Harlan Ellison is not well!

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Just read this in the current Ansible...

Harlan Ellison couldn't make it to his SF Hall of Fame induction in June owing to illness: he darkly announced that he was in the 'last stages of something ... And I don't have a cold.' (CNN, 22 June) [AIP]
 
I've seen Ellison twice, both times at DragonCon. I've enjoyed his writing, especially his essays, for many years, and I wish him the best.
 
Hadn't known about this, but I've been expecting something for a while, and that feeling has been increasing of late. I hope for the best, but no one goes on forever, however much we might wish otherwise. Though I've only spoken to the man a small handfull of times, this is one of those peculiar situations where the potential loss of someone who amounts to a perfect stranger hits me rather hard. Pain though Ellison can be at times (though I personally have never encountered that aspect) his impact on a number of writers has been enormous, and of his work on me... well, I'm not sure I could quite sum it up, but I think it has been one of the major influences in my life....
 
There are sites one can check on such things; moderators use them quite a bit to be certain someone has a record of spamming. This one did.

No, he did not write "the Terminator story": he wrote a story titled "Soldier", and a few others which, apparently, Cameron had read and "borrowed" from. The story is that he even had said so to someone who knew both men, and the word got back to Ellison. There are some very strong resemblances, including some of the basic set-up of the Outer Limits episode which dramatized Ellison's story. At any rate, Cameron settled out of court, and (among other things) the credit acknowledging his works was added to the film.
 
Nesacat said:
It's will be loss that is very hard to face; although as JD says, Ellison is a stranger.
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Every time I see a a new post has been made in this thread, I keep fearing the worst has already happened before reading it.
 
I havent even read Ellison but i can understand what you would feel he is a legend that you have respect for even if you havent read him.

Its natural to feel loss, real pain when an author you adored passes away. Reading quality writing lets you get to know the author in a way, there is few things as personal as written words. I have felt like losing close family when my the author i had read most died in 2008. I felt it in my gut for days. When you count on someone like that, read him many years you dont need to meet in real life to feel loss.
 
Connavar said:
I havent even read Ellison but i can understand what you would feel he is a legend that you have respect for even if you havent read him.

Its natural to feel loss, real pain when an author you adored passes away. Reading quality writing lets you get to know the author in a way, there is few things as personal as written words. I have felt like losing close family when my the author i had read most died in 2008. I felt it in my gut for days. When you count on someone like that, read him many years you dont need to meet in real life to feel loss.
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Absolutely! Even tho i didnt enjoy all his fiction I felt gutted when I heard Asimov had died back in 92! It was even worse when Clarke died!
 
Although I wish him the best, I am not a fan. I did notice he was well enough to file yet another lawsuit claiming yet another film company stole his ideas. I'm not sure if the man is convinced that the entire genre of speculative fiction belongs to him personally or is just delusional. I know personally three people who have personally met Mr. Ellison and they all tell the same story - he's a bitter, egotistical, cantankerous old fart who treats his fans like dirt. One of these three is still a huge fan and convinced the persona is just that, an image that he feels he must uphold. I am not so convinced. As I said, one human being to another, I wish him all the best - but I won't buy anything he's written and avoid it when I can.
 
Lilmizflashythang said:
The guy seem to sneer at any fan of science fiction, and not just the hippies that Heinlein was having a problem with.
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Not quite, though it is easy to get that impression. He does, however, have little patience for certain types of fan and, given some of what I've seen myself in that category, I can easily understand it, especially given how many seem to want to challenge Ellison in some way.

I would also suggest reading his essay, "Xenogenesis" for more background on why he (and several other sf writers) might have a fair degree of ambivalence toward their "fans"; in the essay he deals not only with some of his own experiences, but collects together a number of incidents shared by other writers. There are things in there which would make your hair stand on end....
 
Lilmizflashythang said:
I watch a show on the Science Channel, The Prophets of Science fiction. And Mr. Ellison was talking about Heinlein last night. The guy seem to sneer at any fan of science fiction, and not just the hippies that Heinlein was having a problem with.
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The one thing I've found about listening to Harlan Ellison speak is you can count on plenty of hyperbole. Many things he feels worth talking about are also worth exaggerating apparently. I have to admit though, it does keep me listening.
 
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