hit on Sweeney. Here’s Dominick Dunne’s statement (via The Slate) about what he wanted:
“I truly went through a period of wanting to hire somebody. I know, it seems absurd now. … But I worshipped my daughter. I just became obsessed with this guy getting out of prison. I wanted harm to come to him.”
Dominick Dunne eventually backed off when Anthony Pellicano convinced him he did not “want to do this.” Pellicano continued tracking Sweeney because Dominick Dunne wanted to warn his daughter’s killer’s girlfriends about his violent history. Long before his arrest, Anthony Pellicano backed off from tracing Sweeney, and Dunne, too, eventually moved forward with his life. However, as shown in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Dominick Dunne could not help but side with the prosecution in José and Kitty Menendez’s murder trial because of his past experiences.
