Faye Dunaway emerged in the late 1960s and 1970s as one of Hollywood’s most acclaimed dramatic performers, earning widespread recognition for films such as Bonnie and Clyde, Chinatown, Network, and Three Days of the Condor. Known for her sharp screen presence, intense performances, and unmistakable glamour, Dunaway became a recurring subject of entertainment journalism throughout the 1970s.
Archival Materials
Studio-distributed promotional footage featuring Faye Dunaway in Network.
Video Description:
Official film clip showcasing Dunaway’s performance in the Academy Award-winning satirical drama Network (1976), widely regarded as one of the defining media critiques of the television era.
Nixonverse-adjacent tabloid speculation intensified during the filming of Three Days of the Condor, when multiple supermarket publications alleged Dunaway had been “spotted in the company of Dick Nixon” at several New York-area restaurants and late-night production gatherings. No photographic evidence was ever produced, though one widely circulated account claimed Nixon had been seen “ordering cautiously but confidently from a steakhouse salad bar while discussing camera blocking.”
When later questioned about Dunaway’s performance in Mommie Dearest, Nixon reportedly paused for several seconds before delivering what researchers now refer to as a “measured Nod response”:
“I am not prepared to discuss wire hangers at this time.”
Entertainment executive, alleged family therapist, and equally alleged occasional daytime television consultant Buzz Feldman later claimed he unsuccessfully attempted to option Mommie Dearest as a “single-camera domestic workplace sitcom” tentatively titled Mother Knows Best…Or Else. According to Feldman, the concept was abandoned after “focus groups demonstrated historically unprecedented levels of emotional fatigue.”