I recently watched The Center Will Not Hold, the Netflix documentary about Joan Didion. (An aside: Yes, I am watching lots of television. The landscaping is taking up all my energy, so nights are spent in front of the TV.)
What struck me was how every member of that family excelled. Well …. excelled or died. Well … at least, achieved fame or died. For example, I noticed mid-way through that Joan Didion and the director were related, and after a brief Alt-Tab from Netflix to Wikipedia, I did find that the director was Griffin Dunne, nephew of Joan’s husband, writer John Dunne. And then come to find out every celebrity named Dunne is related including writer Dominick John Dunne and his murdered daughter/actress Dominique Dunne.
At one point I just stopped checking Wikipedia to track this web of celebrities. I saw a Dunne was married to RoseMary Breslin. I wondered, “Is she related to writer Jimmy Breslin – oh, I’m not even checking. Of course she is.” (I don’t have any DNA evidence, but Jimmy Breslin did have a daughter named RoseMary, and I’m sure the reason she isn’t a famous writer is because she too died early).
I suppose some families just tell their children, “You can be or do anything you put your mind to,” like all families do, only … their children believe them? They have connections? Or perhaps Baby Dunnes are just are so acclimated to public attention they seek it out when they grow up, as if they move out of their parent’s fame and still need the spotlight to grow? Why?
Of course, I have a friend with semi-famous TV host relatives. He shows no ambition. Cybill Shepard went from dating Elvis and Peter Bogdanovitch to marrying a car salesman and a chiropractor.
All I know is, Joan Didion’s life was so amazing that at no point do they even mention that she has Multiple Sclerosis. I kept waiting for that and it was just too mundane to be included. I loved that.