Foreword by John Landis.

Larry Cohen was a one-of-a-kind filmmaker—a writer, director, and producer with a lifelong refusal to play by Hollywood’s rules. I Killed Bette Davis is his wildly entertaining confession from inside the guerrilla trenches of filmmaking, where stolen shots, enraged studio heads, and impossible stars were all part of a day’s work. From sneaking cameras into FBI headquarters to igniting chaos atop the Chrysler Building, Cohen turned low budgets into high drama and left a trail of scorched earth—and unforgettable films—behind him. This fast-paced, irreverent memoir is the definitive insider’s look at the life and mind of one of cinema’s great originals, tracing Cohen’s journey from his Bronx childhood through his groundbreaking television work and his wildly inventive run as a fiercely independent auteur.

“I’d hate for you to miss out on all the sordid details, so it’s all laid out for you here—all the fun and the fiascos, all the memories, the pain and the pleasures, the films, the battles, the triumphs and misadventures that defined my career.” —from Larry Cohen’s introduction

“Larry Cohen was outrageous. Larry Cohen was a hustler. Larry Cohen was a maverick. And Larry Cohen was a visionary. I miss him.” —from John Landis’ foreword

Larry Cohen (1936–2019) was an American filmmaker, screenwriter, and producer known for his inventive, low-budget genre films that combined social commentary with pulp energy. Emerging from television in the 1960s, he became a defining figure of guerrilla filmmaking in the 1970s and ’80s with titles such as It’s Alive (1974), God Told Me To (1976), and The Stuff (1985). Cohen’s sharp wit, political edge, and knack for turning limited resources into cinematic originality made him a cult favorite and a key influence on later generations of independent directors.

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Larry Cohen

I Killed Bette Davis

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