RIP Michael Crichton, author [Archive] - Absolute Write Water Cooler

Kitty Pryde

11-05-2008, 10:41 PM

http://www.etonline.com/news/2008/11/67369/

Prolific novelist and "ER" creator Michael Crichton has passed away. He was 66.

Perhaps best known for being the author of Jurassic Park and its sequel The Lost World, which were turned into a hugely successful movie franchise, his numerous books have sold over 150 million copies worldwide.

In what his family calls an unexpected death, it was revealed that he was waging a private battle against cancer.

RIP. His stories will continue to be enjoyed for generations.

DeleyanLee

11-05-2008, 10:45 PM

Whoa. That's a shocker.

Another legend leaves us.

Sheryl Nantus

11-05-2008, 10:45 PM

:cry:

mscelina

11-05-2008, 10:47 PM

That's hard. He was the best-researching fiction writer out there. He'll be missed.

CACTUSWENDY

11-05-2008, 10:48 PM

So sorry to hear this.

Shwebb

11-05-2008, 10:51 PM

Wow. Yep, his writing will be missed. Since I never met him, I can't say that I'll miss him, but I'll definitely miss reading anything new from him.

My condolences to his friends and family.

vixey

11-05-2008, 10:59 PM

:( Yes, condolences and prayers to his family.

spaceman4572

11-05-2008, 11:04 PM

My condolences to him and his family.

JoeEkaitis

11-05-2008, 11:18 PM

Deep down, he was one of our own. (http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D948U6JG1&show_article=1)

maestrowork

11-05-2008, 11:21 PM

WOW. Just WOW.

RIP. You're one of my favorite writers. Thank you for all the great works you've given us. And on top of it, your gift of imagination.

Pagey's_Girl

11-05-2008, 11:33 PM

That was unexpected.

RIP. :(

Blake M. Petit

11-05-2008, 11:37 PM

Wow -- I didn't even know he was sick. :(

Shadow_Ferret

11-05-2008, 11:44 PM

"Privately battling cancer."

:cry:

Goodbye, Michael.

badducky

11-05-2008, 11:45 PM

From BBC:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7711763.stm

He will be missed. He was a genuine rarity: a smart hard science fiction writer with genuine mainstream appeal that didn't write watered-down trash to achieve it.

So long, Mr. Crichton.

maxmordon

11-05-2008, 11:53 PM

Rest In Peace :(

This is a big surprise...

Cybernaught

11-06-2008, 12:02 AM

Wow, what a shock. I didn't even know he was sick.

donroc

11-06-2008, 12:04 AM

66 is too young for these days. So many more years of untapped creativity. Sad.

Cybernaught

11-06-2008, 12:08 AM

Jurassic Park was just one of those books that really sparked my imagination as a kid. I owe a bit of my influences to him.

RIP.

sheadakota

11-06-2008, 12:26 AM

Wow- just wow! Loved his work, his creativity will not be forgotten.

CaroGirl

11-06-2008, 12:27 AM

He gave us all so much. I'll miss his creativity and imagination, and wonder what might have been had he been granted a few more years with us.

Diana Hignutt

11-06-2008, 12:29 AM

It was reading the Andromeda Strain as a kid that made me think about writing. He was one of my major influences. I am a huge fan of Mr. Crichton and am, frankly, devastated by this news...

JoNightshade

11-06-2008, 12:46 AM

This is the first time I've genuinely felt grieved about a "celebrity death."

It feels like a piece of my childhood was just ripped away.

RIP, Mr. Crichton. I'll be handing my wornout paperback copies of Jurassic Park and Sphere to my future kids.

selkn.asrai

11-06-2008, 12:49 AM

God rest him. I couldn't put Jurassic Park down for more than 5 minutes without compulsively picking it up again.

Jimmyboy1

11-06-2008, 12:51 AM

Wonderful man, only 66.
The good always go too young.

Good on you, Michael!

HeronW

11-06-2008, 12:54 AM

He'll be missed.

Varthikes

11-06-2008, 01:00 AM

I, personally, haven't read any of his books. However, I have seen a number of movies based off his work. And, a character in my favorite TV show is named after him.

I agree it is a shame that he's gone. :(

smsarber

11-06-2008, 01:23 AM

I only read one, "Timeline(?)". It was good. Rest in peace, Michael.

narnia

11-06-2008, 01:26 AM

A great storyteller with an awesome imagination!

He will definitely be missed.

Vandal

11-06-2008, 01:34 AM

He was one of my favorite writers. He was a research machine and made his readers a little smarter for reading his books.

Airframe is a personal favorite.

Plot Device

11-06-2008, 01:42 AM

He died unexpectedly today. He was 66.

http://features.csmonitor.com/books/2008/11/05/in-appreciation-of-michael-crichton/

In appreciation of Michael Crichton

By Marjorie Kehe | 11.05.08

“Michael Crichton may puzzle or annoy in his occasional lapses in taste, but he cannot be dismissed. Serious questions and important issues often lurk beneath what can seem to be a slick commercial surface,” wrote Lorraine Hirsch in a 1981 Monitor interview with author, film producer, film director, medical doctor, and television producer Michael Crichton in 1981. The words continued to ring true throughout the rest of Crichton’s career.

Crichton’s death today at the age of 66 leaves millions of fans in mourning. Crichton is known worldwide for his science fiction and techno-thriller novels, films, and television programs. His books – which include “The Andromeda Strain,” (1969) “Congo,” (1980) and “Jurassic Park” (1990) – have sold over 150 million copies worldwide.

Crichton was born in Chicago in 1942. He attended Harvard as an undergraduate and also graduated from Harvard Medical School in 1969. It was while he was in medical school that he began writing novels, publishing two under assumed names.

His big success, however, came in 1969 with the publication of “The Andromeda Strain,” a thriller in which a team of scientists investigate a deadly extraterrestrial microorganism.

maxmordon

11-06-2008, 01:46 AM

And this is the fourth thread about it.

Plot Device

11-06-2008, 01:47 AM

And this is the fourth thread about it.

Sorry. I just checked the board and saw not one thread with his name in the title.

benbradley

11-06-2008, 01:49 AM

He's definitely been an influence for me, I've read perhaps eight or ten of his books, including "Jurrassic Park" and "The Lost World" before seeing the movies.

One of the most interesting is "Travels" which isn't just travels, it's basically a biography/memoir (is the word autobiography used much anymore?). He discusses being in medical school where writers were severely frowned on (thus his earlier books were published under pennames) when he had to tell one of his professors he would be out of town and miss a test or something. When asked why, he hesitatingly said how he had written a book and they were making a movie of it ("The Andromeda Strain") out in Hollywood, and needed him as a consultant. Even in medical school at the time they were apparently unaware that he was the author of the popular book.

I've read three of his four most recent ones, "Timeline," "Prey," and "State of Fear." That last one was infamous and controversial for claiming that Global Warming is an invention of the leftists in the Mainstream News Media and Hollywood. A lot of people found it lecturing, and I can see where it had some of that (the "good guy" main characters were conservative, then there were liberal Hollywood actors/producers who were protrayed as being decieved into believing in this pseudoscience), but I still found it enjoyable.

I've got his last book titled "Next," bought at a thrift store because I didn't want to buy it new when it first came out after hearing how a minor character, a child molestor, just happens to have the same name as a realilife reviewer who gave his previous novel "State of Fear" a bad review, but I guess it's okay to read it now. I read the first half of "Airframe," a few years ago, I need to finish that.

Here's Wikipedia's entry on him, including a short account of his death:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Crichton

http://michaelcrichton.com has a forum that I visited a few years ago, but the mod(s) seemed overly immoderate or something, and I didn't like it. Anyway, looking around now, I see three "official" website addresses, but they're all down at the moment, apparently slashdotted overloaded by so many people wanting to read them after hearing of his death:

http://www.michaelcrichton.com
http://www.michaelcrichton.net
http://www.crichton-official.com

jvc

11-06-2008, 01:51 AM

I loved the Jurassic Park books.

OddButInteresting

11-06-2008, 02:31 AM

I just caught this on AintItCool's homepage...

If there's one writer I would want to thank for his inspiration, that writer would undoubtedly be Michael Crichton. I'm truly saddened that I'll no longer have that opportunity.

I would have also wanted to shake Heath Ledger's hand and congratulate him on his performance in The Dark Knight (I'd been following the production online for months before he died), but alas, he too was taken well before his time.

2008 has seen too many promising souls succumb to the inevitability of mortality.

Captain Ian

11-06-2008, 02:36 AM

This is devastating news. May the Lord rest his soul.
Thank you for all the thrills, the happiness you gave me as you took me to places I never knew existed. Thank you for showing me the dinosaurs, and the train robberies, and the French knights, and the Vikings, the insides of aircraft, the Andromeda Strain, crazy new-age Frankenstein monsters, and the nanorobots, and even your Westworld.
RIP

AnneMarble

11-06-2008, 02:41 AM

Am I the only one who really liked Congo? :D I also liked Jurassic Park, but I couldn't get into Lost World because of the whole "bringing Ian back to life" thing. I was sort of tempted with State of Fear, Prey, and Next, but the reader reviews kept me away. Maybe I'll be inspired me to read them anyway.

BTW I usually think it's cute when villains are named after reviewers, even if I agree with the reviewer. For example, in Willow, George Lucas had an evil General Kael and a creature named the Eborsisk. :) But naming a child molestor after a reviewer is just too much. :rolleyes:

Maryn

11-06-2008, 02:47 AM

A major loss. And I consider keeping his battle private typically classy. I didn't love everything he wrote, but I love some of it, and it's sad to know there will be no more.

Maryn, tipping her hat to Crichton

triceretops

11-06-2008, 02:48 AM

This is sad news. My DNA science thriller was inspired by his writing, and drew many comparisons. Though a controversial character at times, he took me on some fantastic journeys.

Tri

MattW

11-06-2008, 02:50 AM

I read Jurassic park in a long summer day after seeing the movie. Read the remainder of his available books that same summer. I was a junkie for 2-3 months.

RIP

triceretops

11-06-2008, 02:51 AM

I'm really devastated about this. I exchanged letterw with him 19 years ago. He was a terrific inspiration to me.

Tri

jvc

11-06-2008, 02:58 AM

I loved his Jurassic Park books.

jvc

11-06-2008, 03:00 AM

He did go a bit overboard on the science stuff, but there were loads of dinosaurs so I loved them.

P.H.Delarran

11-06-2008, 03:01 AM

Oh that's just too bad.
R.I.P.

jvc

11-06-2008, 03:06 AM

I loved his Jurassic Park books, thought they were great and it wasn't just cause they had dinosaurs in them.

Willowmound

11-06-2008, 03:07 AM

The Andromeda Strain FTW.

He created E.R. too, for those who didn't know.

Jeremy

11-06-2008, 03:38 AM

:cry:

I absolutley loved Jurrassic Park and The Lost World. They were my first 'big' books as a kid and I throughly enjoyed them. It was these books that really got me into reading which eventually got me interested in writing.

God bless you Michael Crichton. Thank you for your stories and thank you for the memories.

astonwest

11-06-2008, 03:49 AM

Read Jurassic Park before it was a movie, also Disclosure (ditto), and Airframe. Have wanted to try out some of his earlier work...always an enjoyable read.

A sad day...

benbradley

11-06-2008, 03:57 AM

Looks like a lot of people remember him, I see two other threads on his passing, one in Office Party (http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120914) a one in Science Fiction (http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120921). And I thought his passing would be a "current event."
...Anyway, looking around now, I see three "official" website addresses, but they're all down at the moment, apparently slashdotted overloaded by so many people wanting to read them after hearing of his death:

http://www.michaelcrichton.com
http://www.michaelcrichton.net
http://www.crichton-official.com
I tried these again a few times, sometimes they come up with a pic and
"In Memoriam
Michael Crichton
1942 - 2008", sometimes an error. When it does display, it links to * A Note For Michael's Fans * (http://www.michaelcrichton.com/aboutmichaelcrichton-inmemoriam.html)
http://www.crichton-official.com/aboutmichaelcrichton-inmemoriam.html

"Best-selling author Michael Crichton died unexpectedly in Los Angeles Tuesday, November 4, 2008 after a courageous and private battle against cancer.

While the world knew him as a great story teller that challenged our preconceived notions about the world around us -- and entertained us all while doing so -- his wife Sherri, daughter Taylor, family and friends knew Michael Crichton as a devoted husband, loving father and generous friend who inspired each of us to strive to see the wonders of our world through new eyes. He did this with a wry sense of humor that those who were privileged to know him personally will never forget.

Through his books, Michael Crichton served as an inspiration to students of all ages, challenged scientists in many fields, and illuminated the mysteries of the world in a way we could all understand.

He will be profoundly missed by those whose lives he touched, but he leaves behind the greatest gifts of a thirst for knowledge, the desire to understand, and the wisdom to use our minds to better our world.

Michael's family respectfully asks for privacy during this difficult time.

A private funeral service is expected, but no further details will be released to the public."

ETA: CNN's story on his death:
"'Jurassic Park' author, 'ER' creator Crichton dies"
http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/books/11/05/obit.crichton/index.html

BarbaraKE

11-06-2008, 04:23 AM

http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx/?news=338162&GT1=28101

What a shame. He was only 66-years-old.

RIP

Nateskate

11-06-2008, 04:57 AM

So sad.

Jimmyboy1

11-06-2008, 05:20 AM

I happen to be reading "Timeline" presently.

The chapters to come will certainly not be the same as they would have been.

Why is that? Everyone will want to read his stuff even more now. Why wait to deliver flowers until the person can't smell them any more????

Sorry.

Del

11-06-2008, 05:22 AM

He did go a bit overboard on the science stuff (mb), but there were loads of dinosaurs so I loved them.

No he didn't. :) But that's writing.

I had a lot of admiration for Crichton for his ability to research. I think he must have loved science. His stories usually had some foundation in reality, or at least logic. It was hard to argue against his reasoning.

Cybernaught

11-06-2008, 08:19 AM

He actually made hard sci-fi fun to read. Quite an accomplishment.

DragonHeart

11-06-2008, 08:43 AM

Very sad. :( The Lost World was the first adult novel I ever read. I still have that original copy, though the pages are yellowed and the cover is peeling. I still remember entire passages by heart, I've read it so many times. Along with many of his other works; I have an entire shelf full. That's considerable, especially since I read almost exclusively fantasy. He was always the exception to my rule.

RIP, Michael. You will be missed.

Lyra Jean

11-06-2008, 10:19 AM

RIP I've read Timeline, Jurassic Park, and Lost World. I have Andromeda Strain on to read list. I really enjoy his work.

Lyra Jean

11-06-2008, 10:23 AM

A new Crichton novel had been scheduled to come out in the US next month.
Publisher HarperCollins said the book would now be postponed indefinitely.

Do you think they will ever release it?

benbradley

11-06-2008, 10:32 AM

Do you think they will ever release it?
If it was scheduled for next month, then it must have been pretty much ready to go. Barring objections from the family, I'm sure it will eventually come out, as there will be money to be made.

Nakhlasmoke

11-06-2008, 10:42 AM

C.M. Daniels

11-06-2008, 10:52 AM

That's too bad. I remember being captivated and horrified by Jurassic Park (the novel) when it was first released.

Michael Parks

11-06-2008, 11:49 AM

Saw that today, totally shocked me.

RIP

mario_c

11-06-2008, 11:54 AM

That is a surprise, and sad. Youthful for his age, too.

RIP

Dawnstorm

11-06-2008, 12:16 PM

I also liked Jurassic Park, but I couldn't get into Lost World because of the whole "bringing Ian back to life" thing.

:Wha:

I only read Jurassic Park, but he clearly died at the end. Did they inject his DNA into a frog egg or something?

I quite enjoyed Jurassic Park, as well as Timeline. These books were good fun, but I'll probably most remember him for the film Westworld. :D

Darzian

11-06-2008, 12:17 PM

RIP
I haven't read any of his books but a friend of mine is crazy about him.

Wow, he married 5 times.

Albedo

11-06-2008, 12:52 PM

RIP Crichton. Sure he wasn't the world's most critically acclaimed writer but his books (especially Jurassic Park) defined my nerdy childhood. And I forgive him for State of Fear and Prey.

Dreir

11-06-2008, 05:09 PM

RIP, Mikey.. I haven't read his books but I've watched my Jurassic Park DVD once every few weeks for many years. I just can't get enough of those dinos..

- Dreir -

euclid

11-06-2008, 07:09 PM

I had no idea. Just found this thread. Shattered. He was one of my writing heroes, even before Jurassic Park, and more so after.

icerose

11-06-2008, 07:45 PM

Wow that is unexpected, I wonder what the cause of death was. I loved many of his books, not all, but many. His writing will certainly be missed.

AnneMarble

11-06-2008, 08:32 PM

:Wha:

I only read Jurassic Park, but he clearly died at the end. Did they inject his DNA into a frog egg or something?
I think it was a case of the character coming back because he didn't die in the movie? :rolleyes: As far as I remember (I didn't get far at all), there was no explanation. It reminded me of the part in Misery where Annie got upset about the way movie serials made it look like the character fell off a cliff at the end of one episode, only to show him avoiding the fall in the next episode.

Edited to Add:
It kinda reminds me of the Roger Rabbit novel that the original author wrote after the movie came out. The original Roger Rabbit novel was nothing like the movie in a lot of ways. (IIRC the toons were photographed for comic books and used "doppelgangers" for stunts in cartoons -- and the toons could easily die.) The "sequel" tried to follow the style and story of the movie, and IIRC brought back a dead character who had been guilty in the original book. :eek:

I quite enjoyed Jurassic Park, as well as Timeline. These books were good fun, but I'll probably most remember him for the film Westworld. :D
I wanna see that again. :)

benbradley

11-06-2008, 08:53 PM

RIP Crichton. Sure he wasn't the world's most critically acclaimed writer but his books (especially Jurassic Park) defined my nerdy childhood. And I forgive him for State of Fear and Prey.
Did you think Prey was really that bad? I saw some people on Slashdot rip it for his knowledge (or lack of) of nanotechnology, but to me it was another typical Crichton story. It seemed much like "Rising Sun," weak-appearing man is upstarted by a stronger wife who leaves him, and he's left to save the whole world by himself. Woops, hope that wasn't a spoiler...

melaniehoo

11-06-2008, 09:25 PM

This is so sad.

AncientEagle

11-06-2008, 10:10 PM

Cancer, according to the news report I heard.

Diana Hignutt

11-07-2008, 05:06 PM

I'm drawn back to this sad thread. I'm still depressed by his passing. The only thing I'm happy about is that I sent him a copy of my last book a couple of years ago, and a long letter. I know he got them. He may or may not have read them, but at least I got the chance to thank him for his work and its influence on my writing.

dpaterso

11-07-2008, 06:10 PM

We'll merge the many homage and remembrance threads posted throughout the AW forums into this one.

-Derek

Greenwolf103

11-07-2008, 09:04 PM

I was so shocked to learn of his passing. Very, very sad. His books really made me think and captured my imagination. He was always one of my favorite authors. RIP. :cry:

beezle

11-07-2008, 09:15 PM

The first novel of his I read was The Andromeda Strain, when I was 14 or 15, I think. It fascinated me. Some of you don't like his science side, but that's what really pulled me in. It wasn't like reading a textbook. It was fun.

IceCreamEmpress

11-07-2008, 10:55 PM

Can't someone fix the typo in the title? I think that of all places to misspell a name, a memorial thread is one of the worst.

smsarber

11-07-2008, 11:17 PM

?? Looks right to me...

dpaterso

11-07-2008, 11:19 PM

Can't someone fix the typo in the title? I think that of all places to misspell a name, a memorial thread is one of the worst.
If there's a typo, it's my fault.

I thought his name was spelled Michael Crichton.

-Derek

smsarber

11-07-2008, 11:25 PM

It is.

Stew21

11-07-2008, 11:29 PM

I fixed it. Whichever thread you started with had it spelled Crighton, Derek.
No biggie, easy fix.

Ken

11-07-2008, 11:51 PM

...never read any of his books, but know he was greatly admired and respected.
He's made his mark and will be remembered for a long time to come.
Condolences to his family, friends, and readers.

Anares

11-08-2008, 02:55 AM

Goodbye Mr Crighton.
But he has gained immortality. His words will be remembered when, as Tolkein put it, men are fairy tales told by rabbits.

His life may have ended, but not his song nor his light, and never his words.

Write_At_1st_Light

11-08-2008, 09:27 AM

I got into Crichton's works via The Andromeda Strain and that's the book to which I keep returning. A great story, such detail, the Crichton trademark of absolute authenticity that especially characterized his earlier works. Such a unique style, had Crichton. I enjoyed his framing of the dangers inherent in bull-ahead technology. Sometimes he got preachy via his characters - that seemed to occur in his later works. But usually he struck a fine balance on that score.

I've read most of his books, although never did watch a single episode of ER.

He was typically ahead of the curve on what was coming, technology-wise. If you look at his movie WestWorld, computer viruses are mentioned as spreading from one fantasy vacation world to another. Another movie was Looker in 1981, with Susan Dey and Albert Finney and James Coburn. A model (Dey) is being photographed from all directions so that her image can later be inserted into future ads. We do that now with actors, who wear those insane electronic sensor suits and are then filmed doing various actions and movements. To be inserted later into future movie scenes. And the subliminal light beams for television in Looker certainly equates with our current filming techniques of shakey-cam, vomitcam, constant cutting, moving the image, changing the image. All with the intent of forcing a viewer's eyes to go exactly where intended, with no chance, by the viewer, to fairly evaluate the totality of what is being streamed into the brain.

Book-wise, I also liked The Terminal Man, Prey, Sphere, Jurassic Park, Airframe was decent, Timeline got a bit ponderous at times, several others.

I'll miss him a lot. And I'll be reading The Andromeda Strain soon, for the umpteenth time. Good way to honor the one and only Michael Crichton.

Branwyn

11-09-2008, 08:20 AM

:cry:Prayers for his family...I read a number of his books.

Donkey

11-15-2008, 11:03 AM

Michael Crichton was certainly a writer of legendary proportions. I've been reading or watching his work for more than thirty years. He is without a doubt my all time favorite author, and the one I most hope to emulate, though I will undoubtedly fall short. I am extremely grateful for his influence and excellent example. He left the world a better place for being here. May he rest in peace.

"A" Is For "Agent"

11-15-2008, 04:54 PM

RIP.

Use Her Name

11-18-2008, 08:49 AM

I personally knew a lot of the people that he used for models for the characters of Jurassic Park. (I was a dinosaur artist at the time) I was working in the field (at a dinosaur dig that is actually seen in the movie at Choteau) and left about a week before he came to do character on the characters for that book. They all say he was a extremely wonderful guy. I went to a party later at the house of the guy used for the character of Dr. Grant, and they were talking about how fun the whole thing had been. For me though, the most memorable movie made from any of his books was the classic "The Andromeda Strain" it took SF to a new level, and it had always been one of my favorite movies. Rest In Peace.

triceretops

11-18-2008, 08:58 AM

I am still so not over this unexpected passing of Michael. My current science-based thriller borrows heavily from his concept in Jurassic Park, and with a little luck and pluck, I hope it's picked up out there. I do want to dedicate it to him so badly. He has been a wonderful inspiration to me over the years.

Miss you, Michael

Tri

HarrisLiteraryscamsu

11-20-2008, 01:48 PM

Such a loss. Crichton had that rare gift for precognizing technology as Frankenstein. Andromeda, Westworld, Runaway . . . intuitively cutting edge. Irreplaceable.

Lollypop1407

11-22-2008, 03:01 PM

He'd been a favorite of mine for years. I love his work, it was so engaging & imaginative & sometimes disturbingly realistic. Life, but 15 degrees off. In one article I read just after his death it said his publisher still had his next work, but they were holding off on publishing indefinitely. So, maybe at some point, he'll have one last novel in the world.

My recent Michael Crichton blog post (http://fast-paced-fiction.blogspot.com/2008/11/thanks-for-all-stories.html)