J Campbell Biography

Born: June 8, John Wood Campbell, Jr. Born in Newark, New Jersey. Father, John Campbell, an electrical engineer of the local branch of the Bell's telephone company, had a restrained and cold character, but his mother, Dorothy Campbell, on the contrary, is very tender and open, but with impulsive changeability and absurdity. Some influence on the boy was in the twin sister of his mother, who did not like little John, and therefore he often scared when he saw his mother, but in the most bad mood.

He always experienced certain doubts - who is in front of him, a kind ... mother or an evil aunt. So his childhood was not easy, but as every child he was interested in literature, science and theory of space flights since childhood. In the basement of his father’s house, he organized a simple chemical laboratory, repaired classmates with bicycles, and in the house all electrical appliances.

At the age of 18, he passes entrance exams at the Massachusetts Institute of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was very friendly with the young professor of mathematics Norbert Wiener, the future “godfather” of computer science. But in the city, then, with the help of his father’s financial support, he continued to study at the Physics Department of Duke University at the University of Duke University in Darham, North Carolina, having received a higher education and a bachelor's diploma in the field of nuclear physics.

I must say that Campbell was interested in nuclear energy all the next life by writing many articles on this subject and publishing the Scientific and popular book “Atomic Story” by The Atomic Story in New York. Having worked out very little by the commander, selling newspapers, used cars, fans and gas stoves, and a laboratory assistant in a chemical company, in the same year he completely switched to literary activity.

Fantastic John Campbell became interested in very early, and science fiction magazines began to buy in April when the very first issue of the very first of them-“Amazing Stories” by Hernsbek, went out of print. Two years later, he began to try to write his own fantastic works, the first of which was the story “Invaders from the Invaders from the Infinite”. He assigned him to the editorial office of Amazing Stories, but the then editor T.

And therefore, the first publication was the science fiction story “When atoms collapsed”, When The Atoms Failed, published in the magazine Amazing Stories in January, which refers to the electronic supercalcular, as if built in the year in the year the walls of his native Massachusetts Technological Institute. It should also be clarified that the novel by Campbell of the year “Infinity Infinity” in no way refers to his lost early story.

The story “When the atoms crumble” the subsequent work, such as the “Islands of the Universe” by ISlands of Space,, “Invaders from the Infinite,“ Almighty Machine ”, The Mightiest Machine, allowed Campbell to successfully compete with the then legislator of the Moda in the then legislator American NF Edward Elmer Smith. These novels were originally printed exclusively in magazines, and in the book version were reprinted in years.

And an interesting in all respects, the novel “All -powerful machine” about the adventures of Aarnna Munro Aarn Munro had three more continuations, but all of them were rejected by the editor of the journal “Amazing Science Fiction” F. Orlin Trimein F. Orlin Tremaine. Only much later in the copyright collection “Incredible Planet” The Incredible Planet, they were printed. Then Campbell switched to more serious literary topics, publishing his creations under the pseudonym Don A.

Stuart Don A. Stuart, created on the basis of the name and maiden name of his wife Don Stewart Dona Stuart, with whom he lived for 18 years - from GG. Under this name, he created many interesting stories and stories, such as, for example, the story of Twilight or the trilogy of the year about the mechanized evolution “machine”, “aliens” and “rebellion”.

Publishing fiction under the pseudonym during this period, Campbell only occasionally printed it under his name, for example, five stories about Penton Penton and Blake Blake, published in the GG. Another pseudonym “Karl Van Campen” used the writer only once, when in the December issue of the journal “Amazing Science Fiction” there was already a story of Don A.

Stuart and an excerpt from John Campbell’s novel. In the year, under his own name, he published a monthly series of articles about the solar system, and in gg. Although John Campbell wrote science fiction for only eight years - from a year, but for a long time after that his works, written during this period, came out. And his last work is a textbook and his most famous story “Who is there?

In September, F.Orlin Tremaine invites him to the post of assistant editor of the science fiction journal “The Story of the Special Science” Astunding Stories of Supper Science, in which Campbel has already become a sovereign editor and to which he gives a different name - “Stoying science fiction” Astounding Science Fiction. In this post, he remained until his death.

Under the leadership of Campbell, this publication turned into a real “talent incubator”, in which such popular American authors as Clifford Saimak Clifford Simak, L. Spray de Camp L. Ron Hubbard L. He, for example, the first proposed the idea of ​​the famous “three laws of robotics” Isaek Azimov, filed the ideas of several Stories to Robert Heinlin. In the year, he was the first to put forward the idea of ​​a supercomputer in science fiction, in one of his novels he first mentioned “hyperspace”, in the other about synthetic food, and in M ​​in his editorial column he first mentioned the word “ET” Sokr.

John Campbell, strictly demanding from the authors, recalls A. Azimov, an indispensable combination in their works of “real” science, high artistic virtues and an emphasis on social and human consequences of scientific and technological progress, solved the problem for American science fiction, revealing a galaxy of amazing talents that received worldwide recognition. He was energetic, active and having his ideas editor.

He did not stand on ceremony with young authors, but made it possible to print in whom he could see at least a piece of talent as he himself understood it. True, I did not give me writing about everything. In wartime, Campbell showed great interest in various near -scientific or alternative theories mainly in telepathy and extrasensory perception, and in the year he became interested in the new science of Dianetics Dianetics L.

Ron Hubbard L. Ron Hubbard, arguing that he uses its methods in practice with great success. This to some extent negatively influenced his magazine. Isaac Azimov wrote: "Many authors began to use pseudo -scientific plots to guarantee their publications, but the best authors of the magazine left it, and I am among them." Indeed, by the year the popularity of “amazing science fiction”, which had previously reigned the United States in the periodic science fiction for more than ten years, partly due to Galaxy Galaxy and Anthony Anthony Boucher, founded by Horace Gold, Fantasy and Scientific Fantasy, Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.

But although many authors left Campbell to other publications, his magazine all the time remained among the leaders of the best science fiction publications, being so to this day. So there is nothing surprising in the fact that between and years Campbell won the Hugo Award eight times in the “Best Editor” category and three times was an honorary guest of world conventions, which is an absolute record.

He lived almost his whole life in the town of Maunside by New Jersey, along with his second wife Margaret Winter Margaret Winter, which married in the year and with which they had three children. In this town in his house in July, sitting in front of the TV, he fell asleep in his chair and died of a heart attack. The unexpected and ridiculous death of the most famous editor of science fiction immediately gave rise to a wave of anniversary events dedicated to John Campbell.

In the year, two prizes of his name were founded: John V. Campbell's Memorial Prize John W. Campbell Award, a year later several anthologies dedicated to his memory appeared. In Australia, a symposium was held about him - “John V. Campbell: Australia” John W. Campbell: An Australian Tribute.

Documents and films about John V. Campbelle are still published and his works are reprinted. The work of the current NF editors, as a rule, is compared with him, and fantasy writers are happy to write in their memoirs about working with this wonderful and ambiguous person. Detailed biography.