Joseph Stefano
| Joseph Stefano | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
Joseph William Stefano May 5, 1922 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Died | August 25, 2006 (aged 84) Thousand Oaks, California |
| Occupation | Screenwriter, producer, director |
| Spouse(s) | Marilyn Epstein (1954–2006) |
Joseph William Stefano (May 5, 1922 – August 25, 2006) was an American screenwriter, best known for adapting Robert Bloch's novel for Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho and for being the producer and co-writer of the original The Outer Limits TV series.
As a teenager, Stefano was so keen to become an actor that he dropped out of high school two weeks before graduation and traveled to New York City. In Manhattan he adopted the stage name Jerry Stevens.
But Stefano's initial career was as a composer of pop music in the 1940s, writing songs for Las Vegas showman Donn Arden. In possession of a large collection of sheet music, he once spent five hours challenging pianist Michael Feinstein on names of obscure Tin Pan Alley songs.
Stefano began writing movie scripts in the late 1950s, firstly for Martin Ritt with The Black Orchid (1958); his father was a tailor, and his mother made silk flowers and this was an influence on the screenplay.
Stefano was commissioned by Alfred Hitchcock to adapt Robert Bloch's novel Psycho (1960) for the screen. His work was recognized by the Mystery Writers of America when he was given a 1961 Edgar Award, for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. Stefano appears briefly onscreen discussing Bloch's utilization of the basis of the character Norman Bates in the crimes of serial killer Ed Gein in the documentary "Ed Gein: The Ghoul of Plainfield", which can be found on Disc 2 of the DVD release of the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003).
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