In Memoriam
Below is a listing of members of our community who have passed away since the last In Memoriam list was compiled for Pemmi-Con and Chengdu last year. This currently covers the period beginning July 9, 2023. It will be updated regularly between now and August 2024. If you know of someone you believe should be included, please let us know.
You can also follow our In Memoriam feed on BlueSky at wcinmemoriam.bsky.social.
We express our thanks to Steven H Silver for maintaining this list on behalf of the community.
In Memoriam – 2023
Author Takashi Ishikawa (b.1930) died on July 9. Ishikawa began writing as a critic in 1963. He was one of the founders of the Nihon SF Sakka Club. His stories included “The Road to the Sea.” He also published an annual article which helped define and look back on the growth of Japanese science fiction.
Fan Charles E. Noad (b.1947) died on July 13. Noad was active in the UK Tolkien Society and proofread most of Tolkien’s posthumous works after becoming friends with Christopher Tolkien. He wrote several articles on Tolkien’s works.
Author Juleen A. Brantingham (b.1942) died on July 22. Brantingham began publishing SF in 1979 with the story “Holly Don’t Tell” and published several stories through 1999, including “Chicken of the Tree” and “A Visit to Dragonland.”
Author Russell H. Greenan (b.1925) died on July 22. Greenan was the author of It Happened in Boston?, The Secret Life of Algernon Pendleton, and The Bric-a-Brac Man.
Fan Frank Waller (b.1957) died on July 22. Waller was a member of LASFS and active in the Los Angeles fannish and convention scene.
Fan Shelley Belsky (b.1955) died on July 25. Nicknamed Bear, Belsky became active in fandom in the 1970s and organized LICon and Hexacon. Belsky was active in fandom in New York, Pittsburgh, Minneapolis, Boulder, and New Mexico.
Fan Ira Mitchel Thornhill (b.1953) died on July 25. Thornhill became active in NOLA fandom in the 70s and organized the Southern Fried Fandom Gil Gaier Transport Fund. In the 80s, he lived in the Bozo Bus Building in Minneapolis. He was also a member of SFPA and published several zines.
Fan David K.M. Klaus (b.1955) died on July 28. Klaus became active in fandom in the 1970s and was the editor of LASFS’s clubzine De Profundis. One of a few LASFS member to be expelled from the club, he moved back to his native St Louis.
Author David Albahari (b.1948) died on July 30. Albahari translated Thomas Pynchon’s The Crying of Lot 49 into Serbian and wrote postmodern novels with fantastic elements.
Editor John R. Douglas (b.1948) died on August 3. Douglas worked on the science fiction lines for several different publishers over the years and as an editorial freelancer since 1999. He was active in the World Fantasy Board and was recognized with a World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award this year.
Author Philippe Tronche (b.1929) died on August 5. Writing as Philippe Curval, he won the Prix Apollo for Cette chere humanite and the Prix Imaginaire for L’homme a rebours and pour son travail d;atnghologiste et de decouvreur de talents.
Fan Robert “Ozzie” Osband (b.1951) died on August 6. Osband attended many cons and worked to get the area code 321 assigned to the spacecoast, as well as managing to get the phone number 321-LIFTOFF.
Fan Daria Flipieva was killed on the Ukrainian front lines the first week of August where she was serving as a medic. Flipieva, also went by the name Ariana von Stahl, taken from her role in an on-line Harry Potter LARP.
Fan Susan Stewart died in August. Stewart was a member of the Des Moines Science Fiction & Fantasy Society and a frequent attendee of DemiCon.
Fan Rick Lancaster died in August. Lancaster was a member of the Des Moines Science Fiction & Fantasy Society and a frequent attendee of DemiCon.
Artist Dan Green (b.1952) died on August 19. Green worked as an inker on Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, Wolverine, and Justice League of America, among other comics. He also co-wrote and illustrated Doctor Strange: Into Shamballa.
Author Valery Gayevsky (b.1960) died on August 21. Gayevsky was an active fan and wrote Who’s Who in Crimean SF and Encyclopedia of Crimean SF.
Fan Edward G. Hutnik (b.1956) died on August 25. Hutnik was active in Medieval recreations, filk, and ran a used book table in the dealers room of many New England conventions.
Marilyn Lovell (b.1930) died on August 27. Lovell was the wife of astronaut James Lovell, who flew on Gemini 7 and 12 and Apollo 8 and 13.
Author Brent Monahan (b.1948) died on August 31. Monahan’s novels include The Blood of the Covenant, The Uprising, and The Jekyl Island Club. He also edited the anthology High-Speed Shudder. His novel, The Bell Witch, was the basis for the film An American Haunting.
Game designer Keith Polster (b.1957) died on August 31. Polster worked as a freelancer for TSR on RPGA and Living Greyhawk and later for Wizards of the Coast. He wrote adventures for D&D, Boot Hill, and Gangbusters.
Author Michael D. Toman (b.1949) died in the last week of August. Toman published seven short stories, beginning with “Shards of Divinity” in 1974 and ending with “A Winter Memory” in 1991. He also published Science Fiction Bibliography in 1975 and worked as a librarian.
Bookseller Neal Sofman (b.1948) died on September 6. Sofman ran A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books and Bookshop West Portal in San Francisco, which hosted the reading series SF in SF.
Anime creator Buichi Terasawa (b.1955) died on September 8. Terasawa created Space Adventure Cobra, Goku Midnight Eye, and various spin offs.
Author D.G. Finlay (b.Dione Venables, 1930) died on September 12. Finlay began publishing in 1978 with Once Around the Sun and also published the four-volume Watchman series. In 2011, she founded The Orwell Society.
Fan Gil Bavel (b.1968) died on September 14. Bavel published the zine Cyberspud and was working on editing a science fiction anthology, Clash of the Titles.
Author Echo Brown (b.1984) died on September 16. Brown wrote the YA novel Black Girl Unlimited: The Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard.
Fan Helena Binns (b.Margaret Duce, 1941) died on September 18. Binns joined the Melbourne Science Fiction Club in the 1950s and became a lifetime member. She created artwork for many fanzines. She was the official photographer for Aussiecon I and later married Mervyn Binns. She was also a lifetime member of Continuum.
Comic artist Joe Matt (b.1963) died on September 18. Matt created the autobiographical comic Peepshow, which was nominated for multiple Harvey Awards.
Artist Gherman Mazurin (b.1932) died on September 18. Mazurin’s work appeared in many children’s fantasies. He illustrated and designed nearly 300 books and is was named an honored artist of the RSFSR.
Author Allan Asherman (b.1947) died on September 24. Asherman was an authority on the television series The Adventures of Superman and has written numerous books looking at Star Trek, Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, and Science Fiction Theatre.
Fan Bernie Evans (b.) died on September 27. Evans chaired Novacon in 1987 and 1990 and received the Doc Weir Award in 1995. She published the fanzines It Must Be the Sixties—Bernie’s Pregnant!and The Tudor Dynasty.
Fan Douglas E. Berry (b.1966) died on September 30. Berry wrote the GURPS Traveller: Ground Forces supplement as well as other Traveller properties. He ran Traveller’s Aid Society parties at Bay area SF cons.
Author Alexei Birger (b.1960) died on September 30. Birger wrote the novels Po tu storom volkov and Chapaev i pustota and translated Dune and Dracula into Russian.
Fan Inge Carlèn (b.1975) died on September 30. Carlen began running cons in Norway in the 1990s and founded Hyperion, a fannish youth organization promoting gaming, LARP, and fandom.
Author Eve Bunting (b.1928) died on October 1. Bunting wrote Ghost of Summer, The Cloverdale Switch, and Lambkins. Her first book was The Two Giants and she won an Edgar Award for Coffin on a Case.
Author Michael F. Flynn (b.1947) died on October 1. Flynn was the author of the Firestar and Spiral Arm series and co-wrote Fallen Angels with Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. He won the Sidewise Award for the short story “Quaestiones Super Caelo et Mundo,” won two Prometheus Awards, the Locus, Sturgeon, and Compton Crook Stephen Tall Memorial Awards, and several Anlab polls.
Fan David Glenn Anderson (b.1938) died on October 5. Anderson was active in CONduit and Reading for the Future. He staffed multiple Worldcons.
Fan Greg Cronau (b.1959) died the weekend of October 8. Cronau was active in the Stilyagi Air Corps and chaired Transcendental ConFusion in 1993.
Comic artist Keith Giffen (b.1952) died on October 9. Giffen worked on Legion of Subsittute Heroes¸ Justice League International, and man other titles for DC, Marvel, Valiant, and Image Comics. He co-created Rocket Raccoon and the Jaime Reyes version of the Blue Beetle.
Author Jan Needle (b.1943) died on October 9. Needle wrote the novel The Devil’s Laughter and Wild Wood, which was an adaptation of The Wind in the Willows. He also reworked Dracula for young readers.
Publisher Tim Underwood (b.1948) died on October 11. Underwood was a cofounder of Underwood-Miller. With Chuck Miller, he published several books, beginning with a reprint of Jack Vance’s The Dying Earth before disbanding the company in 1994. Their final project was another reissue of The Dying Earth. They also published works by L. Sprague de Camp, Harlan Ellison, and Philip K. Dick.
Actor Rock Brynner (b.1946) died on October 13. The son of Yul Brynner, he occasionally acted and played in a band. He also wrote the science fiction novel The Doomsday Report.
Author Louise Glück (b.1943) died on October 13. Glück’s poetry includes “Gretel in Darkness” and “Circe’s Power.” In 2020, he received the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Author Bertil Falk (b.1933) died on October 14. Falk wrote the Gardner Varinsson Saga of short stories as well as “Tripp I rymden,” “A Twist in the Universe,” and “”Beyond Journey’s End.” He served as editor of Jules Verne-magasinet and DAST-Magazine and also wrote under the pseudonyms B.G.E. Hawkinsand Hans Møller.
Fan Marinda Darnell (b.1980) died on October 16. Darnell was active in Chicago fandom, chairing Capricon 36 and serving Phandemonium in various capacities over the years. Darnell was also active in running Barfleet at numerous cons.
Fan Lena Bredin (b.1963) died on October 22. Bredin was a Swedish science fiction fan and convention attendee.
Author S.R. Cronin (b.1954) died on October 23. Cronin is the author of the “War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters” series, as well as the 46. Ascending books.
Translator Hiroaki Ike (b.1940) died on October 27. Ike began working in the film industry before turning to translation. He translated the novelization of E.T. into Japanese and later translated works by Carl Sagan and James P. Hogan.
Fan Diana Fish (b.1959) died on October 30. Fish was one of the founding members of Arisia. Born Diana Glass, she was married to fan and fellow Arisia founder Tom Fish.
Fan Nick Faller (b.1943) died on October 31. Faller was active in GT and was an avid book collector.
Astronaut Thomas Kenneth Mattingly II (b.1936) died on October 31. Mattingly was originally scheduled to be the Command Module Pilot of Apollo 13, but was bounced. He later was CMP of Apollo 16 and flew on two space shuttle missions.
Fan Kim Holec (b.1955) died on November 1. Holec ran the costuming track at Atlanta’s Time Gate (now Wholanta) and was active in the SCA as :adu Deordre ferch Corwen d’Arcy. She was also active in the University of Georgia Science Fiction Appreciation Club.
Author Ann Schlee (b.1934) died on November 1. Schlee wrote the young adult genre novel The Vandal, which won the Guardian Prize and was a runner up for the Carnegie Medal.
Fan Piotr Rak (b.1962) died on November 2. Rak, who was also known as Raku, edited fanzines and was a founding member of the Silesian Fantasy Club. He was also active in OKMFiSF. A frequent con attendee, he was known as the Czech Connector and won a Eurocon Special Achievement Award in 1993..
Astronaut Frank Borman (b.1928) died on November 7. Borman served as commander on Gemini 7 and Apollo 8, the first mission to fly to the moon. He also served on the review board for the Apollo 1 fire and later served as CEO for Eastern Airlines.
Author Andrey Galperin (b.1974) died on November 7. Galperin wrote the fantasy duology The Books of Laora, made up of The Sword of Power and The Sword of Fear.
Cosmonaut Valentina Ponomaryova (b.1933) died on November 8. A member of the first cosmonaut group of women, Ponomaryova was scheduled to fly on Vostok 5 but was grounded after her answers at an interview were deemed non-standard.
Fan John Matthews died in early November. Matthews, who was also known as DJ Brick, has been working as a DJ at conventions in Michigan for several years.
Author D.G. Compton (b.1930) died on November 10. Compton was the author of The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe, which was filmed as Deathwatch, Steel Crocodile, Synthajoy and other novels. He was named SFWA Author Emeritus in 2007 and received the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award in 2021.
Author L.H. Maynard (b.1953) died on November 11. Maynard was the co-author of the Department 18 series and several stand-alone novles with M.P.N. Sims, writing under the pseudonym Maynard Sims.
Author Michael Bishop (b.1945) died on November 13. Bishop was a two-time Nebula winner, including for the novel No Enemy But Time. His other novels included Brittle Innings, Ancient of Days, and The Secret Ascension.
Author A.S. Byatt (b.1936) died on November 16. Byatt occasionally wrote works of genre interest, including the Booker Prize winning Possession: A Romance and Ragnarok: The End of the Gods. Byatt won the Mythopoeic Award for The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye.
Fan Mike Wathen (b.1948) died on November 16. Wathen was active in the British Fantasy Society in the 1980s and served as co-Vice President from 1985-9. With his wife, Di, he chaired Fantasycons XIV and XV.
Author Oleksandr Menshov (b.1977) died on November 17. Menshov published the novels Third Tertia, Reprints of the Unfinished Drafts, and Verification of the Eternity. A Junior Sergeant, he was killed during a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Author Bill Ellern (b.1933) died on November 18. Ellern published Moon Prospector, New Lensman, and Triplanetary Agent as sequels to E.E. Smith’s Lensman series with Smith’s permission. He was active in LASFS, including sitting on the club’s board of directors, and worked for JPL, and various aerospace companies.
Author Weston Ochse (b.1965) died on November 18. Ochse won the Stoker Award for his novel Scarecrow Gods. Other novels included Bone Chase, Red Unicorn, and Ghost Heart, the last written with his wife, Yvonne Navarro. Ochse also wrote for DC Comics and IDW Publishing.
Author Herbert Gold (b.1924) died on November 19. While most of Gold’s work was mainstream, he occasionally wrote short fiction of genre interest, including “They Day They Got Boston,” “The Psychodynamist” and “Sleepers, Awake!”
Author Nina Katerli (b.1934) died on November 20. Katerli wrote Monster, Chervets, and Kostylyov. She occasionally wrote with her daughter. In addition to writing, she fought for human rights in the Soviet Union and, later, Russia.
Author Gabe Hudson (b.1971) died on November 23. Judson wrote the YA novel Gork, the Teenage Dragon and was the host of the Kurt Vonnegut Radio podcast. He was also the author of Dear Mr. President.
Author Aritsune Toyota (b.1938) died on November 28. Toyota began publishing in 1963 with “Kasei no Saigo no…” and shortly after began working on the anime Astro Boy, as well as Uchū Shōnen Soran using the name Kōichi Ichihara. He turned to writing prose fiction, including the novel Mongol no Zankō, as well as translating works from English into Japanese.
Fan Charlie Bernstein died in late November. Bernstein was active in Madison, Wisconsin fandom and helped run the Cow Asylum parties.
Author Jim Hosek (b.1964) died on December 3 following a lengthy illness. Hosek published the story “Total Loss” in Analog and served as SFWA as the Nebula Administrator for several years. His novel, A Really Good Day is a non-genre sports novel. In 2024, he was posthumously award the Kevin O’Donnell, Jr. Service to SFWA Award.
Fuzzy Pink Niven (b.Marilyn Wisowaty, 1940) died on December 3. Niven was active in MITSFS in college and ran art shows at numerous conventions and served as mentor to many con runners. She met Larry Niven at the 1967 Worldcon and they married two years later. She won the Evans-Freehafer Award for service to LASFS in 1982. She was also active in SCIFI and NESFA.
Author Mark Samuels (b.1967) died on December 3. Samuels was the author of the novel Witch-Cult Abbey and his short fiction was collected in seven collections. He co-edited the magazine Sacrum Regnum with Daniel Corrick.
Comic book historian Roger Hill (b.1948) died on December 6. Hill was a primary contributor to Squa Tront from its inception in 1967 until 2012. He also published EC Fan-Addict Fanzine from 2004 until his death.
Translator Gunnar Gällmo (b.1946) died on December 8. Gällmo translated works by Philip K. Dick, Ursula K. Le Guin, Clifford D. Simak, Robert Heinlein, and more into Swedish.
Author David Drake (b.1945) died on December 10. Drake was the author of the Hammer’s Slammers sf series and the Lord of the Isles fantasy series, among others. He co-wrote series with Eric Flint, S.M. Stirling, Janet Morris and other authors and edited several original and reprint anthologies. Drake won a Non-Professional World Fantasy Award for Carcosa House and the Phoenix Award.
Artist Ian Gibson (b.1946) died on December 11. Gibson’s work appeared in 2000 AD, Robo-Hunter, and Mister Miracle. Gibson recently self-published the first issue of Lifeboat. In addition, he wrote articles for Den of Geek.
Author Vladimir Mitypov (b.1940) died on December 11. Mitypov wrote the novel Earth’s Green Madness along with four additional novels.
Publisher Lee Harris (b.1936) died on December 14. Harris published Brainstorm Comix in the 1970s and was active in London’s countercultural and musical scene.
Author Dan Greenburg (b.1936) died on December 18. Greenburg focused ont eh YA market, writing books in the Weird Planet series, the Secrets of Dripping Fang series, and the Maximum Boy series.
Author K.M. Peyton (b.1929) died on December 19. Best known for the Flambard series, Peyton wrote A Pattern of Roses and Unquiet Spirits. She also wrote some genre short fiction.
Fan Bob Granstaff died on December 20. Known as Dancing Bob, he was active in Chicago fandom, attending Windycons, Capricons, Duckons, and Chicons.
Fan Tom Barnes died the third week of December. Barnes worked on Glasgow 2024 in the member and staff services division. He was active in the Wharf Rats and was a regular Worldcon, SMOFcon, and Eastercon attendee.
Translator Olexandr Mokrovolsky (b.1945) died on December 22. Mokrovolsky translated the works of Neil Gaiman, J.R.R. Tolkien, Richard Adams, and Brian Aldiss into Ukrainian.
Fan Eva Hauser (b.Eva Hauserová, 1954) died on December 23. Hauser served as the 1992 GUFF winner, traveling from Czechoslovakia to Sydney for Syncon ’92. Hauser published the fanzine Wild Sharkaaah and was an editor of Ikarie.
Fan Tom Jones died on December 23. Jones edited the fanzines Proteus, Waif, and BSFA Newsletter. He served as the BSFA vice-chair from 1977-9.
Editor Natalia Vitko (b.1977) died on December 23. Vitko worked for several Russian publishing companies and served as the organizer of the St. Petersburg Fantastic Assembly, a convention for science fiction reviewers.
Publisher Nikolay Yutanov (b.1959) died on December 23. An astronomer, Yutanov wrote the novella The Path of Deception and the novel The Werewolf. In 1990, he founding publishing house Terra Fantastica. He also organized the Congress of Russian SF Writers.
Editor Sam Bellotto, Jr. (b.1946) died on December 24. Along with Eric Jones, Bellotto founded the club zine Seldon Seen, which was retitled Perihelion from 1967-1969. He revived it from 2012-2018. He also published fiction in both Perihelion and other magazines and anthologies.
Author Richard Bowes (b.1944) died on December 24. Bowes was the author of Warchild. He won the World Fantasy Award for the novellas “Streetcar Dreams” and “If Angels Fight” and the Lambda Award for Minions of the Moon.
Fan Matt Dale (b.1980) died on December 25. Dale was active in both Doctor Who and Quantum Leap fandoms and was a host of the Quantum Leap Podcast. He was also the author of Beyond the Mirror Image: The Observer’s Guide to Quantum Leap.
Fan Scott Viguié (b.1971) died on December 27. Viguié hosted the show Doctor Geek’s Laboratory and has appeared as the character at many conventions.
Artist Frank E. Strom (b.1964) died on December 28. Strom worked for Marvel comics on Captain Marvel and VR Troopers. He worked on Scooby Doo! for DC Comics as well as Archie, Elvira, and Looney Tunes.
Comic artist John M. Burns (b.1938) died on December 29. Burn worked on tie in comics for Doctor Who, Space: 1999, and The Bionic Woman. In addition, he worked on 2000 AD and Judge Dredd.
Author and artist Ed Young (b.1931) died on December 29. Young wrote and illustrated several children’s books, including cover art for The Emperor and the Kite, The Girl Who Loved the Wind, and The Seventh Mandarin.
Game designer Bryan Charles Ansell (b.1955) died on December 30. Ansell was the counder of Citadel Miniatures, whcich merged with Games Workshop. He later ran the GW Design studio. He also co-designed Warhammer Battle.
Bookseller Patrick Heffernan (b.1966) died in December. Heffernan spent more than 30 years working for Mysterious Galaxy. He was also the founder and owner of Everythingaboutbooks.com, selling collectible books and handmade slipcases.
In Memoriam – 2024
Fan Colin Cowie died on January 1. Cowie was one of the founders of the Hammer International Fan Club and the Hammer fan convention.
Author Jack O’Connell (b.1959) died on January 1. O’Connell was the author of The Skin Palace, Word Made Flesh, and The Resurrectionist, the last of which won the Prix Imaginaire. His short story “Legerdemain” was a World Fantasy finalist.
Author David J. Skal (b.1952) was struck by a car on January 1. Skal was the author of Scavengers, When We Were Good, and Antibodies, as well as several non-fiction books about horror films. He won three Ruthven Awards.
Author Brian Lumley (b.1937) died on January 2. Lumley was known for his Titus Crow and Necroscope series as well as novels which used Lovecraft’s Cthulhu mythos. He won the British Fantasy Award for the short story “Fruiting Bodies” and received lifetime Achievement Awards from the Stokers and World Fantasy Awards and was named a World Horror Grandmaster.
Fan Paul Bucciarelli (1961) died on January 3. Bucciarelli was a fan artist who was active in the PIttsburgh Comix Club and the Western Pennsylvania SF Association in the late ’70s and early ’80s. He worked in films as a set dresser on The Dark Knight Rises, The Stand, Creepshow and Dogma.
Publisher Richard Matthews (b.1944) died on January 3. Matthews worked for University of Tampa Press and published studies of various authors, including J.R.R. Tolkien, William Morris, and Brian Aldiss. He was also the author of Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination.
Fan and critic Michael Walsh (b.1945) died on January 3. Walsh worked as an entertainment reporter in Vancouver and reported on, and attended many VCONs. He was also active in the SCA as Michel le voyageur.
Author Fred Chappell (b.1936) died on January 4. Chappell was the author of the novels Dagon and I Am One of You Forever. He won two World Fantasy Awards for his stories “The Lodger” and “The Somewhere Doors.”
Fan Darrah Chavey (b.1954) died on January 6. Chavey was a member of the Beloit Science Fiction and Fantasy Association for many years and was active in running Wiscon.
Editor Emanuel Lottem (b.1944) died on January 7. Lottem began working as a translator in 1976. He translated Dune, The Lord of the Rings, Ringworld, and other novels into Hebrew. He was also the editor of the magazine Fantasia 2000 and helped establish the Israeli Society of Science Fiction and Fantasy. He co-edited the anthology Zion’s Fiction with Sheldon Teitelbaum.
Author Mark Kharitonov (b.1937) died on January 8. His children’s fantasies included the novels Uchitel vraniya and Prazdnik neozhidannostey. In addition to his own work, Kharitonov translated many English novels into Russian.
Academic Stan Mattson (b.1937) died on January 9. Mattson founded the C.S. Lewis Foundation in 1986 and served as its president until 2020.
Author Terry Bisson (b.1942) died on January 10. Bisson won the Hugo, Sturgeon, and Nebula Award for his short story “Bears Discover Fire” and a second Nebula for “macs.” In 1993, he won the Phoenix Award. His novels included Fire on the Mountain, Voyage to the Red Planet, and The Pickup Artist.
Artist Jennell Jaquays (b.1956) died on January 10. Jaquays began The Dungeoneer, one of the first RPG fanzines and later created artwork for TSR, Chaosium, Judges Guild, ICE, and GDW. She also did extensive work in the video game industry.
Author Nikolay Romanestskiy (b.1953) died on January 10. Romanestskiy was the editor of Polden magazine and wrote nearly thirty novels. In addition, he translated works from English into Russian.
Author Sergey Sukhinov (b.1950) died on January 10. Sukhinov wrote nineteen volumes in The Emerald City series, a sequel series to Alexander Volkov’s Magic Land series, which was an imitation of Baum’s Oz.
Author Martin Gately (b.1966) died on January 12. Gately published several short stories, which were collected in The New Exploits of Joseph Rouletabille and Exquisite Pandora and Other Fantastic Adventures. His writing also appeared in The Fortean Times.
Fan Klaus Johansen died on January 14. Johansen was a Danish fan active in that country’s fanzine community during the 1970s and 80s.
Author Tom Purdom (b.1936) died on January 14. His novels included I Want the Stars, Five Against Arlane, and The Barons of Behavior. He wrote numerous short stories and When I Was Writing, a literary memoir.
Author Howard Waldrop (b.1946) died on January 14. Waldrop mostly wrote short fiction and was best known for the World Fantasy and Nebula Award winning “Ugly Chickens” and “Night of the Cooters.” He also received a World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Fan Peter Fagan (b.1956) died on January 15. Fagan was active in Melbourne and Canberra science fiction clubs and was part of the Nova Mob. He attended multiple Worldcons.
Fan Roger Perkins died on the night of January 15/16. Perkins was part of the City Illiterates. He began attending conventions with the 1972 Eastercon and worked on the 1987 and 89 Eastercons. He served as treasurer for all four BECCONs. In 1990, He received the Doc Weir Award.
Comics editor Richard Ashford died on January 17. Ashford worked as a scriptwriter and editor on Conan the Barbarian, Excalibur, Infinity Watch, and Iron Man. Ashford also edited Speakeasy magazine.
Fan Tony Benoun (b.1957) died on January 18. Benoun was one of the founders of Gallifrey One and was long active in the Time Meddlers of Los Angeles and LASFS. He worked many conventions, including Creation Cons.
Fan Joan Bledig died on January 18. Bledig was active in Edgar Rice Burroughs fandom, chairing the Burroughs Bibliophiles from 2014-22. She received a lifetime achievement award from the Burroughs Bibliophiles in 1994 and an ERB Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.
Costumer William Bear Reed (b.1957) died on January 22 from a massive brain hemorrhage. Reed was a frequent con attendee and a master costumer and could often be found sporting a Klingon costume.
Fan Reece Morehead (b.1945) died on January 23. Morehead was active in the Middle Tennessee Science Fiction Society and worked as a librarian at the Nashville Public Library.
Author Theodore Krulik died on January 25. Krulik is best known for his non fiction books Roger Zelazny and The Complete Amber Sourcebook. He also wrote the novel World Shaper.
Fan Matthew Pavletich (b.1965) died on January 26. Pavletich was active in New Zealand fandom and, along with his wife, Maree, was the FFANZ delegate in 2004 to Australia, although he was unable to make the trip.
Author Carlos Buiza (b.1940) died on January 27. Buiza was the author of the short stories “Asfalto” and “Historia del pastor y sus ovejas.” His work was collected in Un mundo sin luz.
Author Alev Alath (b.1944) died on February 2. Alath’s work included the novels Kabus and Rüya. Schödinger Cat. She also wrote numerous novels and non-fiction books which were not genre-related.
Author Christopher Priest (b.1943) died on February 2. Priest was the author of The Separation, The Glamour, and The Inverted World, He won the World Fantasy and the James Tait Black Memorial Awards for The Prestige. Priest was the GoH at Interaction the 2005 Worldcon.
Comics artist José Dembo (b.1933) died on February 5. Dembo drew Wonder Woman for DC and The Transformers for Marvel. He co-created the characters the Lumberjack for Wonder Woman. In 2013, he received the Inkpot Award.
Fan Gary Swaty (b.1942) died in mid-February. Swaty chaired HexaCon 16 and CopperCon 28 and also worked on Westercons, LepreCons, World Fantasy, and World Horror Cons, and more. He also sponsored filk GoHs at CoKoCon. He searched on the boards of LepreCon, CASFS and WesternSFA.
Comic author Paul Neary (b.1949) died on February 10. Neary worked for Marvel UK, including working on Uncanny X-Men and Captain Britain. In 1989, he won the Eisner Award for Excalibur and has also worked on Doctor Who, The Ultimates, and many other titles.
Comic artist Enrique Badía Romero (b.1930) died on February 15. Romero drew Modesty Blaise and also worked contributed work to Judge Dredd Magazine and 2000 AD. He co-created the post-apocalyptic comic AXA.
Fan Mark Merlino (b.1952) died on February 20. Merlino was one of the founders of furry fandom, creating the first furry BBS in 1982 and hosting the first furry room parties in 1985. He co-founded ConFurence and was guest of honor at Eurofurence 7 and Morphicon.
Author Steve Miller (b.1950) died on February 20. Miller began publishing short stories in 1976, but his career really took off after marrying Sharon Lee, with whom he wrote most of his work after 1984. The two were best known for their Liaden Universe series of novels and short stories. Along with Lee, Miller won the Skylark Award in 2012.
Author Alan Brownjohn (b.1931) died on February 23. Brownjohn was the author of The Way You Tell Them and Enjoyment as well as the short story “A Contest in Crime.” He was primarily a poet.
Playwright Bernard Kops (b.1926) died on February 24. Kops wrote several biographical plays, including the radio play Monster Man about King Kong creator Willis O’Brien. He also wrote the time-travel novel The Odyssey of Samuel Glass.
Comic artist Ramona Fradon (b.1926) died on February 24. Fradon worked for DC on Shining Knight and Aquaman, co-creating Aqualad. She later co-created Metamorpho and worked on The Brave and the Bold. Eventually she took up the Brenda Starr, Girl Reporter comic strip.
Author Brian M. Stableford (b.1948) died on February 24. Stableford is the author of the Biotech Revolution series, the Asgard series, and the Daedalus Mission series, among others. He won the Pilgrim Award and a special Science Fiction & Fantasy Translation Award. In addition to his own writing, he edited several anthologies.
Astronaut Richard H. Truly (b.1937) died on February 27. Truly flew on the Approach and Landing Tests for the Enterprise and on STS-2. He also commanded STS-8. Truly later went on to serve as NASA Administrator. He was the first person to launch into space on his birthday.
Author Jaime Lee Moyer died in the second half of February. Moyer was the author of Divine Heretic, Brightfall, and the Delia Martin series her novel A Parliament of Queens was released in February. Moyer was also a poet and edited the 2010 Rhysling anthology.
Comic author Akira Toriyama (b.1955) died on March 1. Toriyama created the manga and anime franchise Dragon Ball Z. Prior to creating Dragon Ball Z, he worked on Dr Slump. He also designed the characters for the video game Dragon Quest.
Author Jin Tao (b.1940) died on March 4. Jin wrote the Adventures of Ma Xiaoha series, Moonlight Island, and Operation Typhoon. In addition to writing science fiction, he also worked as a journalist.
Fan Jon Stopa (b.1935) died on March 4. Stopa was active in Chicago fandom and was the co-founder, with wife Joni, of Wilcon. He helped bid for several Chicago Worldcons and published a handful of short stories.
Fan Michael Langford (b.1954) died on March 5. Langford was a frequent attendee and performer at DragonCon. He was the creator of Professor Satyre’s Sci-Fried Sideshow and co-hosted the subGenius radio show Bob’s Slacktime Funhouse.
Fan Patti Bond (b.1968) died on March 6. Bond served as the chair of Toronto Trek/Polaris four times. She was also active on the committees for Ad Astra and the 2006 Gaylaxicon.
Fan Dick Jenssen (b.1935) died on March 7. Jenssen, who also went by the name Ditmar, joined fandom in 1952 as a founder of the Melbourne Science Fiction Club. He was a member of Amateur Fantasy Publications of Australia. The Australian SF Achievement Awards are named in his honor and he was twice a recipient for his fan art.
Fan Peter Smith died on March 8. Smith, who went by the fannish name Smudge, began attending cons with the 2002 Discworld convention and quickly became an integral part of tech teams. In 2012, Smudge received the Doc Weir Award.
Author Viktor Benkovsky (b.1959) died on March 9. Benkovsky co-wrote Anachron with Elena Khayetskaya. He also translated works by Philip K. Dick and Norman Spinrad into Russian.
Filker Rilla Heslin (b.1952) died on March 10. Heslin performed with the group Windbourne at conventions throughout North America. She co-wrote “Safe Harbor” and “Elfwood.” Her solo songs included “And the Children Shall Lead” and “Winds of Time.”
Artist Max Fellwalker (b.1966) died on March 14. Fellwalker worked on comics for DC and Eclipse and for gaming companies White Wolf, Wizards of the Coast, and Fantasoft.
Author Kirk Dougal (b.1966) died on March 18. Dougal was the author of the “Tale of Bone and Steel” and “Fallen Angel” series. He co-edited two anthologies with Michele Acker.
Author Adrienne Gormley (b.1948) died on March 18. Gormley published the story “Children of Tears” in 1996 in the anthology Alternate Tyrants. Her most recent story was “Nobodies,” published in 2005. Her story “Custer’s Angel” received an honorable mention for the SLF Fountain Award.
Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford (b.1930) died on March 18. Stafford served as pilot on the Gemini 6A and commanded Gemini 9A, Apollo 10, and the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. He was the first general to fly in space.
Game designer James M. Ward (b.1951) died on March 18. Ward designed Metamorphosis Alpha, the first SF RPG. His Gods, Demi-Gods & Heroes was one of the first D&D expansions. He co-authored Deities & Demigods and Gamma World. After leaving TSR, he designed the Dragon Ball Z Collectible Card Game.
Author Medeu Sarseke (b.1936) died on March 20. In addition to his biographical writing, Sarseke wrote four science fiction novels and helped pioneer the genre in Kazakhstan.
Author Vernor Vinge (b.1944) died on March 20. Vinge began publishing in 1965 with the story “Apartness.” He went on to win the Hugo Award five times, for the novels A Fire Upon the Deep, A Deepness in the Sky, and Rainbows End, and the novellas “Fast Times at Fairmont High” and “The Cookie Monster.” He also won the Prometheus Award for Lifetime Achievement and the Robert A. Heinlein Award. In 2002, he was the Guest of Honor at ConJosé, the 60th Worldcon.
Author Alek Popov (b.1966) died on March 22. Popov wrote the sf parody Planetata na kauboite using the pseudonym Bad Alex. His other novels included Mission London and The Black Box.
Fan Deb Geisler (b.1957) died on March 23. Geisler entered fandom in the 1980s and became active in NESFA and MCFI. She chaired Boskone 36 in 1999 and the bids for Orlando in 2001 and Boston in 2004, eventually chairing Noreascon 4 in 2004. She was named a Fellow of NESFA in 1999.
Author Hiroshi Yamamoto (b.1956) died on March 26. Yamamato began writing for fanzine sin 1976 and made his first professional sale in 1978. He was a founder of Syntax Error, an RPG collective. In addition to helping establish gaming and creating RPGs, he wrote the series Ghost Hunter, Sara no Bōken, and Galaxy Tripper Miha.
Comic historian Bob Beerbohm (b.1952) died on March 27. Beerbohm owned multiple San Francisco area comic stores since the 1970s. He was one of the first to sell original comic book art. He was at work on a history called Comic Book Store Wars and published a short work with the same title in 1994.
Comic artist Mark D. Bright (b.1955) died on March 27. Bright worked on Iron Man and Green Lantern. He co-created Quantum and Woody with comic book writer Christopher Priest. Bright was occasionally credited as Doc Bright, due to his initials.
Fan Tom Digby (b.1940) died on March 27. Digby joined fandom in 1965 and was active in LASFS. He was nominated for the Best Fan Writer Hugo in 1971 and 1972 and published the apazines Probably Something and Silicon Soapware. In 1993, he was a Fan Guest of Honor at ConFrancisco, the 1993 Worldcon.
Author James Moore (b.1965) died on March 27. Moore wrote the novels Hell-Storm, Aliens: Sea of Sorrows, and City of Wonders. In 2020, his anthology The Twisted Book of Shadows, co-edited with Christopher Golden, won the Shirley Jackson Award.
Author Ma Shitu (b.1915) died on March 28. Ma wrote the founding editorial for Science Literature and Art (now Science Fiction World) and served as president of the Sichuan Writers Association.
Author Karen Wester Newton (b.1952 ) died on March 31. Newton, who published as Carmen Webster Buxton, wrote the Wakanreo series, the Haven series, and the Threecon series. Her novels included King of Trees, Where Magic Rules, and The North Edge of Nowhere. She also wrote romance novels.
Author and editor Martin Bax (b.1933) died in March. Bax co-founded the literary journal Ambit and wrote the science fiction novel The Hospital Ship.
Author John Barth (b.1930) died on April 2. Known for his postmodernist and metafictional writing, his novels Giles Goat Boy and The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor were genre works. Barth also wrote several genre short stories.
Cartoonist Trina Robbins (b.1938) died on April 10. Robbins was part of the underground comix movement and active in science fiction fandom. She designed the costume for Vampirella and adapted Tanith Lee’s The Silver Metal Lover. In the 80s she worked on Wonder Woman and was inducted into the Eisner Hall of Fame in 2013. Her work also appeared in fanzines Habakkuk and Innuendo.
Comic book artist Jeffrey Veregge (b.1973) died on April 12. He worked for Marvel on Indigenous Voices, as well as for Boom, Dark Horse, IDW, Valiant, and DC. He viewed his work as an extension of his native American ancestry and traditions.
Fan Leah Rosenthal died on April 16. Rosenthall ran Ashton Press with Ann Wortham. Her art appeared in numerous ‘zines and she won multiple Fan Q Awards for her artwork.
Fan Caitlin Thomas died on April 17. Thomas was the daughter of editors Lynne and Michael Thomas and frequently accompanied them to conventions.
Fan John Trimble (b.1936) died on April 19. Trimble co-chaired Westercon 18 and chaired Westercon 23. He co-founded LASFS’s clubzine, De Profundis and edited many other zines and was a two Hugo fanzine nominee. In 2002, Trimble and his wife, Bjo, were Fan GoHs at ConJosé, that year’s Worldcon.
Fan Leane Verhulst (b.1969) died on April 20 after a battle with cancer. Verhulst worked on Capricon, holding the longtime position of TImelord, as well as on Worldcons and coordinating the Science Fiction Outreach Program. She could often be found running tours to introduce new attendees to conventions.
Translator Qi Zhong died in the first quarter of 2024. Qi translated Russian science fiction into Chinese beginning in the 1960s, including works by Dmitri Bilenkin, Andrii Vsevolofovich, and Sergei Lukyanenko.
Author Ray Garton (b.1962) died on April 21. Garton wrote the novels Live Girls, Seductions, and A Dark Place. His YA novels were written under the name Joseph Locke. Garton was named a World Horror Grand Master in 2006.
Author Travis Heermann died on April 26. Heerman wrote the Shinjuku Shadows novels and the Ronin trilogy. His standalone novels include Death Wind and The Hammer Falls. He also wrote, directed and produced the short film Demon for Hire.