I knew he was in poor health, but I am still stunned by the news of his death.

For anyone who liked his short stories, I highly recommend "The Essential Ellison," which is more than 1,000 pages long and contains many of his best short stories.

I was fortunate enough to once correspond with him about 7 years ago.
I wrote to tell him about the death of a mutual friend, also a writer.
He was kind enough to reply back to me.
(The return address appeared to be some type of nursing home in L.A.)

My three favorite Ellison short stories are:
- The Three Most important Things in Life"
- "Gopher in the Gilly"
- "Driving in the Stakes"

R.I.P. Harlan - You will be missed.

It was heavily revised and edited for television purposes by the incredibly talented people that Star Trek had working on it, but he came up with the idea and almost all of the story. It's a masterpiece. RIP.

What an incredible master of the craft he was. He was very proud of that. He always said that mastering one's craft required work, work, work. Talent can get your foot in the door, but it's nothing without a lot of hard work.

He was also a staunch defender of the rights of artists. He despised requests for his writing for free, expecting that the exposure would be payment enough from whoever wanted his work. His response: "Fuck you! You want me to write for you? You're gonna pay me! Would you be doing whatever little pissant, dipshit promotional job you're doing without getting paid? Fuck no! Pay me or go harrass some other writer!"

He was also a staunch, unshakeable liberal.

He had a few sketchy moments in the field of women's rights in the past, but I think he grew out of it. He struck me as someone who never stopped trying to be a better human being. And he never stopped trying to persuade, egg on, or cajole his fellow human beings to be better, too.

He made a huge contribution to the SF field and helped bring it into the modern era. Very important and influential as a writer and editor, frequently a polarizing personality, and a brilliant light in the American cultural landscape of the past 60 years.

I was thinking of Ellison just a couple of days ago, recalling an essay of his about the writing life, in which he explained that one of the first steps is to get "your 'Fuck You' Money," enough to live on for six months so you never have to take a job you don't like. He got his as early as he could, and said "Fuck you" many times to the bean counters and posers of the entertainment and publishing worlds.

Among the several Ellison books I own, some of the most enjoyable contain the perceptive and searing television criticism in The Glass Teat and The Other Glass Teat. Several of his highly dramatic stories, for example "Shattered Like a Glass Goblin," "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream," and "'Repent, Harlequin!' Said the Ticktockman" will be read for many years into the future. And of course his Dangerous Visions anthologies showcase work by some of the greatest other talents in the field. Hats off, Harlan, and thanks for all the stories.

Even on a guy...

That got a smile out of Spock

It is one of my favorites.
I have so many of his books, many autographed.
He shall live on in my life, as well as anyone who reads his writings.

For Demon with a Glass Hand, an excellent episode of The Outer Limits (original TV version).

Which was stolen and became The Terminator.
He later got some credit for it.
He also wrote for Burke's Law, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Alfred Hitchcock, The Twilight Zone, and the best Sci-Fi series ever on TV, Babylon 5, to mention a few.

...and the feeling was mutual"

It's from the now-famous Gay Talese Esquire Magazine article "Frank Sinatra Has a Cold"

It's worth reading. especially if your a Harlan Ellison fan.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10181089386

I have loved him forever but in the last few years I'd play this now and again and laugh my ass off. Because writers (inc. me) get asked to do the damnedest things for free.