Robert Sheckley

[Dave]

Robert Sheckley
born Brooklyn, New York: 16 July 1928
died Poughkeepsie, New York: 9 December 2005

Robert Sheckley is another American science fiction who is very frequently the answer to requests in our SFF Chronicles Book Search forum. His short stories are notable for their quick wit, while his novels are renowned for being unpredictable, absurdist, and broadly comical.

He is probably best known for his novel Immortality, Inc. originally published in a shorter form in 1958 as Immortality Delivered and serialised in Galaxy Magazine as Time Killer. The premise, that the afterlife can be achieved by scientic means, was also loosely adapted into the 1992 film Freejack. A scene from the novel where the main character becomes lost and accidently joins the queue to use a suicide booth was parodied in the opening episode of Futurama.

A list of his works is to be found here: Summary Bibliography: Robert Sheckley

Wikipedia page: Robert Sheckley - Wikipedia

 

[BAYLOR]

Read one novel by him Immortality Inc an excellent novel. It was the basis for the 1992 film Freejack staring Emilio Estevez, Rene Russao , Anth Hopkins and Mick Jagger The movie differ widely form the book , Its not a bad film but not a great one either.

 

[Fiberglass Cyborg]

I have vague memories of a Sheckley novel about a Pacific Islander called Jones who travels to the USA and USSR. It's told as a satirical utopia, where his tall tales are the last remaining record of our civilisation before it self-destructed.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

I have vague memories of a Sheckley novel about a Pacific Islander called Jones who travels to the USA and USSR. It's told as a satirical utopia, where his tall tales are the last remaining record of our civilisation before it self-destructed.

That's The Journey of Joenes [sic] AKA Journey Beyond Tomorrow (1962). One of his greatest satires, on the same level as his novel Dimension of Miracles (1968).

 

[BAYLOR]

I was impressed by Immortality Inc .