Re: Harlan Ellison Died in His Sleep
Charley Seavey <[email protected]> Fri, 29 Jun 2018 07:45:49 -0400
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--000000000000a6be5b056fc663f2 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="UTF-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable A cantankerous, brilliant, and unforgettable author. Somewhere along the line in the early 1970s he published a volume of short stories. I forget what the story was, but in the introduction he wrote something along the line of "The electric company thinks of me as 34567, the phone company as (a phone number)...." and a couple of other similar numerical identifications. Being a curious sort I dialed the phone number. "Harlan Ellison residence," answers a female voice. It turned out that either he wasn't there, or not going to talk to a grad student fan boy. I can't help but wonder if he regretted putting that phone number out there. I couldn't have been the only person to try it. He'll be missed. charley On Thu, Jun 28, 2018 at 7:26 PM, Susan Hathaway <[email protected]= t > wrote: > Sad news for the SF world, indeed. > > > > > > > > *From:* Dennis Fischer [mailto:[email protected]] > *Sent:* Thursday, June 28, 2018 4:04 PM > *To:* Goddesspamm Handeler; Brooke Lambie; Kathryn Stuckey; Doug Woods; > Tom Khamis; Marlene Willauer-Lowe; Jeff Smith; Kris Gilpin; Bobbie > Bobandan; MIchael Hall; Science Fiction and Fantasy Listserv; Susan Hatha= way > *Subject:* Harlan Ellison Died in His Sleep > > > > *Ellison, Provocative Sci-Fi Writer of =E2=80=98Star Trek,=E2=80=99 =E2= =80=98A Boy and His Dog,=E2=80=99 > Dies at 84* > > *By* Carmel Dagan <https://variety.com/author/carmel-dagan/> > > Staff Writer > > [image: Harlan Ellison Dead] > > Speculative-fiction writer Harlan Ellison > <https://variety.com/t/harlan-ellison/>, who penned short stories, > novellas and criticism, contributed to TV series including =E2=80=9CThe O= uter > Limits,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CStar Trek <https://variety.com/t/star-trek/>=E2= =80=9D and =E2=80=9CBabylon 5 > <https://variety.com/t/babylon-5/>=E2=80=9D and won a notable copyright > infringement suit against ABC and Paramount and a settlement in a similar > suit over =E2=80=9CThe Terminator,=E2=80=9D has died. He was 84. > > Christine Valada tweeted that Ellison=E2=80=99s wife, Susan, had asked he= r to > announce that he died in his sleep Thursday. > > The prolific but cantankerous author famously penned the =E2=80=9CStar Tr= ek > <https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/original-star-trek-enterprise-theme-dis= covery-finale-1202694515/>=E2=80=9D > episode =E2=80=9CCity on the Edge of Forever,=E2=80=9D in which Kirk and = Spock must go back > in time to Depression-era America to put Earth history back on its rightf= ul > course, a goal that for Kirk means sacrificing the woman he loves (played > by Joan Collins). The final script was rewritten by =E2=80=9CStar Trek=E2= =80=9D staffers to > avoid the anti-war lesson Ellison had intended to impart about the ongoin= g > Vietnam War, leaving Ellison unhappy. > > His 1995 book =E2=80=9CThe City on the Edge of Forever: The Original Tele= play That > Became the Classic Star Trek Episode=E2=80=9D contained two drafts by Ell= ison. > > The author was still steaming over his experience more than four decades > after the episode originally aired: In 2009 Ellison sued CBS Paramount > Television seeking revenue from merchandising and other sources from the > episode; a settlement was reached six months later. > > The author of a 1980 L.A. Times profile declared, =E2=80=9CEllison is fie= rcely > independent, proudly elitist, frequently angry, tenacious and downright > vengeful.=E2=80=9D > > Talking about the Hollywood establishment, Ellison told the author, > =E2=80=9CThey=E2=80=99ve got to know that everybody isn=E2=80=99t frighte= ned and won=E2=80=99t back down=E2=80=A6. > These people are not creators; they belong to the AAA =E2=80=94 agents, a= ttorneys > and accountants. They aren=E2=80=99t comfortable dealing with writers =E2= =80=94 they think > we=E2=80=99re madmen. They=E2=80=99re really only comfortable dealing wit= h numbers.=E2=80=9D > > In a separate case, Ellison won $337,000 (later reduced a bit in a > settlement) from ABC and Paramount Studios in 1980 for copyright > infringement on a short story the author had penned with Ben Bova, > =E2=80=9CBrillo.=E2=80=9D Ellison and Bova had been asked to develop it a= t ABC, but the > option there had lapsed; Ellison then showed it to Par execs, who said th= ey > weren=E2=80=99t interested. ABC aired a Par-produced telepic called =E2= =80=9CFuture Cop=E2=80=9D in > May 1976 and later a brief series of the same name. The premise, about th= e > first android policeman, was identical to that in =E2=80=9CBrillo.=E2=80= =9D > > In the litigious writer=E2=80=99s third victory against Hollywood, Elliso= n sued > James Cameron and others behind 1984=E2=80=99s =E2=80=9CThe Terminator,= =E2=80=9D claiming that the > film drew from material in two episodes of the original =E2=80=9CThe Oute= r Limits=E2=80=9D > series, =E2=80=9CSoldier=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9CDemon With a Glass Hand,= =E2=80=9D that he had penned and had > aired in 1964. Production company Hemdale and distributor Orion Pictures > settled out of court and were required under the terms of the settlement = to > acknowledge Ellison=E2=80=99s work in the film=E2=80=99s end credits. Cam= eron, however, > labelled Ellison =E2=80=9Ca parasite.=E2=80=9D > > Curiously, Ellison had little sympathy for others who brought > copyright-infringement suits against the studios, telling the L.A. Times, > =E2=80=9CYou=E2=80=99ve got to realize that there are hundreds of these c= laims and most of > them aren=E2=80=99t valid. This is a town of amateurs=E2=80=A6. You have = to separate these > people and their complaints from the professionals who really work at > writing and have viable ideas.=E2=80=9D > > Born in Painesville, Ohio, Ellison grew up in the only Jewish family in a > small town where he said he had to defend himself in physical altercation= s > on a daily basis. During the 1950s Ellison attended Ohio State U. for 18 > months, served in the Army and began to sell sci-fi stories to pulp mags. > > He moved to California in 1962. > > Ellison was famously fired on his first day of employment as a writer at > Walt Disney Studios after making highly irreverent suggestions about the > company=E2=80=99s beloved characters. > > He penned scripts for =E2=80=9CRoute 66,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CBurke=E2=80=99= s Law=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9CVoyage to the Bottom > of the Sea,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CThe Man From U.N.C.L.E.=E2=80=9D and even = =E2=80=9CThe Flying Nun.=E2=80=9D For a > 1964 episode of =E2=80=9CThe Alfred Hitchcock Hour,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CMem= o From Purgatory,=E2=80=9D he > adapted his own nonfiction memoir about having joined a street gang in > Brooklyn. > > Ellison also penned the screenplay to tepidly trashy Hollywood melodrama > =E2=80=9CThe Oscar,=E2=80=9D and the post-apocalyptic cult classic =E2=80= =9CA Boy and His Dog=E2=80=9D > (1975), starring a young Don Johnson, was based on an Ellison novella. > > Ellison was also editor of the very influential sci-fi anthologies > =E2=80=9CDangerous Visions=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9CAgain Dangerous Visions.= =E2=80=9D > > When he dealt with Hollywood, he fearlessly said exactly what he thought > again and again =E2=80=94 often causing fallout as a result. In the wake = of the > 1977 release of =E2=80=9CStar Wars,=E2=80=9D a Warner Bros. executive ask= ed Ellison to > adapt Isaac Asimov=E2=80=99s short story collection =E2=80=9CI, Robot=E2= =80=9D for the bigscreen. > > Ellison penned a script and met with studio chief Robert Shapiro to > discuss it; when the author concluded that the executive was commenting o= n > his work without having read it, Ellison claimed to have said to Shapiro > that he had =E2=80=9Cthe intellectual capacity of an artichoke.=E2=80=9D = Needless to say, > Ellison was dropped from the project. Ellison=E2=80=99s work was ultimate= ly > published with permission of the studio, but the 2004 Will Smith film =E2= =80=9CI, > Robot=E2=80=9D was not based on the material Ellison wrote. > > Perhaps Ellison=E2=80=99s most famous story not adapted for the screen wa= s 1965=E2=80=99s > =E2=80=9CRepent, Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman,=E2=80=9D which celebrat= es civil > disobedience against a repressive establishment. =E2=80=9CRepent=E2=80=9D= is one of the > most reprinted stories ever. > > In September 2011, however, Ellison sued to block the release of New > Regency=E2=80=99s thriller =E2=80=9CIn Time,=E2=80=9D starring Justin Tim= berlake, claiming that the > film hews too closely to =E2=80=9CRepent,=E2=80=9D then dropped the suit.= In the early > 1970s, Ellison created his only TV series, the Canada-produced =E2=80=9CT= he > Starlost.=E2=80=9D He was so unhappy with the changes made by producers, = however, > that he took his name off the skein, which aired in 1973. > > Ellison was a creative consultant for the 1980s edition of =E2=80=9CThe T= wilight > Zone,=E2=80=9D for which he wrote several episodes, and was conceptual co= nsultant > for the 1990s sci-fi series =E2=80=9CBabylon 5 > <https://variety.com/2017/film/news/stephen-furst-dies-dead-63-animal-hou= se-babylon-5-st-elsewhere-1202469695/>.=E2=80=9D > He also appeared in several episodes. > > In 1995 Ellison adapted his story =E2=80=9CI Have No Mouth, and I Must Sc= ream=E2=80=9D for > the videogame of that name. He was also credited with design of the game > and voiced the main character. > > =E2=80=9CDreams With Sharp Teeth,=E2=80=9D a documentary centering on Ell= ison and his > work, received a theatrical release in 2008. Interviewees included Elliso= n > and Robin Williams. Ellison also appeared in other documentaries, includi= ng > =E2=80=9CThe Masters of Comic Book Art,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CShadows in the = Dark: The Val Lewton > Legacy,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CBrother Theodore=E2=80=9D (2007) and =E2=80=9CW= ith Great Power: The Stan Lee > Story=E2=80=9D (2010). > > In addition to numerous genre awards =E2=80=94 including multiple Hugos, = Nebulas > and Edgars =E2=80=94 Ellison received four WGA Awards for his TV work and= the > Silver Pen for Journalism, conferred by international writers union PEN, > for his =E2=80=9CAn Edge in My Voice=E2=80=9D column in the L.A. Weekly i= n defense of First > Amendment rights. > > Despite the kudos he amassed, however, Ellison penned a guest column for > *Variety* in November 2013 in which he declared: =E2=80=9CI do not merely= hate > all awards shows, I wish to see them beheaded, stakes driven through thei= r > black and corrupted widdle hearts, and to see the decapitated remains > buried at a crossroads come midnight.=E2=80=9D > > Ellison was married five times, with at least two of those marriages > lasting only weeks or months. Survivors include his fifth wife, Susan Ann > Toth. > --=20 Charley Desert Sailor --000000000000a6be5b056fc663f2 Content-Type: text/html; charset="UTF-8" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <div dir=3D"ltr"><div class=3D"gmail_default" style=3D"font-family:times ne= w roman,serif;font-size:large">A cantankerous, brilliant, and unforgettable= author.=C2=A0 Somewhere along the line in the early 1970s he published a v= olume of short stories. I forget what the story was, but in the introductio= n he wrote something along the line of "The electric company thinks of= me as 34567, the phone company as (a phone number)...." and a couple = of other similar numerical identifications. Being a curious sort I dialed t= he phone number.=C2=A0 "Harlan Ellison residence," answers a fema= le voice. It turned out that either he wasn't there, or not going to ta= lk to a grad student fan boy. I can't help but wonder if he regretted p= utting that phone number out there. I couldn't have been the only perso= n to try it.</div><div class=3D"gmail_default" style=3D"font-family:times n= ew roman,serif;font-size:large"><br></div><div class=3D"gmail_default" styl= e=3D"font-family:times new roman,serif;font-size:large">He'll be missed= .</div><div class=3D"gmail_default" style=3D"font-family:times new roman,se= rif;font-size:large"><br></div><div class=3D"gmail_default" style=3D"font-f= amily:times new roman,serif;font-size:large">charley</div><div class=3D"gma= il_default" style=3D"font-family:times new roman,serif;font-size:large"><br= ></div><div class=3D"gmail_default" style=3D"font-family:times new roman,se= rif;font-size:large"><br></div></div><div class=3D"gmail_extra"><br><div cl= ass=3D"gmail_quote">On Thu, Jun 28, 2018 at 7:26 PM, Susan Hathaway <span d= ir=3D"ltr"><<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" target=3D"_bl= ank">[email protected]</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class= =3D"gmail_quote" style=3D"margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padd= ing-left:1ex"><div lang=3D"EN-US" link=3D"blue" vlink=3D"purple"><div class= =3D"m_902601347866252889WordSection1"><p class=3D"MsoNormal">Sad news for t= he SF world, indeed.<u></u><u></u></p><p class=3D"MsoNormal"><u></u>=C2=A0<= u></u></p><div><p class=3D"MsoNormal"><span style=3D"font-size:11.0pt;font-= family:"Calibri","sans-serif""><u></u>=C2=A0<u></u></sp= an></p></div><p class=3D"MsoNormal"><u></u>=C2=A0<u></u></p><div><div style= =3D"border:none;border-top:solid #b5c4df 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in"><= p class=3D"MsoNormal"><b><span style=3D"font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"= Tahoma","sans-serif"">From:</span></b><span style=3D"font-si= ze:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif""> Dennis Fi= scher [mailto:<a href=3D"mailto:[email protected]" target=3D"_blank">de= [email protected]</a>] <br><b>Sent:</b> Thursday, June 28, 2018 4:04 PM<b= r><b>To:</b> Goddesspamm Handeler; Brooke Lambie; Kathryn Stuckey; Doug Woo= ds; Tom Khamis; Marlene Willauer-Lowe; Jeff Smith; Kris Gilpin; Bobbie Boba= ndan; MIchael Hall; Science Fiction and Fantasy Listserv; Susan Hathaway<br= ><b>Subject:</b> Harlan Ellison Died in His Sleep<u></u><u></u></span></p><= /div></div><div><div class=3D"h5"><p class=3D"MsoNormal"><u></u>=C2=A0<u></= u></p><div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122290= "><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"background:white"><b><span style=3D"font-= size:24.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:blac= k">Ellison, Provocative Sci-Fi Writer of =E2=80=98Star Trek,=E2=80=99 =E2= =80=98A Boy and His Dog,=E2=80=99 Dies at 84</span></b><span style=3D"font-= size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black= "><u></u><u></u></span></p><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530= 142089458_122293"><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458= _122294"><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122295">= <p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><em><= span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-seri= f";color:black">By</span></em><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-fami= ly:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">=C2=A0<a href=3D"h= ttps://variety.com/author/carmel-dagan/" id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16= _0_1_1530142089458_122297" target=3D"_blank"><span style=3D"color:#196ad4">= Carmel Dagan</span></a><u></u><u></u></span></p></div><p class=3D"MsoNormal= " style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6= .5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Staf= f Writer<u></u><u></u></span></p></div></div></div><div id=3D"m_90260134786= 6252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122299"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"l= ine-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-fa= mily:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black"><img border=3D"0= " width=3D"1000" height=3D"563" id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530= 142089458_122301" src=3D"https://pmcvariety.files.wordpress.com/2018/06/har= lan-ellison-dead.jpg?w=3D1000&h=3D563&crop=3D1" alt=3D"Harlan Ellis= on Dead"><u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_= 3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122302"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:= 14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"= Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Speculative-fiction writer= =C2=A0<a href=3D"https://variety.com/t/harlan-ellison/" id=3D"m_90260134786= 6252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122303" target=3D"_blank"><span style=3D"= color:#196ad4">Harlan Ellison</span></a>, who penned short stories, novella= s and criticism, contributed to TV series including =E2=80=9CThe Outer Limi= ts,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9C<a href=3D"https://variety.com/t/star-trek/" id=3D"m_= 902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122304" target=3D"_blank"><spa= n style=3D"color:#196ad4">Star Trek</span></a>=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9C<a hre= f=3D"https://variety.com/t/babylon-5/" id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0= _1_1530142089458_122305" target=3D"_blank"><span style=3D"color:#196ad4">Ba= bylon 5</span></a>=E2=80=9D and won a notable copyright infringement suit a= gainst ABC and Paramount and a settlement in a similar suit over =E2=80=9CT= he Terminator,=E2=80=9D has died. He was 84.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div>= <div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122306"><p class= =3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style= =3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";co= lor:black">Christine Valada tweeted that Ellison=E2=80=99s wife, Susan, had= asked her to announce that he died in his sleep Thursday.<u></u><u></u></s= pan></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122= 308"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white">= <span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-ser= if";color:black">The prolific but cantankerous author famously penned = the =E2=80=9C<a href=3D"https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/original-star-trek= -enterprise-theme-discovery-finale-1202694515/" id=3D"m_902601347866252889y= ui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122309" target=3D"_blank"><span style=3D"color:#1= 96ad4">Star Trek</span></a>=E2=80=9D episode =E2=80=9CCity on the Edge of F= orever,=E2=80=9D in which Kirk and Spock must go back in time to Depression= -era America to put Earth history back on its rightful course, a goal that = for Kirk means sacrificing the woman he loves (played by Joan Collins). The= final script was rewritten by =E2=80=9CStar Trek=E2=80=9D staffers to avoi= d the anti-war lesson Ellison had intended to impart about the ongoing Viet= nam War, leaving Ellison unhappy.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"= m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122310"><p class=3D"MsoNorma= l" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:= 6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">His= 1995 book =E2=80=9CThe City on the Edge of Forever: The Original Teleplay = That Became the Classic Star Trek Episode=E2=80=9D contained two drafts by = Ellison.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3= _16_0_1_1530142089458_122314"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:1= 4.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"A= rial","sans-serif";color:black">The author was still steamin= g over his experience more than four decades after the episode originally a= ired: In 2009 Ellison sued CBS Paramount Television seeking revenue from me= rchandising and other sources from the episode; a settlement was reached si= x months later.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_9026013478662528= 89yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122316"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-h= eight:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:= "Arial","sans-serif";color:black">The author of a 1980 = L.A. Times profile declared, =E2=80=9CEllison is fiercely independent, prou= dly elitist, frequently angry, tenacious and downright vengeful.=E2=80=9D<u= ></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_15= 30142089458_122317"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;bac= kground:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial"= ,"sans-serif";color:black">Talking about the Hollywood establishm= ent, Ellison told the author, =E2=80=9CThey=E2=80=99ve got to know that eve= rybody isn=E2=80=99t frightened and won=E2=80=99t back down=E2=80=A6. These= people are not creators; they belong to the AAA =E2=80=94 agents, attorney= s and accountants. They aren=E2=80=99t comfortable dealing with writers =E2= =80=94 they think we=E2=80=99re madmen. They=E2=80=99re really only comfort= able dealing with numbers.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id= =3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122318"><p class=3D"MsoN= ormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-s= ize:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black"= >In a separate case, Ellison won $337,000 (later reduced a bit in a settlem= ent) from ABC and Paramount Studios in 1980 for copyright infringement on a= short story the author had penned with Ben Bova, =E2=80=9CBrillo.=E2=80=9D= Ellison and Bova had been asked to develop it at ABC, but the option there= had lapsed; Ellison then showed it to Par execs, who said they weren=E2=80= =99t interested. ABC aired a Par-produced telepic called =E2=80=9CFuture Co= p=E2=80=9D in May 1976 and later a brief series of the same name. The premi= se, about the first android policeman, was identical to that in =E2=80=9CBr= illo.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_90260134786625288= 9yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122319"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-he= ight:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:&= quot;Arial","sans-serif";color:black">In the litigious write= r=E2=80=99s third victory against Hollywood, Ellison sued James Cameron and= others behind 1984=E2=80=99s =E2=80=9CThe Terminator,=E2=80=9D claiming th= at the film drew from material in two episodes of the original =E2=80=9CThe= Outer Limits=E2=80=9D series, =E2=80=9CSoldier=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9CDemon= With a Glass Hand,=E2=80=9D that he had penned and had aired in 1964. Prod= uction company Hemdale and distributor Orion Pictures settled out of court = and were required under the terms of the settlement to acknowledge Ellison= =E2=80=99s work in the film=E2=80=99s end credits. Cameron, however, labell= ed Ellison =E2=80=9Ca parasite.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div= id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122320"><p class=3D"M= soNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"fon= t-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:bla= ck">Curiously, Ellison had little sympathy for others who brought copyright= -infringement suits against the studios, telling the L.A. Times, =E2=80=9CY= ou=E2=80=99ve got to realize that there are hundreds of these claims and mo= st of them aren=E2=80=99t valid. This is a town of amateurs=E2=80=A6. You h= ave to separate these people and their complaints from the professionals wh= o really work at writing and have viable ideas.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></spa= n></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_12232= 4"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><s= pan style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif= ";color:black">Born in Painesville, Ohio, Ellison grew up in the only = Jewish family in a small town where he said he had to defend himself in phy= sical altercations on a daily basis. During the 1950s Ellison attended Ohio= State U. for 18 months, served in the Army and began to sell sci-fi storie= s to pulp mags.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_9026013478662528= 89yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122325"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-h= eight:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:= "Arial","sans-serif";color:black">He moved to Californi= a in 1962.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui= _3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122326"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height= :14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"= ;Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Ellison was famously fired= on his first day of employment as a writer at Walt Disney Studios after ma= king highly irreverent suggestions about the company=E2=80=99s beloved char= acters.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_= 16_0_1_1530142089458_122327"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14= .65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Ar= ial","sans-serif";color:black">He penned scripts for =E2=80= =9CRoute 66,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CBurke=E2=80=99s Law=E2=80=9D and =E2=80=9CVo= yage to the Bottom of the Sea,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CThe Man From U.N.C.L.E.=E2= =80=9D and even =E2=80=9CThe Flying Nun.=E2=80=9D For a 1964 episode of =E2= =80=9CThe Alfred Hitchcock Hour,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CMemo From Purgatory,=E2= =80=9D he adapted his own nonfiction memoir about having joined a street ga= ng in Brooklyn.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_9026013478662528= 89yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122328"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-h= eight:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:= "Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Ellison also penned t= he screenplay to tepidly trashy Hollywood melodrama =E2=80=9CThe Oscar,=E2= =80=9D and the post-apocalyptic cult classic =E2=80=9CA Boy and His Dog=E2= =80=9D (1975), starring a young Don Johnson, was based on an Ellison novell= a.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_= 1_1530142089458_122329"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt= ;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial&q= uot;,"sans-serif";color:black">Ellison was also editor of the ver= y influential sci-fi anthologies =E2=80=9CDangerous Visions=E2=80=9D and = =E2=80=9CAgain Dangerous Visions.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><d= iv id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122330"><p class=3D= "MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"f= ont-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:b= lack">When he dealt with Hollywood, he fearlessly said exactly what he thou= ght again and again =E2=80=94 often causing fallout as a result. In the wak= e of the 1977 release of =E2=80=9CStar Wars,=E2=80=9D a Warner Bros. execut= ive asked Ellison to adapt Isaac Asimov=E2=80=99s short story collection = =E2=80=9CI, Robot=E2=80=9D for the bigscreen.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div= ><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122331"><p class= =3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style= =3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";co= lor:black">Ellison penned a script and met with studio chief Robert Shapiro= to discuss it; when the author concluded that the executive was commenting= on his work without having read it, Ellison claimed to have said to Shapir= o that he had =E2=80=9Cthe intellectual capacity of an artichoke.=E2=80=9D = Needless to say, Ellison was dropped from the project. Ellison=E2=80=99s wo= rk was ultimately published with permission of the studio, but the 2004 Wil= l Smith film =E2=80=9CI, Robot=E2=80=9D was not based on the material Ellis= on wrote.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_= 3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122332"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:= 14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"= Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Perhaps Ellison=E2=80=99s m= ost famous story not adapted for the screen was 1965=E2=80=99s =E2=80=9CRep= ent, Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman,=E2=80=9D which celebrates civil disob= edience against a repressive establishment. =E2=80=9CRepent=E2=80=9D is one= of the most reprinted stories ever.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id= =3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122336"><p class=3D"MsoN= ormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-s= ize:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black"= >In September 2011, however, Ellison sued to block the release of New Regen= cy=E2=80=99s thriller =E2=80=9CIn Time,=E2=80=9D starring Justin Timberlake= , claiming that the film hews too closely to =E2=80=9CRepent,=E2=80=9D then= dropped the suit. In the early 1970s, Ellison created his only TV series, = the Canada-produced =E2=80=9CThe Starlost.=E2=80=9D He was so unhappy with = the changes made by producers, however, that he took his name off the skein= , which aired in 1973.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_902601347= 866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122337"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D= "line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-= family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Ellison was a = creative consultant for the 1980s edition of =E2=80=9CThe Twilight Zone,=E2= =80=9D for which he wrote several episodes, and was conceptual consultant f= or the 1990s sci-fi series =E2=80=9C<a href=3D"https://variety.com/2017/fil= m/news/stephen-furst-dies-dead-63-animal-house-babylon-5-st-elsewhere-12024= 69695/" id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122338" target= =3D"_blank"><span style=3D"color:#196ad4">Babylon 5</span></a>.=E2=80=9D He= also appeared in several episodes.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id= =3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122339"><p class=3D"MsoN= ormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-s= ize:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black"= >In 1995 Ellison adapted his story =E2=80=9CI Have No Mouth, and I Must Scr= eam=E2=80=9D for the videogame of that name. He was also credited with desi= gn of the game and voiced the main character.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div= ><div id=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122340"><p class= =3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style= =3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";co= lor:black">=E2=80=9CDreams With Sharp Teeth,=E2=80=9D a documentary centeri= ng on Ellison and his work, received a theatrical release in 2008. Intervie= wees included Ellison and Robin Williams. Ellison also appeared in other do= cumentaries, including =E2=80=9CThe Masters of Comic Book Art,=E2=80=9D =E2= =80=9CShadows in the Dark: The Val Lewton Legacy,=E2=80=9D =E2=80=9CBrother= Theodore=E2=80=9D (2007) and =E2=80=9CWith Great Power: The Stan Lee Story= =E2=80=9D (2010).<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_90260134786625= 2889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122341"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" style=3D"line= -height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;font-famil= y:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">In addition to nume= rous genre awards =E2=80=94 including multiple Hugos, Nebulas and Edgars = =E2=80=94 Ellison received four WGA Awards for his TV work and the Silver P= en for Journalism, conferred by international writers union PEN, for his = =E2=80=9CAn Edge in My Voice=E2=80=9D column in the L.A. Weekly in defense = of First Amendment rights.<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div id=3D"m_90260= 1347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122342"><p class=3D"MsoNormal" styl= e=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-size:6.5pt;f= ont-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black">Despite th= e kudos he amassed, however, Ellison penned a guest column for=C2=A0<em id= =3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122343"><span style=3D"f= ont-family:"Arial","sans-serif"">Variety</span></em>=C2= =A0in November 2013 in which he declared: =E2=80=9CI do not merely hate all= awards shows, I wish to see them beheaded, stakes driven through their bla= ck and corrupted widdle hearts, and to see the decapitated remains buried a= t a crossroads come midnight.=E2=80=9D<u></u><u></u></span></p></div><div i= d=3D"m_902601347866252889yui_3_16_0_1_1530142089458_122344"><p class=3D"Mso= Normal" style=3D"line-height:14.65pt;background:white"><span style=3D"font-= size:6.5pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:black= ">Ellison was married five times, with at least two of those marriages last= ing only weeks or months. Survivors include his fifth wife, Susan Ann Toth.= <u></u><u></u></span></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></blockquote><= /div><br><br clear=3D"all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div class=3D"gmail_signat= ure" data-smartmail=3D"gmail_signature"><div dir=3D"ltr"><div><font face=3D= "times new roman, serif" size=3D"4">Charley<br>Desert Sailor</font></div></= div></div> </div> --000000000000a6be5b056fc663f2--