Jack Williamson reported dead
Dan Goodman
E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update that
he had in fact left us.
.....
Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the building.
http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
--
Dan Goodman
All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.
John Arbuthnot (1667-1735), Scottish writer, physician.
Journal http://dsgood.livejournal.com
Links http://del.icio.us/dsgood
Political http://www.dailykos.com/user/dsgood
bm2...@eve.albany.edu
Dan Goodman wrote:
> Jack Williamson, 1908-2006
>
> E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
> near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update that
> he had in fact left us.
>
> .....
> Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the building.
> http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
>
>
End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
still with us?
He was in from almost the start, and lived through all the changes and
ups and downs of the genre since. Now he's gone, and it feels almost
like an omen of doom: how long will SF (at least of the "robots,
aliens, spaceships and _super science_" variety) outlast him?
Bruce,
who hopes Haffner Press ( http://www.haffnerpress.com/ ) continues the
project...some very silly stuff in the first 4 volumes, but fun
nonetheless.
Sea Wasp
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> still with us?
>
> He was in from almost the start, and lived through all the changes and
> ups and downs of the genre since. Now he's gone, and it feels almost
> like an omen of doom: how long will SF (at least of the "robots,
> aliens, spaceships and _super science_" variety) outlast him?
As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
space opera.
--
Sea Wasp
/^\
;;;
Live Journal: http://www.livejournal.com/users/seawasp/
Gene Ward Smith
Sea Wasp wrote:
> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
> space opera.
Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
that last monster?"
johan....@comcast.net
bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
> He was in from almost the start, and lived through all the changes and
> ups and downs of the genre since. Now he's gone, and it feels almost
> like an omen of doom: how long will SF (at least of the "robots,
> aliens, spaceships and _super science_" variety) outlast him?
So what were his must-read novels and stories? I think the only one I
know is "With Folded Hands."
Johan Larson
Sea Wasp
For space opera, The Legion of Space series.
Sea Wasp
I am not Doc, much as I might aspire to be. I will settle for big.
Brobdignagian must remain the province of those giants who have passed.
johan....@comcast.net
Sea Wasp wrote:
> Gene Ward Smith wrote:
> > Sea Wasp wrote:
> >
> >
> >> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
> >>space opera.
> >
> >
> > Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
> > Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
> > that last monster?"
> >
>
> I am not Doc, much as I might aspire to be. I will settle for big.
> Brobdignagian must remain the province of those giants who have passed.
Perhaps with the help of modern technology you can aspire to be
refulgent or coruscating.
Johan Larson
Dan Goodman
>
> Dan Goodman wrote:
> > Jack Williamson, 1908-2006
> >
> > E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
> > near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update
> > that he had in fact left us.
> >
> > .....
> > Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the
> > building. http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> still with us?
>
> He was in from almost the start, and lived through all the changes and
> ups and downs of the genre since. Now he's gone, and it feels almost
> like an omen of doom: how long will SF (at least of the "robots,
> aliens, spaceships and _super science_" variety) outlast him?
According to the Internet Speculative Fiction Data Base: First short
story published 1928, last published 2003. First novel published 1929
(this is also listed as short work....), last 2005.
Default User
The Seetee stories had some interesting ideas, even though they seem a
bit dated in some respects.
Brian
--
If televison's a babysitter, the Internet is a drunk librarian who
won't shut up.
-- Dorothy Gambrell (http://catandgirl.com)
Gene Ward Smith
johan....@comcast.net wrote:
> So what were his must-read novels and stories? I think the only one I
> know is "With Folded Hands."
That's one. Another is "Darker than you Think." Those were written at
around the same time, which was apparently a peak period. I'd read the
whole of "The Humanoids", actually.
in...@haffnerpress.com
Yes, there are more books by Jack Williamson in the works. Volume Five
of his Collected Stories was released back in March 2006, and Volume
Six is slated for Summer 2007.
BTW, "silly stuff" is in the eye of the beholder, but I think Jack's
"Dreadful Sleep" and "The Legion of Time" are fantastic even 50+ years
later!
Stephen Haffner
Big Poobah
HAFFNER PRESS
in...@haffnerpress.com
His most acknowledged work is probably DARKER THAN YOU THINK.
Following that you have THE HUMANOIDS & "With Folded Hands."
THE LEGION OF SPACE series is pretty much a romp (albeit dated, but I
still find the charm in it) and the concepts and violence of THE LEGION
OF TIME transcend some of the pulpier elements and purpled prose.
Thankfully, I like my prose with a vermillion tint. Also good are the
stories: "Wolves of Darkness," "Nonstop to Mars," "The Alien
Intelligence," "Jamboree," "The Green Girl," and "Star Bright."
Other good reads are the novels: THE MOON CHILDREN, DRAGON'S ISLAND,
THE BLACK SUN, FIRECHILD, and to satisfy your fantasy-jones, try DEMON
MOON, GOLDEN BLOOD, and THE REIGN OF WIZARDRY.
Stephen Haffner
Big Poobah
HAFFNER PRESS
Ahasuerus
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's still with us? [snip]
Last week I would have said "None of the same caliber, but Nelson S.
Bond is still around" :-(
--
Ahasuerus
Tina Hall
> bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
>> He was in from almost the start, and lived through all the changes and
>> ups and downs of the genre since. Now he's gone, and it feels almost
>> like an omen of doom: how long will SF (at least of the "robots,
>> aliens, spaceships and _super science_" variety) outlast him?
> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
> space opera.
Aren't you going to finish the Jason Wood thing first? (IIRC, and I might
be hallucinating, you said something about seven books somewhere in the
back of your mind, waiting to be written.)
--
Tina
To Hell with internet.
### XP v3.40 RC3 ###
johan....@comcast.net
in...@haffnerpress.com wrote:
> Johan:
>
> His most acknowledged work is probably DARKER THAN YOU THINK.
> Following that you have THE HUMANOIDS & "With Folded Hands."
>
> THE LEGION OF SPACE series is pretty much a romp (albeit dated, but I
> still find the charm in it) and the concepts and violence of THE LEGION
> OF TIME transcend some of the pulpier elements and purpled prose.
> Thankfully, I like my prose with a vermillion tint. Also good are the
> stories: "Wolves of Darkness," "Nonstop to Mars," "The Alien
> Intelligence," "Jamboree," "The Green Girl," and "Star Bright."
>
> Other good reads are the novels: THE MOON CHILDREN, DRAGON'S ISLAND,
> THE BLACK SUN, FIRECHILD, and to satisfy your fantasy-jones, try DEMON
> MOON, GOLDEN BLOOD, and THE REIGN OF WIZARDRY.
Thanks a bunch.
Johan Larson
bm2...@eve.albany.edu
in...@haffnerpress.com wrote:
> Hi Bruce.
>
> Yes, there are more books by Jack Williamson in the works. Volume Five
> of his Collected Stories was released back in March 2006, and Volume
> Six is slated for Summer 2007.
Good to hear!
>
> BTW, "silly stuff" is in the eye of the beholder, but I think Jack's
> "Dreadful Sleep" and "The Legion of Time" are fantastic even 50+ years
> later!
>
Oh, I find the silly stuff part of the fun of reading these early
stories...and there were some genuine gems there, too. I enjoy the
purple prose - I'm also a HPL and Clark Ashton fan. (But really, some
of the stories - redoing the US revolution in painfully exact
imitation? On the Moon?)
best,
Bruce
bm2...@eve.albany.edu
bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
> >
> > BTW, "silly stuff" is in the eye of the beholder, but I think Jack's
> > "Dreadful Sleep" and "The Legion of Time" are fantastic even 50+ years
> > later!
> >
>
> Oh, I find the silly stuff part of the fun of reading these early
> stories...and there were some genuine gems there, too. I enjoy the
> purple prose - I'm also a HPL and Clark Ashton fan. (But really, some
> of the stories - redoing the US revolution in painfully exact
> imitation? On the Moon?)
>
But then, it's really not a time to be snarky. My apologies, Jack,
wherever you are.
Bruce
Robert A. Woodward
bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
> Dan Goodman wrote:
> > Jack Williamson, 1908-2006
> >
> > E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
> > near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update that
> > he had in fact left us.
> >
> > .....
> > Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the building.
> > http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
> >
> >
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> still with us?
I had thought that Fred Pohl might qualify, but he first published
in 1940.
--
Robert Woodward <robe...@drizzle.com>
<http://www.drizzle.com/~robertaw>
Sea Wasp
I've finished one new Jason Wood story ("Shadow of Fear") and am
working on another ("Trial Run"). There's at least two or three more
Jason Wood books to come before the "Grand Finale". However, before I
reach the Grand Finale I have several other stories that must be
published, including the big space opera ("Demons of the Past") and
two fantasy stories -- possibly Big Fat Standalones or trilogies.
James Nicoll
I liked SEETEE when I reread in 2003:
Seetee
Jack Williamson
Jove (1979)
448 pages
This is an omnibus edition of two books by Jack Williamson,
written under the pen name of Will Stewart. I am making no effort to
avoid spoilers.
A note on the cover art: Gosh, space is crowded. Also, that
spaceship looks an awful lot like a dumptruck whose wheels have fallen
off. Can't quite make out the artist's signature, though. W Velez?
SeeTee Ship [1949, 1950]
The book is set in the late years of the 22nd Century, when
the various worlds and moons of the solar system have been settled.
Although we get very few details on the history between 1949 and 2190,
it seems that each world was settled by one nationality: Jupiter
is Soviet, Mars is German [and not the nice type of Germans either [1]],
Venus has been settled by the Chinese and so on. Advanced technology
extends to a field known as paragravity, that allows such benefits
as atmosphere-containing force fields, local generation of a gravity
substitute [2], efficient space drives and very efficient fission power
plants. It doesn't extend to fusion power [And in fact there is no mention
of fusion anywhere that I saw] and therein lies the plot. Fissionables
are in ever shorter supply with the result that power costs are creeping
upwards. The one place not yet tapped out is the asteroid belt and to avoid
general war over it it is governed by the High Space Mandate, with members
from each of the great powers but not representatives of the local rock
rat population, who we learn were sold out by the powers that be, primarily
the great corporation Interplanet.
One possible route out of the power shortage exists. Long ago
the planet between Mars and Jupiter was stuck by a rogue world composed
entirely of contraterrene matter (what we call antimatter), SeeTee for
short. Fragments of both worlds still orbit the sun. If humans can learn
how to safely manipulate SeeTee then the power shortage can be ended,
at least until the SeeTee runs out (and the source is -not- local, which
is probably for the best, really). Nobody knows how to safely manipulate
SeeTee, even using paragravity, and because the Great Powers all recognise
that one application of SeeTee tech is the ability to make warheads a
thousand times more powerful per unit mass than they have at present
and see this as a Bad Thing, licenses to research SeeTee are difficult
to come by. Of course all that means is that people do it illegally.
Rich Drake is the son of a rock rat involved in SeeTee research.
Rich also is interested in harnessing the power of total conversion for
humanity and to that end he takes a job with Interplanet. Complications
follow and he is led to take part in an investigation of a mysterious
explosion in space, an investigation that leads to the discovery that the
SeeTee planet had inhabitants, that they solved the SeeTee problem from
their side of the mirror (including the military applications, which seems
to be what led to their world being punted into its |ten billion| year
journey through space) and the recovery of some of this technology for
humans. Because the SeeTee world appears to have come from a region of
space where entropy flows the other way, a handwave effect drags some
of the humans back through time, leading to a causal loop.
We don't see people in the later book taking advantage of the
phenonenon that leads to time travel but since it doesn't appear to
allow alteration of the past, maybe there is a reason. On the other
hand, "Beep".
COMMENTS:
Williamson's figures for fission based power generation seem
too high by a factor of ten. To make up for that, I don't think he
really understood how much thorium and uranium there is in the Earth
(10^17 kg of Th and 4x10^16 kg of U in the continental crust of the
Earth). It isn't clear to me where fusion went. Although both books
predate the H Bomb, they don't predate the work of people like Hans
Bethe. It also isn't clear to me why nobody even thinks to try solar
power.
The plot is a bit odd since a lot of the action occurs offstage,
leaving the various protagonists to deduce from the piles of dead bodies
what happened, happily for them in time to avoid similar fates.
I liked that while various characters came from opposing factions
there is a general lack of villains among the primary portagonists (Some
of the minor characters do come from Villain Central, though). On the
downside this is -not- one of the books whose treatment of non-Americans
transcends its times, as seen by the hissing Asians of Venus.
Paragravity is nicely not able to do everything for free (at
least in this book), with the result that while in theory one could
terraform all the terrene asteroids, the money just isn't available
to make that happen. I was a little surprised at the low delta vees
of the paragravity ships but I suppose that follows from the
general shortage of power.
SeeTee Shock [1951]
Nick Jenkins, the next generation of rock rats down from Rich,
returns to his home asteroid to discover that someone has gassed the
inhabitants into insensibility, stolen some SeeTee missiles and due to
a mishap involving a SeeTee explosion left everyone, including Nick,
dying of radiation damage, the SeeTee Shock of the title. Although he
is dying, he finds himself drawn into a system-wide crisis as someone
seems bend on either causing an interplanetary SeeTee war or at least
presenting the appearance of one. As in the earlier book, people from
various factions appear as sympathetic characters (Including the fellow
whose fault all this is).
A large part of the plot centers around the so-called Fifth Freedom
as a result of cheap power. SeeTee provides the potential for such power
but as it pointed out at one point using SeeTee on a planetary surface may
well have undesirable side effects (although given the brief description
of how paragravity fission generators work, these people are more accepting
of risk than we are). A method exists to avoid the inverse square problems
of broadcast power but so far the money to finance the necessary powerplant
has not been found. In part this is because the people who make their living
controlling access to power don't want it to be found but it must be said
that the sort of centralized power generation system proposed also lends
itself to abuse and this is pointed out in the text. Nick soldiers on
despite the many barriers in his way and there is little doubt that he
will in the end succeed. By the end of the book, inexpensive power is
available across the system, revolution is toppling oppressive regimes
and the various surviving governments are taking steps to provide more
than one Very Large SeeTee powerplant. Unfortunately Nick survives, thanks
to a very large handwave on the part of the author which I refrain from
explaining lest the biologists reading this kill themselves in disbelief.
COMMENTS:
Given low-loss broadcast power, it is even more surprising nobody
ever thinks of exploiting solar power.
There's a huge info dump on the history of the solar system,
which is dated but amusing. The reason the planets were each settled
by a particular nation was that after the USA grabbed the Moon for itself
a rational look at the limits of nuclear rocket technology led them to
believe the rest of the system was valueless and so to ease the resulting
tensions from their Lunar landgrab they allowed the other Great Powers
to claim various planets. The following year, paragravity was discovered.
Broadcast power keeps ships limited to the volume over which
power can be broadcast, I think. Story idea in that...
Again, most of the characters are presented in a sympathetic manner,
including the fellow whose plans to manipulate the stock market through
a faked SeeTee war led to a premature revolt in the High Space Mandate and
thousands of deaths.
Overall, I don't regret reading this at all. It's dated but fun.
1: Germans from the Black Forest must be very even tempered, given Black
Forest jokes and the relative lack of spree killing by Germans from the
Black Forest who have heard one joke too many.
2: A question on terminology: WTF is 'synthetic water' and how do you tell
it from the real stuff?
--
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/
http://www.livejournal.com/users/james_nicoll
http://www.cafepress.com/jdnicoll (For all your "The problem with
defending the English language [...]" T-shirt, cup and tote-bag needs)
Keith F. Lynch
> bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
>> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
>> still with us?
I think you mean 1920s.
> Yes, there are more books by Jack Williamson in the works. Volume
> Five of his Collected Stories was released back in March 2006, and
> Volume Six is slated for Summer 2007.
If it could be delayed three years, he will have been published in
every named decade ('00s, '10s, '20s, '30s, etc.). I don't believe
that's currently the case for any author in any genre.
--
Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/
Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me.
Jon Schild
Did Heinlein say "90% dialog is too much talking"?
Ahasuerus
> in...@haffnerpress.com wrote: [snip]
> > the concepts and violence of THE LEGION
> > OF TIME transcend some of the pulpier elements and purpled prose.
>
> Thanks a bunch.
Just keep in mind that when Stephen wrote
"pulpier...purpled...vermillion", he wasn't kidding. Nonetheless, it
was a very important and influential novel back in the day.
--
Ahasuerus
jpe...@qwest.net
Damn. I hadn't heard the sad news about Nelson Bond. He was one of the
first authors that I wrote a fan letter to... We corresponded
intermittently over the years and discussed Darkside Press doing a
"Best of" collection. He declined and mentioned that he had Arkham
House interested in doing three volumes. I've never been happier to
lose a project as Arkham House has released two mammoth volumes of
Bond's fiction and hopefully the third one is on the way.
This has been a simply horrible year for losing some of our greats...
Sadly,
jpe...@qwest.net
Not to worry, as Haffner tends to do only one or two volumes per year,
I think it safe to say that the Williamson project will continue into
the next decade. #5 goes up to 1940 and there are at least 60 SF
stories after that date (to say nothing of short novels or non-genre
material that may be included) I'd guess that the project will run to
at least eight to ten volumes.
Cheers,
Chuck Bridgeland
>
> Dan Goodman wrote:
>> Jack Williamson, 1908-2006
>>
>> E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
>> near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update that
>> he had in fact left us.
>>
>> .....
>> Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the building.
>> http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
>>
>>
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> still with us?
Maybe not quite a pro back then, but to the best of my knowledge
Fredrik Pohl is still alive and active.
--
1)What is your only comfort in life and death?
Chuck Bridgeland, chuckbri at computerdyn dot com
bm2...@eve.albany.edu
Chuck Bridgeland wrote:
> > End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> > still with us?
>
> Maybe not quite a pro back then, but to the best of my knowledge
> Fredrik Pohl is still alive and active.
>
>
True, but did he write any SF stories earlier than "The Dweller in the
Ice" (1940)? (Earliest I found in a cursory google search).
Bruce
Lawrence Watt-Evans
He published an SF poem before that, "Elegy to a Dead Planet." Does
that count?
--
My webpage is at http://www.watt-evans.com
The second issue of Helix is at http://www.helixsf.com
A new Ethshar novel is being serialized at http://www.ethshar.com/thevondishambassador1.html
Sean O'Hara
declared:
>
> End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> still with us?
>
H.P. Lovecraft, but I can't go into details or el--Ia! The shining
trapezahedron of Nyarlat
[carrier lost]
bm2...@eve.albany.edu
Lawrence Watt-Evans wrote:
> On 12 Nov 2006 16:47:54 -0800, bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
>
> >Chuck Bridgeland wrote:
> >
> >> > End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
> >> > still with us?
> >>
> >> Maybe not quite a pro back then, but to the best of my knowledge
> >> Fredrik Pohl is still alive and active.
> >
> >True, but did he write any SF stories earlier than "The Dweller in the
> >Ice" (1940)? (Earliest I found in a cursory google search).
>
> He published an SF poem before that, "Elegy to a Dead Planet." Does
> that count?
>
>
>
If that's the only SF-related thing he published in the 30's, we're
pushing the definition of "1930's writer" a bit...
Bruce
Sean O'Hara
> Sea Wasp wrote:
>
>
>> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
>>space opera.
>
>
> Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
> Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
> that last monster?"
>
Feh. No one's ever written space opera big enough for me. Unless it
starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
the epic scope I'm looking for.
--
Sean O'Hara | http://diogenes-sinope.blogspot.com
Cheryl: You're going to want to take a whole bottle of this home
with you. It's got quite a lot of ingredients in it, so you're
getting a good deal.
-The Good Girl
Nancy Lebovitz
Sean O'Hara <sean...@gmail.com> wrote:
>In the Year of the Dog, the Great and Powerful Gene Ward Smith declared:
>> Sea Wasp wrote:
>>
>>
>>> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
>>>space opera.
>>
>>
>> Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
>> Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
>> that last monster?"
>>
>
>Feh. No one's ever written space opera big enough for me. Unless it
>starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
>spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
>the epic scope I'm looking for.
_Star Maker_ by Olaf Stapledon at least comes close.
--
Nancy Lebovitz http://www.nancybuttons.com
http://nancylebov.livejournal.com
My two favorite colors are "Oooooh" and "SHINY!".
Justin Fang
Sea Wasp <seawasp...@sgeobviousinc.com> wrote:
>Gene Ward Smith wrote:
>> Sea Wasp wrote:
>>> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
>>>space opera.
>> Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
>> Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
>> that last monster?"
> I am not Doc, much as I might aspire to be. I will settle for big.
>Brobdignagian must remain the province of those giants who have passed.
I thought that, "The great achievements of the past can never be matched
by the diminished present," was a fantasy trope.
--
Justin Fang (jus...@panix.com)
Par
> plants. It doesn't extend to fusion power [And in fact there is no mention
> of fusion anywhere that I saw] and therein lies the plot. Fissionables
It is expected to work in just another decade or two?
/Par
--
Par use...@hunter-gatherer.org
"Dr. Who was actually remarkably prescient propoganda to make sure
Britain didn't enact legislation requiring wheelchair ramps on
buildings. No wheel chair ramps == no Dalek invasion." -- Paul Tomblin
Gene Wirchenko
How would that be pushing the definitions? If he had published
SF in the 1930s, then he is a '30s writer. How could he not be?
Writing sure is hard. You only have to murder one person to be
called a murderer, and you keep the title even if you stop.
Sincerely,
Gene Wirchenko
Computerese Irregular Verb Conjugation:
I have preferences.
You have biases.
He/She has prejudices.
James Nicoll
Par <use...@hunter-gatherer.org> wrote:
>James Nicoll <jdni...@panix.com>:
>> plants. It doesn't extend to fusion power [And in fact there is no mention
>> of fusion anywhere that I saw] and therein lies the plot. Fissionables
>
>It is expected to work in just another decade or two?
It's not even on the list of options.
Now it could be like thermal solar is for us. Hardly anyone
ever mentions it [1] when we discuss option for powering civilization.
1: Direct thermal solar, I mean. There are a lot of energy sources that
tap solar in some way. All of them, actually, if you include supernovas
as solar power.
Mike Schilling
"Gene Wirchenko" <ge...@ocis.net> wrote in message
news:72ihl2psqbjp6t21u...@4ax.com...
> bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
>
>>Lawrence Watt-Evans wrote:
>>> On 12 Nov 2006 16:47:54 -0800, bm2...@eve.albany.edu wrote:
>>>
>>> >Chuck Bridgeland wrote:
>>> >
>>> >> > End of an era...are there any other major SF writers of the 1930's
>>> >> > still with us?
>>> >>
>>> >> Maybe not quite a pro back then, but to the best of my knowledge
>>> >> Fredrik Pohl is still alive and active.
>>> >
>>> >True, but did he write any SF stories earlier than "The Dweller in the
>>> >Ice" (1940)? (Earliest I found in a cursory google search).
>>>
>>> He published an SF poem before that, "Elegy to a Dead Planet." Does
>>> that count?
>
>>If that's the only SF-related thing he published in the 30's, we're
>>pushing the definition of "1930's writer" a bit...
>
> How would that be pushing the definitions? If he had published
> SF in the 1930s, then he is a '30s writer. How could he not be?
>
> Writing sure is hard. You only have to murder one person to be
> called a murderer, and you keep the title even if you stop.
>
The original question was "major SF writers of the 30s". Pohl might be an
SF writer of the 30s, and in unquestionably a major SF writer, but one
published piece wouldn't make an MSFWot30s.
On the other hand, he was an active fan in the 30s, and is probably the best
living source of contemporary knowledge of 30s SF.
Ahasuerus
> On the other hand, he [Pohl] was an active fan in the 30s, and is probably the best
> living source of contemporary knowledge of 30s SF.
I would advise against making this assertion at a First Fandom panel.
Them be fighting words!
--
Ahasuerus
mark...@earthlink.net
I seem to remember In Memory Yet Green mentioning Pohl being thrown out
of a convention by the people who made/make up First Fandom.
Mike Schilling
"Ahasuerus" <ahas...@email.com> wrote in message
news:1163450786.4...@h54g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
I originally wrote "one of the best", which I presume is indisputable, but
what fun is that?
brian.b.m...@lmco.com
Sean O'Hara wrote:
> Feh. No one's ever written space opera big enough for me. Unless it
> starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
> spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
> the epic scope I'm looking for.
In one cycle of the Perry Rhodan series, a galaxy is transferred from
the dying Tarkan
universe into our own universe. The series also has species capable of
altering the fundamental physical constants of universes. Is that big
enough?
--- Brian
Sea Wasp
In FICTION it is.
Michael Stemper
>johan....@comcast.net wrote:
>> So what were his must-read novels and stories? I think the only one I
>> know is "With Folded Hands."
>
> For space opera, The Legion of Space series.
I'm not sure if it's safe to admit it, but everything that I've read by
JW is listed above. I will say that, even if he had never written anything
except "With Folded Hands", his place in the SF pantheon would have been
well-earned.
--
Michael F. Stemper
#include <Standard_Disclaimer>
There is three erors in this sentence.
Howard Brazee
wrote:
>Feh. No one's ever written space opera big enough for me. Unless it
>starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
>spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
>the epic scope I'm looking for.
There are a few of those - trouble is, they all make the universe seem
smaller than it really is.
jackli...@earthlink.net
Dan Goodman wrote:
> Jack Williamson, 1908-2006
>
> E-mail this afternoon warning us that the aptly-named Dean of SF was
> near and ready to go was followed a few minutes ago by the update that
> he had in fact left us.
>
> .....
> Remove your hat and raise a glass, the Old Man has left the building.
> http://suricattus.livejournal.com/578420.html
>
>
> Dan Goodman
> All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.
> John Arbuthnot (1667-1735), Scottish writer, physician.
> Journal http://dsgood.livejournal.com
> Links http://del.icio.us/dsgood
> Political http://www.dailykos.com/user/dsgood
http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-williamson14nov14,0,1595040.story?coll=la-home-obituaries
OBITUARIES
Jack Williamson, pioneering science fiction writer, dies at 98
By Dennis McLellan
Times Staff Writer
November 14, 2006
His first science-fiction short story was published in 1928, a year
after Charles Lindbergh made his historic solo flight from New York to
Paris.
But well into the first decade of the next millennium - and nearly 80
years after "The Metal Man" appeared in an issue of the pulp magazine
Amazing Stories when he was 20 - award-winning author Jack Williamson
was still turning out science fiction.
A pioneer of the genre and one of the longest-active writers in the
field, Williamson died of natural causes Friday at his home in
Portales, N.M., said his family. He was 98.
"Jack Williamson was one of the great science-fiction writers," writer
Ray Bradbury told The Times on Monday. "He did a series of novels which
affected me as a young writer with dreams. I met him at 19, and he
became my best friend and teacher."
Bradbury said he showed Williamson some "awful stories" he had written,
"and he was very kind and didn't mention how terrible they were. He
shaped my life; he was very quiet and unassuming and respected my dream
and let me be awful for a long time until I got to be good."
Arthur C. Clarke, author of "2001: A Space Odyssey," once observed: "I
have no hesitation in placing Jack Williamson on a plane with two other
American giants, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein."
Williamson, who believed that "science is the door to the future and
science fiction is the golden key," wrote more than 50 novels,
including "The Humanoids," "Darker Than You Think" and "Legion of
Time."
Nearly a dozen of his science-fiction novels were written in
collaboration with Frederik Pohl, including "Undersea Quest,"
"Starchild" and "Farthest Star."
The 1949 novel "The Humanoids," one of Williamson's best-known works,
was a cautionary tale about the dangers inherent in the development of
new technology: robots that were designed to be helpful to mankind
became so protective of humans that they essentially became jailers.
" 'The Humanoids' marked a turning point in science fiction and in
Jack's career," said James Frenkel, Williamson's longtime editor.
"Before that, science fiction had been a cheerleader for science and
technology and really had not, for the most part, focused on the
potential dangers of science and technology."
Samuel Moskowitz, author of the 1961 book "Seekers of Tomorrow: Masters
of Modern Science Fiction," wrote that Williamson was "an author who
pioneered superior characterization in a field almost barren of it,
realism in the presentation of human motivation previously unknown,
scientific rationalization of supernatural concepts for story purposes,
and exploitation of the untapped story potentials of antimatter."
As a faculty member at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales in the
1960s, Williamson launched one of the nation's first college courses on
science fiction and fantasy writing, helping legitimize science fiction
as a field worthy of academic attention.
In 1976, Williamson received a Grand Master Award for lifetime
achievement from the Science Fiction Writers of America. He also
received a World Fantasy Award for life achievement from the World
Fantasy Convention in 1994. Four years later, Williamson received the
Bram Stoker Award for superior achievement from the Horror Writers
Assn.
But his writing career was far from over. His 2001 novella "The
Ultimate Earth" won both Hugo and Nebula awards. Williamson's last
novel, "The Stonehenge Gate," in which a gateway between Earth and
other worlds is discovered beneath the Saharan desert, was published by
Tor Books in 2005.
Known as unpretentious and accessible, Williamson credited hard work
and constant inquiry with helping him remain current as an
award-winning science-fiction writer.
"I have a vast curiosity about our universe, our origins and its
probable future," the then 95-year-old Williamson, who subscribed to
numerous science journals, magazines and newspapers, told the
Albuquerque Journal in 2004.
His early years seemed like an unlikely launching pad for a
science-fiction pioneer.
The eldest of four children, he was born in April 29, 1908, in Bisbee,
Ariz., when the state was still a territory. And when his family moved
to eastern New Mexico in 1915, they did it in a covered wagon.
But his family's arduous farming life served only to feed young
Williamson's fertile imagination.
"We lived on isolated farms and ranches, far from anybody, and when I
was young I knew very few other kids; so I lived to a great extent in
my imagination," Williamson, whose parents were former teachers, told
Publishers Weekly in 1986. "Life would have been absolutely empty
without imagination."
Reading an early copy of Amazing Stories magazine, launched in 1926,
was a turning point for the teenage Williamson.
"Here were spacecraft taking off from other worlds, travel in time and
all sorts of wonderful inventions!" Williamson recalled.
He spent a year writing short science-fiction stories, composing them
in his head as he worked on the family farm, then typing them on an
antique Remington typewriter borrowed from an uncle.
A few of his completed short stories were roundly rejected before
Amazing Stories published "The Metal Man," which dealt with radioactive
emanations from a form of intelligent crystalline life that turned all
objects into metal.
Williamson received $25 for the story, which was illustrated on the
cover of the magazine's December 1928 issue. Thirteen of his first 21
stories, published between 1928 and 1932, were illustrated on various
pulp magazines' covers.
Williamson, who was home-schooled until he was 12, attended West Texas
State Teachers College and later the University of New Mexico in
Albuquerque but left before graduating.
Shy and introverted, Williamson later described himself as "a solitary
misfit - as science-fiction fans in those days often were."
During World War II, Williamson served as an Army Air Forces weatherman
and rose to the rank of staff sergeant. He served the final three
months of the war in the Pacific.
In 1947, Williamson's first book, a reprint of his early serial "The
Legion of Space," was published by Fantasy Press. Its modest success
- it earned him $750 - helped persuade him to return to full-time
writing.
That included creating and writing the comic strip "Beyond Mars," which
ran in the New York Sunday News for several years in the 1950s.
Williamson, who finally received his bachelor's and master's degrees
from Eastern New Mexico University in the late 1950s, began teaching
there in 1960. In 1964, he received his doctorate from the University
of Colorado with a dissertation on H.G. Wells.
He retired from Eastern New Mexico University in 1977 but later
returned to teach courses in science fiction or creative writing on
campus every spring until about 2002.
Williamson's 1984 autobiography, "Wonder's Child: My Life in Science
Fiction," won a Hugo Award for best nonfiction book.
"I've never written bestsellers or made a great deal of money at it,
but when I look back, I've been able to spend most of my life doing
something I enjoyed," Williamson said in an interview in a 1999 issue
of Interzone. "It's an exciting time to be alive. I wish I could live
another century."
Williamson, whose wife, Blanche, died in 1985, is survived by his
brother Jim and stepdaughter Adele Lovorn.
*
Walter Bushell
Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
To put it in a book comprehensible to a human, they pretty much have to
make the Universe smaller than it is. Even Cthulhu would have a hard
time with a book that represents the Universe fairly.
There is the Heche saga which has beings that want to restart the
Universe again with better paramaeters.
--
Divided we stand!
Robert Carnegie
> There's a huge info dump on the history of the solar system,
> which is dated but amusing. The reason the planets were each settled
> by a particular nation was that after the USA grabbed the Moon for itself
> a rational look at the limits of nuclear rocket technology led them to
> believe the rest of the system was valueless and so to ease the resulting
> tensions from their Lunar landgrab they allowed the other Great Powers
> to claim various planets. The following year, paragravity was discovered.
Hmm. The other week, BBC 7 repeated an edition of _The Men from the
Ministry_ - the misadventures of a couple of civil servants
science-fictionally named One and Two, with wide-ranging briefs - in
which an international conference in Paris (I think) was to allocate
the rights to economic development of Venus. A bit of a surprise. I
think this is around 1960-1970.
I'll continue to spoil it, why not?
The cast were sent off to make Britain's case for being able to exploit
Venus to the betterment of the whole world. Meanwhile, their boss
explained to his boss - or something like that - that Britain couldn't
afford to mount space missions to Venus, it would be embarrassing and
expensive to win, and so the British civil service's greatest idiots
were sent to make sure they lost.
Meanwhile, every other government in the world has made the exact same
decision, including America, Russia, and China. Government idiots from
worldwide congregate in Paris.
After many cosmically long speeches from the British delegation, votes
are held.
Britain is awarded the rights to each of the sectors of Venus. A
triumphant disaster. It will ruin the country.
Capped when the American idiot delegate follows the Britons home and
offers to buy the rights for America. Bargaining commences...
David Johnston
<genewa...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>Sea Wasp wrote:
>
>> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
>> space opera.
>
>Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
>Doc Smith contented with big?
In the first novel in the series, sure. Escalation was the heart and
soul of Lensman and Skylark, so "big" was a good place to start.
ncw...@hotmail.com
Sean O'Hara wrote:
> In the Year of the Dog, the Great and Powerful Gene Ward Smith declared:
> > Sea Wasp wrote:
> >
> >
> >> As long as *I* live, it will. My next project (of my own) is a big
> >>space opera.
> >
> >
> > Go for it! But why think merely big when you can think colossal? Was
> > Doc Smith contented with big? Did van Vogt say to himself "I can't top
> > that last monster?"
> >
>
> Feh. No one's ever written space opera big enough for me. Unless it
> starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
> spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
> the epic scope I'm looking for.
>
One of the stories in George Gamov's _Mr Tompkins in Wonderland_
depicts the start of the Universe and goes on to the end. Mind you,
the Universe in this case is probably not big enough for you as the Big
Bang to Big Crunch cycle takes place over a couple of hours.
Cheers,
Nigel.
qte...@yahoo.com
Here is a link to the Flickr page I set up for photos from the memorial
for Jack Williamson yesterday.
It was a lovely memorial and full of loving tributes and laughter.
Patricia Rogers
http://www.flickr.com/photos/22901299@N00/sets/72157594380452679/
Keith F. Lynch
> Pohl might be an SF writer of the 30s, and in unquestionably a major
> SF writer, but one published piece wouldn't make an MSFWot30s.
> On the other hand, he was an active fan in the 30s, and is probably
> the best living source of contemporary knowledge of 30s SF.
Perhaps, but there's also David A. Kyle, Jack Speer, Robert A. Madle,
and of course Forrest J. Ackerman.
--
Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/
Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me.
Keith F. Lynch
> There are a lot of energy sources that tap solar in some way.
> All of them, actually, if you include supernovas as solar power.
Supernovas aren't solar power unless it's our sun that exlodes.
What about tidal energy? That's not solar power by any stretch of
the imagination.
It's believed that most of the available energy in the universe is
gravitational. We can power civilization gravitationally for perhaps
10^100 years, ending only when everything has been dropped into
everything else.
Keith F. Lynch
> Sea Wasp <seawasp...@sgeobviousinc.com> wrote:
>> I am not Doc, much as I might aspire to be. I will settle for big.
>> Brobdignagian must remain the province of those giants who have passed.
> I thought that, "The great achievements of the past can never be
> matched by the diminished present," was a fantasy trope.
That's right. And they don't make fantasy tropes like that any more.
The fantasy tropes of today are pale imitations of those of yesteryear.
Keith F. Lynch
> it starts at the beginning of the Universe and ends at the end, and
> spans far beyond are local cluster of galaxies, I'm afraid it lacks
> the epic scope I'm looking for.
I can think of several that extended to the end of the universe, and
four that went on to wrap around back through the beginning (two by
Poul Anderson, and one each by Olaf Stapledon and Stephen Baxter).
qte...@yahoo.com
Jack Speer rode with me out to Portales for the memorial for Jack
Williamson. I can tell you he is a wonderful wealth of information
about early fandom. We talked about such things all the way there and
back, which is a 3 1/2 hour drive each way. I learned so much.
Forry and I have talked many times but since his illness he does not
remember quite as much as he did when we talked in the past. But - he
is still as wonderful and sweet as ever.
-Patricia Rogers
Howard Brazee
wrote:
>Supernovas aren't solar power unless it's our sun that exlodes.
That would solve our energy needs though.
James Nicoll
At the cost of revealing serious flaws in our models.
Pretty much anything heavier than helium [1] came out of a
star. That U235 we burn in reactors is the product of star's death.
1: Weasel speak for "I can't recall what besides H and He was around after
the Big Bang and I am not checking."
Paul F. Dietz
> 1: Weasel speak for "I can't recall what besides H and He was around after
> the Big Bang and I am not checking."
Lithium also came from the big bang, but the lack of stable
nuclei of mass 8 prevented much of anything heavier from being
produced.
Paul
Mike Schilling
"Howard Brazee" <how...@brazee.net> wrote in message
news:rmuhm2tsijadivjen...@4ax.com...
Or the para-men's, anyway.
Gene Ward Smith
Aside from dilithium crystals, of course. We mustn't ignore the role of
hypersonic chemistry.
Random832
James Nicoll wrote:
> In article <rmuhm2tsijadivjen...@4ax.com>,
> Howard Brazee <how...@brazee.net> wrote:
>>On 24 Nov 2006 22:43:00 -0500, "Keith F. Lynch" <k...@KeithLynch.net>
>>wrote:
>>
>>>Supernovas aren't solar power unless it's our sun that exlodes.
>>
>>That would solve our energy needs though.
>
> At the cost of revealing serious flaws in our models.
>
> Pretty much anything heavier than helium [1] came out of a
> star. That U235 we burn in reactors is the product of star's death.
>
> 1: Weasel speak for "I can't recall what besides H and He was around after
> the Big Bang and I am not checking."
Lithium. Though when I googled to confirm this, apparently it's a big
issue that there's not nearly enough of it.
Sea Wasp
>>1: Weasel speak for "I can't recall what besides H and He was around after
>>the Big Bang and I am not checking."
>
>
> Lithium. Though when I googled to confirm this, apparently it's a big
> issue that there's not nearly enough of it.
I would have thought that at SOME point during the expansion in the
beginning there would be SOME production of other elements -- still
high enough heat for fusion and protons and neutrons flying around.
Maybe a very small amount, but I would be surprised if it was
absolutely zero.