Now that he's dead can we release the hardback expanded version of The Crucible trilogy since he's no longer able to sue anybody
Crucible and Harlan Ellison
- Thread starter Chancellor M'rek
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His estate can still sue.
He was a dick .Go to YouTube and watch the Interview Tom Snyder did prior to Tmp. James Doohan was ready to punch him in the face.
And he died. A human being. And you dismiss and insult him on the day of his death. What does that make you?
Read this:
https://decandido.wordpress.com/2018/06/28/harlan-ellison-1934-2018/
What exactly was Ellison's problem with the additional material which was to have been included in the hardcover?
Probably used something from his precious script is my guess.
Ellison's lawsuit, which was settled, wasn't the reason for the cancellation of the Crucible hardcover. The economy tanking in 2008-2009 was the reason.
MANY Thanks for posting that.
I just watched the youtube video of the 'groping incident'. Should he have done it? No. Somehow, it didn't seem sexually motivated, though. Connie was being very touchy-feely with her arm. It was almost as if because of his stature or something she was treating him like a puppy or a toy. He may have had enough of it and what he did was a uniquely Harlan response. Just speculation, of course, because I don't know what was in his mind. But the whole thing seems unworthy of an uproar.
He fought, argued and sued for the idea that a writer should get credit and payment for their work. Can't really fault him for that. That sounds good to me.
I read somewhere he left instructions that all of his unpublished work was going to be destroyed by his wife. His work was his work and he didn't want someone else making it theirs.
As far as the work goes I think my favorites are:
Dangerous Visions was incredible. Again DV was really good but the first book is a very high bar. I bought my copy at the Smithsonian Institute book store on a school trip to DC.
The Glass Teat and The Other Glass Teat. Collections of his TV reviews and columns from the late 60's. I don't know how relevant it is now but if I were to re-read something it would be this.
"A Boy and His Dog" and "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream" - Two of the best last lines I've ever read in a story.
The original script for City. OK, I kinda think I'm on Roddenberry's side on this one. The original script was a 2 parter and seemed pretty expensive to film. And come on, a drug dealing crew member of the Enterprise, did he really think that was going to make it. Of course it was going to get changed. I liked this a lot but it just seemed like it was too far off from the other episodes.
Wouldn't his surviving heirs and/or holder of his estate honor his wishes for the time being and not release any posthumous works that he deemed unready or unworthy to publish?
An article in my newspaper stated today that he did leave instructions for his wife to destroy all his unfinished works. This was to avoid having them finished by some "literary grave robber" as he put it. So unless he has something completed and ready to be released, I don't think you'll see any more works by Ellison.
I read Christopher's link by DeCandido and I found it to be honest and to the heart. He doesn't sugar coat anything about him. Ellison sounds like a love-hate kind of guy. Some people loved him, some people hated him--some people loved and hated him at the same time, and he sounds like a guy that wouldn't give a crap what you thought about him. I too have heard the stories, mostly about how protective of his work he was. But at the end of the day they were his stories. Some writers are more flexible some, not so much. But that's their right.
It's amusing to read in DeCandido's article that some others have tried to emulate Ellison's personality, usually not to good results. Very few people can be like Ellison and get away with it.
I agree about "The City on the Edge of Forever". Original stories frequently get changes when put on TV or in movies. Probably one of the reasons he had a love-hate relationship with TV, considering his protectiveness in his works. But hopefully he took some pride that his story is considered by many to be one of the best, if not the best episode of the series.
Ellison was awesome in that interview while the Trek actors were mostly being fatuous and self-congratulatory. And Doohan, not an intimidating individual in any respect, would have known better than to throw down with him.
Ellison did not suffer fools gladly. Probably one reason he was not a big hit in Trek fandom, a subculture which - especially in the 70s and early 80s - flourished on the principle that, in order to pay their rents, out-of-work professional artists were willing to flatter and suck up to any self-absorbed nerd who bought an overpriced convention pass.
As writing, Ellison's versions of COTEOF were light years better than anything that Roddenberry's typewriter ever emitted and certainly vastly better than the produced version (which was itself the best hour in Trek history). As a TV script, yeah, Ellison's was probably unfilmable on Trek's budget.
As for the rights to his work...anyone who thinks potential access to a piece of licensed Trek merchandise is reason to celebrate this man's death might as well just cheer down.
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I clicked on this thread hoping to see some interesting discussion on how the Crucible trilogy expanded on Ellison's concepts from COTEOF, and instead I find... this.
This is fucking awful. Mere hours after his death is announced, you're wondering how people can go against his wishes and release a damn book? And you go out of your way to call him a dick? Pick your fucking moments, guy.
Mods, could we shut down this thread, please? Nothing good is going to come of this.
Well yeah...but it's just posting on a BBS. Nothing said on the Internet by any of Ellison's anonymous detractors matters at all, to anyone, or ever will.
Actually, it already did. If Christopher hadn't posted the link to Keith's remembrance, I might not have found out about it....or at least not as soon.
Somehow, I don't think Harlan would give a fuck about this thread being started in the way that it was.
I would also like to ask for a lock. As Tricky says, follow Christopher's link. I personally have always been grateful to have people like HE in the world, whether I liked him or not was always irrelevant.
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