Edward Bunker
| Edward Bunker | |
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Edward Bunker mugshot taken at unknown California prison
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| Born | Edward Heward Bunker December 31, 1933 Hollywood, California, United States |
| Died | July 19, 2005 (aged 71) Burbank, California, United States |
| Occupation | Author, screenwriter, actor |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Transgressive fiction |
Edward Heward Bunker (December 31, 1933 – July 19, 2005) was an American author of crime fiction, a screenwriter, and an actor. He wrote numerous books, some of which have been adapted into films. He was a screenwriter on Straight Time (1978), Runaway Train (1985) and Animal Factory (2000).
He started on a criminal career at a very early age, and continued on this path throughout the years, returning to prison again and again. He was convicted of bank robbery, drug dealing, extortion, armed robbery, and forgery. A repeating pattern of convictions, paroles, releases and escapes, further crimes and new convictions continued until he was released yet again from prison in 1975, at which point he finally left his criminal days permanently behind. Bunker stayed out of jail thereafter, and instead focused on his career as a writer and actor.
Bunker was born "on New Year's Eve, 1933" into a troubled family in Los Angeles. His mother, Sarah (née Johnston), was a chorus girl from Vancouver, and his father, Edward N. Bunker, a stage hand. His first clear memories were of his alcoholic parents screaming at each other, and police arriving to "keep the peace." When they divorced, Bunker ended up in a foster home at the age of five, but he felt profoundly unhappy and ran away. As a result, Bunker went through a progression of increasingly draconian institutions. Consistently rebellious and defiant, young Bunker was subjected to a harsh regime of discipline. He attended a military school for a few months, where he began stealing and eventually ran away again, ending up in a hobo camp 400 miles away. While Bunker was eventually apprehended by the authorities, this established a pattern he would follow throughout his formative years.
Shoplifting and similar crimes eventually landed Bunker in Juvenile Hall, most notably Preston Castle in Ione, California, where he became acquainted with hardened young criminals. Although young and small, he was intelligent, streetwise and extremely literate. He soon learned to hide his fear and embrace his dog-eat-dog surroundings. A long string of escapes, problems with the law and different institutions – including a mental hospital – followed.
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