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Ira Levin

March 07, 2023

Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His works include the novels A Kiss Before Dying (1953), Rosemary's Baby (1967), The Stepford Wives (1972), This Perfect Day (1970), and The Boys from Brazil (1976), as well as the play Deathtrap (1978). Many of his novels and plays have been adapted into films. He received the Prometheus Hall of Fame Award and Edgar Awards (1992–2003).

Ira Levin
BornIra Marvin Levin
(1929-08-27)August 27, 1929
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedNovember 12, 2007(2007-11-12) (aged 78)
New York, New York, U.S.
Occupation
  • Novelist
  • playwright
  • songwriter
Spouse
  • Gabrielle Aronsohn
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1960; div. 1968)​
  • Phyllis Sugarman
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1979; div. 1981)​
Children3
Parents
  • Charles Levin
  • Beatrice Schlansky Levin
Website
iralevin.org

Early life

Levin was born on August 27, 1929, in the New York City, New York borough of Manhattan. He grew up in both Manhattan and the Bronx.[1] His father, Charles, was a toy importer. Levin was educated at the private Horace Mann School in New York. During his youth, he was described as "a nice Jewish boy from New York".[2] He attended Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa from 1946 to 1948 and then New York University, where he majored in philosophy and English. He graduated in 1950. He served in the Army Signal Corps from 1953 to 1955.[3]

Professional life

Scriptwriting

After college, Levin wrote training films and scripts for radio and television. The first of these was "Leda's Portrait", for Lights Out in 1951.[3]

Levin's first produced play was No Time for Sergeants (adapted from the 1954 Mac Hyman novel), a comedy about a hillbilly drafted into the United States Air Force. It opened on Broadway in 1955 and starred Andy Griffith, whose career it jumpstarted. The play was adapted as a movie of the same name, released in 1958, with Griffith reprising his role and co-starring Nick Adams. Later the concept was developed as a 1964 television comedy series starring Sammy Jackson. No Time for Sergeants is generally considered the precursor to Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C..[4]

Levin's best-known play is Deathtrap (1978), which holds the record as the longest-running comedy thriller on Broadway. Levin won his second Edgar Award with this play.[5] In 1982, it was adapted into a film of the same name, starring Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine.[3]

Novels

Levin's first novel, A Kiss Before Dying (1953), was well received, and he won the 1954 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. A Kiss Before Dying was adapted twice as a movie of the same name, first in 1956 and again in 1991.[3]

Levin's best-known novel is Rosemary's Baby, a horror story of modern-day Satanism and other occultisms, set in Manhattan's Upper West Side. In 1968, it was adapted as a film written and directed by Roman Polanski. It starred Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes. Ruth Gordon won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance. Roman Polanski was nominated for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.

Levin said in 2002,

"I feel guilty that 'Rosemary's Baby' led to The 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."[1]

Other Levin novels that were adapted as films included The Stepford Wives in 1975,[6] again in 2004.[7] The Boys from Brazil was adapted as a film released in 1978.

In the 1990s, Levin wrote two more bestselling novels: Sliver (1991), which was adapted as a film in 1993 by Phillip Noyce. It starred Sharon Stone, William Baldwin and Tom Berenger. His Son of Rosemary (1997) was proposed as a sequel to Rosemary’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 is the Swiss watchmaker of the suspense novel; he makes what the rest of us do look like those five-dollar watches you can buy in the discount drug stores."[8]

Personal life

Levin was a Jewish atheist.[9]

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.[1]

Death

Levin died of a heart attack at his home in Manhattan on November 12, 2007.[1][10]

Works

Novels

Plays

Musicals

Film adaptations

References

  1. ^ a b c d Fox, Margalit (November 14, 2007). "Ira Levin, of Rosemary's Baby, Dies at 78". The New York Times. Retrieved November 14, 2007.
  2. ^ Osgood, Kelsey. "The Banality of Evil: Rosemary's Baby, the Miniseries". The American Reader.
  3. ^ a b c d Hawtree, Christopher (15 November 2007). "Ira Levin". The Guardian. United Kingdom. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  4. ^ Hugh Ruppersburg, The New Georgia Encyclopedia Companion to Georgia Literature, p. 220 (University of Georgia Press, 2007). ISBN 978-0-8203-2876-8
  5. ^
  6. ^ Canby, Vincent (February 13, 1975). "The Stepford Wives (1975) Screen: 'Stepford Wives' Assays Suburbia's Detergent Set". The New York Times.
  7. ^ Scott, A. O. (June 11, 2004). "The Stepford Wives (2004) Film Review; Married To a Machine". The New York Times.
  8. ^ Leopold, Todd (June 10, 2004). "Babies, wives and Hitlers: 'Stepford Wives' writer Ira Levin, master of suspense". CNN.
  9. ^ "The Most Cursed Hit Movie Ever Made". Vanity Fair. June 1, 2017.
  10. ^ Thurber, Jon (November 14, 2007). "Ira Levin, 78; his novels include 'Rosemary's Baby,' 'Stepford Wives'". Los Angeles Times.

Further reading

External links

 
Wikiquote has quotations related to Ira Levin.

March 07, 2023
levin, marvin, levin, august, 1929, november, 2007, american, novelist, playwright, songwriter, works, include, novels, kiss, before, dying, 1953, rosemary, baby, 1967, stepford, wives, 1972, this, perfect, 1970, boys, from, brazil, 1976, well, play, deathtrap. Ira Marvin Levin August 27 1929 November 12 2007 was an American novelist playwright and songwriter His works include the novels A Kiss Before Dying 1953 Rosemary s Baby 1967 The Stepford Wives 1972 This Perfect Day 1970 and The Boys from Brazil 1976 as well as the play Deathtrap 1978 Many of his novels and plays have been adapted into films He received the Prometheus Hall of Fame Award and Edgar Awards 1992 2003 Ira LevinBornIra Marvin Levin 1929 08 27 August 27 1929New York City New York U S DiedNovember 12 2007 2007 11 12 aged 78 New York New York U S OccupationNovelist playwright songwriterSpouseGabrielle Aronsohn m 1960 div 1968 wbr Phyllis Sugarman m 1979 div 1981 wbr Children3ParentsCharles LevinBeatrice Schlansky LevinWebsiteiralevin wbr org Contents 1 Early life 2 Professional life 2 1 Scriptwriting 2 2 Novels 3 Personal life 4 Death 5 Works 5 1 Novels 5 2 Plays 5 3 Musicals 5 4 Film adaptations 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksEarly life EditLevin was born on August 27 1929 in the New York City New York borough of Manhattan He grew up in both Manhattan and the Bronx 1 His father Charles was a toy importer Levin was educated at the private Horace Mann School in New York During his youth he was described as a nice Jewish boy from New York 2 He attended Drake University in Des Moines Iowa from 1946 to 1948 and then New York University where he majored in philosophy and English He graduated in 1950 He served in the Army Signal Corps from 1953 to 1955 3 Professional life EditScriptwriting Edit After college Levin wrote training films and scripts for radio and television The first of these was Leda s Portrait for Lights Out in 1951 3 Levin s first produced play was No Time for Sergeants adapted from the 1954 Mac Hyman novel a comedy about a hillbilly drafted into the United States Air Force It opened on Broadway in 1955 and starred Andy Griffith whose career it jumpstarted The play was adapted as a movie of the same name released in 1958 with Griffith reprising his role and co starring Nick Adams Later the concept was developed as a 1964 television comedy series starring Sammy Jackson No Time for Sergeants is generally considered the precursor to Gomer Pyle U S M C 4 Levin s best known play is Deathtrap 1978 which holds the record as the longest running comedy thriller on Broadway Levin won his second Edgar Award with this play 5 In 1982 it was adapted into a film of the same name starring Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine 3 Novels Edit Levin s first novel A Kiss Before Dying 1953 was well received and he won the 1954 Edgar Award for Best First Novel A Kiss Before Dying was adapted twice as a movie of the same name first in 1956 and again in 1991 3 Levin s best known novel is Rosemary s Baby a horror story of modern day Satanism and other occultisms set in Manhattan s Upper West Side In 1968 it was adapted as a film written and directed by Roman Polanski It starred Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes Ruth Gordon won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance Roman Polanski was nominated for Best Writing Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium Levin said in 2002 I feel guilty that Rosemary s Baby led to The 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 1 Other Levin novels that were adapted as films included The Stepford Wives in 1975 6 again in 2004 7 The Boys from Brazil was adapted as a film released in 1978 In the 1990s Levin wrote two more bestselling novels Sliver 1991 which was adapted as a film in 1993 by Phillip Noyce It starred Sharon Stone William Baldwin and Tom Berenger His Son of Rosemary 1997 was proposed as a sequel to Rosemary 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 is the Swiss watchmaker of the suspense novel he makes what the rest of us do look like those five dollar watches you can buy in the discount drug stores 8 Personal life EditLevin was a Jewish atheist 9 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 1 Death EditLevin died of a heart attack at his home in Manhattan on November 12 2007 1 10 Works EditNovels Edit A Kiss Before Dying 1953 Rosemary s Baby 1967 This Perfect Day 1970 winner 1992 Prometheus Hall of Fame Award The Stepford Wives 1972 The Boys from Brazil 1976 Sliver 1991 Son of Rosemary 1997 Plays Edit No Time for Sergeants 1956 Interlock 1958 Critic s Choice 1960 General Seeger 1962 Dr Cook s Garden 1968 Veronica s Room 1974 Deathtrap 1978 Tony nomination for Best Play Break a Leg A Comedy in Two Acts 1979 Cantorial 1982 Footsteps 2003 Musicals Edit Drat The Cat 1965 lyricist and bookwriterFilm adaptations Edit A Kiss Before Dying 1956 No Time for Sergeants 1958 Critic s Choice 1963 Rosemary s Baby 1968 The Stepford Wives 1975 The Boys from Brazil 1978 Deathtrap 1982 A Kiss Before Dying 1991 Sliver 1993 Footsteps 2003 The Stepford Wives 2004 Rosemary s Baby 2014 References Edit a b c d Fox Margalit November 14 2007 Ira Levin of Rosemary s Baby Dies at 78 The New York Times Retrieved November 14 2007 Osgood Kelsey The Banality of Evil Rosemary s Baby the Miniseries The American Reader a b c d Hawtree Christopher 15 November 2007 Ira Levin The Guardian United Kingdom Retrieved April 9 2016 Hugh Ruppersburg The New Georgia Encyclopedia Companion to Georgia Literature p 220 University of Georgia Press 2007 ISBN 978 0 8203 2876 8 Deathtrap Internet Broadway Database Theater New York vol 14 no 37 p 123 September 21 1981 ISSN 0028 7369 Fischer Mike August 12 2017 Deathtrap springs surprises in Milwaukee Chamber Theatre s comic thriller Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Canby Vincent February 13 1975 The Stepford Wives 1975 Screen Stepford Wives Assays Suburbia s Detergent Set The New York Times Scott A O June 11 2004 The Stepford Wives 2004 Film Review Married To a Machine The New York Times Leopold Todd June 10 2004 Babies wives and Hitlers Stepford Wives writer Ira Levin master of suspense CNN The Most Cursed Hit Movie Ever Made Vanity Fair June 1 2017 Thurber Jon November 14 2007 Ira Levin 78 his novels include Rosemary s Baby Stepford Wives Los Angeles Times Further reading EditJohn Grant Levin Ira Marvin in David Pringle ed St James Guide to Horror Ghost and Gothic Writers London St James Press 1998 ISBN 1558622063External links Edit Wikiquote has quotations related to Ira Levin Ira Levin at IMDb Ira Levin at the Internet Broadway Database Ira Levin at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database Riggenbach Jeff December 2 2010 Ira Levin and This Perfect Day Mises Daily Ludwig von Mises Institute Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ira Levin amp oldid 1141154092, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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