Tag Archives: Richard Matheson

Richard Matheson (1926-2013)

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Richard Matheson

Richard Matheson

Richard Matheson, author of many iconic works of sf and horror, died June 23 at age 87. His death came just three weeks after he announced his health was not good enough to permit him to attend the 2013 WFC where he is a GoH.

Matheson’s famous novel I Am Legend was made into three movies – but he wondered in an interview why it kept being optioned when no one ever made a movie that actually followed the book. The films What Dreams May Come, Somewhere in Time and The Shrinking Man also were based on his stories,

Once asked how he identified with his characters, Matheson frankly admitted:

RM: Pretty much the main character is always me. The man in I Am Legend is me. The man in The Shrinking Man, that’s me. Stir Of Echoes, that’s me. What Dreams May Come, me.

He wrote 14 episodes of The Twilight Zone, including the classic “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.” For Star Trek he wrote “The Enemy Within” where a transporter malfunction divides the Captain into Good Kirk and Evil Kirk. And he adapted his 1971 short story “Duel” into a TV movie for young director Steven Spielberg.

He won World Fantasy Awards for Richard Matheson: Collected Stories (1990) and his novel Bid Time Return (1976). Matheson received an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for his teleplay for The Night Stalker (1973).

Matheson was the 1958 Worldcon guest of honor. He was inducted to the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2010, and was the recipient of World Fantasy Award, Bram Stoker Award, and International Horror Guild Award lifetime achievement honors, as well as being named a World Horror Grandmaster.

He served in the infantry during World War II. In 1949 he earned a journalism degree from the University of Missouri. He moved to California in 1951 and married Ruth Ann Woodson the following year. They had four children.

Here is a short commentary by Matheson about his Twilight Zone story “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.”

[Thanks to John King Tarpinian for the story.]

Update 06/24/2013: Corrected date of death per comment.

Nightmare Bobble Heads

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Bob-Wilson-Bobble-Head_1024x1024Gremlin-Thing-on-Wing_1024x1024

Fandom.com may be long gone but others have stepped in to serve “fervent consumers” with the “willingness and discretionary income to indulge their passions” for merchandise like this.

Richard Matheson’s classic 1959 Twilight Zone episode “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” now is immortalized in a pair of commemorative bobbleheads.

There’s the Gremlin:

This ultra-creepy bobble head is authentically designed and exactly painted in a black-and-white motif and measures 6-inches tall x 5-inches wide x 3-inches long. Inspired by one of the most memorable scenes from the show, the remarkable airplane-wing base has Gremlin sitting on the engine housing, tearing pieces from the wing!

And there’s ”Bob Wilson”:

Based on the character played by William Shatner in the terrifying “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” episode, it sports an authentic black-and-white color scheme and a cool airplane-themed base.

PubTThou01

[Thanks to John King Tarpinian for the story.]

Matheson Senior Will Miss WFC 2013

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Although World Fantasy Con 2013 counted on hosting both Richard Matheson (Twilight Zone’s “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” The Legend of Hell House) and his son Richard Christian Matheson as guests of honor, it’s not going to work out. The elder Matheson’s health isn’t good enough to allow for a trip overseas.

Richard Christian Matheson’s message explaining his father’s decision was recently released by the comittee:

I have disappointing news. My father recently informed me that after much thought, he won’t be able to attend World Fantasy Convention 2013 because of ongoing health concerns. We are, of course, heavy-hearted, as I know you must be reading this. He wants you to know how much he appreciates the organiser’s dedication to making WFC 2013 the best yet, and how they’ve tried every means available to assure his safety and presence. Still, I’m afraid it’s just not in the cards and, while his challenges aren’t life threatening, travel for him is extremely taxing. I know he’s wise in this decision. He’ll be in Brighton, in spirit, and on our mutual behalf, I’ll still be attending and look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Thank you for your understanding.

Richard Senior also wrote a note:

I certainly appreciate the organisers of World Fantasy Convention 2013 choosing me and my son RC as Guests of Honour. I am very pleased and honoured. I am regretful I cannot respond to it and be there in person, due to health. I wish everyone a marvellous time.

WFC 2013 says Richard Matheson will remain an Honorary Guest of Honour and his career will be celebrated throughout the con’s program.

[Via Andrew Porter.]

WFC 2013 Names Mathesons as GoHs

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Richard Matheson (Twilight Zone’s “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” The Legend of Hell House) and his son Richard Christian Matheson (TV, movie and short story writer) are the first authors to be announced as Guests of Honor at World Fantasy Con 2013.

The con takes place in Brighton, England over Halloween Weekend 2013.

The full press release follows the jump.

[Thanks to Andrew Porter for the story.]

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Matheson Interviewed by Cinefantastique

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Richard Matheson is interviewed in Cinefantastique about Charles Beaumont, subject of a forthcoming DVD documentary: 

LAWRENCE FRENCH: You and Charles Beaumont each did four scripts for Roger Corman, mostly for his Edgar Allan Poe films. The big exception was when Charles Beaumont did the rather daring script for The Intruder in 1961, which was about racial tensions in the south. Did either Beaumont or Corman ask you to appear in that picture?

RICHARD MATHESON: Yes, they did but I just didn’t feel like going out to Missouri while they were shooting it. The Intruder may actually be Roger’s best picture, yet it was the only time he made a film that didn’t make any money. I thought William Shatner was superb in it.

Trivial Pursuit Postscript: Richard Matheson was Westercon’s first repeat guest of honor — Westercon 9 in 1956, and also GoH of the merged Worldcon/Westercon of  1958. Eyeballing the Westercon long list, it looks like the next repeat didn’t happen until the Portland Westercon of 1984 which reprised three past GoH’s, Harlan Ellison (previously a 1966 GoH) and F.M. & Elinor Busby (1963 GoHs); artist Alex Schomburg was the only first-timer at Portland.

[Thanks to John King Tarpinian for the link.]

Bradbury Coming to Egyptian Theater

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Ray Bradbury will speak before a showing of the Charles Beaumont documentary at the Egyptian Theater on Saturday, March 27 (the theater’s March calendar has yet to be posted online, so no direct link.) 

The new Beaumont documentary features a long interview with Harlan Ellison, as well as Ray Bradbury, Richard Matheson, S.T. Joshi, John Shirley, the late Forry Ackerman, George Clayton Johnson, Bill Nolan and Marc Scott Zicree.

Johnson, Nolan and Zicree will answer questions after the March 27 screening.

That same weekend the Egyptian will show Logan’s Run (March 26). The novel’s author’s Bill Nolan and George Clayton Johnson will be there, and they will be back for the showing of The Intruder on March 28.

[Thanks to John King Tarpinian for the story.]

Martian Chronicles from Subterranean Press

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Martian Chronicles cover

Martian Chronicles cover

Review by John King Tarpinian: What can one say about Ray Bradbury’s Martian canon that is not known? In this volume there are more than 50 stories, essays, introductions and two full-length screenplays by Bradbury, just fewer than 800 pages. Over the past five decades and in different editions of Martian Chronicles stories have migrated in and out of the book that was currently in print. What Subterranean Press and PS Publishing have done is bring EVERY known Martian story of Ray’s together in one volume,  The Martian Chronicles: The Complete Edition. This includes ones that have never been in any book with the title Martian Chronicles and a few that have never been in print before, forty-nine stories in all. To add to the pleasure of this volume are two screen plays written by Bradbury. His introduction to the 40th anniversary edition is included. Lastly, in his own words, “How I Wrote This Book.”

The seven previously unpublished Martian stories are: The Disease, Dead of Summer, The Martian Ghosts, Jemima True, They All Had Grandfathers, The Wheel and The Marriage.

There are a few other contributors, writing introductions (really more like essays) to the different parts of the book. Reading a few of their words made my eyes mist up. They are Meeting the Wizard introduction by John Scalzi, Undiscovered Mars, Unseen Bradbury by Joe Hill, Lost Mars, the Unpublished Martian Stories of Ray Bradbury by Marc Scott Zicree and For Ray Bradbury by Richard Matheson.

The book is truly a work of art with Bradbury’s words being the canvas. This is the first and probably the last chance one will ever have to own ALL Martian stories in one volume. All of which came to life from the mind of a then little boy who read Edgar Rice Burroughs and since he could not afford to buy another John Carter novel went about writing his own Mars.

[The Table of Contents follows the jump.]

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Honoring Twilight Zone at the Egyptian

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The 50th anniversary of Twilight Zone will be celebrated at American Cinematheque’s Egyptian Theatre on October 30th (click link and scroll to bottom of page), with showings of Emmy-winning episodes and discussions with Carol Serling (schedule permitting), Richard Matheson, Earl Hamner Jr., George Clayton Johnson, H.M. Wynant, Robert Butler, and Arlene Martel.

Marc Scott Zicree, author of The Twilight Zone Companion, told the Los Angeles Times:

“He created a new form of television… Science fiction was basically viewed as kids’ stuff,” [Zicree] says. “There is a great interview that Mike Wallace did with Rod just prior to ‘The Twilight Zone’ where he says to Rod, ‘Now you are doing this kind of kids’ stuff, are you giving up writing anything important?'”

Among the episodes tentatively scheduled to screen Friday are: “It’s a Good Life,” by Serling, starring Billy Mumy as a 6-year-old boy who is a little monster; “Kick the Can”; “The Howling Man,” by Beaumont, about a scholar who unleashes the devil; “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” by Matheson, about a young man (Shatner) recovering from a nervous breakdown who sees a monster on the wing of the airplane; and Serling’s “Time Enough at Last,” about a bookish man who survives a nuclear holocaust.

Stephen King Has Opinions

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Lorrie Lynch’s USA Today blog has Stephen King in the crosshairs:

King, whose Stephen King Goes to the Movies collection came out last week, doesn’t know how much of an influence he had on [Stephanie] Meyer, but he does know that Rowling read his stuff when she was younger. “I think that has some kind of formative influence the same way reading Richard Matheson had an influence on me,” King explains.

[Thanks to Andrew Porter for the link.]