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One of my favorite writers while I was growing up was Ira Levin. “Rosemary’s Baby” is one of, in my opinions, the most under-appreciated horror novels in the last 40 years. It was a big deal when it came out, but I guess it doesn’t have the impact it once did. It came from a time when the voice of pop culture savvy mixed with ironic darkness were unleashed on the American Public. Unresolved religious issues, dealing with the new roles of women in the ’60’s, greed to succeed at any cost and such a subtle tongue-in-cheek humor that still makes me sway.

Man, “Rosemary’s Baby”, although dated now due to those very issues, is outstanding. It’s one of those rare times, as well, that the movie and the book aligned nearly perfectly. I think the only time that I can recall on this fine fall morning that happening was with the tone and style of “To Kill A Mockingbird.”

Jeez. I loved the work of Ira Levin.

Other works included “The Stepford Wives” “The Boys From Brazil” and (Writer’s Note: updated as I was wrong about authorship. Thanks Sarcastro.) adapted the play from the novel “No Time For Sergeants.” He also wrote the Broadway hit “Death Trap”.

He was one of those novelists that communicated through his words. What I mean by that is that it was fast food reading candy that bored into the reader’s cranium with a savvy cleverness that was his signature.

Who can forget in “Rosemary’s Baby” the line “He has his father’s eyes.” We are talking the devil’s baby making all goo-goo infant eyes at Rosemary while all the old folks in the coven know that for Baby Satan to survive, he needed his mother, thus they all, begrudgingly, had to play nice. Brilliant!

Levin died Monday from a heart attack.