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William Peter Blatty Dies At 89, Catholic ‘Exorcist’ Author Intended To Help Those With Wavering Faith In God

By Ashley Hoffman
Published on: 05:49 PST, Jan 14, 2017

William Peter Blatty, the author of the best-selling book and horror classic, The Exorcist, has died at the age of 89. Many are familiar with the movie’s premise which is centered on two priests attempting to help a 12-year-old girl possessed by a demon. However, many are unaware that Blatty wished for his book and film to help those with wavering faith in God. According to his widow, Julie Witbrodt Blatty, the cause of Peter Blatty’s death was a form of multiple myeloma. The Exorcist director, William Friedkin, revealed the news of the Oscar-winning screenwriter’s death through a tweet on Friday morning.

Stephen King also tweeted his admiration for the author’s work and said the Oscar-winning screenwriter, “wrote the great horror novel of our time.”

The Conception Of The Exorcist

In 1949, Blatty became mesmerized by a Washington Post story which gave a detailed account of an exorcism performed by a Jesuit priest on a 14-year-old boy who was believed to be possessed by a demon. The article headline read, “Priest Frees Mt. Rainier Boy Reported Held in Devil’s Grip.” At the time, Blatty was a junior at Georgetown University and the incident was widely discussed amongst students and faculty members.

Author and producer, William Peter Blatty, arrives at the screening of the re-release of ‘The Exorcist’ in 2000. [Image by Chris Weeks/Liaison]

Blatty graduated from Georgetown University in 1950 and used parts of the campus to film The Exorcist. The author received a John Carroll Medal for alumni achievement. However, according to the Catholic News Agency, Blatty became a top critic of the school and announced a canonical lawsuit against Georgetown for failing to live up to its Catholic identity, in May of 2012.

Jesuit Fr. Thomas M. King is a former theology professor at Georgetown who was rumored to be the inspiration for the priestly character in The Exorcist. Blatty voiced gratitude for his education but insisted the institution was not living up to its intended Catholic mission.

“… Georgetown University today almost seems to take pride in insulting the Church and offending the faithful.”

The Father King Society, a society in which Blatty constructed, listed on its website various ways it believed the university failed to comply with Ex corde Ecclesiae, St. John Paul II’s 1990 apostolic constitution on Catholic universities.

Blatty’s petition boldly requested that the Church require the prestigious, historically Jesuit school to implement the document. In April 2014, the Secretary of the Congregation for Catholic Education, Archbishop Angelo Zani, said the group’s petition was, “a well-founded complaint.”

Before suing the university, Blatty graduated from college and went on to pursue a career as a vacuum-cleaner salesman, psychological warfare specialist in the Air Force, U.S. Information Agency magazine editor, and university public relations specialist, according to The Guardian.

The incident stayed with Blatty 20 years later and became the basis for his book. Blatty embarked on writing what he assumed would be a modest-selling novel about a girl, a demon, and some Catholic priests. The New York Times reported that Blatty told People magazine that halfway through his writings, he had a hunch that something much bigger would come out of his work.

“I knew it was going to be a success… I couldn’t wait to finish it and become famous.”

Blatty claimed he experienced numerous mysterious events while working on the book and revealed to IGN that the book was also written for spiritual purposes.

“Like so many Catholics, I’ve had so many little battles of wavering faith over the course of my life… And when I heard about this case and read the details, that seemed so compelling. I thought, ‘My God, if someone were to investigate this and authenticate it, what a tremendous boost to faith it would be.’ I thought, ‘Someday I would like to see that happen. You know, I would like to do it.'”

Following his interests in spooky stories of exorcism and demonic possessions, Blatty then went on to explore his intellectual pursuits of “disembodied intelligences.” It was later on in his life that he became a novelist and screenwriter. Blatty earned writing credit for the 1964 movie, A Shot in the Dark. This was his first entry in Blake Edwards’ Pink Panther film series which starred Peter Sellers.

The book and movie also prompted a continuing debate about exorcism and demonic possession within the Catholic Church and among the public.

In later years, Blatty settled in Washington and engaged in occasional public disagreements with the church. Blatty opened up to the Washington Post in 2013 and revealed that he does not regret his work and the legacy it has left for his family.

“I can’t regret The Exorcist… It’s done so much for me and for my family. And it’s given me a great deal of freedom to write what I want.”

The success of the book and film, The Exorcist, gave Blatty the freedom he desired to rework Twinkle, Twinkle, ‘Killer Kane’! into a new book called The Ninth Configuration. He then adapted, directed, and produced a film version two years later, according to The Guardian. The film was described as, “the finest large-scale American surrealist film ever made” by Peter Travers in People magazine. It was nominated for three Golden Globes in 1981. In addition to these prestigious cinematic acknowledgments, the film won the best writing award against The Elephant Man, Ordinary People, and Raging Bull.

In 2000, Blatty told The Times-Picayune of New Orleans that people must understand the message intended to be derived from The Exorcist.

“That God exists and the universe itself will have a happy ending.”

The Success Of The Exorcist

In Blatty’s The Exorcist, the bizarre, vile behavior of a 12-year-old girl could not be explained by logical or medical reasons, until a priest concluded that she was possessed by a demon. Blatty worked hard to compose the screenplay for the film to assist in its odyssey onto the big screen. William Friedkin soon signed on as director and Linda Blair starred as the demonically possessed child.

The Exorcist was named the scariest movie of all time by Entertainment Weekly and cashed in $400 million worldwide at the box office. This was the highest at the time for an R-rated picture, according to NPR. The movie was a runaway box-office hit and inspired a series of graphic horror films that frightened audiences for decades. The film earned Blatty an Academy Award.

According to the New York Times, it was the first horror movie nominated for the best-picture Oscar. The Exorcist became a blockbuster and sold 13 million copies in the United States. However, the movie did receive its share of critical and mocking reviews.

Blatty wrote a number of screenplays and became producer and director for later horror films. Peter Blatty was also one of Hollywood’s leading comedy writers. However, his reputation in the entertainment industry was forever anchored to The Exorcist.

According to the New York Post, Blatty revealed that The Exorcist diminished any chances he could have had in the comedy arena.

“The sad truth is that nobody wants me to write comedy… The Exorcist not only ended that career; it expunged all memory of its existence.”

[Featured Image by Larry Ellis/Getty Images]

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