Ira Levin

American author

Also known as: Ira Marvin Levin

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July 16, 2026

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Ira Levin was an American author best known for his chilling novels that often blended horror with social commentary. His 1972 novel, The Stepford Wives, is considered a seminal work of feminist horror. It critiques consumerist society and the post-feminist backlash through the story of a woman who moves to an idyllic suburb where the women are unnervingly subservient. Levin also wrote other notable works, including Rosemary's Baby. He initially planned The Stepford Wives as a play before adapting it into a novel and later a film.1

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The Stepford Wives
…Wives, novel by American author Ira Levin, published in 1972. It has been described as the first “feminist horror novel,” with echoes of Levin’s earlier horror masterpiece Rosemary’s Baby.
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…Wives, novel by American author Ira Levin, published in 1972. It has been described as the first “feminist horror novel,” with echoes of Levin’s earlier horror masterpiece Rosemary’s Baby.
Read More