Biography of Ray Bradbury

Stories of other worlds

August 22, 1920
June 5, 2012
Ray Douglas Bradbury was born on 22 August 1920 in Waukegan, Illinois, son of Esther, a Swedish immigrant, and Leonard, worker: his middle name, Douglas, it is given in honor of the actor Douglas Fairbanks. After a childhood serena, in 1926 Ray moves with the rest of the family in Tucson, Arizona; at age eleven he began to write his first stories. In 1934 the Bradbury moved to Los Angeles, with Leonard looking for work: family economic conditions are far from optimal. Eventually, however, the father of Ray manages to find work, and so the Bradbury decide to stay permanently in the city of angels, settling close to the Uptown Theater, on Western Avenue: this is the frame of reference of Fox and MGM, and Ray takes advantage of it every week to spy movies and trailers.

The first written

Meanwhile, Ray Bradbury has cultivated his passion for reading: at twelve years he devoted himself to the writing of his first horror storiesin an attempt to imitate one of his favorite authors, Edgar Allan Poe; you're passionate about, also, to the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Jules Verne. His efforts are rewarded: in 1946, in fact, Bradbury manages to publish "The outing of a million years." In 1947 marries Marguerite McClure, a girl two years younger than him (which will give him four daughters: Susan, Ramona, Bettina and Alexandra), and in 1950 he decides to collect his "Martian Chronicles" (original title: "The Martian Chronicles") in one volume, which allows him to get to success just thirty years.

In the history of world literature

Shortly after, writes the anthology "the game of the planets" and "destination ... Earth! " ("It Came from Outer Space"), but mainly "the stake", short novel published in "Galaxy Science Fiction" and which in 1953 is expanded becoming "Fahrenheit 451": a praise to reading and literature set in a fictional company and dystopian. This is the book that will consecrate Bradbury to fame, the story of perpetual rebels hiding in a forest to read and escape the fury of the authorities involved to burn all the books exist: a tale that does not hide a certain influence of the climate of the time with the American McCarthyism, between persecution and persecuted.

Gli anni ' 50

The 1950s are particularly prolific for Ray Bradbury: the 1953 dates from "the golden apples of the Sun" ("The Golden Apples of the Sun"), while two years later is "October Country" ("The October Country"). On 24 May 1956, reflecting the popularity, the American author appears in one episode (the thirty sixth season) of the famous quiz show "You Bet Your Life, hosted by Groucho Marx. In the same year, is responsible for writing the screenplay for "Moby Dick", film directed by John Huston and based on the novel by Herman Melville. Between 1957 and 1959, however, see the light "summer" ("Dandelion Wine") and the anthology "the end of the beginning" ("A Medicine for Melancholy").

Gli anni ' 60 and ' 70

In 1962 Bradbury writes "the people of autumn" ("Something Wicked This Way Comes") before turning to the anthologies "the machines of happiness" ("The Machineries of Joy") and "the body electric" ("I Sing the Body Electric!"). In 1972 are given to the press "the wonderful cream-coloured dress and other comedies" ("The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit and Other Plays") and "Halloween tree" ("The Halloween Tree"). After achieving "long after midnight" ("Long After Midnight"), in 1979 Bradbury completes the stage adaptation of "Fahrenheit 451."

Gli anni ' 80

Despite the passage of years, the American writer pen has always been productive: between 1983 and 1985 are published "Dinosaurs" ("Dinosaur Tales"), "34 short stories" and "death in Venice" ("Death is a Lonely Business"). In the second half of the 1980s, Bradbury gives prints "vintage murder", "Zen in the art of writing" ("Zen in the Art of Writing") and "time traveler" ("The Toynbee Convector"), before writing "the madness is a Crystal coffin" ("A Graveyard for Lunatics"). Afterwards, he devoted himself to "green shadows, white whale" ("Green shadows, White Whale") and "the flowers of Mars" ("Quicker than the Eye").

The last years of life

In 1999, the American author is the victim of a heart attack, from which you save but that forces him, since then, to navigate in a wheelchair. Despite this, Ray Bradbury goes on to write: "Ahmed and the oblivion machines" ("Ahmed and the Oblivion Machines"), "Returned from the dust" ("From the Dust Returned"), "Tangerine" ("One More for the Road") and "Constance contro tutti" ("Let's All Kill Constance"). After you have written "farewell to summer" ("Farewell Summer") and have been awarded by the sovereign of the Kingdom of Redonda with the title of Duke of Diente de León, in 2007 Ray Bradbury receives in France the honor of Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. In 2009 appears for the last time to a gathering of science fiction: since then, decides to retire from public life, aided by the inexorable passing of time. Despite having always prevented the digital publication of his works, in 2011 consents to the release of "Fahrenheit 451" in electronic format. Ray Bradbury dies in Los Angeles, in the villa where he had retired, on 5 June 2012, at the age of ninety-one years after his latest work: "now and forever" ("Now and Forever").

Curiosity

A month after the death of the writer, the August 6, 2012 landed on Mars, the rover Curiosity: a few days later, on 22 August, NASA scientists involved in the Mars Science Laboratory decided to name Bradbury Landing the Martian landing area.
Article contributed by the team of collaborators.