I Am Legend (novel)

I Am Legend
First edition cover
AuthorRichard Matheson
LanguageEnglish
Subjectpost-apocalyptic
GenreHorror
PublisherGold Medal Books
Publication date
August 7, 1954[1]
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePaperback
Pages160 (1954 edition)

I Am Legend is a 1954 post-apocalyptic horror novel by American writer Richard Matheson that was influential in the modern development of zombie and vampire literature and in popularizing the concept of a worldwide apocalypse due to disease. The novel was a success and was adapted into the films The Last Man on Earth (1964), The Omega Man (1971), and I Am Legend (2007). It was also an inspiration for George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968).

  1. ^ "Books Published Today". The New York Times: 11. August 7, 1954.