Ira Levin Ira Levin Ira Marvin Levin (August 27, 1929 – November 12, 2007) was an American novelist, playwright, and songwriter. His most noted works include the novels "A Kiss Before Dying" (1953), "Rosemary's Baby" (1967), "The Stepford Wives" (1972), and "The Boys from Brazil" (1976), as well as the play "Deathtrap" (1978). Many of his novels and plays have been adapted to film. Ira 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. His father, Charles, was a toy importer. Levin was educated at
Meyer Levin plagiarism. Meyer wrote the 1956 novel "Compulsion", inspired by the Leopold and Loeb case. The novel, for which Levin was given a Special Edgar Award by the Mystery Writers of America in 1957, was the basis for Levin's own 1957 play adaptation and the 1959 film based on it, starring Orson Welles. "Compulsion" was "the first 'documentary' or 'non-fiction novel' ("a style later used in Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" and Norman Mailer's "The Executioner's Song""). Meyer Levin Meyer Levin (October 7, 1905 – July 9, 1981) was an American novelist. Perhaps best known for his work on the Leopold