AllMovie

An Emmy-winning writer who penned a staggering 500 short stories (nearly 200 of which were sold before the publication of his first book), 55 radio plays, and six books, Henry Slesar was best known as a long-running writer for the television soap opera The Edge of Night in addition to his frequent work for television's popular Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Born in Brooklyn, NY, in 1927, Slesar began his career with a 20-year stint as an advertising copywriter at the age of 17. The coiner of the term "coffee break," Slesar was also the man behind McGraw-Hill's massively popular "The Man in the Chair" advertising campaign. Working on the small screen with scripts for The Twilight Zone, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., and Batman, the writer became somewhat of a television mainstay, frequently penning thrillers and comedies into the new millennium. In early April of 2002, Slesar died of natural causes at the age of 74.