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Sci-fi Author Harry Harrison Dies at 87

Posted by Soulskill on from the rest-in-peace dept.

tmjva writes "Per BBC's Entertainment page, author Harry Harrison died today at the age of 87. His body of work included Make Room! Make Room!, (the inspiration for Soylent Green), The Stainless Steel Rat, and Bill the Galactic Hero. From the article: 'Harrison's first novel, Deathworld, was published in 1960, while the first book in the Stainless Steel Rat series was published a year later. The last of the series was published just two years ago in 2010 and the books are widely regarded as producing one of science fiction's great anti-heroes, Slippery Jim diGriz, aka The Stainless Steel Rat. The author also parodied the sci-fi genre in his seven Bill the Galactic Hero books, which were first seen in 1965. He saw his work as anti-war and anti-militaristic.'"

16 of 91 comments (clear)

  1. Sad by jdigriz · · Score: 5, Funny

    The guy was talented. The Stainless Steel Rat series was quite funny.

    1. Re:Sad by Toe,+The · · Score: 5, Insightful

      by jdigriz (676802)

      Seriously, jdigriz gets first post? How appropriate is that?

    2. Re:Sad by ACS+Solver · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Most fitting username for a first post on this.

      Truly sad, yet another of the sci-fi greats dying. I've had the pleasure of dining with Harry Harrison a few years ago, and in person he was every bit as funny as his works. Impressive how his very strong moral convictions come through in his books.

    3. Re:Sad by ACS+Solver · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Oh, and reminds me. Just recently we had the discussion here about the most underappreciated sci-fi writer. When talking about all-time sci-fi greats with Harrison, he mentioned Clifford Simak among them and said he deserved more recognition than he got.

    4. Re:Sad by mindwhip · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I remember reading the SSR books in my teens the late 80s. I was very surprised when I realised how OLD the first few were as some of the ideas/concepts in the books were just becoming mainstream/reality.

      Harry Harrison will be missed.

      --
      [The Universe] has gone offline.
    5. Re:Sad by Beardo+the+Bearded · · Score: 4, Funny

      I agree, that's pretty close to winning the Internet.

      --

      ---
      ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
    6. Re:Sad by Darinbob · · Score: 3, Funny

      That guy is pretty slippery.

  2. Stainless Steel Rat by sandytaru · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The adventures of Jim di Griz were as formative in my teenage years as any other book I could name. I love the idea that in the future, when poverty and war was more or less eliminated and even murderers could be (mostly) rehabilitated, the government itself would allow a few of the brightest criminal minds to slip through the cracks and cause a little chaos (and occasionally stop bigger chaos from leaking off various planets.) The world was mildly dystopian, but still a much more tongue in cheek vision of the future than it was outright depressing. Rest in peace, Harry Harrison.

    --
    Occasionally living proof of the Ballmer peak.
  3. Don't eat the biscuits at the funeral.... by jrmcc · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I think you know what THEY'RE made of...

  4. Re:Deathworld by jockm · · Score: 5, Informative

    Not quite. Deathworld is in the public domain because it copyrighted under the pre 1976 copyright law, and was (apparently) never renewed. Pre-1976 books are minefield to figure out if they are in the public domain or not.

    In order to be sure they are in the public domain, in the US, you need to do careful research, or the book has to have been copyrighted in 1923 or before. The UK and the rest of the world have different laws, so don't assume they carry over.

    Oh and Peter Pan will likely never be in the public domain...

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    What do you know I wrote a novel
  5. Two of my boyhood heroes... by Zontar+The+Mindless · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "Slippery Jim" diGriz and Bill, the Galactic Hero. I've worn out 2 or 3 copies of both series over the years.

    Oddly enough, just a couple of days ago, I just happened to run across a reprint of A Trans-Atlantic Tunnel, Hurrah! which I bought and read on impulse, having seen it years and years ago but never having actually cracked the cover. A fun read, if you've not not already had the pleasure.

    Thanks, Harry. I don't think I'll ever tire of your work.

    --
    Il n'y a pas de Planet B.
  6. Athiest by Kiyyik · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I first read his Stainless Steel Rat books in a small town in the bible belt, whre my stepfather was a minister. His were the first books I ever encountered that openly made the case for athiesm. It was so different form everything else I'd run into-of course I had head of it, but to come right out and openly advocate it in the books (and a bit after the story proper, IIRC) was definitely a bit of a first. Tonight, I'm heading out to a sushi joint with the other members of my Skeptic/Freethinkers' singles group, and I'll raise a toast to Slippery Jim. For me, he was step one on a long, long journey, and I am grateful.

  7. Some public domain stuff for you to try by steveha · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Harry Harrison wrote quite a bit of stuff during the days when copyright actually could expire.

    http://www.feedbooks.com/books/search?query=harry+harrison

    Noteworthy: "The Misplaced Battleship" (the first Stainless Steel Rat story) Deathworld (the first Deathworld novel)

    It would be cool to see the Stainless Steel Rat adventures turned into movies. I'd love to see what a .75 calibre recoilless pistol would look like as a prop.

    steveha

    --
    lf(1): it's like ls(1) but sorts filenames by extension, tersely
  8. RIP by VynlSol · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Mi gutted sciante ke vi estas ne en la mondo ie, pensante. Ripozi en paco!

  9. Star Smashers of the Galaxy Rangers by VAXcat · · Score: 3, Informative

    He wore the most screamingly funny science fiction book ever written - "Star Smashers of the Galaxy Rangers". A parody of Doc Smith's books. It's worth te the trouble to find.

    --
    There is no God, and Dirac is his prophet.
  10. Sir, you will be truly missed! by stainlesssteelpat · · Score: 3, Informative

    Harry, i grew up with you. You changed my childhood. I wouldn't be the man I am without you. Thanks a bunch! Slippery Jim

    --
    War is the statesman's game, the priest's delight, the lawyer's jest, the hired assassin's trade.- Shelley