Obituary: Mel Stuart
Director Mel Stuart (b.1928) died on August 9. Stuart’s sole genre credit was as the director of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Before directing that film, he won an Academy Award for Best Documentary.
Obituary: Carlo Rambaldi
Special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi (b.1925) died on August 10. Rambaldi won the Oscar for Best Special Effects for his work on King Kong in 1976, Alien in 1979, and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial in 1982. He created the title alien for E.T. Rambaldi also created creatures for Dune, Conan the Destroyer, and many other science fiction and fantasy films.
World Fantasy Award Nominations
The nominations for the World Fantasy Awards have been announced. The prizes will be presented at a banquet at World Fantasy Con, scheduled to be held in Toronto, Canada on November 4.
Novel:
- Those Across the River, by Christopher Buehlman
- 11/22/63, by Stephen King
- A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin
- Osama, by Lavie Tidhar
- Among Others, by Jo Walton
Novella:
- “Near Zennor,” by Elizabeth Hand
- “A Small Price to Pay for Birdsong,” by K.J. Parker
- “Alice Through the Plastic Sheet,” by Robert Shearman
- “Rose Street Attractors,” by Lucius Shepard
- Silently and Very Fast, by Catherynne M. Valente
Short Story:
- “X for Demetrious,” by Steve Duffy
- “Younger Women,” by Karen Joy Fowler
- “The Paper Menagerie,” by Ken Liu
- “A Journey of Only Two Paces,” by Tim Powers
- “The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees,” by E. Lily Yu
Anthology:
- Blood and Other Cravings, edited by Ellen Datlow
- A Book of Horrors, edited by Stephen Jones
- The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities, edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer
- The Weird, edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer
- Gutshot, edited by Conrad Williams
Collection:
- Bluegrass Symphony, by Lisa L. Hannett
- Two Worlds and In Between, by Caitlín R. Kiernan
- After the Apocalypse, by Maureen F. McHugh
- Mrs Midnight and Other Stories, by Reggie Oliver
- The Bible Repairman and Other Stories, by Tim Powers
Artist:
- John Coulthart
- Julie Dillon
- Jon Foster
- Kathleen Jennings
- John Picacio
Special Award Professional:
- John Joseph Adams, for editing – anthology and magazine
- Jo Fletcher, for editing – Jo Fletcher Books
- Eric Lane, for publishing in translation – Dedalus books
- Brett Alexander Savory & Sandra Kasturi, for ChiZine Publications
- Jeff VanderMeer & S.J. Chambers, for The Steampunk Bible
Special Award Non-Professional:
- Kate Baker, Neil Clarke, Cheryl Morgan & Sean Wallace, for Clarkesworld
- Cat Rambo, for Fantasy
- Raymond Russell & Rosalie Parker, for Tartarus Press
- Charles Tan, for Bibliophile Stalker blog
- Mark Valentine, for Wormwood
Lifetime Achievement winners:
- Alan Garner
- George R.R. Martin
Massive Liaden Universe Audio Release
Sharon Lee and Steve Miller’s Liaden Universe will release fifteen audio books in the Liaden Universe for download on September 4 to coincide with the hardcover publication of Dragon Ship. Kevin Collins and Bernadette Dunne will each narrate three books, Eileen Stevens will narrate four books, and Andy Caploe will narrate five books.
Obituary: Geoffrey Hughes
Actor Geoffrey Hughes (b.1944) died on July 27. Perhaps best known to British audiences for his role on Coronation Street, he portrayed “Mr. Popplewick” in the Doctor Who serial “The Trial of a Time Lord.” He also had guest spots on My Partner the Ghost and Polterguest and provided the voice of Paul McCartney in Yellow Submarine.
Obituary: Norman Alden
Actor Norman Alden (b.1924) died on July 27. Alden appeared in the films K-PAX, Back to the Future, and provided voices for The Transformers: The Movie. He also provided the voice of Aquaman on the animated series Super Friends. Other television roles included guest spots on Electra Woman and Dyna Girl, Batman, and My Favorite Martian.
Obituary: R. G. Armstrong
Actor R. G. Armstrong (b.1917) died on July 27. Armstrong had roles in the films Predator, The Time Machine, Children of the Corn, and Heaven Can Wait. He also appeared in episodes of several science fiction television shows, including Salvage 1, The Twilight Zone, Tales of the Unexpected, and Beauty and the Beast.
Obituary: Jonathan Hardy
New Zealand actor Jonathan Hardy (b.1940) died on July 30. Hardy provided the voice of Dominar Rygel XVI on Farscape and appeared in the film Death Warmed Over. Hardy appeared in episodes of the television shows Twisted Tales, Under the Mountain, and Mandog. He was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay for Breaker Morant.
Obituary: Chris Marker
French filmmaker Chris Marker (b.1921) died on July 29. Marker wrote and directed the French short La Jetée, which served as the basis for his later film The Twelve Monkeys. He also directed the animated short Les astronautes. He won the Prix Jean Vigo for La Jetée.
Obituary: Roland C. Wagner
French author Roland C. Wagner (b.1960) died in a car accident on August 5. Wagner began publishing in 1980 and has received the Prix Rosny-Aîné six times. Although most of his work has not been translated into English, his alternate history biography of H. P. Lovecraft, was translated as HPL (1890–1991).