American science fiction and mystery author Neal Barrett, Jr. died after a long illness on January 12, aged 84. He began his writing career in 1960, and his novels include the “Aldair” and “Through Darkest America” series, along with the short story collections Slightly Off Center: Eleven Extraordinarily Exhilarating Tales, Perpetuity Blues and Other Stories, A Different Vintage, Way Out There and Other Seasons: The Best of Neal Barrett, Jr. He also wrote “Tom Swift” novels under the house name “Victor Appleton” and “Hardy Boys” books as “Franklin W. Dixon”, along with Batman, Judge Dredd and Babylon 5 tie-ins, although the latter was actually written by Al Sarrantonio. Barrett was named SFWA Author Emeritus at the Nebula Awards in 2010.
59-year-old Janrae Frank, who co-edited the 1994 feminist anthology New Eves: Science Fiction About the Exraordinary Women of Today and Tomorrow with Forrest J Ackerman and Jean Marie Stine, died of a stroke in hospital the same day. Her first short story appeared in the World Fantasy Award-winning anthology Amazons! (1979) and introduced her character Chimquar the Lionhawk, while her short fiction was collected in In the Darkness, Hunting (2004).
Prolific Danish-born artist Erik Blegvad, best known for his pen-and-ink illustrations for Mary Norton’s 1957 novel Bed-Knob and Broomstick and The Complete Book of Dragons by E. Nesbit, died in London on January 14, aged 90. He also illustrated his own translation of Hans Christian Anderson and more than 100 other children’s books, including many by his wife, Lenore Blegvad (who died in 2008). His short illustrated memoir, Self-Portrait (1979), is only nominally aimed at children.
Norwegian law professor, academic, and SF author and editor Jon Bing died the same day, aged 69. With his close friend Tor-Åge Bringsværd, he was instrumental in creating Norwegian fandom in the mid-1960s. Bing and Bringsværd went on to edit around twenty anthologies and create and edit a genre line for publisher Gyldendal from 1967-80. His short story collections and novels (again in collaboration with Bringsværd) include Rundt solen i ring (Ring Around the Sun) and Oslo 2084, and he was a Guest of Honour at the 1997 Eastercon in Britain.
American comedy writer and producer Ben (Benjamin) Starr died of congestive heart failure on January 19, aged 92. He scripted episodes of TV’s Mr. Ed, My Favorite Martian and Mork & Mindy, along with the movies Our Man Flint and William Castle’s The Busy Body and The Spirit is Willing.
Italian film composer Riziero “Riz” Ortolani died of bronchitis on January 24, aged 87. His many credits include Horror Castle, Castle of Blood and its remake Web of the Spider, Seven Blood-Stained Orchids, The Dead Are Alive, Seven Deaths in the Cat’s Eye, Death Steps in the Dark, Cannibal Holocaust, House on the Edge of the Park, Fantasma d’amore, Revenge of the Dead and Killer Crocodile and Killer Crocodile 2.
American author Stepan Chapman, who made his debut in 1969 in Analog, died on January 27, aged 63. He had earlier suffered a couple of heart attacks that he had reportedly kept hidden, even from his wife. Chapman’s short fiction was collected in Danger Music and Dossier, and his 1998 novel The Troika won the Philip K. Dick Award.
American soundtrack composer, songwriter and arranger John Cacavas died on January 28, aged 83. His movie credits include Horror Express and Hammer’s The Satanic Rites of Dracula (both starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing), Airport 1975 and Airport ‘77, The Time Machine (1978), Hangar 18, Once Upon a Spy, Cry for the Strangers and Mortuary, along with episodes of TV’s The Bionic Woman and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.
American editor, artist, film-maker and fan Larry Ivie died of lung cancer in January, aged 77. He co-edited (with Ken Beale) the first three issues of Calvin T. Beck’s Castle of Frankenstein magazine in the 1960s, as well as supplying the cover paintings for several early issues. Ivie later went on to edit seven issues of his own magazine, Monsters and Heroes (1967-70), featuring his character “Altron Boy”, and contributed scripts to Warren’s Creepy and Eerie, as well as Tower Comics’ T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents and several Marvel Comics titles. His artwork also turned up in 1960s fanzines and issues of Galaxy, If and Astounding/Analog.
The death was announced in January of British experimental author and former libel lawyer Alan Burns, who was 83. He began his career writing for such SF magazines as Authentic and New Worlds, and his genre background influenced such novels as Europe After the Rain, Babel and Dreamerika! A Surrealist Fantasy. In 1982 he co-edited The Imagination on Triaclass="underline" British and American Writers Discuss Their Working Methods with Charles Sugnet, which included interviews with J.G. Ballard and Michael Moorcock.
61-year-old American writer and artist Mark E. (Earl) Rogers, best known for several illustrated “Adventures of Samurai Cat” volumes beginning in 1980, died of an apparent heart attack on February 2 while hiking with his family in Death Valley. Rogers’ novella ‘The Runestone’ was filmed in 1990, and his novels include Zorachus, The Nightmare of God, The Dead, Yark and “The Blood of the Lamb” and “Zancarthus” series.
Emmy Award-winning American scriptwriter, producer and crime novelist Eric Bercovici, who adapted Shogun as a TV mini-series, died of a heart attack in Hawaii on February 9, aged 80. He also came up with the story for The Man from U.N.C.L.E. episode ‘The Fox and Hounds Affair’ featuring Vincent Price, and co-scripted Change of Habit starring Elvis Presley and the TV movie The Fifth Missile.
Oscar-winning documentary film-maker and screenwriter Robert M. Fresco died of cancer on February 14, aged 83. Back in the 1950s he co-scripted such movies as Universal’s Tarantula and The Monolith Monsters, worked uncredited on The 27th Day, The Alligator People and Invasion of the Animal People, and wrote three episodes of TV’s Science Fiction Theatre.
American fantasy, SF and horror witer Michael Shea died on February 16, aged 67. He won World Fantasy Awards for the novel Nifft the Lean (1982) and the novella ‘The Growlimb’ (reprinted in The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror #16), and his other books include A Quest for Simbilis, the Lovecraft-inspired The Color Out of Time, In Yana the Touch of Undying, The Mines of Behemoth and A’rak, while Polyphemus from Arkham House, The Autopsy and Other Tales and Copping the Squid and Other Mythos Tales collected some of his short fiction. Shea reportedly completed a fourth novel in his “Nifft” series shortly before his death.