Ira Levin began writing for television while still a student at New York University, after a CBS writing competition landed him an agent. His "TV years" spanned from 1950 to 1955.

In his television output, Levin worked – characteristically – across genres, alternating between drama, comedy, and fantasy fare for shows of the day such as The U.S. Steel Hour and the (Twilight Zone-esque) anthology series' Lights Out and The Clock.

“Television was live from New York then. It was very exciting – it was really like doing live theater every week. There was no tape then – everything was broadcast live, with all the excitement of a live performance. Sometimes a piece of the set would fall down, sometimes the actors would blow their lines — but they would go on, and it had that charge of excitement that you don't get when something is taped and edited.”
    —Levin (Live at Five, 1991)

He also composed a number of short stories during this period, two of which were adapted for Alfred Hitchcock Presents and General Electric Theater, respectively. During his TV years, Levin also branched out into full-scale novel-writing, with his 1953 crime-thriller classic A Kiss Before Dying.

Drafted into the U.S. Army just prior to A Kiss Before Dying's publication, Levin found himself writing army training films, in addition to dual one-hour military-themed teleplays – one a drama (Notebook Warrior), the other a comedy (No Time For Sergeants).

• Ira Levin's IMDB page
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