[Hobbit]

Not sure if i like doing this...I get the vague idea that it's a bit ghoulish..but there are some that may not know.

2 from Locus, so they should be pretty solid - RA Lafferty, writer of many amusing SF stories in the 1960's & 70's has died on March 18th. Between 1960 - 80 he wrote over 200 short stories and over 20 novels. At least 19 collections of Lafferty's work were published. Lafferty's work won many awards including the Phoenix Award, the Hugo (1972 for "Eurema's Dam," World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award and the Arell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award.

Secondly - it's been announced (by his widow) that the good Doctor Asimov died of AIDS which Asimov caught following a blood transfusion during his 1983 heart bypass operation. I was under the impression that it was his heart that finally gave out. Just shows what I know.

Hobbit

[Slowhand]

Lafferty was a solid writer who I enjoyed very much as was Asimov. The cause of Asimov's death is a great shock. I guess his family hid the cause because they believed it to be a stigma? It may have done some good for AIDS research had they revealed the cause at the time. I have to believe some additional money would have been donated to a fund for AIDs research in Asimov's name. I know I would have donated to such a fund.

[Kamakhya]

Oh wow. I just heard about Lafferty on a mailing list, but I had no idea about Asimov. This is very sad news. My own father had heart bypass surgery in 1983 and we were all concerned about the possibility of tainted blood. AIDS was just becoming recognized at that time and they hadn't gotten to the point of checking the blood supplies. How utterly sad.

Asimov has been one of my all time favorite authors since I was a teenager, some 20 years ago. May he rest in peace.

[galaga99]

That is sad about Asimov. I was actually thinking about reading his Foundations Series. I heard it was good and I have only read a few books by him, after all, we can't read everybody (at least and have a full time job that is). I have never heard of the other guy, but may they both rest in peace.