William Peter Blatty, whose work became the inspiration for one of the greatest horror movies of all time, and who won an Oscar for writing the screenplay, has died. He was 89.
Blatty was born in New York in 1928 to Lebanese parents who arrived in the States on a cattle boat. Raised alone by his mother after his father left when Blatty was three, his family faced constant evictions and struggled with poverty, but Blatty was able to attend school and then Georgetown University on scholarships. He excelled in academia and went on to study a master's degree in English Literature at George Washington University.
After graduation, he supported himself with various jobs, including as a vacuum cleaner salesman, truck driver and airline ticket agent before enlisting in the US Air Force and becoming head of the force's Psychological Warfare Division, a position you might think would stand him in good stead for his future work. After military service, he continued writing and working in PR jobs, producing his first book, Which Way To Mecca, Jack? based on his early life and his days in the service. He found other work ghostwriting books and comic novels of his own.
His start in film came via Blake Edwards, who hired him to write scripts for movies such as A Shot In The Dark, Gunn and Darling Lili. More credits followed, including the Warren Beatty-starring comedy Promise Her Anything.
But it was with The Exorcist that Blatty truly shifted gears. The bestseller was picked up by director William Friedkin, who had Blatty write the adaptation, for which he won the Academy Award and several Golden Globes. It sparked Blatty's own desire to direct and he adapted his novel Twinkle, Twinkle, "Killer" Kane! into The Ninth Configuration, released in 1980. He also directed The Exorcist III, which came out in 1990 based on Blatty's sequel novel Legion.
Though he didn't direct movies after that, Blatty remained active in the writing world, continuing to produce both fiction and non-fiction books until 2015.
His death was announced by Friedkin on Twitter this morning, who wrote, "William Peter Blatty, dear friend and brother who created The Exorcist passed away yesterday." He's survived by his wife, Julie Alicia Witbrodt, and several children.