Profile of Clifford D. Simak on Famous Like Me

Clifford Donald Simak (August 3, 1904 - April 25, 1988) was a leading American science-fiction writer. He won three Hugo and one Nebula awards, as well as being named the third Grand Master by the SFWA in 1977.

Biography

Clifford Donald Simak was born in Millville, Wisconsin, son of John Lewis and Margaret (Wiseman) Simak. He married Agnes Kuchenberg on April 13, 1929 and they had two children, Scott and Shelley. Simak attended the University of Wisconsin and later worked at various newspapers in the Midwest. He began a lifelong association with Minneapolis Star and Tribune (Minneapolis, Minnesota) in 1939, which continued until his retirement in 1976. He became Minneapolis Star 's news editor in 1949 and coordinator of Minneapolis Tribune 's Science Reading Series in 1961. He died in Minneapolis.

Writing Career

Simak started writing for science fiction pulp magazines in 1931, but dropped out of the field by 1933. The only science-fiction piece that he published between 1933 and 1937 was The Creator (1935), a notable story with religious implications, a rarity in genre science fiction at the time.

Once John W. Campbell began redefining the field in late 1937, Simak returned to science fiction and was a regular contributor to Astounding Stories throughout the Golden Age of Science Fiction (1938-1950). His first publications like Cosmic Engineers (1939) were in the traditions of the earlier superscience sub-genre perfected by E. E. "Doc" Smith, but he soon developed his own style, which is usually described as gentle and pastoral. A typical Simak alien is much more likely to be seen sitting on a porch in rural Wisconsin drinking beer with the protagonist than invading Earth. During this period, Simak also published a number of war and western stories in pulp magazines.

Simak continued to produce award-nominated novels throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The quality of his longer pieces somewhat declined in the 1970s as his health deteriorated, although his short fiction was still well regarded. Aided by a friend, he continued writing and publishing science fiction and, later, fantasy, into his 80s.

Works

Novels

• The Creator (first magazine publication 1935, first book publication 1946)
• Cosmic Engineers (first magazine publication 1939, first book publication 1950)
• Empire (1951) (Galaxy novel #7)
• Time and Again (1951) [paperback title First He Died]
• City (fixup 1952, Epilog added in the 1976 edition, but omitted in some subsequent Science Fiction Book Club reprints)
• Ring Around the Sun (1954)
• Time is the Simplest Thing (1961)
• The Trouble With Tycho (1961)
• They Walked Like Men (1962)
• Way Station (1963)
• All Flesh Is Grass (1965)
• Why Call them Back From Heaven? (1967)
• The Werewolf Principle (1967)
• The Goblin Reservation (1968)
• Out of Their Minds (1970)
• Destiny Doll (1971)
• A Choice of Gods (1972)
• Cemetery World (1973)
• Our Children's Children (1974)
• Enchanted Pilgrimage (1975)
• Shakespeare's Planet (1976)
• A Heritage of Stars (1977)
• The Fellowship of the Talisman (1978)
• Mastodonia (1978) [UK title Catface]
• The Visitors (1980)
• Project Pope (1981)
• Where the Evil Dwells (1982)
• Special Deliverance (1982)
• Highway of Eternity (1986) [alternate title Highway to Eternity]

Collections

• Strangers in the Universe (1956) (contents revised in 1957 and 1958)
• The Worlds of Clifford Simak (1960)
• Aliens for Neighbours (1961) (UK reprint of The Worlds of Clifford Simak)
• All the Traps of Earth and Other Stories (1962) (contents revised in 1963)
• Other Worlds of Clifford Simak (1962) (abridgement of The Worlds of Clifford Simak (1961)
• The Night of the Puudly (1964) (UK reprint of All the Traps of Earth and Other Stories)
• Worlds Without End (1964)
• Best Science Fiction Stories of Clifford Simak (1967)
• So Bright the Vision (1968)
• The Best of Clifford D. Simak (1975)
• Skirmish: The Great Short Fiction of Clifford D. Simak (1977)
• Brother And Other Stories (1986)
• The Marathon Photograph and Other Stories (1986)
• Off-Planet (1989)
• The Autumn Land and Other Stories (1990)
• Immigrant and Other Stories (1991)
• The Creator and Other Stories (1993)
• Over the River and Through the Woods: The Best Short Fiction of Clifford D. Simak (1996)
• The Civilisation Game and Other Stories (1997)

Non-fiction

• The Solar System: Our New Front Yard (1962)
• Trilobite, Dinosaur, and Man: The Earth's Story (1965)
• Wonder and Glory: The Story of the Universe (1969)
• Prehistoric Man: The Story of Man's Rise to Civilization (1971)

Books edited by Clifford D. Simak

• From Atoms to Infinity: Readings in Modern Science (1965)
• The March of Science (1971)
• Nebula Award Stories #6 (1971)
• The Best of Astounding (1978)

Awards

• International Fantasy Award for best fiction book (1953) for City
• Hugo award for best novelette (1959) for The Big Front Yard
• Hugo award for best novel (1964) for Way Station
• Minnesota Academy of Science Award for distinguished service to science 1967
• First Fandom Hall of Fame award 1973
• Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award 1976
• Jupiter award for best novel (1978) for A Heritage of Stars
• Hugo award for best short story (1981) for Grotto of the Dancing Deer
• Nebula award for best short story (1981) for Grotto of the Dancing Deer
• Locus Award for best short story (1981) for Grotto of the Dancing Deer
• Analog Analytical Laboratory award for best short story (1981) for Grotto of the Dancing Deer
• Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement award 1988

Books about Clifford D. Simak

• Muriel R. Becker Clifford D. Simak, a primary and secondary bibliography (1980)
• Mark Owings The Electric Bibliograph 1: Clifford D. Simak (19??)
• Phil Stephensen-Payne Clifford D. Simak: A Working Bibliography (1991, ISBN 1-871133-28-9)
• Robert J. Ewald Clifford Simak Reader's Guide to Contemporary Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors Vol. 59 (19??)

External Links

• Clifford Simak Fan Site
• The Way Station: A Resource for Readers and Collectors of Clifford D. Simak
• Clifford D. Simak
• Short Stories of Clifford D. Simak (listings)
• Clifford Donald Simak Papers
• Clifford D. Simak at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database

Biographical Sources

• Contemporary Authors. New Revision Series. Detroit, Gale Research Co.
• Sam Moskowitz Seekers of Tomorrow (1967) (one chapter covers Simak)

This content from Wikipedia is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Clifford D. Simak