Born in New York City; son of writer Finley Peter Dunne. Attended Harvard University, 1925-29. In Hollywood from the mid-1930s, after a brief business and banking career, he wrote many distinguished screenplays before turning director in 1955. His work as a director was intelligent but often heavy-handed. He wrote the screenplays for most of the films he directed [e.g., THREE BRAVE MEN (1957), TEN NORTH FREDERICK (1958)]. He was a speechwriter for Adlai Stevenson's presidential campaigns and for John F. Kennedy during the 1960 election campaign. He married actress Amada Duff.  Nominated for Writing (Screenplay) 1941: HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY  Nominated for Writing (Story & Screenplay) 1951: DAVID AND BATHSHEBA 2 nominations