| Leslie Stevens | |
|---|---|
| Born | Leslie Clark Stevens II February 3, 1924 Washington, D.C. United States |
| Died | April 24, 1998 (aged 74) Los Angeles, California United States |
| Occupation | Film, and television director, screenwiter |
Leslie Clark Stevens III (February 3, 1924 – April 24, 1998) was the creator of the cult TV series The Outer Limits (1963–1965) and director of the cult horror film Incubus (1966), starring William Shatner. He wrote an early work of New Age philosophy, Est: The Steersman Handbook (1970).[1]
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Leslie Stevens was born in Washington, D.C. His interest in science was sparked when he studied for Annapolis at the behest of his father, Leslie Clark Stevens Jr., an admiral in the United States Navy. But the Broadway theater intrigued him more than a military career, and he headed for New York as a fledging writer. He wrote the Broadway comedy The Marriage-Go-Round, which he adapted to the screen, and produced, as a starring vehicle for Susan Hayward in 1961. He wrote the screenplay for the film The Left Handed Gun (1958) directed by Arthur Penn and starring Paul Newman.
Other films which Stevens produced, and directed and wrote included Hero's Island (1962) starring James Mason, and Private Property (1960) starring Warren Oates. In television, he created the series The Outer Limits, which he supervised as executive producer and wrote or directed a handful of episodes. He also directed the feature film Incubus (1966).
He was writer, director and executive producer of the pilot film and major episodes of It Takes a Thief and McCloud, wrote and produced installments for the series The Invisible Man and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, and produced the 1st season Tony Franciosa episodes of The Name of the Game. He was also Supervising Producer of the original science fiction film Battlestar Galactica: The Saga of a Star-World (1978), and the short-lived NBC science fiction series Search (1972–1973) (about futuristic, high-tech secret agents).
Stevens also wrote for the revival show of The Outer Limits between 1996 and 1997, and wrote the play The Lovers, which became the film The War Lord, along with producing the pilots for Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.
Stevens died of a blood clot in 1998 in Los Angeles, California at the age of 74.
Stevens was married to: