Ira Levin | |
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 Portrait from the first edition ofRosemary's Baby (1967, photo byInge Morath) | |
| Born | Ira Marvin Levin (1929-08-27)August 27, 1929 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | November 12, 2007(2007-11-12) (aged 78) New York City, U.S. |
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| Children | 3 |
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| iralevin | |
Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novelsA Kiss Before Dying (1953),Rosemary's Baby (1967),The Stepford Wives (1972),This Perfect Day (1970),The Boys from Brazil (1976), andSliver (1991). Levin also wrote the playDeathtrap (1978). Many of his novels and plays have been adapted into films. He received thePrometheus Hall of Fame Award and severalEdgar Awards. In 1996 he was given theBram Stoker Award for Lifetime Achievement.[1]
Levin was born on August 27, 1929, inManhattan,New York City to a family ofRussian-Jewish descent. He grew up in both Manhattan andthe Bronx.[2] His father, Charles, was a toy importer. Levin was educated at the privateHorace Mann School in New York City. During his youth, he was described as "a nice Jewish boy from New York".[3] He attendedDrake University inDes Moines, Iowa from 1946 to 1948, and thenNew York University, where he majored inphilosophy andEnglish literature. He graduated in 1950. He served in theU.S. ArmySignal Corps during theKorean War, from 1953 to 1955.[4]
As a student at New York University, Levin entered a contest for scriptwriting sponsored by the commercial television broadcasterCBS.[5] His script was the basis for "The Old Woman", an episode of the TV seriesThe Clock (Dec. 1, 1950). After college, Levin wrote training films and other scripts for radio and television.
Levin's first produced play wasNo Time for Sergeants (adapted from the 1954Mac Hyman novel), a comedy about ahillbilly drafted into theUnited States Air Force. It opened onBroadway in 1955 and starredAndy Griffith, whose career it jumpstarted. The play was adapted as amovie of the same name, released in 1958, with Griffith reprising his role and co-starringNick Adams. Later the concept was developed as a 1964 television comedy series starringSammy Jackson.No Time for Sergeants is generally considered the precursor toGomer Pyle, U.S.M.C..[6]
Levin's best-known play isDeathtrap (1978), which holds the record as the longest-running comedy thriller on Broadway. Levin won his secondEdgar Award with this play.[7] In 1982, it was adapted into afilm of the same name, starringChristopher Reeve andMichael Caine.[4]
Levin's first novel,A Kiss Before Dying (1953), was well received, and he won the 1954Edgar Award for Best First Novel.A Kiss Before Dying was adapted twice as movies of the same name, first in1956 and again in1991.[4]
Levin's best-known novel isRosemary's Baby, a horror story of modern-daySatanism and otheroccultisms, set in Manhattan's Upper West Side. In 1968, it was adapted asa film written and directed byRoman Polanski. It starredMia Farrow andJohn Cassavetes.Ruth Gordon won anOscar forBest Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance. Roman Polanski was nominated forBest Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
Levin said in 2002,
"I feel guilty that 'Rosemary's Baby' led toThe Exorcist,The Omen. A whole generation has been exposed, has more belief in Satan. I don't believe in Satan. And I feel that the strong fundamentalism we have would not be as strong if there hadn't been so many of these books [...] Of course, I didn't send back any of the royalty checks."[2]
Other Levin novels that were adapted as films included the satiricalThe Stepford Wives in1975,[8] again in2004.[9]The Boys from Brazil was adapted as a film released in 1978.
In 1970, Levin wrote the science-fiction novelThis Perfect Day about a technocratic dystopia, for which he won aPrometheus Award in 1992.
In the 1990s, Levin wrote two more bestselling novels:Sliver (1991) andSon of Rosemary (1997).Sliver was adapted as afilm in 1993 byPhillip Noyce. It starredSharon Stone,William Baldwin andTom Berenger.Son of Rosemary (1997) was proposed as a film sequel toRosemary’s Baby. It was never developed into a film.
Stephen King has described Ira Levin as the "Swiss watchmaker" of suspense novels: "Every novel he has ever written has been a marvel of plotting (...) he makes what the rest of us do look like those five-dollar watches you can buy in the discount drug stores."[10]
Levin was married twice, first to Gabrielle Aronsohn (from 1960 to 1968), with whom he had three sons, Adam, Jared, and Nicholas, and later to Phyllis Sugarman (died 2006). He had four grandchildren.[2] Levin was aJewish atheist.[11]
Levin died of a heart attack at his home inManhattan,New York City on November 12, 2007.[2][12]
