

R.I.P. Harry Harrison, creator of the Stainless Steel Rat - uladzislau
http://io9.com/5934884/rip-harry-harrison-creator-of-the-stainless-steel-rat-bill-the-galactic-hero-and-soylent-green

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invalidOrTaken
Rest In Peace indeed. I loved these.

Great computer scientists aside, does _anyone_ enjoy as much acclaim from
hackers as classic (which can mean whatever you want it to mean) science
fiction authors? Society owes a lot to hackers and is starting to reward them
with stock options and IPO's, but I wonder if it realizes how much of a debt
hackers owe to SF authors.

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podperson
Sorry to hear it, but he at least had a good innings.

Odd that one of my favorite of his satirical novels, _Star Smashers of the
Galaxy Rangers_ (a spoof of E. E. Doc Smith's books, the _Skylark_ series in
particular) didn't get mentioned. _Bill the Galactic Hero_ is a spoof of
military SF, _Starship Troopers_ in particular.

The Stainless Steel Rat books would make good material for movies.

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itmag
My favorite Slippery Jim quote:

 _We must be as stealthy as rats in the wainscoting of their society. It was
easier in the old days, of course, and society had more rats when the rules
were looser, just as old wooden buildings have more rats than concrete
buildings. But there are rats in the building now as well. Now that society is
all ferrocrete and stainless steel there are fewer gaps in the joints. It
takes a very smart rat indeed to find these openings. Only a stainless steel
rat can be at home in this environment._

This, to me, describes the attitude of hustlers and hackers perfectly (albeit
a bit metaphorically).

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nodata
Harry Harrison's novel "Make Room! Make Room!" was the basis for the 1973
science fiction movie Soylent Green.

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tartuffe78
I too read the article.

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m0nty
A more in-depth obituary:

<http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/aug/15/harry-harrison>

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chris_wot
Oh what? I loved these novels! I found them thrilling yet hilarious. Some of
his other work was very provocative, a great SF author!

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sambeau
I'd like to put in a word for "A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah!" a superb piece
of speculative fiction and possibly the first Steampunk novel.

(also more boringly called "Tunnel Through the Deeps")

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnel_Through_the_Deeps>

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gadders
Boo. I first came across these in the 2000AD versions, and then read the
novels after.

[http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages...](http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/s/st/stainless_steel_rat_prog171_carlos_ezquerra.jpg)

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DavidAdams
Harry Harrison was the first author I was really obsessed with. By the time I
was 16, I'd read his entire body of work. I haven't read anything that he's
written in the past 15 years or so. I suppose I ought to find one of his newer
novels as a way to commemorate him. Any recommendations?

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MattSayar
Man, I remember reading his books non-stop. The cover image for this news
story is actually the first Harry Harrison book I read, "The Stainless Steel
Rat Gets Drafted."

I hope somebody picks up the rights to turn these into movies.

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moomin
For those of you who've already read SSRat, SSRat's Revenge, Star Smashers,
MRMR and the Deathworlds, try Rebel in Time. I was lucky enough to read this
in a version with a blank cover, since most versions can't resist giving the
plot away. It's also notable for having that rarest of things, an explicitly
black golden age sci-fi hero.

For that matter, they're still pretty rare.

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generalcalm
Oh, very sad to hear this... The Stainless Steel Rat books were a great love
of mine in school. Harrison is a great SF writer!

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SeanDav
One of my favourite SF authors. His Deathworld series is what got me started
in SF in the first place.

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Uhhrrr
I've just been re-reading the first one. Action-packed, full of fantastical
gizmos, and with just the right amount of snottiness. And yes, as is mentioned
elsewhere, a very hackerish attitude towards life, especially on the social
engineering front.

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simon
The Stainless Steel Rat series were a huge part of my teen years. I'll have to
buy the entire set (I guess it's definitive now) and make sure my daughters
read them.

Rest in peace Mr. Harrison.

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Zaephyr
I don't know how many times when reading his books I had to stop because I had
tears from laughing so hard.

