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EspañolIRA LEVIN
'Ira Levin' (born August 27, 1929 in New York) is an American novelist, playwright and songwriter.
Levin graduated from the Horace Mann School and New York University, where he majored in philosophy and English.
After college, he wrote training films and scripts for television.
Levin's first produced play was ''No Time for Sergeants'' (adapted from Mac Hyman's novel), a comedy about a hillbilly drafted into the United States Air Force that launched the career of Andy Griffith. The play was turned into a movie in 1958, and co-starred future "Andy Griffith Show" co-star Don Knotts. "No Time for Sergeants" is generally considered the precursor to "Gomer Pyle, USMC."
Levin's first novel, ''A Kiss Before Dying'', was well received, earning him the 1953 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. "A Kiss Before Dying" was turned into a movie twice, first in 1956, and again in 1991.
Levin's best known play is ''Deathtrap'', which holds the record as the longest-running comedy-thriller on Broadway and brought Levin his second Edgar Award. In 1982, it was made into a film with Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine.
Levin's best known novel is ''Rosemary's Baby,'' a horror story of satanism and the occult. It was made into a film with Mia Farrow and Ruth Gordon (who won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role). Roman Polanski, who wrote and directed the film, was nominated for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
Other Levin novels were turned into movies, including ''The Boys from Brazil;'' ''The Stepford Wives'' in 1975 and again in 2004; and ''Sliver.'' Currently a new version of ''The Boys from Brazil'' is in development for 2009.
Stephen King has described Ira Levin as "the Swiss watchmaker of suspense novels, he makes what the rest of us do look like cheap watchmakers in drugstores." Chuck Palahniuk, in '', calls Levin's writing "a smart, updated version of the kind of folksy legends that cultures have always used."
Levin has been married and divorced twice, and is the father of three sons.
★ ''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)
★ ''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'' (1981)
★ ''Cantorial'' (1982)
★ ''Drat! The Cat!'' (1965) - lyricist and bookwriter
★ Ira Levin at the Internet Broadway Database
| Contents |
| Professional life |
| Personal life |
| Bibliography |
| Novels |
| Plays |
| Musicals |
| External links |
Professional life
Levin graduated from the Horace Mann School and New York University, where he majored in philosophy and English.
After college, he wrote training films and scripts for television.
Levin's first produced play was ''No Time for Sergeants'' (adapted from Mac Hyman's novel), a comedy about a hillbilly drafted into the United States Air Force that launched the career of Andy Griffith. The play was turned into a movie in 1958, and co-starred future "Andy Griffith Show" co-star Don Knotts. "No Time for Sergeants" is generally considered the precursor to "Gomer Pyle, USMC."
Levin's first novel, ''A Kiss Before Dying'', was well received, earning him the 1953 Edgar Award for Best First Novel. "A Kiss Before Dying" was turned into a movie twice, first in 1956, and again in 1991.
Levin's best known play is ''Deathtrap'', which holds the record as the longest-running comedy-thriller on Broadway and brought Levin his second Edgar Award. In 1982, it was made into a film with Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine.
Levin's best known novel is ''Rosemary's Baby,'' a horror story of satanism and the occult. It was made into a film with Mia Farrow and Ruth Gordon (who won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role). Roman Polanski, who wrote and directed the film, was nominated for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
Other Levin novels were turned into movies, including ''The Boys from Brazil;'' ''The Stepford Wives'' in 1975 and again in 2004; and ''Sliver.'' Currently a new version of ''The Boys from Brazil'' is in development for 2009.
Stephen King has described Ira Levin as "the Swiss watchmaker of suspense novels, he makes what the rest of us do look like cheap watchmakers in drugstores." Chuck Palahniuk, in '', calls Levin's writing "a smart, updated version of the kind of folksy legends that cultures have always used."
Personal life
Levin has been married and divorced twice, and is the father of three sons.
Bibliography
Novels
★ ''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
★ ''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'' (1981)
★ ''Cantorial'' (1982)
Musicals
★ ''Drat! The Cat!'' (1965) - lyricist and bookwriter
External links
★ Ira Levin at the Internet Broadway Database
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