Arthur C. Clarke

Arthur C. Clarke was a British author, inventor and futurist. He was born in the seaside town on Minehead in Somerset, England. In 1936, he became a member of the British Interplanetary Society (BIS). His first professional work in the sci-fi genre was a short story called "Loophole". The story was first published in Astounding Science Fiction magazine in April, 1946. Another Clark short story, "Rescue Party", was actually the first story sold to Astounding Science Fiction, but it was published in May of 1946, one month after "Loophole".

Clarke is best known for his work on the "Space Odyssey" series of science fiction novels beginning with the 1968 novel 2001: A Space Odyssey. The novel was written in combination with Clarke's contribution to the film adaptation of his story, 2001: A Space Odyssey, directed by Stanley Kubrick. Clarke followed this novel with 2010: Odyssey Two, published in 1982, then 2061: Odyssey Three, published in 1987 and finally 3001: The Final Odyssey, published in 1997.

Arthur C. Clarke emigrated to Sri Lanka in 1956, largely to pursue his interest in scuba diving, and lived there until his death. Clarke passed away from respiratory problems in the town of Colombo on March 19th, 2008

Notes & Trivia

 * Arthur C. Clarke was knighted by the British monarchy in 1998, and was awarded Sri Lanka's highest civil honour, Sri Lankabhimanya, in 2005.