Meyer Levin
Encyclopedia
Meyer Levin was a Jewish-American
novelist, known for works on the Leopold and Loeb
case and the Anne Frank
case.
case. Levin had attended the University of Chicago
at the same time as Leopold and Loeb, before the murder of Bobby Franks.
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. 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
"). Levin follows the known facts of the case closely, while changing names and using a fictional reporter as a narrator.
's diary, and he was also one of the first people to recognize the literary and dramatic potential of this document; he wrote the book review, which appeared on the front page of the New York Times Sunday Book Review. He corresponded with and met Anne's father Otto Frank
, who authorized Levin by mail to adapt the Diary for the stage. Levin later became obsessed when Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett
were later substituted for him, successfully adapting the diary into a hit play, while the play he wrote was rejected. He brought suit against the producers and writers of the Broadway play, alleging that they had appropriated a number of Levin's original scenes from his adaptation. Levin prevailed in his lawsuit, but settled for a lesser amount of damages, rather than continue with expensive litigation, since the Hacketts decided to appeal the verdict, but Levin still obtained no right to have his version of the play performed, as he had signed that away, under pressure by Myer Mermin, an attorney for Otto Frank, of the law firm Paul, Weiss.
Levin wrote a novel, The Fanatic, based on his experiences, but that was not sufficient to exorcise his inner demons. Some years later, he wrote one of his best-received books, The Obsession, containing his straightforward version of all the facts.
His 30-year battle to have his play performed and the legal battles were also covered in An Obsession with Anne Frank: Meyer Levin and the Diary by Lawrence Graver, The Stolen Legacy of Anne Frank: Meyer Levin, Lillian Hellman and the Staging of the Diary by Ralph Melnick, as well as in the French-language book by Levin's wife, Tereska Torres
, Les maisons hantees de Meyer Levin, published by Editions Phebus (Paris). Also look for the 2010 play by Rinne Groff
Compulsion, inspired by the life of Meyer Levin, starring Mandy Patinkin
and directed by Oskar Eustis
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
novelist, known for works on the Leopold and Loeb
Leopold and Loeb
Nathan Freudenthal Leopold, Jr. and Richard Albert Loeb , more commonly known as "Leopold and Loeb", were two wealthy University of Michigan alumni and University of Chicago students who murdered 14-year-old Robert "Bobby" Franks in 1924 and were sentenced to life imprisonment.The duo were...
case and the Anne Frank
Anne Frank
Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank is one of the most renowned and most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Acknowledged for the quality of her writing, her diary has become one of the world's most widely read books, and has been the basis for several plays and films.Born in the city of Frankfurt...
case.
Leopold and Loeb case
Meyer wrote the 1956 novel Compulsion inspired by the Leopold and LoebLeopold and Loeb
Nathan Freudenthal Leopold, Jr. and Richard Albert Loeb , more commonly known as "Leopold and Loeb", were two wealthy University of Michigan alumni and University of Chicago students who murdered 14-year-old Robert "Bobby" Franks in 1924 and were sentenced to life imprisonment.The duo were...
case. Levin had attended the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
at the same time as Leopold and Loeb, before the murder of Bobby Franks.
The novel, for which Levin was given a Special Edgar Award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
by the Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
in 1957, was the basis for Levin's own 1957 play adaptation and the 1959 film
Compulsion (film)
Compulsion, directed by Richard Fleischer, was a film made in 1959, based on the 1956 novel Compulsion by Meyer Levin, which in turn was based on the Leopold and Loeb trial. It was the first film Richard D. Zanuck produced.- Plot :...
based on it. Compulsion was "the first 'documentary' or 'non-fiction novel
Non-fiction novel
The non-fiction novel is a literary genre which, broadly speaking, depicts real historical figures and actual events narrated woven together with fictitious allegations and using the storytelling techniques of fiction. The non-fiction novel is an otherwise loosely-defined and flexible genre...
' ("a style later used in Truman Capote
Truman Capote
Truman Streckfus Persons , known as Truman Capote , was an American author, many of whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction are recognized literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and the true crime novel In Cold Blood , which he labeled a "nonfiction novel." At...
's In Cold Blood
In Cold Blood
In Cold Blood is a 1966 book by Truman Capote.In Cold Blood may also refer to:* In Cold Blood , a 1967 film and 1996 miniseries, both based on the book* In Cold Blood...
and Norman Mailer
Norman Mailer
Norman Kingsley Mailer was an American novelist, journalist, essayist, poet, playwright, screenwriter, and film director.Along with Truman Capote, Joan Didion, Hunter S...
's The Executioner's Song
The Executioner's Song
The Executioner's Song is a 1980 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Norman Mailer that depicts the events surrounding the execution of Gary Gilmore by the state of Utah for murder. The title of the book may be a play on "The Lord High Executioner's Song" from Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado...
"). Levin follows the known facts of the case closely, while changing names and using a fictional reporter as a narrator.
Anne Frank case
Levin was one of the first American journalists to become aware of the existence of Anne FrankAnne Frank
Annelies Marie "Anne" Frank is one of the most renowned and most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Acknowledged for the quality of her writing, her diary has become one of the world's most widely read books, and has been the basis for several plays and films.Born in the city of Frankfurt...
's diary, and he was also one of the first people to recognize the literary and dramatic potential of this document; he wrote the book review, which appeared on the front page of the New York Times Sunday Book Review. He corresponded with and met Anne's father Otto Frank
Otto Frank
Otto Heinrich "Pim" Frank was a German-born businessman and the father of Anne Frank and Margot Frank...
, who authorized Levin by mail to adapt the Diary for the stage. Levin later became obsessed when Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett
Albert Hackett
Albert Maurice Hackett was an American dramatist and screenwriter most noted for his collaborations with his partner and wife Frances Goodrich.-Early years:...
were later substituted for him, successfully adapting the diary into a hit play, while the play he wrote was rejected. He brought suit against the producers and writers of the Broadway play, alleging that they had appropriated a number of Levin's original scenes from his adaptation. Levin prevailed in his lawsuit, but settled for a lesser amount of damages, rather than continue with expensive litigation, since the Hacketts decided to appeal the verdict, but Levin still obtained no right to have his version of the play performed, as he had signed that away, under pressure by Myer Mermin, an attorney for Otto Frank, of the law firm Paul, Weiss.
Levin wrote a novel, The Fanatic, based on his experiences, but that was not sufficient to exorcise his inner demons. Some years later, he wrote one of his best-received books, The Obsession, containing his straightforward version of all the facts.
His 30-year battle to have his play performed and the legal battles were also covered in An Obsession with Anne Frank: Meyer Levin and the Diary by Lawrence Graver, The Stolen Legacy of Anne Frank: Meyer Levin, Lillian Hellman and the Staging of the Diary by Ralph Melnick, as well as in the French-language book by Levin's wife, Tereska Torres
Tereska Torres
Tereska Torrès is a French writer.Born to the Jewish Polish sculptor Marek Szwarc and his wife Guina she had to flee her native country in 1940 via Lisbon to England when France surrendered to Nazi Germany after the Battle of France while her father, serving in the Polish Armed Forces in the West,...
, Les maisons hantees de Meyer Levin, published by Editions Phebus (Paris). Also look for the 2010 play by Rinne Groff
Rinne Groff
-Biography:Groff was trained at Yale University and New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where she currently teaches.A founding member of Elevator Repair Service Theater Company, she has been a part of the writing, staging, and performing of their shows since the company’s inception in...
Compulsion, inspired by the life of Meyer Levin, starring Mandy Patinkin
Mandy Patinkin
Mandel Bruce "Mandy" Patinkin is an award-winning American actor of stage and screen and a tenor vocalist. He is a noted interpreter of the musical works of Stephen Sondheim, and is best-known for his work in musical theatre, originating iconic roles such as Georges Seurat in Sunday in the Park...
and directed by Oskar Eustis
Oskar Eustis
Oskar Eustis is the artistic director at the Public Theater and has worked as a director, dramaturg, and artistic director for theaters around the country.-Career:...
.
Novels
- The Reporter (1929)
- Frankie and Johnny (1930)
- Yehuda (1931)
- The New Bridge (1933)
- The Old Bunch (1937)
- Citizens (1940)
- My Father's House (1947)
- Compulsion (1956)
- Eva (1959)
- The Fanatic (1964)
- The Stronghold (1965)
- Gore and Igor (1968)
- The Settlers (1972)
- The Spell of Time (1974)
- The Harvest (1978)
- The Architect (1981), (fictionalized life of Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
)
Judaica
- Beginnings in Jewish Philosophy
- The Story of Israel
- An Israel Haggadah for Passover
- The Story of the Synagogue
- The Story of the Jewish Way of Life