David Durston

David E. Durston (September 10, 1921 – May 6, 2010) was an American performer, screenwriter, and film director whose career spanned Broadway, television, and film across several decades.

Durston appeared on Broadway between 1943 and 1961, with credits including the drama Winged Victory and How to Make a Man. His work in front of the camera extended to television as well, including an appearance on the DuMont Television Network series Chez Paree Revue in 1950. He also wrote and directed for the television anthology series Playhouse 90 between 1956 and 1960.

His film directing career began with Felicia in 1964, followed by The Love Statue in 1965, a film dealing with LSD use, for which he also served as screenwriter. Durston wrote and directed the 1971 exploitation horror film I Drink Your Blood, centered on a cult of Satan-worshipping hippies who, after contracting rabies, turn into zombies. The film drew inspiration from the Manson Family and became the work most closely associated with his name. That same year he wrote and directed Blue Sextet, and in 1972 he wrote and directed Stigma. He subsequently directed and wrote Boy 'Napped! in 1975, released under the pseudonym Spencer Logan, and directed Manhole in 1978, a film that went unreleased after one of its cast members was cast in Escape from Alcatraz, as an association with the production was considered damaging to both that performer's career and the Clint Eastwood film.

In his later years, Durston worked to develop a remake of I Drink Your Blood, though the project was not completed. He died on May 6, 2010, from complications from pneumonia.