David Benioff

David Benioff (born circa 1970) in New York City) is an American writer. Born David Friedman, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three, with 2 sisters, Suzy Cohen, and Caroline Levy. Benioff is a Dartmouth College alumnus. He worked as a club bouncer and at 22 became a high school English teacher at Poly Prep in Brooklyn, New York City. Additionally, he attended the University of California Irvin... more

David Benioff (born circa 1970) in New York City) is an American writer. Born David Friedman, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three, with 2 sisters, Suzy Cohen, and Caroline Levy. Benioff is a Dartmouth College alumnus. He worked as a club bouncer and at 22 became a high school English teacher at Poly Prep in Brooklyn, New York City. Additionally, he attended the University of California Irvine and received a Master of Fine Arts degree in the creative writing program. While working as a high school English teacher, he wrote the book The 25th Hour and received positive recognition for the book. He later adapted the book into a screenplay, which was filmed starring Edward Norton and was directed by Spike Lee. He then wrote a collection of short stories titled When the Nines Roll Over (And Other Stories) in 2004. Benioff drafted a screenplay of the mythological epic Troy (2004) for which Warner Bros pictures paid him $2.5 million. He... less