Francais | English | Espanõl

Jack L. Chalker

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Jack Laurence Chalker (December 17, 1944 - February 11, 2005) was an American science fiction author. Chalker was also a former history Baltimore City Schools teacher in Maryland. He also was a former member of the Washington Science Fiction Association and founded the Baltimore Science Fiction Society with other groups of people.

Jack L. Chalker, www.jackchalker.com, 1998.

Contents

[edit] Career and family life

He was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He earned a BA degree from Towson University, where he was a theater critic on the school newspaper TOWERLIGHT, a graduate degree in history from Johns Hopkins University, and taught history at the high school level. He was also a lecturer at the Smithsonian Institution, the National Institutes of Health, and numerous colleges and universities, mostly on science fiction and technology subjects. In 1963 Chalker and two friends founded the Baltimore Science Fiction Society. Chalker married Eva C. Whitley<ref>Would you Eva?. Retrieved on 2004-06-03.</ref> in 1978; they had two sons, David W. Chalker<ref>Dave: The Game. Retrieved on 2006-03-05.</ref> (born December 19, 1981) and Steven L. Chalker<ref name="steven chalker">Meteorologist Life. Retrieved on 2006-03-05.</ref> (born September 4, 1991).

Image:JackChalkerauctioning.jpg

[edit] Chalker and science fiction

The writers he liked to read included Eric Frank Russell, James White, some Philip José Farmer, the early work of Raymond F. Jones and Robert A. Heinlein, Jack Vance, and others too numerous to mention. From January 1965 to November 2004, he missed only one World Science Fiction Convention.

Chalker's awards included the Daedalus Award (1983), The Gold Medal of the West Coast Review of Books (1984), Skylark Award (1985), Hamilton-Brackett Memorial Award (1979), as well as others of varying prestige. He was a nominee for the John W. Campbell Award twice and for the Hugo Award twice. He was posthumously awarded the Phoenix Award by the Southern Fandom Confederation on April 9, 2005. In 1967 Chalker founded the Baltimore Science Fiction Society and he was a 3-term treasurer of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Chalker was also the co-author (with Mark Owings) of The Science Fantasy Publishers (third edition in 1991, updated annually), published by Mirage Press, Ltd,<ref>The Mirage Press Ltd. (2004). Retrieved on 2006-03-05.</ref>, a bibliographic guide to genre small press publishers which was a Hugo Award nominee in 1992. The Maryland young writers contest sponsored by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society was renamed "'The Jack L. Chalker Young Writers Contest" effective April 8, 2006.

He is perhaps best known for his Well World series of novels, but he also wrote many other novels (most, but not all, part of series), and at least nine short stories. Many of his works involve some physical transformation of the main characters. For instance, in the Well World novels, immigrants to the Well World are transformed from their original form to become a member of one of the thousands of sentient species that inhabit that artificial planet. Another example would be that the Wonderland Gambit series resembles traditional Buddhist jataka-type reincarnation stories set in an SF environment. There are rumors that Wonderland Gambit might become a movie in a few years, because of an announcement made by Steven Chalker about a script being made, but didn't make it out as a movie due to the very close resemblence to The Matrix.<ref name="steven chalker"/> At the time of his death, Chalker left behind one unfinished novel, Chameleon, and was planning to write Ripsaw right after Chameleon.

Image:Oct05 98.jpg

[edit] Illness and death

On September 18 2003, during Hurricane Isabel, Chalker passed out and was rushed to the hospital with a diagnosis of a heart attack. He was later released, but was severely weakened. On December 6 2004, he was again rushed to hospital with breathing problems and disorientation, and was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and a collapsed lung. Chalker was hospitalized in critical condition, then upgraded to stable on December 9, though he didn't regain consciousness until December 15. After several more weeks in deteriorating condition and in a persistent vegetative state, with several transfers to different hospitals, he died on February 11, 2005 of kidney failure and sepsis in Bon Secours of Baltimore, Maryland.

Some of his remains are interred in the family plot at Louden Park Cemetery, with the remainder distributed off several ferryboats and on H.P. Lovecraft's grave (on December 17, 2005).

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] The Well of Souls series

[edit] The Watchers at the Well series

[edit] The Four Lords of the Diamond series

[edit] The Dancing Gods series

[edit] The Soul Rider series

[edit] The Rings of the Master series

[edit] The G.O.D. Inc series

  • The Labyrinth of Dreams. Tor Books, March, 1987 (ISBN 0-8125-3306-2)
  • The Shadow Dancers, Tor Books, July, 1987
  • The Maze in the Mirror, Tor Books, January, 1989 (ISBN 0-8125-2069-6)

[edit] The Changewinds series

  • When the Changewinds Blow, Ace - Putnams, September, 1987
  • Riders of the Winds, Ace Books, May, 1988
  • War of the Maelstrom, Ace - Putnams, October, 1988 (ISBN 0-441-10268-9)

[edit] The Quintara Marathon series

[edit] The Wonderland Gambit series

  • The Cybernetic Walrus, Del Rey, trade pb in November, 1995
  • The March Hare Network, 1996
  • The Hot-Wired Dodo, Del Rey, Feb. 1997

[edit] The Three Kings series

  • Balshazzar's Serpent, Baen Books 1999
  • Melchior's Fire, Baen Books, 2001.
  • Kaspar's Box, 2003

[edit] Stand-alone novels

[edit] Collection and anthology

  • Dance Band on the Titanic, Del Rey Books, July, 1988 (short stories)
  • Hotel Andromeda [edited by], Ace, 1994 (ISBN 0-441-00010-X)

Besides the short stories included in Dance Band on the Titanic, Chalker wrote at least one other short story:

[edit] Omnibus collections of novels

  • The Watchers at the Well, Science Fiction Book Club, 1994
  • Changewinds, Baen, August, 1996

The Four Lords of the Diamond (Book Club Edition - 1983)

[edit] References

<references/>

[edit] External links

Persondata
NAME Chalker, Jack L.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Chalker, Jack
SHORT DESCRIPTION American science-fiction author
DATE OF BIRTH December 17, 1944
PLACE OF BIRTH Baltimore, Maryland
DATE OF DEATH February 11, 2005
PLACE OF DEATH Baltimore, Maryland
bg:Джак Чокър

de:Jack L. Chalker pl:Jack L. Chalker

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Jack_L._Chalker"
Personal tools