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by Randy CassinghamRandy Cassingham's Honorary Unsubscribe Recognizes the Unknown, the Forgotten and the Obscure People who Had an Impact on Our Lives
Ira Levin
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A writer, Levin only has seven published novels to his credit. But what novels: Rosemary's Baby (1967), where a woman gives birth to the devil's son. The Stepford Wives (1972), where suburban women have apparently been replaced by subservient androids. The Boys From Brazil (1976), where Josef Mengele works to clone Hitler. The others: A Kiss Before Dying (1953), This Perfect Day (1970), Sliver (1991), and the "Rosemary" sequel Son of Rosemary (1997). He also wrote the play Deathtrap (1978), the longest-running comedy thriller on Broadway. Together, Levin's books sold tens of millions of copies, and most were made into movies -- sometimes more than once. He was a bit uncomfortable that "Rosemary" started a trend. "I feel guilty that Rosemary's Baby led to The Exorcist [and] The Omen," he once said, and that "a whole generation [thus] 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." On the other hand, he added, "I didn't send back any of the royalty checks." Levin died November 12 at his New York City home. He was 78.
From This is True for 11 November 2007
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