Biography

Tom DeSimone (1939 — October 17, 2026) was an American director, writer, producer and editor, perhaps best known for directing the cult films Chatterbox (1977), Hell Night (1981), and The Concrete Jungle (1982). Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, DeSimone earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Emerson College. He relocated to Los Angeles in the 1960s, and enrolled at the University of Southern California to earn a Master's in Filmmaking. DeSimone began his career as a director of numerous adult films in the late 1960s, including several gay pornography films under the pseudonym, Lancer Brooks. He would later become known for directing the cult film Chatterbox (1977), produced by Bruce Cohn Curtis, who would then hire him to direct his subsequent film, the 1981 cult slasher, Hell Night.