Another Loss for Literature

Science Fiction pioneer Ray Bradbury, 91, has died
June 6, 2012   8:01am

Ray Bradbury, an iconic science fiction author who helped bring the genre into the mainstream, has died, his family confirms. He was 91.

Bradbury was the recipient of many awards, including a National Medal of Arts, a special citation from the Pulitzer board, a medal for distinguished contribution to American letters from the National Book Foundation, and an Emmy. He is a member of the SF Hall of Fame, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a crater on the moon was named for one of his works and an asteroid is named in his honor.
Bradbury served as an affable emissary for science fiction. His futuristic ideas were much sought after: he consulted with both Disney and NASA.

Bradbury wrote his classic "Fahrenheit 451" at a pay-as-you-go typewriter in the basement of UCLA's library. In the book's futuristic world, reading is banned and books are burned. First published in 1953, it has sold more than 10 million copies, been published in 33 languages in 38 countries, and has never gone out of print.

Other notable works by Bradbury are "The Martian Chronicles," "Dandelion Wine" and "Something Wicked This Way Comes." In his career, he wrote more than 30 books, hundreds of short stories, plus poetry, plays and books for children. He is credited as a writer on dozens of movie and television projects and worked with John Huston on the screenplay of the 1956 film version of "Moby Dick."

Bradbury was born Aug. 22, 1920, in Waukegan, Ill. He moved to Southern California, where his efforts to become a writer took hold. According to legend, he gave a copy of "The Martian Chronicles" to Christopher Isherwood, and his career was underway.

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If there is one Ray Bradbury story you can read this week, please read A Sound of Thunder. I really recommend this book.