Richard Matheson

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For Richard Matheson's son, see Richard Christian Matheson.

Richard Matheson
Birth name:	Richard Burton Matheson
Gender:	Male
Medium(s):	Novels; Film; Television
Roles:	Writer
Date of birth:	February 20th, 1926
Place of birth:	Allendale, New Jersey
Date of death:	June 23rd, 2013
Place of death:	Calabasas, California
Notable works:	Circle of Fear I Am Legend
1st Horror:	House of Usher (1960)

Richard Matheson is an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres. He is perhaps best known as the author of What Dreams May Come, Somewhere In Time and I Am Legend, all three of which have been adapted as major motion pictures, as well as several The Twilight Zone television show episodes.

His first short story, "Born of Man and Woman," appeared in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1950 and is the tale of a monstrous child chained in its parents' cellars told in the first person as the creature's diary (in poignantly non-idiomatic English). Between 1950 and 1971, Matheson produced dozens of stories, frequently blending elements of the science fiction, horror and fantasy genres, making important contributions to the further development of modern horror. He wrote thirteen episodes for the American TV series The Twilight Zone, including "Steel", and the famous "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet", plus "Little Girl Lost", a story about a young girl tumbling into the fourth dimension; adapted the works of Edgar Allan Poe for Roger Corman and Dennis Wheatley's The Devil Rides Out for Hammer Film Productions. In 1973, Matheson earned an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for his teleplay for The Night Stalker, one of two TV movies written by Matheson that preceded the series Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Matheson's first novel, Someone Is Bleeding, was published in 1953. His novels include The Shrinking Man (filmed as The Incredible Shrinking Man, again from Matheson's own screenplay), and a science fiction vampire novel, I Am Legend, (filmed as The Last Man on Earth (1964), The Omega Man (1971), and I Am Legend (2007)).

Richard Matheson passed away in his home in Calabasas, California on Sunday, June 23rd, 2013 at the age of 87.

Body of work

Film

Film	Year	Role
House of Usher	1960	Writer
Pit and the Pendulum	1961	Writer
Burn, Witch, Burn	1962	Writer
Tales of Terror	1962	Writer
The Raven	1963	Writer
The Comedy of Terrors	1963	Writer
The Last Man on Earth	1964	Writer
The Devil Rides Out	1968	Writer
The Omega Man	1971	Writer
The Night Stalker	1972	Writer
Dracula	1973	Writer
The Night Strangler	1973	Writer
The Legend of Hell House	1973	Writer
Scream of the Wolf	1974	Writer
Trilogy of Terror	1975	Writer
Dead of Night	1977	Writer
Jaws 3-D	1983	Writer
Trilogy of Terror II	1996	Writer
I Am Omega	2007	Writer
I Am Legend	2007	Writer

Television

Series	Episode	Role
Circle of Fear	The New House	Writer
Circle of Fear	The Dead We Leave Behind	Writer
Circle of Fear	The Concrete Captain	Writer
Circle of Fear	At the Cradle Foot	Writer
Circle of Fear	Bad Connection	Writer
Circle of Fear	The Summer House	Writer
Circle of Fear	Alter-Ego	Writer
Circle of Fear	Half a Death	Writer
Circle of Fear	House of Evil	Writer
Circle of Fear	Cry of the Cat	Writer
Circle of Fear	Elegy for a Vampire	Writer
Circle of Fear	Touch of Madness	Producer
Circle of Fear	Creatures of the Canyon	Producer
Circle of Fear	Time of Terror	Producer
Circle of Fear	Death's Head	Writer
Circle of Fear	Dark Vengeance	Writer
Circle of Fear	Earth, Air, Fire and Water	Writer
Circle of Fear	Doorway to Death	Writer
Circle of Fear	Legions of Demons	Writer
Circle of Fear	Graveyard Shift	Writer
Circle of Fear	Spare Parts	Writer
Circle of Fear	The Ghost on Potter's Field	Writer
Circle of Fear	The Phantom of Herald Square	Writer
Masters of Horror	Dance of the Dead	Writer

Notes & Trivia

• In 2010, Matheson was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame.

• Majored in journalism at the University of Missouri.

External Links

• Richard Matheson at AMG
• Richard Matheson at IMDB
• Richard Matheson at Wikipedia

References

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Jaws Actor or Crew member This article relates to actors or production crew members pertaining to the Jaws film franchise. This template will categorize articles that include it into the Jaws crew members category.

Kolchak Actor or Crew member This article relates to actors or production crew members pertaining to the Kolchak: The Night Stalker franchise. This template will categorize articles that include it into the Kolchak crew members category.

Masters of Horror Actor or Crew member This article relates to actors or production crew members pertaining to the Masters of Horror mini-movie franchise. This template will categorize articles that include it into the Masters of Horror crew members category.