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Minor Update of 22 Oct 1998: Guatemala
Minor Update of 10 Oct 1998: Israel
Minor Updates of 26 May 1998: films
Minor updates of 11 and 16 April 1998: Denmark
Minor updates of 15 and 22 February 1998: France
Updated 28 September 1997: Italian magazines
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2 Aug 97 major update on Israel; minor update to Finland
Minor updates on: Finland, France, Germany, Japan
DENMARK DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ECUADOR EGYPT ESTONIA FINLAND FRANCE GEORGIA GERMANY GREAT BRITAIN GREECE GUATEMALA HONG KONG HUNGARY ICELAND INDIA INDONESIA IRELAND ISRAEL and JEWISH SCIENCE FICTION ITALY JAPAN TABLE OF CONTENTS
For further information, see: "Bibliography of Science Fiction and Fantasy" by Sam J. Lundwall, 1964, which I believe has been updated in at least three editions. He also provided important information in "Science Fiction: fran begynnelsen till vara dagar", commissioned by Radio Sweden, and published in 1969. The English translation is "Science Fiction: What It's All About", Sam J. Lundwall, New York: Ace, 1971. "Billion Year Spree: The True History of Science Fiction", Brian W. Aldiss, (New York: Doubleday, 1973; Schocken Paperback, 1974) "Asimov on Science Fiction" (New York: Avon, 1981)
DENMARK
The most world-famous Danish fantasy or science fiction author is almost certainly Hans Christian Andersen -- but before him, the author of note was surely Ludvig Holberg (1684-1754) who achieved prominence with "Journey of Niels Klim to the World Underground." e-mail R. Nybo points out that author Ludvig Holberg is to be regarded as Danish-Norwegian (or Norwegian-Danish they might say in Denmark) as he was born in Norway but got his education in Denmark. (Denmark and Norway were in union and there were no universities in Norway. Danish was the official language.) Arne Herlov Petersen, popular science fiction author in Denmark, editor (1967-1974) of Vendelkaer Science Fiction magazine, translator of over 50 science fiction books, best known for his novel: "Haabet er groent" (1993) ["Hope is Green"], a short-story collection featuring Time Travel, Alternate History, Nanotechnology, and similar cutting-edge subjects. Also published books including: * Fredsrejsen (1983) * Stenen og Jorden (1984) * Med aaben pande (1992) * Duens taender (1993) Arne Herlov Petersen author's web site includes sample short stories and chapters of novels (in Danish) Other writers of note are: * Karen Blixen (1883-1962): mostly writes under pseudonym Isak Dinensen * Anders Bodelsen, "Frysepunktet" * Sven Holm, "Termush" * Knut Holten, "Suma-X" * J. Lie * V. Sorenson * Niels Nielsen (contemporary fantasist) Publishers: Skrifola Publishers, in Copenhagen, had several book series, with some science fiction titles. Jannick Storm edited a SF book series for Hasselbalchs Forlag. Magazines: Planet-Magasinet (an edition of Astounding Science Fiction) I know of five science fiction films shot on location in Denmark: * 1917 Heaven Ship [one of the world's first science fiction films] * 1962 Reptilicus [Danish/American co-production] Godzilla-like * 1964 Selvmorsskolen ["Suicide School"] Welfare State Dystopia * 1969 Manden der taenkte ting ["The Man Who Thought Things"] Creation of objects by mental powers alone * 1990 Manden der ville vaere skyldig ["The Man Who Would Be Guilty"] Welfare State Dystopia According to Ebbe Iversen in [Variety International Film Guide 1993, ed. Peter Cowie], the Top 10 Grossing films in Denmark in 1991 included these genre movies: * Terminator 2: Judgment Day * The Silence of the lambs Ebbe Iversen lists the following Film Producers of Denmark: * ASA Film Production ApS * Crone Film Produktion A/S * Dagmar Film Produktion A/S * Danish Film Studio * Domino Film & TV Production * Film & Lyd Produktion A/S * Film-Cooperativet Danmark 1983 ApS * Fortuna Films * Grasten Film, Regner * Holst Film A/S, Per * Hoyberg Film & Video ApS * Lense-Moller Film ApS, Lise * Leth Productions, Jorgen * Locomotion Kofod Schiller Film A/S * Madsen, Kenneth Filmproduktion A/S * Metronome Productions A/S * Nordisk Film Production A/S * Obel Film, ApS * Panorama Film International Ltd. * penta Films * Superfilms Productions * Vestergaard Film * Zentropa Entertainments ApS And we must not forget: Carl T. Dreyer, full name Carl Theodore Dreyer (1889-1968): Fantasy film director-screenwriter of Denmark: * Praesidenten [1919] {film hotlink to be done} * Blade of Satans Bog [1919] {film hotlink to be done} * The Passion of Joan of Arc [1927] {film hotlink to be done} * Vredens Dag [1943] "Day of Wrath" witchcraft {film hotlink to be done} * Ordet [1954] "The Word" {film hotlink to be done} * Gertrud [1964] {film hotlink to be done} (according to "The Encyclopedia of Fantasy", John Clute & John Grant, St.Martin's, 1997, p.298) Thanks to Arne Herlov Petersen for updating this list! Web Stuff: Denmark, by the way, is one of the 16 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain every day (or almost every day). Denmark first "hit" this domain in June 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsDOMINICAN REPUBLIC
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in the Dominican Republic. I know of no science fiction films shot on location in the Dominican Republic. Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Dominican Republic, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Dominican Republic first "hit" this domain in October 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsECUADOR
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Ecuador, although I have had a client who worked as a chief of staff for his Uncle, who was a Senator in Ecuador. Ecuador has also been suggested as an idwal place for a spaceport, having mountains close to the equator. This was the basis of a serial novel in the magazine Analog recently, {to be done}. I know of no science fiction films shot on location in Ecuador. Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Web Stuff: Ecuador, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Ecuador first "hit" this domain in December 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsEGYPT
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Egypt, other than the various science fiction novels which are based on Egyptian mythology. The two best of these, in my opinion, are "Creatures of Light and Darkness" by Roger Zelazny, and "Ancient Evenings" by Norman Mailer (whom I had met as a child, at a party in his Columbia Heights apartment in Brooklyn). Egypt has, of course, produced great writers, including the recent Nobel Laureate Mafouz -- does any of his work have a science fiction or fantasy element? I don't know. Rollo Ahmed, expert and author on the occult, nothing on the Web? Help me out, fans from Egypt! I know of no science fiction films shot on location in Egypt. Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? According to Ebbe Iversen in [Variety International Film Guide 1993, ed. Peter Cowie], the Top 10 Grossing films in Denmark in 1991 included these genre movies: * Terminator 2: Judgment Day * The Silence of the lambs Ebbe Iversen lists the following Film Producers of Denmark: * Web Stuff: Egypt, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Egypt first "hit" this domain in September 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsESTONIA
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Estonia, except: Sandra Kasturi (1966-): arguably the most important modern science fiction author born in Estonia (Poltsamaa). She is an American citizen, and Permanent Resident in Toronto, Canada since 1977. e-mail Sandra Kasturi Publishing/other credits include: * Editor [Hart House Review, University of Toronto, 1993, 1994] * Winner, Lydia Langstaff Memorial Prize for Writing, 1996 * nominated for Rhysling Award, 1997 (for "On Reading Bradbury") * "The Burning Woman", Contemporary Verse 2, Winter 1995 * "Five Cantos From the Prayer Book of Aphrodite" [TransVersions #2, 1995] (honourable mention in Year's Best Fantasy & Horror 1995) * "The Changeling" [On Spec, Winter 1995] (honourable mention in Year's Best Fantasy & Horror 1995) * "The Gretel Papers" [On Spec, Summer 1995] * "Winter Aconite" [On Spec, Fall 1995] (honourable mention in Year's Best Fantasy & Horror 1995) * "Chaos Theory" [Tesseracts 5, ed. Robert Runte & Yves Meynard, Edmonton: Tesseract Books, 1996] * "The Flayed Woman" [Tesseracts 5, ed. Robert Runte & Yves Meynard, Edmonton: Tesseract Books, 1996] * "The Day I Ate Jupiter" [On Spec, Summer 1996] * "Estonian Witches" [On Spec, Summer 1996] * "Nocturne" [Northern Frights 4, ed. Don Hutchison, Toronto: Mosaic Press, 1997] * "On Reading Bradbury" [Tesseracts 6, ed. Robert J. Sawyer and Carolyn Clink, Edmonton: Tesseract Books, 1997] * "Lunar Inconsistencies" [Prairie Fire, issue #?, 1997] * "A Daughter's a Daughter" [On Spec, 1998 (forthcoming)] * "Love With a Mermaid" [On Spec, 1998 (forthcoming)] I know of one science fiction film shot on location in Estonia: * Stalker (1979) Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Web Stuff: Estonia, by the way, is one of the 8 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain often, in the range of 10-20 days per month on the average. Estonia first "hit" this domain in May 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsFINLAND
[minor changes of 2 Aug 1997] Finland and the Origin of Fantasy & Science Fiction The Finnish epic "Kalevala" is one of the sources of all modern fantasy and science fiction. It includes, for example, a plot thread about a homunculus, similar to the Jewish "Golem" legend, and thus an ancestor of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", which is inarguably science fiction. In a case unusual for "Heroic Fantasy", the magician is the hero himself, with Vainamoinen in the legends of Finland. The best web site I know about the science fiction of Finland is: Science Fiction of Finland, which has both Finnish and English text. Related to that is another very good web site: Scientifiction, Tove Jansson's "Moomin" Books Tove Jansson wrote and illustrated a remarkable series of "Moomin" books, which are certainly Fantasy. Written in the Swedish language, these bestselling books are psychologically deeper than most juveniles, and have their fantastic creatures coping with change, which is more a science fictional than a fantasy style. Science Fiction Authors of Finland Finnish Science Fiction authors include: * Boris Hurtta, horror author * Pasi Kivioja * Timo Vesa Krooks * Professor Anto Leikola, writes about fantasy themes such as the Phoenix * Kari T. Leppanen, comics writer * Raimo Nikkonen, editor of Portti magazine e-mail Raimo Nikkonen/Portti Magazine * Janne Putkonen * Laura Vaajoki * Maarit Verronen One Finnish member of Science Fiction Writers of America: * Tapani Ronni This author e-mailed Your Humble Webmaster to say: "Upon a AltaVista search, I found my name included in your list of SF authors. I have indeed published several short stories in Finland, but my status in ASFWA is Affiliate Member, not Active Member. You may want to correct this detail. My e-mail is also changed, now I can be reached using:" e-mail Tapani Ronni SF magazines in Finland include: * Tahtivaeltaja [No Mercy] slick color quarterly in Helsinki Science Fiction Films of Finland I know of one science fiction film shot on location in Finland: * Last Border -- viimeisella rajalla (1993), also known as The Last Border Web Stuff Finland, by the way, is one of the 16 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain every day, or very nearly every day. This is no surprise, as Finland is usually in first place (or sometimes tied with Iceland) as the highest per-capita Internet users country on Earth. Finland first "hit" this domain in May 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTIONFRANCE
Science Fiction Began in France, with Jules Verne The case can be made that science fiction began in France, with Jules Verne. Verne was born in Nantes, France, on 8 February 1828. He died in Amiens, France, on 24 March 1905. In between these dates, he was surely, as Isaac Asimov says, "the first writer to specialize in science fiction and to make a living at it, too." [Asimov on Science Fiction, p.158] Verne plumbed planetary depths -- "Journey to the Center of the Earth" (1864); fired people to the Moon from Florida -- "From the Earth to the Moon" (1865); and had a mad scientist conquer the oceans -- "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" (1869). Verne had a mad scientist orbit the earth atmospherically in "Robur the Conqueror" and "Master of the World"; create a utopia -- "The Mysterious Island"; explore conflicts between supercities -- "The Begum's Fortune"; and make cities fly -- "Propellor Island." Other Famous French Pioneers of Science Fiction & Fantasy An important futuristic utopian novel was "L'an 2440, reve s'il en fut jamais" by Louis-Sebastian Mercier (London & Amsterdam: chez Van Harrevelt, 1771). Other famous authors who had some works in the science/fiction fantasy genre include: * Honore de Balzac ("Louis Lambert", 1833) * Cyrano de Bergerac: several ways for interplanetary travel, including rockets (1657): Histoire comique des etats et empires de la Lune" (1648-1650) Histoire comique des etats et empires du Soleil" (1662) * Camille Flammarion, astronomer, "La Fin du Monde" (1911) explores the death of our world circa 10,000,000 A.D. * Andre Laurie, "Les Exiles de la Terre" (1889) pulls the moon magnetically to Earth * Francois Rabelais, "Pantagruel" (1532-1564) Voltaire's "Micromegas" features superbeings from other planets and stars, particularly a Saturnian and a Sirian. 1781: French author De la Bretonne's "Decouverte Australe, par un Homme-Volant" includes, amazingly enough, aircraft, spacecraft, satellites, ICBMs, atomic energy, germ warefare, and communal versus authoritarian cultures. Very futuristic, indeed! 1887: Villiers de l'Isle-Adam's novel "The Future Eve" Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) is considered by many literary scholars to be the true father of Science Fiction, and of the Mystery/Detective genre. Poe's translations into French by Baudelaire were crucial to the evolution of French symbolism, surrealism, and science fiction. French Science Fiction Bibliographies and References P. Versins is the main French science fiction bibliographer. He lists dozens of important French science fiction books that have not, for the most part, been translated into English. First, Versins recommends these general reference books: * Charles-Noel Martin, "Les vingts sens de l'homme devant l'inconnu" (Paris: Gallimard, "Aux Frontiers de la Science", 1958) * Louis Pauwels & Jacques Bergier, "Le matin des magiciens", (Paris: Gallimard, 1960; available in English translation) Also look for occasional articles such as "SF In France", Pascal J. Thomas, Locus, September 1996, p.57 French Members of Science Fiction Writers of America Three French members of Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America: * Scott Baker (recently moved back to the United States) * Joyce Hutchinson * Norman Spinrad (originally from New York and Hollywood) Other French Science Fiction/Fantasy Authors Other (mostly contemporary) French science fiction/fantasy authors include: * Guillame Apollinaire * Ayerdhal, best known for the novel Demain Une Oasis * M. Ayme * Jacques Badou, SF column in the daily Le Monde * R. Barjavel * P. Benoit * P. Berna * Pierre Bordage: Les Guerriers du Silence (L'Atalante) * Pierre Boulle * Y. Berger * B. R. Bruss * Serge Brussolo, De l'autre cote des tenebres * Cyrano de Bergerac * Helen Collon * J.-L. Curtis * Maurice G. Dantec: Les Racines du Mal Crime thriller/SF * R. Daumal * Guy de Maupassant * C. de Richter * Hughes Douriaux, Les Sortileges de Main * Alexandre Dumas * Gilles Dumay, editor/publisher of Destination Crepuscule * Erckmann-Chatrian * C. Farrere * Jean-Claude Forest: "Barbarella" * Theophile Gautier * Y. Gandon * Jean-Pierre Garen, Les Mangeurs de viande * Laurent Genefort, Arago * J. Guieu * S. S. Held * Nathalie-Charles Henneberg * Alain le Bussy, Deraag * Marc Lemosquet, Cobaye * M. Level * Joel Malrieu * F. Marceau * Andre Maurois ("Deux fragments d'une Histoire Universelle") * A. Michel * O. Mirbeau * I. Perret * M.-A. Rayjean * P. Reynolds * F. Richards-Bessiere * J. H. Rosny * J. Rostand * C. Seignolle * Gilles Thomas, L'Autoroute sauvage * Pascal J. Thomas * Francis Valery, editor of CyberDreams * J. G. Vandel * Jean-Pierre Vernay, Le Sang des mondes * Roland C. Wagner * H. Ward * S. Wul * C. Yelnick There are also interesting biographical/bibliographical details on: * J. Bergier * R. Callois * R. Messac * G. H. Gallet * P. Versins * S. Spriel * George Melies (the father of science fiction/fantasy films) "A Trip to the Moon" (1902) "An Impossible Voyage" (1904) French Science Fiction Book Publishers * Albin Michel * L'Atalante * Denoel * Encrages * Fleuve Noir * Hachette * J'ai Lu * Laffont's "Ailleurs et Demain" imprint * Livres de Poche * Multisim e-mail Multisim SF & Fantasy publisher, a two years old company, has published more than 30 novels over two years and had already 3 reviews in the Daily "Le Monde." They publish almost only young authors. contact: Stephane Marsan * Pocket (part of the Presses de la Cite' group) * Rivages French Science Fiction Magazines * Bifrost, distributed in Gaming shops * CyberDreams, edited by Francis Valery * Fiction, the French edition of F&SF, which died in 1991 * e-mail Galaxies Magazine * e-mail Ozone Magazine More French Science Fiction Web Sites Quarante-Deux by Ellen Herzfeld & Dominique Martel Pages Francaises de Science-Fiction by Jean-Jacques Girardot Alex S. Garcia's The Icarus Encyclopedia of Fantasy and Science-Fiction e-mail Alex S. Garcia There are both a French and an English versions. The French one is the most developed to this date, and indexes practically all French imprints, with lists of all their books, author biographies, book reviews and much more. The English version wants to do pretty much the same thing, but still needs some serious updating. Mr.Garcia will be working on that in the upcoming weeks and months. France: SF 1996 Rosny Aine' Awards 2-5 May 1996 was when the French National Science Fiction Convention was held in Nancy. Roughly 130 people attended, many of whom saw the Rosny Aine' Awards presented: * Best Novel: Les Racines du Mal, Maurice G. Dantec, (Gallimard, "Serie Noire") * Best Short Story: "Voyage organise", Serge Delsemme (CyberDreams 03) France: SF 1994 Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire The Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire, formerly known as the Grand Prix de la SF Francaise was awarded as follows for the best works of 1993: * Best Novel: Les Guerriers du Silence, Pierre Bordage (L'Atalante) * Best Short Story: "Une", Catherine Quenot (Rien que des Sorceriers, Albin Michel) * Best Youth Fiction: Les Chasse-Marres, Alain Grousset (Hachette Jeunesse) * Best Essay: Le Fantastique, Joel Malrieu (Hachette) * Best Translation: Helene Collon, translated Iain Banks' The Player of Games into L'Homme des jeux (Laffont's "Ailleurs et Demain" imprint) * Special Award: Regards sur Dick, essays on Philip K. Dick, edited by Helene Collon (Encrages) Contemporary French Stories in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction" The story "The Valley of Echoes" by Gerard Klein, translated by Frank Zero, appears (pp.184-192) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "...of the contemporary French SF writers, none is more distinguished than Gerard Klein, an SF editor for a French publisher, who has had several novels and stories translated into English, perhaps more work than any of his contemporaries. 'The Valley of Echoes', with its energetic shifts in person and tense, shows some of the stylistic devices that charcterize French SF and distinguish it from the English and American, which is almost invariably written in the past tense and most often in the third person. French SF is more self-consciously literary than American SF usually is...." The story "Party Line" by Gerard Klein, translated by Frank Zero, appears (pp.920-947) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "Gerard Klein was the wunderkind of French SF at its inception in the 1950s. His first story, heavily influenced by Ray Bradbury, appeared in 1955, when he was nineteen. He published nearly sixty more in the next decade, in addition to becoming an influential critic with a series of thirty foreceful essays. His early career was, however, as a government economist, which seems to have influenced the detailed background of 'Party Line.' "In 1969 he became the editor of an important publishing series that continues today, a series which supports developing talent in France while seeking out works in English for translation. It is a pleasure to find stories such as 'Party Line' contributing to the international dialogue on time travel and time paradoxes." The story "The Blind Pilot" by Nathalie-Charles Henneberg, translated by Damon Knight, appears (pp.250-265) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "Nathalie-Charles Henneberg, who is Russian, met her Alsatian-German husband in Syria when he was in the French Foreign Legion. They began writing SF in French in the 1950s, and until his death in 1959 they signed their collaborations with his name.... Nathalie went on to become a prolific novelist, the 'most read' French SF writer in France in the 1960s, according to [Damon] Knight. This story bears an uncanny resemblance in atmosphere to the early works of the American writer Roger Zelazny, which it predates." The story "The Dead Fish" by Boris Vian, translated by Damon Knight, appears (pp.679-689) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "Boris Vian is a pivotal figure in the contemporary evolution of SF in France. After World War II, like William Burroughs in the United States, he defended SF among the intellectuals. He translated A. E. Van Vogt, the wildest, least polished, and most aggressively creative of the 1940 [John] Campbell writers, into French--as a matter of fact, into such literate clear style that for years U.S. fans scratched thir heads in confusion over the seeming contradiction of the popularity of Van Vogt and the literary respectability of SF in France. "Vian himself never wrote a specifically genre story. He is represented here by a surrealist piece that is closely related to many of the works of such New Wave writers as langdon Jones and James Sallis in [Michael] Moorcock's NEW WORLDS, especially in the last, most experimental phases." French Science Fiction Films I know of eight science fiction films shot on location in France: * Alphaville, une etrange aventure de Lemmy Caution (1965) also known as Alphaville; and Alphaville: A Strange Adventure of Lemmy Caution * Bis ans Ende der Welt (1991), also known as Until the End of the World * Brazil (1985) * Delicatessen (1991) * Diamonds are Forever (1971) * Paris Qui Dort (1923) also known as Paris Asleep, also known as The Crazy Ray -- a classic still much enjoyed * Superman II (1980) * Tykho Moon (1996) and there may be many more which were never released in the United States. Web Stuff France, by the way, is one of the 16 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain every day, or very nearly every day. France first "hit" this domain in April 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGEORGIA
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Georgia. I know of three science fiction films shot on location in the American state of Georgia (Freejack; Independence Day; Robocop 3), but none in the country of Georgia. Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Georgia, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Georgia first "hit" this domain in November 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGERMANY
Germany: Birthplace of Realistic Space Travel Novels Some have claimed that astronomer Eberhard Christian Kindermann wrote the first credible space travel novel, "Die geshwinde Reise auf dem Luft-schiff nach der obern Welt, welche jungsthin funf Personen angestellet (1744). It deals with a trip to Mars. Germany: Precursors to Modern Science Fiction Germany had a profound history of fantastic, outrageous, transcendental, and utopian literature which serves as a precursor to modern science fiction and fantasy on a global scale. Authors of such works include: * J. Andre (1586-1654) "Christianopolis" * H. Domink (1872-1945) * H. H. Ewers (1871-1943) * Goethe "Faust" * Hermann Hesse (1867-1962) * G. Hauptman (1862-1945) * E. T. A. Hoffman (1776-1822) * The Brothers Grimm * E. Juenger (1895-?) * R. Jungk (nonfiction "Brighter than a Thousand Suns") * Richard Koch * Robert Kraft (1870-1916) major pulp writer (untranslated) * Kurt Lasswitz {hotlink to be done} * Baron Munchausen * F. Van Holk * Paul Wegener, "Der Golem, Wie er in der Welt Kam" (1920) 1810: Julius von Voss "Ini. Ein Roman aus dem einundzwangsigsten Jahrhundert" ("A Novel from the Twenty-First Century"). Ludwig Anton (1873-?), German author "Interplanetary Bridges" published by Hugo Gernsback, nothing on the Web? 1890 German author Theodor Hertzka's "Freeland: A Social Anticipation" set a super-capitalist utopia in Africa Carlos Rasch was at the center of East German SF, with his own novels and with the translation of numerous English-language books. German Members of Science Fiction Writers of America 4 German members of Science Fiction Writers of America: * Hans Joachim Alpers (who served as my German literary agent for UTOPROP) * Jens H. Altmann * Wolfgang Jeschke * Thomas Schluck German Science Fiction Book Publishers Book publishers who regularly or occasionally handle science fiction include: * Bewin * Diogenes * Goldmann * Hanser * Heyne * Insel * Moewig * Moos * Rowohl * Schunemann * Zimmermann German Science Fiction Magazines Magazines (see Magazines section for details) include: * Atlan * Captain Mors * Galaxis * Perry Rhodan * Star-Utopia * Terra * Terra Extra * Terra Nova * Terra Sonderband (retitled Sonderreihe) * Uranus * Utopia-Grossband * Utopia-Kleinband * Utopia-Kriminal * Utopia-Magazin * Utopia-Zukunfstromane * Zauberkreis SF German Science Fiction Films Particularly notable classic science fiction films {hotlinks to be done} include: * The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari * Metropolis (1926) * Frau im Monde (The Girl in the Moon) * Dr. Mabuse der Spieler (1922), Fritz Lang * The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) * Nosferatu (1922), by W. F. Munau I also know of five RECENT science fiction films shot on location in Germany: * Bis ans Ende der Welt (1991), also known as Until the End of the World * Diamonds are Forever (1971) * Rollerball (1975) * Tykho Moon (1996) * Who? (1974) also known as Robo Man; and there may be many more which were never released in the United States. Contemporary German Stories in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction" The story "On the Inside Track" by Michael Armer, translated by Joe F. Randolph, appears (pp.115-134) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "Although many English-language works are translated into German, there are few truly ambitious contemporary German SF writers, and of those, only Herbert Franke and, recently, Wolfgang Jeschke have had much work translated into English.... 'On the Inside Track' shows a command of the conventions of SF storytelling and offers, in a European setting, a pleasant twist on the old idea of possesion by an alien consciousness.... But ... this story is more a reflection of English-language SF than a harbinger of a new German consciousness." Your Humble Webmaster in Germany I have visited Germany, by the way, as a Guest of Honor of a combination Science Fiction Film Festival and Aerospace Convention in Munich {to be done}. I have sold two works to German publishers: {to be done} Germany, by the way, is one of the 16 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain every day, or very nearly every day. Germany first "hit" this domain in March 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGIBRALTER
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Gibralter. I know of no science fiction films shot on location in Gibralter. Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Gibralter, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Gibralter first "hit" this domain in October 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGREAT BRITAIN
British writers hold that all science fiction springs from the United Kingdom, and they cite at least 8 lines of descent to justify their crown. The ghost story with believably complex mortals affected by the supernatural reached a never-exceeded high point in William Shakespeare's "Hamlet." The very notion of super-intelligence challenging God himself, and failing tragically, was never better expressed than in John Milton's "Paradise Lost." One line of ancestry for modern Science Fiction was the Gothic novel, starting with "The Castle of Otronto" (1765) by Horace Walpole (see Walpole in the Authors' segment of this web site). Another line of descent begins with Sir Thomas More's "Utopia" (1516 in Latin, translated into English in 1551), which makes him not only a Christian saint, but an SF one as well. The antithesis, or Dystopian novel, belongs to Great Britian, with Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" (1931) and George Orwell [Eric Arthur Blair]'s "1984" (1949). Huxley should not be thought of as merely dystopian, as he has said [in "Literature and Science]: "Rooted as they are in the facts of contemporary life, the phantasies of even a second-rate writer of modern Science Fiction are incomparably richer, bolder, and stranger than the Utopian or Millenial imaginings of the past." A 4th line of descent is the cosmic-scale "hard SF", which is anchored in "Last and First Men" (1930) by Olaf Stapledon, the brilliant Cambridge professor of philosophy, who, in his epic 2,000,000,000 year sweep, was the direct acknowledged influence on the king of hard SF,Arthur C. Clarke. "The Star Maker" (1937) by Stapledon went beyond even his own invention of the Galactic Empire, into a multi-cosmic techno-theological vision that anticipated todays scientific analysis of a universe before the Big Bang and of alternate universes with different natural laws. Stapledon also invented "the Cosmic Mind", which Clarke revisited in his masterpiece "Childhood's End" (1953). Sir Fred Hoyle also follows in this tradition, with "The Black Cloud" (1957) and "A for Andromeda." A 5th line of descent is that of Time Travel. I teach a course on this, and will later add some detailed notes to this web site, but everyone knows that H. G. Wells invented "The Time Machine" (1995). Herbert George Wells is often considered the father of science fiction. Seminal works include "The War of the Worlds" (1898) and "The Invisible Man " (1897) and {to be done} A 6th line of descent is the social satire with science fictional elements, of which the greatest work is Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" (1726). A 7th line of descent is the literary reaction to the Industrial Revolution, which of course was born in Scotland and northern England by, say, 1800. This in turn began with the foundations of modern science by Sir Isaac Newton. Benjamin Disraeli's book "The Two Nations" (1845) examined the split between rich and poor, with upper and lower classes as essentially two nations on the same land, and this vision was further ramified by H. G. Wells' Eloi and Morlocks in "The Time Machine" (1895). Finally, Brian Aldiss receives considerable support in claiming that Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein" (1818) was the first genuine science fiction novel. MISCELLANEOUS ALPHABETICAL LISTING: Edwin Abbott Abbott (1838-1926), author of "Flatland": Brian W. Aldiss [Billion Year Spree, New York: Shocken, 1974, p.106] says: "Beside the major figure of [Lewis] Carroll we may set a minor one, another scholar with an interest in mathematics, Edwin A. Abbott. Abbott was a Shakespearean scholar and theologian, now best remembered for that slender sport _Flatland_, first published in 1884 and still surviving by reason of its wit and originality.... This slender work is hardly science fiction..... but it has always attracted sf readers, not least because its lucid account of dimensions reminds us that we may be relatively as imperceptive of the reality of our universe as were the inhabitants of Flatland. Perhaps for this reason, the book was a favorite of C. S. Lewis." Edwin A. Abbot @ AlphaRalpha Douglas [Noel] Adams Douglas Adams @ AlphaRalpha to be done: The Douglas Adams Worship Page Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Home Page Deep Thought (Cult) Douglas Adams The Ford Prefect Worship Page Dirk Gently's Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams) W. S. Adams, British author, The Fourth Programme (London: Lawrence Wishart, 1955) God makes a broadcast, church and state are shaken Robert [Fordyce] Aickman, British novelist/critic/Opera scholar, who edited the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd "Fontana Book of Great Ghost Stories" nothing on the Web? Help me out, fans from England! William Harrison Ainsworth (4 Feb 1805-3 Jun 1882): Fantasy author/editor: nothing on the Web? Help me out, fans from England! Manchester Grammar School, articled to law, known for editing: Ainsworth's Magazine (1842-1854) New Monthly Magazine other magazines, and for his 40+ novels, including: Rockwood (1834), not in the genre? Auriol, or The Elixer of Life (London: Routledge, 1898; other editions possibly decades earlier) [Charles] Grant [Blairfindie] Allen (1848-1899), leading Canadian science writer and SF/Fantasy novelist: Grant Allen @ AlphaRalpha Brian W. Aldiss [Billion Year Spree, New York: Shocken, 1974, p.142] says: "'Grant Allen and I were in the tradition of Godwin and Shelley,' said [H.G.] Wells. Grant Allen was a Darwinian. Like Wells, he used the future to mirror the evils of the present, and his _The British Barbarians_ (1895) presents a scientist from a distant future working as an anthropologist among a savage tribe in an English suburb, as he investigates the current shibboleths on class, sex, property, and creed. Grant Allen's best-known novel is _The Woman Who Did_, also published in 1895, about a woman who bears and cares for an illegitimate child--a daring theme at the time, which may have moved Wells toward the writing of _Ann Veronica_." Cedric Allingham (1922-?), British UFO pioneer Flying Saucers from Mars (London: F. Muller, 1954) Margery [Louise] Allingham (1904-1966): award-winning British Mystery author who wrote at least one SF novel on telepathy "The Mind Readers." The father of this Web Page author (Samuel H. Post, see below) published some of her work in American paperback editions: nothing on the Web? Help me out, fans from England! The following paperback edition was edited and published by my father, Samuel H. Post, for MacFadden-Bartell Corporation, New York: Margery Allingham, "The Mind Readers", (75-175, 1967) Tom Allum: British juvenile SF author: nothing on the Web? Help me out, fans from England! "Boy Beyond the Moon", a.k.a. "Emperor of Space" (London: Blackie, 1959) Kingsley [William] Amis (16 Apr 1922): extremely influential author/editor/critic ("New Maps of Hell", the "Spectrum" anthologies John W. Campbell Memorial Award: 1977 "The Alteration" (1976) is selected and praised in "Science Fiction: The 100 Best Novels" by David Pringle Kingsley [William] Amis: Index to at least 8 publications. Kingsley Amis @ AlphaRalpha Margaret Armour, British 19th century anthologist "The Eerie Book": nothing on the Web? Martin [Donisthorpe] Armstrong (2 Oct 1882-?), British fantasist and poet: Several mainstream novels (including "A Case of Conscience", not to be confused with James Blish's novel of the same name), and widely recognized for his poetry,nothing on the Web? The Bazaar and Other Stories (London: Jonathan Cape, 1924) The Fiery Dive and Other Stories (London: Gollancz, 1929) General Buntop's Miracle and Other Stories (London: Gollancz, 1934) W. H. Armytage, author of nonfiction futurism: "Yesterday's Tomorrows: A Historical Survey of Future Societies" (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1968) Edwin Lester Arnold (1857-1935), British fantasist, son of the famous author Sir Edwin Arnold whose bestseller "Light of Asia" made Buddhism a popular topic of conversation in Victorean England. Edwin Lester Arnold's three best-known novels all deal with reincarnation: Phra the Phoenician (1891) Lepidus the Centurion (1901) Lieut. Gulliver Jones: His Vacation (1905) [reprinted by Ace, 1963, as "Gulliver of Mars"] perhaps influential on Edgar Rice Burroughs (according to Richard Lupoff) Edwin Lester Arnold @ AlphaRalpha Frank Edward Arnold (1914-?), British fan and short story author: nothing on the Web? Wings Across Time (London: Pendulum Spacetime Series 1, 1946) story collection Eugene Ascher, British fantasy/mystery author: nothing on the Web? Francis Leslie Ashton (1904-?), British novelist: nothing on the Web? John [Alfred] Atkins (26 May 1916-?), British novelist/biographer: nothing on the Web? Biographies of George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, and Ernest Hemingway. Taught in Sudan (1951-1955) and relocated there in 1958 Tomorrow Revealed (London: N. Spearman, 1955) extraordinary future history of the world, essentially a hypertext based on H.G. Wells, Robert heinlein, A.E. Van Vogt, and others, desrves to be on the Net, properly hotlinked.... F[rederick] Britten Austin (1885-?), British playwright/war-writer/ fantasist/SF author: nothing on the Web? Michael Ayrton (20 Feb 1921-?) British author/sculptor/painter/theatre designer/illustrator/art critic The Maze Maker (London: Longmans, 1967) Daedalus "biography" Titvulus, or The Verbiage Collector (London: Reinhardt, 1953) a lesser demon collects all the trivia of the world into bags. Not unlike what most people on the World Wide Web are doing, hmmmm? 19 United Kingdom members of SFWA (Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America): * Stephen Baxter * John Brunner (estate of) * Marcus Chown * John Clute * Jo Fletcher * David Garnett * Peter T. Garratt * Simon F. Green * John Gribben * Samantha Lee * Paul J. McAuley * Robin McKinley * John Meaney * Lisanne Norman * Ian N. Stewart * Jennifer Swift * Ian Watson * Elizabeth E. Wein * Pauline Whitby I know of twenty-one science fiction films shot on location in Great Britain: * Brazil (1985) * Le cinquieme element (1997), also known as The Fifth Element also known as The Fifth Man * A Clockwork Orange (1971) * The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961) * Dragonslayer (1981) * Four-Sided Triangle (1953), also known as The Monster and the Woman * A Kid in King Arthur's Court (1995) * Lifeforce (1985) * Lost in Space (1997) * No Blade of Grass (1970) * Quatermass (1978) TV * The Quatermass Experiment(1956) TV, also known as The Creeping Unknown * Quatermass II (1957) TV, also known as Enemy from Space * Return to Oz (1985) * The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) * Shadow Warriors (1996) also known as Techno-Fear * Split Second (1992) * Star Wars: Episode I (1999) []working title, already in pre-production] * Superman II (1980) * Xtro (1983) * Z for Zachariah (1984) for more on the Quatermass television serials/films see xxxxxxxx UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGREECE
The word "Fantasy" is from the Greek word for imagination, and one can claim that the imagination of Greek writers was the origin of all science fiction. Greek myths from 2,000-5,000 years ago are essential to any history of Fantasy, and Lucian of Samosata (ca. 125 AD) wrote satires with definite science fiction elements. For example, "Icaromenippos" includes Icarus flying to the Moon and adventuring with its inhabitants. Lucian's "A True Story" is both a parody of the fantasies and proto-science fiction tales of 2,000 years ago, but includes the first space war in literature, a battle near the Moon. Aristophanes' comedies are bristling with utopian and fantastic elements. In "The Birds", people exhausted by wars join with birds in constructing "cloudcuckooland" in between Earth and Heaven. In "The Frogs", he takes us on a tour of Hell. In "Peace", Trygaeus rides a giant beetle to Heaven to seek the help of Zeus, and in "Lysistrata" women end war by withholding sexual favors until peace is achieved. Since Greek philosophy was the orgin of Science, Greece plays an ancestral role for all science fiction. To pick an example almost at random, when Archimedes said "Give me a place to stand, and a lever long enough, and I shall move the Earth" he anticipated the entire planet-smashing solar-system reconfiguring style of science fiction in the sense of Asimov, Bear, Brin, and Clarke. If we hold that Science Fiction is the literature of the search for Utopia, then we must begin our analysis with Plato's "Republic" -- the definitive utopia. Of course, I would have been banned from The Republic, as I am a poet, and Plato considered such men dangerous to the social order. By the way, the Republic was to have exactly 5,040 citizens, which some readers today would recognize as 7! = 1x2x3x4x5x6x7. "Utopia" is derived from the Greek for "nowhere." If science fiction is based on exotic travels, monsters, larger-than-life heros outwitting their foes, and technology indistinguishable from magic, then all must give credit to Homer's "Odyssey", some 2,500 years ago. For that matter, Homer's "Iliad" is the basis of all realistic war fiction, including science fictional space battles. And if the robot is a main icon of science fiction, then Greece deserves credit for inventing Hephaistos, god of the forge, in being assisted by women constructed of gold (as described in "The Iliad"). And did not Daedalus built the bronze warrior Talos? I know of no science fiction films shot on location in Greece. Greece, by the way, is one of the 15 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain roughly once a week, but less than 10 times per month on the average. Greece first "hit" this domain in April 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsGUATEMALA
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Guatemala, except for the talented Guatemala-born author: G.C. [Jose Mario Garry Ordonez] Edmondson [y Cotton] (1922-1995) Guatemala-born American author/translator/nonpracticing medical doctor whom this compiler has had the pleasure of knowing for some time e-mail G. C. Edmondson Books: * The Aluminum Man [Berkley, 1975] * Chapayeca [Doubleday, 1971] a.k.a. Blue Face [Daw, 1972] * The Ship that Sailed the Time Stream [Ace, 1965] * Stranger Than You Think [Ace, 1965] story collection * T. H. E. M. [Doubleday, 1974] * Star Slaver [1983] * To Sail the Century Sea [Ace, 1981] For more of his books listed, and many of his published short fiction, see: Authors "E" I know of two science fiction films shot on location in Guatemala: * Moonraker (1979) * Star Wars (1977) Won't somebody who knows something e-mail an entry to put here? Guatemala, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Guatemala first "hit" this domain in October 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsHONG KONG
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Hong Kong. This is embarassing to admit, because of the large number of movies, some of them superb, made in Hong Kong and based on a science fiction and/or fantasy theme or premise. Jackie Chan, for instance, is arguably the top box-office star in the world. One such film is: * Dimension 5 (1966) Won't somebody who knows something about Hong Kong film science fiction e-mail an entry to put here? I do own a "pirated" edition of an Arthur C. Clarke novel which was printed in Hong Kong, and I am told that this is the case for books and videocasettes and CD-ROMs in quantity. I am, as a content creator and as an elected officer of the National Writers Union, very strongly opposed to violations of intellectual property, including copyright. I do not know the facts about this situation in Hong Kong, and would be pleased to have someone enlighten me. Hong Kong, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Hong Kong first "hit" this domain in May 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsHUNGARY
My father's father emigrated from Hungary, and I regret not speaking Hungarian. Still, the science fiction of Hungary is a source of pride. Authors of note include: * Kaurus Jokai, "The Prophet of World's End" * F. Karinthy, "Voyage to Cappelaria", "Voyage for Faremide", "The Land of Thousand-faced Souls" * Eugen Szatmary, "The Voyage to Kazzolinia" 1916 Hungarian author Mihaly Babits publishes the fantasy novel "The Nightmare" based upon the notion of split personality 1917 Hungarian author Frigyes Karinthy's satirical novels "Capilarie" and "Faremido" appear as sequels to Jonathan Swifts's "Gulliver's Travels", and adding a society based on automation and robots I shall later be adding an essay of mine on WHY there were half a dozen world-class scientists emerging from Budapest in a single decade. These Hungarians changed the world in a very science-fictional way: John Von Neumann (father of the computer), Edward Teller (father of the H-bomb), Leo Szilard (a physicist who published science fiction stories!) and others. I know of two science fiction films shot on location in Hungary: * A Kid in King Arthur's Court (1995) * Terminus (1986) Hungary, by the way, is one of the 15 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain roughly once a week, but less than 10 times per month on the average. Hungary first "hit" this domain in June 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsICELAND
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Iceland. Iceland is tied for first place as the country with the highest per-capita internet use in the world. Won't somebody who knows something about Iceland science fiction e-mail an entry to put here? I know of one science fiction film shot on location in Iceland: * Independence Day (1996) Iceland, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Iceland first "hit" this domain in June 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsINDIA
It goes without saying that India has a nearly infinite set of mythologies and fables, which have been a source for fantasists and science fiction authors such as Roger Zelazny. India (mostly from Bombay, or "Bollywood") is the world's #1 producer of motion pictures, many of which have a fantasy element. The ancient "Veda" tales/poems can themselves be considered the roots of science fiction. India benefited from British rule in the development of a world-class educational and scientific infrastructure. India produced the greatest mathematician of our century, Ramanujan, and a couple of Nobel laureate physicists. I myself used Chandrasekhar's textbook on stellar interiors, and we owe much of our understanding of Black Holes to him. India is a space power, able to design, build, and launch its own satellites. This is, in part, related to the fact that India is a major nuclear power with a geopolitically uneasy relationship to China and to Pakistan. Donald H. Tuck says that the earliest serial of original science fiction published in the Hindu language was "Khagras" (Full Eclipse) by Acharya Chatursen Shastri, in a weekly magazine published by the "Times of India", namely "Dharmyug", starting on 30 August 1959, and dealing with the Russians winning the manned Moon race. Salman Rushdie (Ahmed Salman Rushdie) Mythepoeic Award: 1992 Salman Rushdie: Index to at least 6 publications I know of three science fiction films shot on location in India and released in the United States: * Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) * Independence Day (1996) * The Jungle (1952), also known as Kaadu UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsINDONESIA
I don't know anything about Science Fiction in Indonesia. I know of no science fiction films shot on location in Indonesia. Won't somebody who knows something about Indonesia science fiction e-mail an entry to put here? Indonesia, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Indonesia first "hit" this domain in August 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsIRELAND
THE EXTENSIVE ESSAY ON IRELAND AND SCIENCE FICTION WAS ILLICITLY ERASED AS AN ACT OF POLITICAL CENSORSHIP BY SOMEONE WHO HACKED ONTO THIS SITE. THE WEBMASTER IS ATTEMPTING TO FIND THAT LOST INFORMATION FROM BACK-UPS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE. Ireland, by the way, is one of the 45 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain occasionally, but less than once a week on the average. Ireland first "hit" this domain in June 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsISRAEL
Minor Update of 10 Oct 1998: Films [First paragraphs significantly expanded 2 Aug 1997] Israel as the Birthplace of Science Fiction: Science Fiction was born in what is now Israel, in the 3rd Century B.C., with the Apocryphal Books of Enoch. These star a biblical hero traveling in space and time in search of the essential secrets of the cosmos and creation. In response, Hebrew writings contained a proliferation of cosmological/biblical fictions which may have influenced Olaf Stapledon two millennia later (according to librarian/SF historian Eli Eshed, in "Locus", Oct 1996, p.43]. Since then, Israeli science fiction authors have included: * Pesakh Amnuel, novel "Lyudi Koda" [People of the Code] an astrophysicist by trade, with 5 Russian SF novels and 70+ SF stories published * David Avidan * Yivsam Azgad * "A. Bansh" * Zeev Bar-Sella * Leybl Botwinik * Jacob Cohen * Elana Gomel * Gil Ilutovich * Maya Kaganskaya * Amos Kenan * Daniel Kluger, stories of alternate history 3 SF novels, 10+ short fictions, publishes Russian SF magazine "Miry" [Worlds] in Israel * Konstantin Korchminsky * Emanuel Lottem * Alexander Lurie, 10+ SF stories in Russia and Israel * Yitzhak ben Ner * Rafail Nudelman * Leonid Resnik, novel "Angel smerti s drozhaschimi rukami" [The Angel of Death with Trembling Hands] * Shimon Rosenberg, novel "Death I Call..." * Eli Sagie * On Sarig * Zalman Shneor * Robert Smallman, 2 SF novels "Nevahe" and "Dinurus" [Billings Montana: Thunder Mountain Press] * Oleg Sverdlov * Binyamin Tammuz * Philip Tzekhansky (SF artist) * Dan Zalka as described below. In the 1930s and 1940s, two major Hebrew poets in what was then Palestine, namely: * Zalman Shneor * Jacob Cohen wrote science fiction. Jacob Cohen's 1939 play "BeLuz" was about a secret city of immortals debating about revealing themselves to the outside world. In the 1960's and 1970's, the well-known Israeli poet David Avidan continued the tradtion of Jacob Cohen with numerous Science Fiction poems. From 1963 through the present, On Sarig's young adult series "Dani-Din Ha Yeled HaRoe VeEino Nireh" [Dani-Din the Invisible Boy] is arguably the most popular work of Israeli science fiction. The series beginning in 1964 by Eli Sagie, "The Adventures of Captain Yuno" featured an astronaut-boy on various planets, but was cut short when the author began making over 100 times as much money publishing mundane comedy fiction and plays. Starting in 1968 the pseudonymous writing partners "A. Bansh" launched the "Ral Dark" series with "Keisar HaCochav HaSagol" [The Emperor of the Purple Planet]. Science Fiction Editor/Translator Emanuel Lottem [Locus, Oct 1996, p.43] claims that the early 1970's marked the "turning point" when the classics of Maurois, Orwell, Poe and Verne were joined by modern works in translation by authors including Asimov, Clarke, and Herbert. In fact, Lottem calls the late 1970's and early 1980's "the golden age of israeli SF." Readership expanded, 200 modern SF classic were translated, and the magazine Fantasia 2000 started (peaking at 5,000 circulation and dying in 1984). 1979 saw publication of the best-selling author Dan Zalka's "HaMasa HaShelishi shel Aldebaran" [The Third Voyage of the Aldebaran] about a time-travelling boy in the Byzantine era, with an alien robot complicating the plot. 1984's novel "HaDerech L'Ein Harod" [The Road to Ein Harod] by Amos Kenan was a critical and financial success in its portrayal of a military-governed near-future Israel. Political Science Fiction may be the dominant thread in Israel recently. Binyamin Tammuz's 1984 book "Pendako shel Yirmiyahu" [Jeremiah's Inn] was a dystopia about a near-future Israel governed by an Ultra-Orthodox faction. Yitzhak ben Ner's 1987 novel "HaMalachim Baim" [The Angels are Coming] is on almost exactly the same theme. For a general background on this subgenre, see: POLITICS In 1994 Gil Ilutovich returned to the themes of The Books of Enoch with the novel "Tikkun" [Correction], in which Jewish history was shaped by extraterrestrial manipulation. Ami Dvir, in 1995, reached the same conclusion in "HaKof HaPatp'tan" [The Babbler Monkey]. Yivsam Azgad published the original novel "Ma'ohf Klulot" [Cuticula] in Hebrew [Israel: Keter, 1996]. Leybl Botwinik recently emigrated to Israel from Montreal, and publishes a variety of science fiction in Yiddish. Emigration from the Ex-USSR: As the Soviet Union collapsed, there was a deluge of immigration from the ex-USSR to Israel -- over half a million in the first four years. Among them, many brought a feirce interest in science fiction., with writers, critics, editors, and translators including Pesakh Amnuel, Zeev Bar-Sella, Elana Gomel, Maya Kaganskaya, Daniel Kluger, Konstantin Korchminsky, Alexander Lurie, Rafail Nudelman, Leonid Resnik, Shimon Rosenberg, Oleg Sverdlov, and Philip Tzekhansky (SF artist). I don't know much more about Science Fiction in Israel, other than the one science fiction writer I know from Israel, and the information on Jewish science fiction described below. Israel is, among other things, a country with "The Law of Return", whereby any Jew in the world is entitled to immigrate. Israel is thus inextricably intermeshed with the nature of Judaism and Jewish culture, and hence the mini-essay below on "Jews and Jewish Science Fiction." I know of three science fiction films shot on location in Israel: * Devek Metoraf (1994), also known as "Crazy Glue" * Message From the Future (1981) directed by poet David AVIDAN about time traveller from the future who comes to 1985 to arrange for a third world war which supposedly will result in the creation of his society in the far future * The Road to Ein Charod (date?) An adaption of the best known Israeli science fiction novel about a man who escapes a future military dictatorship in Israel [Thanks to Eli Eshed for e-mailing information on the latter two films] Israel is, of course, a high-tech country, famous for its biomedical expertise. Israel is widely known to possess nuclear weapons technology, and has not only launched its own satellite with its own booster, but put that surveillance satellite into a "retrograde orbit" -- which suggests its capability as an anti-satellite weapon. Won't somebody who knows something more about Israeli science fiction e-mail an entry to put here? Science Fiction Writers of America members from Israel: e-mail Danny RirdanJEWS AND JEWISH SCIENCE FICTION:
Mark Twain wrote: "If the statistics are right, the Jews constitute but one percent of the human race. It suggests a nebulous dim puff of star dust lost in the blaze of the Milky Way. Properly the Jew ought hardly to be heard of; but he is heard of, has always been heard of.... He has made a marvelous fight in this world, in all the ages; and he has done it with his hands tied behind him." But what is a Jew? A person is known to be Jewish if his or her mother was Jewish, and we know that each cell in your body has Mitochondria with their own DNA, and that such Mitochondria are entirely passed from generation to generation by maternal descent. Does that mean that Jewishness has something to do with Mitochondrial DNA? Is Jewish science fiction and fantasy based on religion, myth, the Old Testament, kinship, Kabala and Jewish mysticism, ethics, character, or some combination of any and all of these, plus "an indefinable essence" [Franz Rosenzweig]?THE LEGEND OF THE GOLEM
The medieval legend of Rabbi Moreynu Ha-Rav Low of Prague and his android --er, golem-- puts Judaism at the center of science fiction and fantasy. The story is that Rabbi Low created the Golem out of clay in order to protect persecuted Jews. This story was one of the origins of Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", arguably the first true science fiction novel, and of Karel Capek's play "R.U.R." which gave us the word "robot." The Golem's creation did not usurp God's creation, but was done with His permission. It was an automaton transfused with Life, to act as an instrument of the will of God, and for the benefit of humanity. Rabbi Low wrote, upon its forehead, the Hebrew word "Shem" -- the principle of Life. Although the Golem grows, physically and in power, and becomes increasingly frightening even though behaving usefully, people can always "pull the plug" by erasing the sacred word [the world's first read-only memory?]. At the conclusion of the story, the Golem goes insane (like the HAL 9000 computer in Arthur C. Clarke's "2001: A Space Odyssey"). The "Shem" is erased, and the Golem collapses into a pile of inanimate clay.ASSIMILATION, JUDAISM, AND SCIENCE FICTION
A central cultural conflict for over 5,000 years has been the tension between the Jew adhering rigorously to Jewish culture and the Jew assimilating into the culture of the kingdom or country in which he or she lives and works. Again and again, there were Babylonian Jews who considered themselves primarily Babylonian, and were shocked to be enslaved. There were Egyptian Jews as powerful as Moses who considered themselves to have some allegiance to the Pharoah, and had to humble themselves before the will of God as a result. German Jews were astonished when the Nazis denied them their sincere participation in German culture, and those who were not slaughtered in the world's worst genocide and who fled to Great Britain were astonished again that they were interred by the British as being considered more German than Jewish. London, Paris, Berlin, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles -- great Jewish communities live in uneasy double identity. Urbane, sophisticated, modern, and assimilated into the local, regional, and global culture, and yet always marked as separate, as different, as rooted to a unique heritage. Science Fiction deals again and again with this kind of double life. To be a person AND a mutant, a person AND an android, a person AND a telepath, a person AND an extraterrestrial. Do these themes not reverberate with the question of Jewish identity? Is not the Jew the quintessential Alien? From another world, with another language, of a foreign culture, often wildly misperceived by the indigenous "goyim", the Gentile, as incomprehensible, threatening, dangerously intelligent? Does not the Science Fiction theme of global destruction, of the Earth destroyed by monsters, weapons, invaders, aliens, or nuclear fire reflect the blinding glare of the furnaces of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Belzec, Chelmo, Majdanek, Sobibor, Treblinka? Are not the monsters, the aliens, but a sliver of the antisemitic horror that lurks within the human neighbor? What is the myth of the Wandering Jew, but the story of exile and the Diaspora writ small? Is not every astronaut displaced as is the Jew who has left his or her homeland for the unknown? As Albert Goldman has written, "Jewishness itself has become a metaphor for modern life. The individual Jew -- the ALIEN in search of identity -- has become a symbolic protagonist."KABBALAH AND SCIENCE FICTION
Jewish writings and tradition seem split between the patiently, legalistically, and hair-splittingly rational -- as embodied in Torah and its voluminous commentaries -- and the magical, mystical, fantasical, transcendental, the world of angels and Dybbuks. The latter branch is centered on Kabbalah, a tremendously sophisticated body of magic, divination, superstition, and metaphysical philosophy. Kabbalah is too interesting to be analyzed here, although hotlinks will be added later {to be done}. Kabbalah deals with a secret order and structure to the universe. It is tied to sorcery performed by the intervention of angels and demons. There are ten orders of angels in the alternate universe world of Yetzirah. There are also dead "imperfect" worlds which are the source of evil and evil spirits. These evil worlds were created also by God, but even God could not completely destroy his own works, but only modify them. Kabbalah often hinges upon the fact that Hebrew numbers and Hebrew letters are the same symbols, and therefore an identity or correspondence exists between words and numbers. This is the mystical basis for NUMEROLOGY, and is one of the manipulative and interpretive aspects of acrostics, anagrams, gemetria, and noutricon. Kabbalistic numerology gave birth to secular and hermetic European numerology. The basic premise is that God created two great books: the book of WORDS (the ten commandments, the five key books of the Old Testament, etcetera), and the book of NATURE. To the enlightened mind, these two books are identical. "As above, so below." Science Fiction too attempts to combine the rational (science) and the irrational (fiction). Science Fiction too places great emphasis on the power of numbers, with equations replacing magical spells as the source of strength. Science Fiction too attempts to link the world above, the heavens, the stars and galaxies, with the world below where we the readers are tied to mundane reality. We have feet of clay, but our eyes are fixed upon the stars.JEWS, YIDDISH, HUMOR, AND SCIENCE FICTION
Jewish culture is known for its wealth of humor. Many of the best comic writers, playwrights, television writers, filmmakers, and stand-up comedians are Jewish. Jack Dann describes Jewish humor as based on "insecurity, discomfort, frustration, hypocrisy, nostaligia... satire, ironic self-mockery, and exaggeration. It is both a foil and a shield, an effective armor against a hostile society." Who but a Jew can best poke fun at the stereotype of the Jew-as-victim? Yiddish gives us the very words for the quintessential guilty but non-heroic character, the born loser, the repressed patsy, the passive milquetoast, the inadequate alienated inferior: shlemiel, shlimazel, shlub, shlump, shmendrick, shmo, shlepper, and shnook. Is not humorous Jewish fiction parallel to Science Fiction is what Jack Dann calls "a natural propensity to exaggerate and twist reality--the kind of fancy that soars to the logical end of the ludicrous, that attacks and promotes itself under an umbrella of cynicism and resignation"? The Yiddish word for nuts, crazy, absurd, extravagant is "meshugge", a meshugge person is a "meshiginah" and the bizarre behavior performed is "mishegoss." And speaking of Yiddish, Alan A. Adler (25 Dec 1916-?), who wrote the original story for "Forbidden Planet", was a member of the famous Adler family of Yiddish actors (patriarch Jacob P. Adler). New York University (English Literature major), worked for "Ripley's Believe It Or Not", owned a theatre in New York from the age of 21 (featuring opera), served in the United States Army Air Force (5th Air Force, Far Eastern Air Force, and 13th Bomber Command), producer of revival of "Front Page", and wrote various screenplays (most famously "Forbidden Planet"). One novel: "Mach 1: A Story of Planet Ionus" (New York: Farrar Strauss & Cudahy, 1957) Anyone who knows more about the Yiddish/Science Fiction connection, please e-mail me that data. Is it any wonder that the greatest writer of humorous science fiction, Robert Sheckley, is Jewish? Is it any wonder that the science fiction magazine which printed the greatest number of humorous (and often sociologically comic) stories was "Galaxy", edited by Horace L. Gold, whom Isaac Asimov described as "that excellent writer ... who is as Jewish as stuffed kishke ... [but who] wrote outstanding science fiction for years under the name of Clyde Crane Campbell"? Is there not a kinship between Science Fiction's horrors and jokes and the wonderful ingenuity of the Borscht Belt comedians, Rube Goldberg's intricate and absurd inventions, the iconoclasm of the Marx Brothers, the wit of S. J. Perelman?WANDERING STARS: AN ANTHOLOGY OF JEWISH FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION
A good place to start reading in this area is the fine book "Wandering Stars: An Anthology of Jewish Fantasy and Science Fiction", edited by Jack Dann, with an introduction by Isaac Asimov, New York: Harper & Row, 1974. This book contains the following stories: "On Venus, Have We Got a Rabbi", William Tenn, (c) 1974 by William Tenn [Milchik, the TV repairman, speaks for all Jews on Venus and in the Universe] "The Golem", Avram Davidson, (c) 1955 by Fantasy House, Inc. [The legend of the Golem is transposed to California] "Unto the Fourth Generation", Isaac Asimov, (c) 1959 by Mercury Press [An assimilated New York Jew is reminded of his ancestral roots] "Look, You Think You've Got Troubles", Carol Carr, (c) 1969 by Damon Knight [a nice Jewish girl marries a Martian. Is he the ultimate goy, or what?] "Goslin Day", Avram Davidson, (c) 1970 by Damon Knight [Hobgoblin, changeling, or thief from the dead world of magic?] "The Dybbuk of Mazel Tov IV", Robert Silverberg, (c) 1974 by Robert Silverberg [The Dybbuk, in medieval legend, is a wndering ghost that takes possession of the body of a living human being. Could they be real?] "The Trouble With Water", Horace L. Gold, (c) 1939 by Street & Smith [Why did Herman Greenberg's wife Esther emerge satisfied from the shower, and why will water not touch Herman at all -- could it relate the the water-gnome in the lake whose hat Herman would not return?] "Gather Blue Roses", Pamela Sargent, (c) 1971 by Mercury Press [Imagistic story about the children of the holocaust] "The Jewbird", Bernard Malamud, from "Idiots First" by Bernard Malamud, (c) 1963 by Bernard Malamud [a famous story by a famous writer, about the tragic but funny Jewbird and his suffering from "Anti-Semeets"] "Paradise Lost", George Alec Effinger, (c) 1974 by George Alec Effinger [an original satire about Jews, in which no Jews appear] "Street of Dreams, Feet of Clay", Robert Sheckley, (c) 1968 by Robert Sheckley, from "Galaxy Magazine", reprinted by permission of the author and the author's agent, Sterling Lord Agency, Inc. [a high-tech city is the ultimate Jewish Mother] "Jachid and Jechidah", Isaac Bashevis Singer, reprinted with the permission of Farrar Strauss & Giroux, Inc., from "Short Friday" by Isaac Bashevis Singer, (c) 1964 by Isaac Bashevis Singer [an iconoclastic story by a famous author, vividly skeptical about the afterlife] "I'm Looking for Kadak", Harlan Ellison, (c) 1974 by Harlan Ellison [a non-human can still be a Jew, and can still speak so much Yiddish that Harlan Ellison appends a glossary to this story] In editing this book, the editor received assistance from: * Rabbi David S. Boros * George Zebrowski * Gardner Dozois * Joe W. Haldeman * Harry Altshuler * Victoria Schochet Isaac Asimov is one of the authors mentioned above who was fluent in Yiddish. Can anyone e-mail me information about Yiddish science fiction? Many stories are currently appearing within the Jewish/Science Fiction/Fantasy genre, for example: Russell Wiiliam Asplund (Active Member of SFWA) has recently published stories including: "The Unhappy Golem of Rabbi Leitch" (Bridge Publications: Writers of the Future Volume XII) "The Dybbuk in the Bottle", in Snow White, Blood Red V (New York: AvoNova)JEWS, SCIENCE FICTION, AND ENTERTAINMENT HOTLINKS
Famous Jews -- Interactive! Divided into categories including: Activists Competitors Entertainers with not only people associated with Jewish culture, but also celebrities such as Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam singer), Benny Hill (the late British television comedian), Nell Carter (she converted), and -- so long as we're talking about Science Fiction, hotlinks to: * Steven Spielberg (top-grossing Science Fiction Producer/Director) * William Shatner ("James T. Kirk" Star Trek actor/author/director) * Leonard Nimoy ("Spock" Star Trek actor/author/director) * Isaac Asimov (most prolific book author of our time) * James Caan (star of films such as the sci-fi "Rollerball") * Rod Serling (creator of "Twilight Zone") * David Duchovny (star of TV's "X-Files") * Rick Moranis (actor "Ghostbusters", "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids") * Martin Landau (actor "Mission Impossible", "Space-1999") * Whoopi Goldberg (actress "Star Trek: The Next Generation") * Yaphet Kotto (actor "Alien") * Richard Dreyfus (actor "Jaws") * Carrie Fisher (actress "Princess Leia" in "Star Wars") The Stars of David description of, and ordering information for, a book edited by D. J. Kessler, which includes: * Can Androids be Jewish * Miriam's World Israel, by the way, is one of the 8 countries that accesses the Magic Dragon web domain frequently, namely 10-20 times per month on the average. Israel first "hit" this domain in March 1996. UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsITALY
Update of 28 Sep 97 on magazines An historic figure who had the essential vision of science fiction, and who has been the subject of science fictionalexamination as a result, was Leonardo da Vinci. One could claim that he was the first great science fiction author who illustrated his own works, and built the props. Paradoxically, given the enormous role that Italy has played in the evolution of modern mathematics and science, Italy is often remembered for the Inquisitional execution of Giordano Bruno, who preached that there were an infinite number of worlds. Bruno was arguably the father of the "alternate history" or "parallel worlds" genres, with his fatal suggestion that there must be a planet exactly like Earth, except that Mass was said in the vernacular rather than in Latin. And of course, the house arrest of Galileo can be seen as a sequel to this curious and terrible drama. On the other hand, one could claim that Dante Alighieri was the greatest science fiction/fantasy poet of all time (Divina Commedia), whose influence extends far beyond his country and his genre. This masterpiece was begun in 1307. Similarly, one could claim that Ludovico Ariosto's "Orlando Furioso" (1516 & 1532), by including a chapter on Asdolf travelling to and having adventures on the Moon, made a transition from chivalric romances (based on legends of Charles the Great) to science fiction. In a related genre, Byron and Shelley's friend J. W. Polidori's 1819 story "The Vampire" was the main influence on Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (1897), so (through Polidori), Italy can claim kinship with Transylvania in launching the great vampire/horror boom which continues to this day. Yet another argument gives precedence to Dominican friar Tomaso Campenella's "The City of the Sun" -- one of the key Utopian books. The Italian anatomist Luigi Galvani, making the legs of dead frogs twitch when stimulated with electrcal sparks, was clearly the basis of the technical inspiration for Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein", which many hail as the first true SF novel. Mary Shelley was also familiar with the work of the Italian scientist Volta. Italo Calvino was arguably the greatest Italian science fiction ("Cosmicomics") and fantasy author of this century. Other authors of note include: * Lino Aldani * Carlo Bordoni * Dino Buzzati * C. Collodi [pseudonym for Carlo Lorenzini] "Pinocchio" (1880) * Riccardo Levehgi * U. Malagati * Luigi Naviglio * Giovanni Papini ("Gog") * Emilio Salgari & Luigi Motta (Jules Vernians) * Sandro Sandrelli * D. Vare Magazines include: * Cronache del Futuro Site in Italian by Luigi Petruzzelli e-mail Luigi Petruzzelli * Galassia (starting 1953) * Galassia Udine (starting 1957) * Galaxy SF (Italian edition) * Gamma * I Romanzi del Cosmo * I Romanzi di Urania (later retitled Urania) * Nova SF * Oltre il Cielo * Scienza Fantastica (starting in April 1952) Urania rivista in Italian There is a useful listing of Italian science fiction/fantasy magazines at: Magazines of Italy web site in Italian I know of six science fiction films shot on location in Italy: * Bis ans Ende der Welt (1991), also known as Until the End of the World * Frankenstein Unbound (1990), also known as Roger Corman's Frankenstein Unbound * Heatseeker (1995) * Krull (1983) * Moonraker (1979) * Warrior of the Lost World (1984) Italian web sites recommended: Fantascienza Probably the best all-over Italian science fiction site. Includes: * Delos Science Fiction: "The Leading Science Fiction Electronic Magazine in Italy" * Edatrice Nord: official site of the first Italian science fiction publisher * Quadrant SF Search Engine * SF People: - Silvio Sosio - Luigi Pachi - Francesco Grasso - Roberto Quaglia - Ernesto Vegetti - Giuseppe De Rosa - Robert Sheckley (American, but sometimes resides in Italy) * World SF - Letter from President Piergiorgio Nicolazzini - World SF General Meetings Dublin, 1978 Stockholm, 1979 Stresa, Italy, 1980 Rotterdam, 1981 Linz, 1982 Zagreb, 1983 Budapest, 1988 Fanano, Italy, 1985 Vancouver, 1986 Brighton, 1987 Budapest, 1988 San Marino, 1989 The Hague, 1980 Chengdu, China, 1991 [none], 1992 Jersey, Channel Islands, 1993 Courmayeur, Italy, 1994 Glasgow, Scotland, 1995 A really fun site is "Forbidden Planet" UNDER CONSTRUCTION Return COUNTRIES Table of ContentsJAPAN
So far as I can see, Japan does not split hairs in distinguishing between what America sees as distinct genres: animation, comics, fantasy, science fiction, horror, erotica, and mainstream literature. For example, Osamu Tezula (1926-) was a suprstar for his creation of "Astroboy" -- not only the first animated TV series in Japan, but the first to be shown on Amrican TV as well. Of course, "Japanimation" has evolved enormously since then, and split into many subgenres, including hard SF, space opera, fantasy, and the like. Shotaro Ishimori was another Grand Old Man of SF art in Japan. Helping science fiction along, Japan is a space power, with serious plans for its own space station (commercial, broadcast-oriented) and moon bases. I have had the pleasure of conversing with Japanese space scientists and roboticists; Japan can colonize the galaxy with or without the cooperation of the Euro-American nations! Science Fiction fandom is big in Japan; it is just a matter of time before there is a World Science Fiction Convention in Japan. I have had the honor of meeting the #1 fan in Japan: Takumi Shibano, but have heard of others, such as Norio Itoh and Koichiro Noda. Japan has some of the best translators in the science fiction world such as Noriyoshi Saito and Hisashi Asakura. Some science fiction is translated from English into Japanese in three columns: one a literal translation, one with phonetic explanation of key words, and one explanatory. "Neuromancer" by William Gibson was said to be the most important such 3-column translation, with its rich textual poetics and cyberpunk coinages. When Gibson was in Japan, he mailed me a copy of a Japanese edition of Playboy, with a column on himself. Kobo Abe, one of my favorite authors, stands out for being one of the few inarguable science fiction authors to have won a Nobel Prize in Literature for his work, including "Ice Age 4" (1959) and "The Invention of R62" (1956). Science fiction has been popular in Japan for well over a century, perhaps for as much as 120-150 years, with the influence of Jules Verne being particularly important. The period between the two world wars was significant in the growth of home-grown science fiction, and World War II, of course, ended with Japan in the unenviably science fictional position of being the only victim of atomic war. The 1930s brought to attention: * Takatoro Kigi (best known for Mystery titles) * Komatsi Kitamura (also mainstream) * Fuboku Kosakai * Mushitaro Oguri * Ikujiro Ran * Juza Uno Masami Fukushima (1929-) founded the Hayakawa book series and also S-F Magazine Important authors include: * Kazumasa Hirai (1938-) * Tadashi Hirose (1924-) mostly Mystery * Shin'ichi Hoshi (1926-) short story master, popularized the term "SF" * Ichiro Kano (mostly Mystery) * Shigeru Kayama (mostly Mystery) * Alan Kiodomari (1912-) primarily fantasy * Sakyo Komatsu (1931-) futurologist/social critic * Taku Mayumara (1934-) * Yukio Mishima (although a world-famous mainstream author, "the Hemingway of Japan", he wrote "Beautiful Planet" as well) * Ryu Mitsuse (1928-) the Dave Brin of Japan? * Jojiro Okami (mostly Mystery) * Noriyoshi Saito, translator @ Locus/Contento story index * Yo Sano (mostly Mystery) * Masao Segawa (1931-), hard SF and juveniles * Kyo Takikawa (mostly Mystery) * Aritsune Toyota (1938-) * Tasutaka Tsutsui * Michio Tsuzuki (mostly Mystery) * Tetsu Yano (1923-) I especially liked his "Paper Spaceship" as translated by Gene van Troyer 4 Japan-resident members of SFWA (Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America): * Ron C. Golden * Kiyoshi Imaoka * Takumi Shibano * Gene van Troyer Magazines include: * Seiun * S-F Magazine I know of three non-animated science fiction films shot on location in Japan and released in the United States: * Bis ans Ende der Welt (1991), also known as Until the End of the World * Gojira (1954), also known as Godzilla, King of the Monsters * Tokyo Blackout (1987) The story "Triceratops" by Kono Tensei, translated by David Lewis, appears (pp.92-103) in "The World Treasury of Science Fiction", edited by David G. Hartwell, Boston: Little Brown, 1989 (and released by Book of the Month Club). Hartwell comments "This story combines the fascination with monsters and a sensibility akin to that of Jorge Luis Borges or the magical realists -- or perhaps early [J.G.] Ballard. As is common in Japanese SF, there is not the kind of narrative force or plot to hold the story together ... [but] a succession of set pieces leading up to a culminating image..." Return COUNTRIES Table of Contents Copyright 1996,1997,1998, by Magic Dragon Multimedia.
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