From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Joseph Stefano (5 May 1922 - 25 August 2006) was an American screenwriter.

Originally a composer of pop music in the 1940s, Stefano began writing movie scripts in the late 1950s, beginning with Martin Ritt's The Black Orchid (1958). In 1960, Stefano was tapped by Alfred Hitchcock to adapt Robert Bloch's pulp novel Psycho 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 was also offered the job of scripting Hitchcock's The Birds (1963) and Marnie (1964) but chose instead to produce and write for friend Leslie Stevens' science fiction television project The Outer Limits.

After leaving the series due to network interference and exhaustion, Stefano wrote and directed The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre (1964; AKA The Haunted), a difficult-to-find film utilizing many of the crew responsible for The Outer Limits. The thriller Eye of the Cat (1969) and the comedy Futz! (1969) (co-written by Rochelle Owens) were Stefano's last big-screen jobs for many years. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he wrote many made-for-TV movies, such as Home for the Holidays (1972), and Snowbeast (1977).

In 1990, he revisited the characters from Psycho with the TV movie script for the last sequel in what had become an increasingly disappointing series of films. Psycho IV: The Beginning (1991) posits the origins of Norman Bates' destructive mother-love, featuring Olivia Hussey as Mrs. Bates. Stefano wrote and executive produced the Al Pacino drama Two Bits (1995; AKA A Day to Remember), a personal project that fared poorly at the box-office and with critics, leaving Stefano less than enthusiastic about continuing to write for modern Hollywood. Gus Van Sant's remake of Psycho (1998) followed Stefano's script.

Stefano was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, a tailor, made silk flowers, a skill that later influenced the plot of The Black Orchid.

As a teenager, Stefano was so keen to become an actor that he dropped out of high school two weeks before graduation and went to New York City. In Manhattan he adopted the stage name Jerry Stevens.

Stefano, who once wrote songs for Las Vegas showman Donn Arden, had a large collection of sheet music. He once spent five hours challenging pianist Michael Feinstein on names of obscure Tin Pan Alley songs.

Stefano died of a heart attack at Los Robles Hospital and Medical Center in Thousand Oaks, California.

• Bernstein, Adam. (2006, August 30). Joseph Stefano; Key Writer for 'Psycho'. The Washington Post, page B6

• Joseph Stefano - Psycho Screenwriter Interview

• Joseph Stefano at the Internet Movie Database