City of Thieves (Benioff)

Author Bio 
• Aka—David Friedman
• Birth—ca. 1970
• Where—New York, New York, USA
• Education—B.A., Dartmouth College; M.A., Trinity College of
   Dublin, Ireland

David Benioff is an author and screenwriter. His first novel, The 25th Hour, was adapted into a popular feature film. His short story collection, When the Nines Roll Over, received critical acclaim (From the publisher.)

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Born David Friedman, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He worked as a club bouncer and high school English teacher at Poly Prep in Brooklyn, NY, until he won recognition for his book, The 25th Hour. He later adapted the book into a film, starring Edward Norton and directed by Spike Lee.

Benioff is a Dartmouth College alumnus. Additionally, he attended the University of California Irvine and received a Masters from Trinity College, Dublin. Thus began his career as a Hollywood screenwriter.

He adapted a screenplay of the mythological epic Troy (2004). He also penned the script for the psychological thriller Stay (2005). 20th Century Fox reportedly paid Benioff $2 million for the script. The film was released on October 21, 2005, and was directed by Marc Forster and starred Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts. His most recent screenplay, The Kite Runner, marked his second collaboration with director Marc Forster.

Besides The 25th Hour, Benioff published a collection of short stories titled When the Nines Roll Over (And Other Stories) in 2004. His second novel, City of Thieves, was released in 2008. Benioff is married to actress Amanda Peet; they have one child. (From Wikipedia.)