by
Rocky Leonard
Please don’t ask me to name my “favorite”
science fiction writer. From Isaac Asimov to Rogers Zelazny, I could probably name
a favorite work by each—maybe, if you put a gun to my head.
Also, please don’t demand that I choose
between the authors of I, Robot and The Nine Princes of Amber, because I
can’t. They are only the first two legends of science fiction that popped into
my head as I tried to alphabetize a list of my sci-fi heroes. I didn’t even
take the time to compare and consider the works of Piers Anthony, Ray Bradbury,
Orson Scott Card, Arthur C. Clarke, Michael Crichton, Phillip K. Dick, Larry
Niven, or Jerry Pournelle, to name a few giants of the genre.
Modern cinema translates science fiction
novels from print to film better than just about any other literary work. Even
a well written short story by Phillip K. Dick can inspire a terrific feature-length
movie like The Adjustment Bureau. And
comic book characters such as the Hulk and Iron Man have become compelling,
believable characters in a live action science fiction adventure films which
rely heavily on computerized graphics to create somewhat realistic imagery for
the big screen.
