Death: February 26, 1918.
Comments: Theodore Sturgeon was a prominent science fiction author of the "Golden Age" era. Like most authors of that era, he was a prolific short fiction writer, turning out large quantities of short works, but produced comparatively few novels. For his writing, Sturgeon earned an International Fantasy award and a Hugo award, as well as numerous nominations for both the Hugo and Locus Awards. Sturgeon's influence as a short fiction writer was so substantial that after he died the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award was established in 1987 to honor the best short science fiction of the year.
Sturgeon's birth name was Edward Hamilton Waldo, but it was legally changed to Theodore Sturgeon when he was eleven after his mother remarried. This little tidbit has always fascinated me, because I have to wonder what that would do to a child to have his identity altered in that way. Later, Sturgeon occasionally used the pen name E. Waldo Hunter.
Sturgeon is also famous for "Sturgeon's Law", or as he called it, Sturgeon's revelation. Tired of defending science fiction to outsiders, Sturgeon realized, "Using the same standards that categorize 90% of science fiction as trash, crud, or crap, it can be argued that ninety percent of film, literature, consumer goods, et cetera are crap." When phrased as a "Law" and repeated by current fans, this observation is usually summarized as "Ninety percent of everything is crap".
There is a webpage dedicated to him called The Theodore Sturgeon Page, and a website dedicated to his works maintained by the Theodore Sturgeon Literary Trust.
My reviews of Theodore Sturgeon's books:
More Than Human
Other books by Theodore Sturgeon that I have read but not reviewed:
None
Short fiction by Theodore Sturgeon appearing in works that I have reviewed:
And Now the News found in TV: 2000
The Dark Room found in Time Untamed
Microcosmic God found in The Science Fiction Hall of Fame: Volume I, 1929-1964
Slow Sculpture found in The Hugo Winners, Volume 3, Book 1
Authors - S Authors A-Z Home
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