Arthur C. Clarke, 1917-2008, R.I.P.

Arthur C. Clarke, one of the last remaining giants from the formative years of science fiction literature, died on March 19, 2007 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, at the age of 90.

Clarke, the author of almost 100 books as both a non-fiction writer as well as a genre novelist, is probably best remembered for his work, 2001. He co-created the film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, with director Stanley Kubrick, and went on to write the novel for the film, based mainly on his own shorter work "The Sentinel."

In the field of science fiction, Clarke was an influential trendsetter, who won most of the genre's highest awards, including: the Hugo, the Nebula, the International Fantasy Award, and the John W. Campbell Award. He was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 1985. Key novels by Clarke include: Prelude to Space [1951], Childhood's End [1953], Earthlight [1955], A Fall of Moondust [1961], 2001: A Space Odyssey [1968 plus 3 follow-up volumes], Rendezvous With Rama [1973, plus sequels], Imperial Earth [1975], The Fountains of Paradise [1979], and The Songs of Distant Earth [1986 -- one of ACC's personal favorites]. He was also the master of the short story, with a dozen collections published over the years. Some of his short works are among the most republished short stories in genre history, including "Against the Fall of Night" and "The Star."

In addition to his fiction, Clarke was well-known for popularizing science for the masses. He was a strong proponent for the idea that technological developments were ultimately beneficial, and that humanity's destiny lay among the stars. Clarke is credited with inspiring the development of telecommunications satellites -- he first wrote about them in 1945, over a decade before they became a reality.

Clarke had suffered from post-polio syndrome for over 20 years, and for the last two decades most of his writing was in collaboration with younger writers, who took his detailed story ideas and fleshed them out. Clarke's passing leaves few of his contemporaries from science fiction's golden age still among the living, and fewer still with his landmark stature.

New York Times obit

BBC obit

LA Times obit

Arthur C. Clarke's credits at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database