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Michael Crichton 1942-2008
I am – Hercules
The physician-author-filmmaker who gave us “Jurassic Park,” “Sphere,” “Rising Sun,” “Twister,” “Disclosure,” “Congo,” “Coma,” “The Terminal Man,” “The Great Train Robbery,” “Timeline,” “The 13th Warrior,” “Looker,” “Runaway,” “The Andromeda Strain,” “Westworld” and “ER” is no more.
Michael Crichton passed away Tuesday at age 66.
While studying at Harvard Med, he wrote a series of novels under the pen names John Lange and Jeffrey Hudson. One of these, "A Case of Need," won the 1969 Edgar Award for best novel.
The first novel written under his own name, 1969's "The Andromeda Strain," was quickly made into a 1971 movie directed by Robert Wise.
It was the first in a long line of Crichton novels adapted for the screen, among them "A Case of Need" (which became "The Carey Treatment"), "The Terminal Man," "The Great Train Robbery," "Eaters of the Dead" (which became "The Thirteenth Warrior"), "Congo," "Sphere," "Jurassic Park," "Rising Sun," "Disclosure," "The Lost World" and "Timeline."
Crichton novels optioned for the big screen but yet unmade include "Airframe," "Prey," "State of Fear" and "Next."
He also directed several movies from his own original screenplays, including "Westworld," "Coma," "The Great Train Robbery," "Looker," and "Runaway."
He directed "Physical Evidence," for which he did not receive screenplay credit, and wrote "Twister," which he did not direct.
He created "ER," which became a mammoth TV success and launched handsome TV actor George Clooney into a movie career.
If all that's not enough to account for his 66 years on the planet, he was also a practicing M.D. and authored four works of non-fiction: "Five Patients," "Jasper Johns," "Electronic Life" and "Travels."
Find CBS’ story on the literal and literary giant Michael Crichton here.
Hey, guys. Quint here. I was 12 when Jurassic Park came out and it blew me away. I feel very lucky to have gotten in on the tail end of the part of Spielberg's career where he was just constantly awing the audience, where his summer movie was an experience. That's not to say he doesn't make good films now. He certainly does... I think MUNICH was incredible and while I liked WAR OF THE WORLDS it didn't have the same effect on me that JURASSIC PARK had and I doubt he could ever top that.
It was the perfect storm of technology converging on one story. Digital Audio premiered there and blew me out of my seat, photo-realistic CG came onto the scene for the first time and supporting all the bells and whistles was Michael Crichton's imaginative what if? story. What if it was possible to bring dinosaurs back through advances in science and technology?
Not only did it see feasible, I believed wholeheartedly that it could actually be done.
That film inspired me to read the book, which is a whole different beast. There are aspects that are better (like the time crunch of recalling the boat to the mainland with the raptors onboard), but even if it boils down to pure nostalgia I can not be one of those people who scream that the movie is half of what the book is.
But it's fascinating, especially when you look back on Spielberg's misfire sequel THE LOST WORLD, which incorporates more elements of the first book that didn't make it in (like the T-Rex waterfall scene) than it seemed to incorporate elements from Crichton's follow-up novel of the same name.
It was the movie JURASSIC PARK that got me reading the original book, which then led me to a lot of Crichton's books. I spent my junior high years reading everything I could from Michael Crichton and Stephen King. For a very long time, my favorite book was SPHERE.
If you haven't read it, please do. It's an amazing story that really captured my imagination. The movie is a huge let-down, though. It's almost worse for me than the hack-job adaptation of CONGO was because at least CONGO gets so bad that it becomes campy and ridiculous, but SPHERE was a fantastic story with Dustin Hoffman, Samuel L. Jackson and Liev Schreiber and it's just so damn mediocre. Sharon Stone was miscast, the awe and wonder of the story was gone. You can draw comparisons between the novel of Jurassic Park and the film from Spielberg, argue which is better all day, but you can't deny that Spielberg captured the majesty of the story, visualized the awe of Crichton's words.
Crichton didn't just write novels, he also directed films, wrote screenplays and he wasn't bad at it. I have a very soft spot in my heart for RUNAWAYS, the killer robot spider movie he did in the '80s with Tom Selleck and Gene Simmons, of all people, as the baddie. Acid-spitting robot spiders? Of course that movie is awesome!
I'm also a massive fan of an underseen flick he did in the late '70s called THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY, a film that Harry and his dad introduced me to in my teen years. It's a period adventure comedy starring Donald Sutherland, Sean Connery and Leslie-Anne Down appearing hotter than she's ever been.
Crichton also wrote and directed other '70s greats like COMA and WESTWORLD... He did a film on my AMAD list called PURSUIT that I really want to get to, starring the great Ben Gazzara and Martin Sheen, about a nerve gas attack.
Crichton's death is a big loss to the entertainment world as a whole and my thoughts will be with Mr. Crichton's friends, family and fans.
An hour-long interview with Charlie Rose...
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Was he still married to Doro from Sledge Hammer?
RIP -
Rest in peace. Thanks for the wonderful work you’ve shared with is through the years. I was floored when I first read Jurassic Park and couldn’t stand the film for a long time because it couldn’t hold a candle to the brilliance of the book. Between your written works and your production credits, you’ve really left a mark in this world. A life well lived, I’d say. Just a bit too short.
I’m glad you are at peace.
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Rest in Peace man. Rest in Peace.
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truly a loss of man with ideas and original thinking....
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..was his Non fiction "Travels". In it he made friends with a cactus and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever read. Goodbye Michael.
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a legendary writer and filmmaker has passed away unexpectedly at a ridiculously young age, and THAT'S your fucking eulogy for him? Jesus fuck, guys. RIP Mr. Crichton.
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Didn't even know he was sick. Haven't read much by him lately but Next was actually recommended to me a while back, might just pick that up in tribute.
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I remember enjoying some of his novels when I was a kid... He deserves some geek respect if only for resurrecting in movies what I thought was the coolest thing ever as I grew up: dinasours. Not a fan on any rate but still... RIP, sir.
Oh and Herc, there must be someone in the AICN staff to write a more respectful article, man. There was more soul in my local news site. That was some cold shit, dude. -
The man gave us dinosaurs!! RIP Mike....you left a ton of great work behind.
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RIP.
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No one will ever even attempt to write a better dinosaur story.
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but let's sweeten it up a bit, shall we? He has decades of great work to reference in memorium.
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Once they inject his DNA into an unfertilized komodo dragon egg.
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i really liked that movie, shame a great storyteller is gone. my thoughts go to his family and friends.
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Ain't It Cool had to throw it out ASAP while it was still news. They're probably currently writing a long boring article and looking up IMDB or Wikipedia info on obscure Crichton works so they can act like they've been the biggest fans their entire lives.
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I can't tell you how much of my childhood / teen and college years were informed by his novels. I never watched ER, so I guess my fanaticism stopped there--but all those books and movies rocked my imagination and sparked my curiosity in the universe. This is a loss. Fare thee well, you intellectual Warciple, you!
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When Jurassic Park(movie) came out, I loved it to death. Picked up the novel at the library and was hooked. And such became my love for novels and writing. A Case of Need is a very good read. I think I might break that out tonight.
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6' 9" I had no idea.
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The First Great Train Robbery is massively underrated and I have a sofy spot for Runaway. RIP Mr C.
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Granted, the movie didn't do the novel justice.
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Great call on the Wiki mining done here. Now, as a contrarian, State of Fear was a slick book, especially after it took on the psudo-enviromentalism of Hollywood.
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Anybody who read Billy And The Clone-a-sauras knows that.
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for a while and they had a kid.
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Guess he took the McCain defeat hard
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My favorite author. Was waiting for his new book.
He will be missed. R.I.P., M.C. -
I like his work. I'm reading Next right now. This year is brutal.
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I loved me my Andromeda Strain and Sphere (book, not the shitty movie), so that's too bad. I'm not sure why I didn't read more of his stuff, although I suppose my tastes changed as I got older.
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I wasn't a huge fan, but I was writing something before Herc posted, so I'll add those to the article.
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I'm really really busted now. Michael Chrichton was an imaginative titan.
Will miss him horrendously. -
. . . to seeing Sphere opening night. Worst film adaptation ever to one of my favorite books. Boy did Eaters of the Dead suck too and Congo suck too.
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I loved his work, especially the Andromeda Strain (which didn't deserve to be so badly shit on by the recent Ridley Scott TV movie version).
RIP Mr Crichton! -
I really hope that this news story doesn't get swept under the rug with all the Obamania.
Prayers go out to his family and fans...
Now excuse me while I read Atlas Shrugged (because of the Obama win) concurrently while rereading Jurassic Park. -
A Paul Simon lyric, to be sure--but that's Crichton imagery. Always pushing science to make his fiction more compelling. Microchip implants in the hippocampus. Dino-farms from amber-frosted DNA samples. Bending the laws of quantum mechanics to travel in time for a joust in medieval france. He was even good for sparking social debate--with Disclosure he examined sexual dynamics in a then-changing workplace. Just great stuff.
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A sad loss, I really loved his books.
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Nov 05, 2008 1:31:18 PM CST
EATERS OF THE DEAD edition of 13th Warrior!
by stereotypical evil archer
Michael Crichton is DEAD!
I posted that on node 38987 at 11:52:34 AM on Nov 5th, 2008.Now that is what it means to be FIRST!EATERS OF THE DEAD!EATERS OF THE DEAD!EATERS OF THE DEAD!EATERS OF THE DEAD!
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The man had an uncanny ability to take real science and turn it into populist fiction in a way that never condescended. I gapped out on Crichton for a few years, but picked up Prey and Next this past summer. Next was fantastic, deeply satirical and showed a new side to what Crichton could accomplish. A really great writer. I loved that he usually did an Afterword to better explain the liberties he took with the science for the fiction, or frequently to give context to the action we should take to keep our species safe and sane through booming technology. Reading his books left me better informed, inspired to know more, thrilled and chilled in equal measure. Sad to see him go - an important voice not quiet. Rest in peace.
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I spent an entire day reading Jurassic Park when I was 12.
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It was FUCKING CANCER. Now excuse me while I wish you'd burn in hell.
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Now go away.
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You will be missed.
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...what are you ? An attention starved basement dwelling pimple farmer? Nobody but mommy paying attention to you? Just think, when you die NOBODY will care.
RIP Mr Crichton, you were one of the greats.
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Got my girlfriend into it, we read NEXT together. not his best but it was very interesting
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"While the world knew him as a great story teller that challenged our preconceived notions about the world around us - and entertained us all while doing so - his wife Sherri, daughter Taylor, family and friends knew Michael Crichton as a devoted husband, loving father and generous friend who inspired each of us to strive to see the wonders of our world through new eyes."
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...of his earlier novels, not so much his more recent stuff, but his influence cannot be denied.
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The whole time I read Next, I was wondering what Crichton had been smoking. Human/ape hybrids, the Polly storyline, the DNA bounty hunters...good stuff.
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2008 sucks monkey fuck indeed.
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Nov 05, 2008 1:41:16 PM CST
Weird that when a "celeb" dies they get a sprawling tribute on t
by burgerking
and then someone who is a bit less famous gets a sentence or two.
Maybe it's not that weird.. -
This was the first writer to lure me away from Stephen King. Sphere, Congo, and Rising Sun were my first. That sucks, man.
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I wish he had directed more films. Westworld, Coma and Looker are really unique.
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I really liked that movie when I was a kid. It was one of those movies I rented multiple times when our family got its very first VCR, back when getting a VCR was a very big deal.
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Reading Jurassic Park is what got me back into books. Ill never forget how deep that book pulled me in. REST IN PEACE
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He died of a broken heart. I hope LACMA gets some of his renowned modern and contemporary art collection. He was on the board there.
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Read all his books. Case of need and Travels were phenomenal. God speed brother and thanks for creating some of the most fantastic and sometimes plausible sc-fi ever.
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It was FUCKING CANCER.
Honestly, I don't want this to become my fucking catchphrase. -
i loathe reading, but his pace and interest in the stories couldnt stop me reading page/page nonstop, read nearly all his books, while no movies match their books, most of them arent too bad either. RIP, sux.
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The man really knew how to bring forth some really interesting ideas. There were moments in Jurassic Park and Timeline where I really started believing that stuff was possible. I don't get that neo-con crap. I guess people started calling him that after State of Fear. He just brought up questions you don't normally hear on the subject. I fail to see what's wrong with that. Although he clearly had some disdain for celebrity activists, the actor in that book was not only a complete moron he also died horribly.
I'll miss his work and I feel terrible for his family's loss. -
He was a global warming skeptic, and may have been a bit of the Christopher Hitchen's "conservative" on some issues, but he was pretty liberal about a lot of things. He just thought the anthropogenic global warming hysteria was a Very Bad Thing. And he made some good points. Why would Crichton support McCain over Obama? Both of them are on the anthropogenic global warming bandwagon. McCain wanted to make Al Gore the Global Warming czar.
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Was a fun read. The movie was on TV the other day, however and man is it awful...
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I'll miss seeing new ones on the shelves. best to all who knew him.
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Nov 05, 2008 2:01:02 PM CST
can they put his brain in Seth Rogen's body....
by dannyglovers_dickblood
...so I can beat him in the head with a baseball bat (Untouchables style) and eat his brain (Jason Goes To Hell) style.
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... I was doing no more than fleshing out his bio. Now that Herc took care of that, I'll just say that THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN and WESTWORLD were childhood faves. He sure could exploit the hell out of a simple concept.
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Have the coal-black heart of an evil neo-conservative game him cancer. Cancer of the soul.
Seriously, too bad Hollywood is so lefty. State of Fear would make the best frickin' action movie, if done right. Deep cavitation generators. Turning cell phones into lightning magnets. Creating destructive storms with copper wires attached to rockets. The whole flood scene. Awesome book. -
Unix running what appeared to be Computer Associates Unicenter. Set PCs back a few years.
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I didn't like some of his more recent stuff, but damn... I would trade all the novels yet to be written by Koontz, for just one of Crichton's which will now never be written.
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But I also enjoyed The Thirteenth Warrior. It was certainly a whole lot better than Sphere. Now, there was a suck-ass Crichton adaptation.
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it'd still be great.
but to have done that, Jurassic Park and ER is a real legacy. -
I'm sorry to see him die, but he was horribly overwritten and wrote some terrible sci-fi.
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But Jurassic Park would've made some kick ass dark sci-fi epic if the Berg hadn't turned it into a kiddie ride - a superb kiddie ride, but a kiddie ride nonetheless. After that, it became all a bit stale and boring. But The Andromeda Strain is still a book I really dig.
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damn....I loved his stuff...Andromeda Strain, Prey, Jurassic Park, even Timeline was great! So so sad...this guy was a genius.
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A great talent has been lost. Please, if there's anyone out there who actually liked Speilberg's version of 'Jurassic Park - The Lost World', do yourself (and Michael's memory) a favour and read the book. See what it should've been!
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I loved and devoured this guy's sci-fi novels as a kid, and was gaga for two movies he wrote and directed: "Westworld" and "The Great Train Robbery" (though I have not seen them lately).
I wish somebody would invent that magic box that allows you to instantly watch any movie in HD, because I really wouldn't mind revisting those two right now. -
I saw the movie. Terrible. Then I read the book. The science was interesting but what really roped me in was that he laced the story with so many historical details.
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RIP Mr. Crichton. All best condolences to your family on this day.
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When did this happen? Why? Huh? RIP man. Brought a lot of great stories to the world.
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He took liberties, sure, but went above and beyond with his notations explaining the science of whatever story he was telling. Add to that his ability to spin a yarn. His books were always interesting.
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Really need to emphasize the "childhood" part, though."She's a looker, that's what they say! She's got it all, yeah, she's got it made!"
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deserves everything they get.
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Jurassic Park is probably the first adult novel I read and that meant people kept buying me all his other books after that (right up until "Next" that I read this year). I always enjoyed his work and he had some great ideas - I think it was safe to say I became a fan.
I've never actually bought one of his books, all were gifts, so I'm wondering what people are going to get me for future Christmases now... -
Jesus Christ this year sucks. Jurassic Park is, quite simply, the reason I come to this site every day. I saw the movie when I was nine, and the next week I had a copy of the paperback. I fell in love with movies, Spielberg, Winston, Crichton, and dinosaurs. He, in the most basic of terms, shaped my life. This hurts.
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I read Jurassic Park in High School before I even knew about the movie. I had never read a book so fast. I was the biggest Jurassic Park dork you could ever find in 1993.
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I read that book when I first moved to Florida in '93, after all the hubbub about JURASSIC PARK. I'd never paid any attention to Crichton before that. It was my first "beach book", and I subsequently read all the stuff he'd written up to that point, and everything after, sitting on the beach. Some books were better than others, but I was a real fan, and SPHERE (the book) is a great memory. This is a serious loss.
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I read "Jurassic Park" in the second grade, simply because it featured dinosaurs and was going to be made into a movie. I read the book and then devoured whatever news I found out about the film. It was the first time I actually made any such attempts to find out about the development of a film and this was back when you read about this shit in Starlog. "Jurassic Park" the novel made me want to be a paleontologist and a novelist whereas the film made me want to make movies. I then read every Michael Crichton book I could lay my hands on. I owe a lot to Michael Crichton and I will miss him and his work dearly.
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Nov 05, 2008 2:41:44 PM CST
I own one of Crichton's John Lange paperback novels.
by orbots commander
It's called 'Binary'. It's a suspense thriller about a group of assassins who plan to release a poisonous gas in San Fransisco in order to take out a Senator during a party primary. It's a short, fast read that's highly visual. The prose style is also signature Crichton even while he used his John Lange pen name.
Check it out; some local libraries still carry old editions of the novel. -
Sad news, indeed. :(
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Yeah, the guy had some whacked out ideas later on in life that he turned into a really stupid book that looked like it was written to give climate change deniers something to feel good about, but that doesn't erase the literally dozens of other great contributions in his life. Jurassic Park, Sphere, Twister, ER... the list goes on and on. I'm not really a fan of McCain, but you can't deny Crichton's contributions, ability, and talent.
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just clone him, maybe make a few. Make him part dinosaur!
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..to Mr Crichton, his books were not only entertaining but fucking fascinating and prompted me to dig much deeper into the science behind them and revealed some fascinating new vistas to me. And Westworld is a piece of genius. I love State of Fear too, wheher he was right or wrong (and the jury is very much still out on that). RIP, and I doff my cap to Crichton and his achievements.
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Me, too :) I first picked up Jurassic Park in 2nd grade and I read it 14 times before I finally had to return it to the library. My mom bought me a copy, and I started collecting everything Jurassic Park... collectors cards, action figures, comics, I mean EVERYTHING. I also wanted to be a paleontologist and I started studying nature. Dr. Ellie Sattler was a goddess to me. I was the geekiest kid on my block... I remember correcting an adult in my neighborhood who had called a spider an insect (imagine a little 2nd grade girl telling a 40-year-old woman "it's actually an arachnid!") After Jurassic Park, I started reading his other books. Sphere blew me away!
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A great visionary for sure and there's already to few of them in this world.
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I do find it funny, though, that everyone says they read all his books when they were kids.
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he didnt mind swimming up stream and talk out about the bogus science of global warming and second hand smoke.
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A hugely underrated movie, a gem, and Crichton's most accomplished book as well. An enormously talented artist and craftsman, nothwithstanding his recent work, and one who seemed surprisingly modest as well.
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he is under appreciated it seems. his stories were a quick and entertaining read... plus he accomplished so much.
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Wow, MC has always been my favorite author of all time and i can't believe this has happened. A true sign that once Obama was elected, the world is coming to an end...
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and great train robbery!!!
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was turned into an ABC Movie Of The Week back in the early '70s. I think it was his first directing effort, and it was called Pursuit. And the dude predated 24. I believe the last portion was filmed in "real time", with a countdown clock, as the agent was looking for the nerve gas.
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I'm sorry i meant three scientist one mathematician and one military specialist to any of the following places: Mysterious Island, Heart of strange weather phenomenon, Under any large body of soil or water, inside a person or animal or consciousness or any of these places but "Virtual".Perhaps if at least one of these scientists is experienced but emotionally unstable under untestable circumstances and if one of the scientists is a hot lady and if one is a outsider maverick in his field....maybe, just maybe this crack team, perhaps funded by a retired zillionare or marginalized military program, could find some new shit at one of the places I mentioned that would reincarnate the ##1 M.C.
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He wrote a book on Positivism - sort of a philosophical index of positivist theories - under John Lange. It's available in some places, sort of shows what a polymorph he was. Binary is funny to read as well. I've read every book the man has written under every name, and even though I didn't care for his last 3 releases I always looked forward to the next release. Put me down for Travels though - I need to pick up a new copy. Like his books or not, he's had a bigger impact on big-budget filmmaking today than he's given credit for. In an interview from about a year ago he mentioned that he was working on a new book -more of a throwback to his more popular stuff. I wonder if it will ever see the light of day now.
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I asked him if they could clone him from his DNA taken from a mosquito. He responded... "They better... then he gets out of control and starts killing people and in the third movie the first time you see him he talks."
Priceless. -
Crichton was a familiar towering figure around Santa Monica. While I never had the good fortune to meet him, it's always amazed me that one man could excel at so many demanding professions. He squeezed ten lifetimes into one. Godspeed.
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The ones Spielberg made are pale imitations of Crichton's novels. Sure they have some nostalgic value and Dean Cundey's cinematography in the first one is amazing, but let's get a real dino thriller that isn't totally dumbed down and bathed in sappy over the top John Williams music.
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Probably one of Crichton and Connery's best films.
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Stupid celebs get killed plus that Global Warming = Eugenics afterword. Great stuff.
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I read "Jurassic Park" before the movie deal was announced, and wrote a paper about it in Modern Literature. I still pronounced his name Crich-TON at that point. I then read every piece of fiction he'd ever written, following his career up to "Airframe," after which I started to lose my fanatical interest. "Westworld" is still a longtime favorite cult film of mine. It inspired both "The Terminator" and his own "Jurassic Park" story. The only non-fiction book I read was "Travels," and it had a great impact on me at the time. He was both a scientist and a writer, and his research was extremely in depth. He's the kind of science-fiction writer that makes real working scientists and engineers think and dream, inspiring real technological invention. His life wasn't tragic. In "Travels" he describes his biggest psychological roadblock was that before 40 years old he had written a best selling novel and directed a feature film, accomplishing pretty much everything he ever wanted. He then felt empty trying to decide how to top that and figure out what to do with the rest of his life. He had a good, good life.
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and the computerized representation of the robot's POV in Westworld. I think that its the first use of "digital" graphics in a feature film. The guy was a science marvel even in his direction.
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... Mr. Crichton was an immensely enjoyable creator of entertainment. Cancer is really not good.
Any way of getting this Smithee fellow banned for life?
I was quite disappointed in 'the Lost World' adaptation straying so far from the book as to dismiss the giant chameleon dinosaur at the end. That could have been quite cool.
As a rather prolific author, I think only Crichton and King rival one another for worst adaptation of very good works. Sphere and Congo were such great summer reads for me, and then the movies were 'wow' bad. 13th Warrior is a loose adaptation that I actually really like, and I must be mocked for it. Rising Sun was a great read and could have been done much better in it's translation to screen - look at the different approach to linear storytelling well done in L.A. Confidential and see how it could have been managed better.
He was an accessible junk science fiction writer who could really engage the reader in his narrative and pacing. Maximized a 'what if' scenario into very good entertainment. I liked his work quite a lot. -
A qualified doctor, science geek and billionaire has just been claimed by ... cancer. Go get yourselves checked out.
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I am a very big fan of Michael Crichton's work, and I will miss him. Rest in peace sir.
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Like many, I 1st read his work when I encountered Jurassic Park in highschool. I fell in love with the book, came to accept the movie and started reading everything the man had written. He's one of only a couple of authors from my teenage years that I would still read occasionally. You will be missed sir.
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I have loved his books since I was a kid. They did for me exactly what books are supposed to do... they made a wondrous movie play out in my head. I believed dinosaurs could be made, I believed time travel was possible, and as I sat on my plane this past weekend, I was believing that a monkey can talk (I'm like a quarter of the way through NEXT). It really is tragic, and I hope he was able to go knowing how many cared for him and his works.
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This is a great loss to the literary world. BTW... he DIRECTED Coma; Robin Cook wrote the novel
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crappy news.
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How many more does this thing have to fucking take?!!! Jesus Christ. FUCK THE ENVIRONMENT, FUCK THE WARS, FUCK THE ALTERNATIVE FUELS, FUCK SMALL BUSINESSES, FUCK FREE TRADE, FUCK JOHN MCCAIN, FUCK NEW ZEALAND, FUCK NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION, FUCK RELIGIOUS IDEOLOGY, FUCK EVERYTHING!!! PUT SOME MOTHERFUCKING MONEY...I MEAN REAL MONEY INTO CANCER RESEARCH. THERE IS A FUCKING CURE. ITS POSSIBLE. ONE DAY IT WILL EXIST. IN 50 YEARS CANCER WILL BE CURED WITH A ZAP OF SOMETHING. BUT UNTIL THEN-- FUCK EVERYTHING ELSE, STOP LETTING THIS FUCKING BULLSHIT KILL COOL PEOPLE LIKE ACTORS, AUTHORS, DIRECTORS, SINGERS, AND OUR FUCKING PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS!!! FUCK YOU CAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANCER!!
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Chrichton was my favourite all time writer.He opened my eyes to many new things.
A great loss, he will be missed -
I've heard, while battling cancer, Crichton was hard at work on a new novel--something fun along the lines as Jurassic Park. Does the AICN guys know anything about this project?
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Really...
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The man packed more information in his stories than a textbook.
RIP -
horror scenes. I could not put the book down. Superb. Speilberg really mangled that book. I loved the follow up too. lost world. though I hated rising son. Which I found to be unreadable. Saw the movie. KNow that he is gone I will read more. His masterpiece is supposed terminal.
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Untitled, but would have been released in december, but they pushed it back until May '09.
That's what I read. -
...in The First Great Train Robbery. What was that all about, then? Even Dick Van Dyke was never that bad a 'Cockernee'!Great film, though!
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Nov 05, 2008 4:19:48 PM CST
Wow that came out of the blue, RIP man and thanks for the work
by evil hobbit
Jurassic Park may be the most influential story ever exposed to my 7 year old brains and I will be forever gratefull for that.
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I was 9 when I saw that for the first time. Amazing.
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...I'll be the first in the queue getting the memory of the 'Timeline' movie erased.Ruined a bloody good book, that did...
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Nov 05, 2008 4:23:29 PM CST
I remember getting the chills reading the opening of Jurassic Pa
by emeraldboy
The scene where something nasty happens to a very small child while sleeping. Had me glued from page one. Nedrys demise though... is simply one of the best things I have ever read. Violent, Horrible, shocking, yet gripping. at the same time.
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Spot on, chap. Thanks for summing it up so eloquently.
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The Tom Selleck, Gene Simmons movie? He wrote and directed that?
Wow -
I remember the scene where Nedry gets it. He is standing in the rain, blinded by the Dilophasaurus tar in his eyes. He feels a sharp sting across his stomach and reaches down, feeling warm slippery tubes. With a scream he comes to the horrifying realization he is holding his own intestines.
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He had a way to capture your imagination when reading his books that was second to none.
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Wait, there is no Horror Hall of Fame; just a shitty Spike TV contrivance to plug next year's horror crop (w/ phony awards. "Best Eye Gouging Scene". Jesus!).
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I did not know he directed 'Westworld', very impressed by that info.
Westworld was one of those movies i caught on tv as a kid that absolutely 100% blew me away to another world of enjoyment, along ,and up there, with other 70's movies like Marathon Man, Jaws etc. We did not have a vhs so it was a major deal to me when it was on tv, a perfect movie.
I know it got slagged off a lot, but i get a kick out of 'Timeline' which i own on dvd.
I will have to take a look at one of his books someday.
R.I.P. Micheal Crichton -
Of course, they'll develop a 5-minute segment about Madonna (she's about 80 now, right?) splitting with her husband. God, I'm pissed tonight.
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I've only read a couple of his books, but they were awesome. Another great gone.
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The movie was missing the guy in the wheelchair.
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He was a fine author, not only his best sellers, but also the mysteries he wrote under pen names - the man had a talent for keeping us turning the pages. I went to see Westworld in the theater and man, was I hooked on the man's work ever since. He was also , yes, a confident director- he has some flops but - Westworld, Coma - he had the chops. He should have directed more often. I'll miss anticipating his next book. A sad shame.
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Good riddance to bad rubbish.
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TRUE. He'll get maybe a 30 second mention AT THE MOST. Like the universal shrug by all the major networks and "entertainment shows" when Jerry Goldsmith passed away. It was "wha, who?"
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You just proved yourself to be a classless shit. Congrats.
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Jurassic Park was my fave as a kid, still love the book and film now.
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Most of his books were of imaginatively high concept where its science seemed a reality in the form of highly enjoyable horror thrillers. He was never a pretentious self indulgent writer like so many other famous authors. He wrote blockbuster popcorn fiction that highly entertained. My favourites are Sphere and Timeline (yeah the ones that were made into mediocre films!) and Jurassic Park. I actually just bought Prey a couple of weeks ago and is next on my reading list. RIP man, you'll be missed.
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Excuse for not sucking this dead hack's dick. He wrote shitty psuedo scifi novels for drugstore racks right next to the likes of Danielle Steele. If you really care about his craptacular shitfest novels then you are a moron. The guy wrote drivel for the brainless masses...big fucking deal. Remind me to give a shit when Dean Koontz dies as well. Oh wait, I won't because he sucks as well. Another shitty hack died....WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.
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I enjoyed most of his work and was seriously disappointed when his novels when adapted for film ended up sucking. Jurrasic Park was ok, then it went down hill. Congo just ended up looking ridiculous on film. The Lost World was such an utter piece of garbage that I couldn't believe that Spielberg just disregarded the entire novel and did whatever the hell he wanted. Timeline was a disappointment as well, the book was really good and I thought it was gonna be a really cool looking middle ages style film. Unfortunately they cast Paul Walker and made the film look like it was shot in the woods behind someone's house. That really bummed me out. WestWorld is great though, can't beat Yul Brenner as an evil cowboy robot. R.I.P. Mike, thanks for the entertainment.
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Nobody cares that you were abused as a child. Negative attention is better than no attention at all, eh? Seriously, get into therapy.
RIP Michael. -
This man is directly responsible for opening my eyes to the endless possibilities of film. That project being Jurassic Park. It blew my 7 year old mind and I've never been the same since. Thank you, Michael, for everything. You will be dearly missed.
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I was obviously sexually abused as a child because I don't like shitty hack writers. Westworld was a good dumb pseudeo scif flick but didn't change the world. Jurrasic Park was a crap novel turned into a lame "ZOMG LOOK A THE DINOS" films. ER is a dull soap operas for people who THINK that they are too smart too watch soap operas, but WAIT FOR IT....they are too stupid to understand that they aren't that smart because ZING THEY ARE WATCHING A SOAP OPERA. Another dead hack...yawn.
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A free thinker and a great storyteller. This has shocked and saddened me greatly. We'll miss you Mike. Thanks for everything.
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Nov 05, 2008 5:52:53 PM CST
FREETHINKER???? THE ASSHOLE DIDN'T BELIEVE IN GLOBAL WARMING
by pervomatic
He loved George W Bush too. Again, good riddance. Another fucking shill for the GOP down under ground. Can we have more please?
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Takes up half the page, where something like this, someone who took all the things we loved as kids and turned them into smart possibilities about science and inspired people to read gets the same ole schtick.
I just wish Crichton would get more credit (and someone in the mainstream would report this), his contribution to culture is the reason sites like this are as big as they are -
There are some really promising cancer treatments underway, but the biggest risk factor for cancer is what happens to our cells as a result of the aging process. That's why the real money you talk about should be going into the work to retard and reverse biological aging. That's where the revolution will really take place. Take care of that and you can forget about not just cancer, but heart disease, Alzheimer's, stroke, etcetera. Two thirds of all deaths are caused by aging, and its within our grasp to stop that from being true anymore - and soon. With the right funding we could get there in thirty years. Longer, healthier, happier lives for everyone. http://www.methuselahfoundation.org/
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Jesus christ, you fucking people are stupid. Chricton was a NEOCON supporter and would hate that Obama was elected. As for him being "Hard Sci-Fi" his shit...and yes it was shit, was as soft as possible. Fake pseudo scifi that barely has anything to do with real science isn't SCIFI!!!!! Morons
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... of sorts, but Congo, Jurrasic Park (of course), Sphere, and Andromeda Strain got me into reading when I was a kid, so I thank him for that- plus the obvious contributions his work made to popular culture.
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That's right. A free thinker. He had a scientific mind. And while the scientific consensus is that global warming is real and man made, that consensus is by no means watertight inside the real scientific community. The threat of global warming should be taken seriously because of the magnitude of the risk involved, but it should also be interrogated, doubted and analyzed. Chrichton knew that. Many don't. This isn't about being conservative (besides, what's wrong with that - I'm a moderate and I like that there's a balance of views out there). It's about maintaining a spirit of skeptical enquiry in the face of hostile public pressure. Most people who worry about global warming do so because they've been told to by their peers and the press. Chrichton came to his conclusions through analysis of the data. Right or wrong, I respect him more than they.
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Interesting. Thanks for the link.
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Dinosaurs transcend party lines my friend.
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Dr. Crichton left a huuuuuuuge mark on my life. I am having a hard time accepting this one. Tears have flowed and I'm sure more will. Jurassic Park, Congo, Terminal Man, Andromeda Strain...hell, his non-sci fi stuff was good too, Rising Sun is underrated (the book, not the movie), and Travels was the subject of my senior analysis.
Godspeed, Michael Crichton -
years ago. (along with Day of the Jackal,Tom Sawyer, Catcher in the Rye and a few others) so i was shocked to read this. I remember thinking the Andromeda movie was pretty good but preferred the pictures in my mind's eye of the book. i have sphere and maybe one other in my library but now might get a few more. RIP sir. You, along with Clarke, Ellison and Asimov fired up my imagination for imagi-fiction.
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You defeat your own argument. Flawed logic isn't logic. People who don't believe in real science are scientist. Dress it up all you want but the guy supported fake science and bullshit. He was a diehard Neocon supporter. He was a hack and a partisan and I never read anything by him that didn't seem to be tabloid novelism. Guy wrote shitty pulp novels turned into shitty pulp movies. WAH
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i always loved reading his new novels, damn crying shame
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....I'm all for raising hell in an Obituary TB-- I was the first to drop Heath Ledger jokes in his. But fuck man...try not to be such an irritating twat once in awhile and people will actually read all the way to the end of your posts. I can't fucking stand people who think they are intelligent, its not different than a dude thinking he has a big dick. What I'm trying to say is.... FUCK OFF.
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that sucks. I was just telling a friend yesterday how great his non novel writings were.. check out his website (if it's still up)... his articles on Media are great..
But his books are topnotch.
Damn. Godspeed MC -
was great fun. A real guilty pleasure.
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He didn't deny science. He challenged it, which is the whole point of the scientific method. He also wasn't really writing about whether climate change was real and man made. He was writing about the hysteria that accompanies the climate change issue. Just like people flipping out over Obama right now. They take something important and turn it into something frivolous. Climate change is a serious issue wirthy of serious attention becomes 'the world is ending'. Obama is an in some ways promising president elect who will hopefully do a good job becomes 'This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to America and the world'. It's group think nonsense and narcissistic wish fulfillment, and it lowers the quality of debate and thought. Chrichton had a problem with that sort of thing and bucked the trend. Good for him. As for you, you don't have to agree with his conclusions, but why hate him or celebrate his death on the basis of such disagreement. From your comments about neocons one might think you were of a liberal persuasion, but your intolerant attitude runs entirely contrary to the tenants of liberalism.
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Make that 'tenets' of liberalism. Slaps forehead.
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I know it might be hard to understand the world doesn't revolve around your ass, but it doesn't. This is a TB for people who appreciated the work of a man who just died...now...your literary tastes - or lack of - should not be a factor. All you're doing is showing exactly what a fuckwad you are. You have no class, no sense of humanity. It's clear you THINK you're showing everyone how darn smart, how above it all you are. But believe me, you're not. Try to save some face and just shut up. Or can we get your comments deleted and have you banned? That might be the best effort, to really just chalk off one annoying prick.
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The fuck is wrong with you people? Just because a guy wrote Jurassic Park isn't any reason to forget all about what a nutcase he is. And what's with this whole Not giving in to the "elitism" of intelligence makes you a "free thinking" rebel bullshit republican meme that keeps on spreading around?
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Damn, he is very stubbornly opinionated! He seemed to disagree with everyone including the whole scientific community! Had to laugh when he was asked what regrets he had in his life and his answer was talking about other people mistakes, ha. Like him or not, the man stubbornly stuck to his views despite all the flak. Really sad he is gone.
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But I believe the 'climate change as man made' thesis is worthy of continued interrogation, even by way of popular fiction - that's part of taking it seriously. Why do you believe that those who don't oblige your dogma are nutcases?
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A great author and a wonderful visionary - and reasonably consistent too! Many will hit a peak and steadily decline, or be a bit all over the place - but not this guy. His books were highly entertaining and thought provoking.
The adaptations of these properties were not so consistent, but when they were good - they were GOOD!
Don't forget to pay the ferryman... -
God bless his soul. A towering figure.
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was one of the best books ever written. I remember not being able to put it down after the half. Made the movie look like junk.
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fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!!! I can't come up with anything else, I loved that guy. Fantastic writer, responsible for some of the most innovative movies in the last 30 years. Alot of his movies didn't live up to the books, but they were STILL damned entertaining. And the ones that DID live up to the books, legendary. Man, this is a sad, sad day.
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Nov 05, 2008 7:32:02 PM CST
probably my favourite authour when I was a little bit younger.
by thedark0knight
RIP A true original.
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I didn't say "those that don't oblige my dogma are nutcases," that would actually be Michael Crichton himself saying that, who is the only person I said was a nutcase. Though now I'm going to add that you talk like a crazed god damn zealot yourself. Yeah, everyones trying to push their secret agenda on you benito. Who gives a fuck.
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Sucks to be an author right now. Watch your back, Stephen King.
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some of his recent stuff, not so much, but still, can't deny the man was a talent. I SO wish that hollywood had treated the Timeline movie adaptation better. I mean, Paul walker? WTF? Hopefully PREY turns out good.
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Was my favorite book for YEARS.
I was looking forward to his next book.
You'll be missed MC. -
...in his storytelling ability back with Airframe, and that's being kind. Disclosure is his last real great pop entertainment novel, although I did also enjoy Lost World and Timeline. State of Fear and Prey were entertaining but ultimately were not as good as past efforts.
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Crichton was great. I had no idea he passed.
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When I was like nine, and it scared the shit out of me. The one bit that really disturbed my young-fragile-little mind was when it described the blood on the snout of the compy(sp?) that was eating the baby in the crib. I couldn't get the image of that out of my mind the night I read that part.When I read Sphere (this was before the movie) I actually imagined Samuel L Jackson as the character of the one he played in the movie, which made me enjoy it a little more than it should've and the fact I saw it in a movie theatre.RIP
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she said come upstaurs for dinner!
Crichton used to be a contributing member of several environmental groups until he saw the real inner workings of them.( supposedly the sea level scam lawsuit in the novel is based on an event he witnessed firsthand). It changed his complete idea on what the "real" motives of such groups were. To promote fear so as to keep their phoney baloney jobs.
Plus as others have said. If you do nothing but accept everything you are told , scientists promotoed or not, you are nothing but a grazing farm animal with a fluffy coat!
Plus , when did scientists become the be all and end all of non-biased information? -
You have the debating ability of a 17 year old straight edge shoe gazer!!!
Come back to the grown ups table whence you can contribute something meaningful and idealogically sound ! Okay ? bye bye !! :-) -
r.i.p
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Until today I hadn't even thought about how many of my favourite films were adapted by Michael Crichton.
I'm truly upset by the news. -
Sorry man, but that was laughable. I write a couple of posts extolling the virtues of moderation and critical thinking in a mans obituary thread and suddenly I'm a 'crazed goddamn zealot'? I mean I know this is the internet and we're supposed to throw those sorts of ad hominem slurs at everyone we don't agree with, but really, zealotry? I couldn't have sounded less like a zealot if I tried.
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I was one who really got into cricthon when i was younger, the fisrt one i read was jurassic park, and it had me riveted from beginning to end, and it was a shame they had to hollywodize the ending, as the book was a shocking ending, then i read sphere, and it was another book that had me riveted, and again movie was hollywooodized, the book much better, then i also read the lost world, and also andormeda strain, although i didn't get into andromeda as much as i did the others, and while the disney movie was cheesy, it was much better then the tripe that a&e did, as it basically said screw the source material, and we'll loosely base it off the book.
crichton was a gifted storyteller and many of his novels were pageturners you could not put down, rip micheal crichton -
They weren't the best things I'd ever read, but I'm glad I read them and I enjoyed most of them. Same with his movies. I think that his politics and some of his public statements that I read about were fairly ridiculous. I'm not really going to miss that. But ER was pretty good for a while at the start. So all in all, I think it's sad that he died, my condolences to his family, and I hope he rests in peace.
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It is a very sad day when a master of Sci-Fi/Fantasy passes on. Thank you for all your books and movies. Oddly enough, I am watching Jurassic Park as I read this obituary.
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Great novel; weirdly inert movie from Barry Levinson.
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i liked his formula and the way he pushed the ideas of what could and might one day be possible. RIP.
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"Well, I could just explain to you how this all started, how many survivors there are at this point, and what the global ramifications will be if we don't act quickly, but wouldn't it be funner if I SANG IT?"
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Westworld was fantastic. Sphere blew dog. The Lost World was a much better read than a movie.
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Honestly, is it just me or does Rose sometimes just go off the beam on some of his interviews? He has the most annoying habit of attempting to complete his guests' thoughts. It's almost as if he is competing with them to provide "insight" on their own material. Just shut the hell up, Charlie. The show is hosted by you but it isn't ABOUT you.
Back on topic, very sorry to hear that Mr. Crichton is gone. So many stories are lost to us now. R.I.P. -
The 2 things i'm told i talk about more than is considered normal. Fuck. I read Jurassic park when i was 12, and read it again the following day. Then read it again within a week. It was fucking amazing. After the crushing, and to a kid, confusing, disappointment of other dinosaur fiction (that Ray Bradbury story where a dinosaur humps a lighthouse comes to mind)to read about dinosaurs as animals rather than monsters blew my mind, and probably delayed my puberty by another year. Worth it.
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His best essay/lecture that I've ever read. I encourage everyone to look it up online and read through it. Anyone who blindly follows scientific consensuses is a damn moron. The majority of scientists can be wrong, and they can be biased assholes who follow their own ideologies or the money trail which often means means painting empty speculation and bullshit as facts and selling it to you on fear. Anyway I'm here to pay tribute to the man who gave us Jurassic Park which was one of the greatest experiences of my childhood on film.
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My dog passed away tonight... I hope he's cuddled up by Mr. Crichton's feet in heaven. Miles Buster Davis Lorber-Weiner, I love and miss you.
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Dammit - Why did he have to die when such deserving candidates (i.e. Geoffrey Archer) live on.
Life isn't fair. RIP MC -
Apt and amusing that a climate change/scientific debate is flaming on Michael Crichton's obit page. I'm sure he'd find it hilarious.My view is that climate change is real and has happened regularly for hundreds of millions of years. Whether this latest spell is natural, man-made or a bit of both, I don't know.What I do know is that me being told to buy energy-saving bulbs by politicians who travel the world in jets is fatuous and insulting. Being shamed into rolling your dimmer switch down just as half of India lights up a coal-fire is laughable and I can't believe so many gullible people are falling for it.If saving energy is so important to the future of the planet, then can I take it that every office block in every city will be dark tonight? Or will they simply carry on leaving all the lights blazing when no-one's there? Do as you're told and stay asleep, little people. The Big Boys know best...
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I'm looking at YOU Timeline!
Interesting to read the thoughts he's provoked on here about scientific consensus and the Real World Modern Day Scientist. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe the height of scientific consensus once had the world convinced the Sun revolved around the Earth and that the HEART was where thoughts came from (the brain was just a useless lump of fat; nobody knew what it was for) - among other gems, of course...
Don't get me (or him) wrong tho - I'm not knocking Science - or "Climate Change" - the whole POINT is that someone can come along and say "you guys have got it all WRONG - light is both a wave AND a particle!" and consensus will shift and entire libraries of useless old theories will get thrown out.
Try doing THAT with a popular myth about, say, a boat and some animals and some unusually heavy rain... -
Nov 06, 2008 4:58:46 AM CST
The king of the airport readers...
by i_am_not_the_droid_you_are_looking_for
Every time I take a flight i seem to be reading a Crichton novel. Just finished Next. Not the best of his books, but as always, an interesting concept, intelligently and entertainingly presented. He had a way of presenting (sometimes wild) theory as fact, which based his books in a certain reality. Thanks, Michael. RIP.
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Jurassic Park pretty much WAS my childhood and the novel was the first adult novel I ever read (though I wouldn't become totally hooked on reading till I read The Shining later), a billion RIPs man
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my cat went missing a few days ago and now this, if it wasn't for Fallout 3 I'd be a completely depressed mess
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Rest in peace, my thoughts with your family. Thank you for those wonderful books, I loved Jurassic Park and The Lost World. I also think Westworld is a great film- no Westworld, no Terminator...I enjoyed the first Jurassic Park film, however I do not think it did the novel justice and don't get me started on the sequels or where the franchaise has gone or is going. It would be wonderful for a talented filmaker to make movies more faithful to the books with a large budget, ditto Congo and Sphere.
Godspeed big man. -
that he'd one day write a third JP novel?
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RIP Dinosaur man
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"Next" involved a minor character named "Mick Crowley" - a Yale graduate and a Washington political columnist. "Crowley" was portrayed by Crichton as a child molester with a small penis. The character made only a brief and seemingly unnecessary appearance in the novel.
In fact, there is a senior editor of The New Republic called Michael Crowley - a Yale graduate based in Washinton.
In March 2006, the real Crowley wrote an article strongly critical of Crichton for his theories about global warming in "State of Fear".
There's little doubt that Crichton was making a poisonous counter-attack on Crowley in "Next".
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this news is major suckage.
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...will be a better film than book. Someone who cares needs to start picking up the rights to TERMINAL MAN, CONGO, SPHERE, etc. and making decent flicks. We also need to see the McTiernan cut of 13TH WARRIOR with the gore back in and the fat lady! RIP MC. That is all.
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Nov 06, 2008 8:31:24 AM CST
I disagreed with some of his politics, but I'll remember him
by randysavage
as one of the greatest novelists and most imaginative storytellers in my lifetime. Thanks for all the stories. RIP.
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Crichton was a very conservative man (by novel author standards). He saw the socialist winning the election, and said, "To hell with this" and let his cancer consume him.
All joking aside, he was a fantastic author and a brilliant thinker. One of the few men in the world willing to openly challenge Al Gore's global warming hoax.
The first Jurassic Park novel, Timeline, Sphere, and Andromeda Strain should be required reading. His more recent books suffered from being a tad overly preachy, but still enjoyable. I've yet to read "NEXT" (been meaning to pick it up in paperback, but haven't gotten to it yet). I must have read the first JP novel close to 100 times since I first got it back in '90 (I've since gone thru 3 JP books... two hardcovers and 1 paperback). -
So here I am sitting down before my computer starting with work and I think... hey... let's check Aintitcool.com first, so the day can start as it should. And what did I find!? This fucking news!!! I love Crichtons work! Most of his movies and books are legendary works. I grew up with Westworld, Coma and later Jurassic Park. His books like Sphere and Congo are some of my favorite stories and I still can't understand Michael Crichton is no more. This sucks! One step forward to Hollywood mainstream now... which is sad. The guys ideas were amazing.
All the best to his family and friends!
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The guy was a shitty writer but Westworld was really cool.
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IMHO he had one of the coolest careers ever (although I didn't agree with certain social views he held).Agreed regarding CONGO and SPHERE. Both were tremendous reads. The movie versions paled in comparison.
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...of global warming? Its like denying the Holocaust of the Jews. That is the problem with blindly following an ideology instead of the facts. Right wingers regularly ignore facts that disprove their ideological beliefs. Just like Creationists ignore any evidence that proves them wrong. The world and universe is over 6,000 years old, and global warming is a scientific fact. My mother died of cancer, so I do not say this lightly. Crichton had a good career as a writer, film maker, etc, but his political beliefs were dead wrong, and now he is too.
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sure it was flawed in some places, but fuck what a thought provoking ride that movie is...
Plus its got sexy Sharon Stone -
The planet NATURALLY heats and cools, with humanity not affecting it in the slightest. Glaciers in canada and russia are 2 feet thicker today than they've ever been in recorded history. Millions of years ago, the polar caps were tropical rainforests. The earth moves at its own pace, humanity is nothing more than a hiccup, and will last just as long. Anyone who thinks we have ANY long term effects on the earth has serious delusions of godliness.
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...live! Only on pay-per-view!
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The fat douchebag loves Hollywood and the inustry reciprocates--even though most of his supporters are clueless about "global warming" (seriously, check-out interviews with Sharon Stone, et al: "I just know that it's really bad!"). In regard to Mr. Crichton: he's iconic because he encouraged the public to read. That's a pretty noble legacy, if you ask me. Long after his critics turn to ash, Crichton's books will entertain and kindle debate. I know this eulogy sounds like a Hallmark card--but I'm quite sincere.
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with Crighton about his thoughts on the information age and, in particular, the internet as a whole. The thinking in some circles at the time was that the internet was going to unite the world. Crighton explicitly disagreed stating that it would in fact take us further and further from each other.I think this is easily seen today and also the progress from convenience to physical isolation and the impersonal aspects of online communication.With the internet, thousands of us can sit in a 'virtual' room and debate politics. However, without the internet, maybe a hundred of us could debate said politics but without resorting to childish name-calling and any other nonsense issued solely due to the nature of internet anonymity.I disagreed with him on a few things politically but his contribution to the world of literature and film is simply wonderful and he will be dearly missed.And yes, Sphere was a terrible movie but a great book. Highly recommended. And 'The Lost World' is probably 80% completely different than the movie...all excellent reads!RIP, Doc Crighton!
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No fucking way!! Massive heart attack. He was 61!! Died in Ireland. Fuck me I can't fucking believe this. Jurassic Park curse? -
Watch the interview with Charlie Rose. He just refutes the catastrophe claims that most scientists are currently making. He clearly says, (to paraphrase) "Global warming is happening, humans are playing a role. I predict a .8 degree rise in the next century." BUT, he doesn't agree with the catastrophe claims of many. That's all. Get it right before you criticize the man.
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I've been a voracious reader of everything Michael Crichton. He was a fantastically innovative author in everything he wrote, a vastly underrated director, and a great thinker. Even if you didn't agree with his views on climate change, you have to admit that a careful examination of the evidence raises doubts as to our present understanding of global warming, and the fact that he used novels to simultaneously communicate horribly confounded science is an amazing feat in and of itself. Add in that the novels he wrote were enormously entertaining and you have a truly gifted creator. Of every celebrity, pundit, or author that has tackled global warming, Michael Crichton was the most erudite, educated, and I guarantee had done more and better research than Al Gore, Leonardo DiCaprio, et al. He is probably the only author whose work I read without reserve and would read one of his books just because his name was on the cover. He will be sorely missed.
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Wow.
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Your ridiculous views about global warming, contradicted by tens of thousands of climate scientists, are nothing more than MobilExxon propaganda, disseminated by the Republicans to retain the vast donations provided by the Oil Companies.
The IPCC reports refute, in minute detail, all the fake science promulgated by MobilExxon but ideologues like you two keep repeating the lies. -
Apologies to the man himself and all others.
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I did a quick search and didn't see anything about it (including imdb and wiki). You have a link? (not doubting, in fact I simply hope you're wrong but I don't see anything about it)
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You people who say that his views on global warming were incorrect and it was Republican/MobilExxon propaganda: you people are fucking retarded.
That's not what he was saying at all. 1) Have you read his book? 2) Have you listened to his interviews? 3) Have you contacted the govnernment yet? Because I hear that they have programs for retarded people like you.
He never denied that there was climatological change, that it was man-made, or that the Earth was getting warmer. What HE DID SAY was that we should not be panicking over it; that reasonable estimates of change over the next century are .8 degrees Centigrade; that estimations of future climate, including his own, are unreliable because we cannot even predict the next week's weather, let alone the next hundred years'. On that last point in particular, your tens of thousands of climatologists would agree.
Moreover, unless you've read the hundreds of SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL articles, research papers, and carefully examined the data of global climatological change yourself, you're not really in a position to disagree with him. Everything YOU believe comes filtered through the media, Al Gore, or celebrities, and if you think their insights are worth half a crap, I pity your feeble brains. If you look at the ACTUAL SCIENTIFIC DATA (and I have), Crichton's viewpoints are not invalid. For example, the warming of the Earth's surface - yeah, there's a lot of evidence that the surface temperature of New York City has risen substantially since 1850. Problem is, look at Albany NY (100 miles or so north), and what do you see? The surface temperature there has not substantially increased since 1850. The newsmedia will tell you the former truth, but not the latter, and then frame it in the context of "IMPENDING DISASTER" because idiots like you lap up that sort of news. -
you will be missed
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You need to learn to read, pinhead.
I expressed no view whatsoever about Crichton's opinions.
You stupidly leaped to that conclusion because you were dying to ventilate your inane, neo-con fake science opinions about climate change.
However, I HAVE IN FACT READ hundreds of SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL articles and examined the date of global Climatological change MYSELF!!!
Shocking, I know, that some people actually know how to access research materials and actually take the time to do it.
Second, NOTHING I BELIEVE on this topic comes filtered through the media, Al Gore or celebrities- nor do I think that their insights are worth a pinch of shit.
I have sufficient education to form my own views based on reading primary source materials. Unlike you, you hypocrite.
Thirdly, the hearsay data you quote from undisclosed sources about NW USA land temperatures is both incorrect AND irrelevant to the conclusions summarised in the IPCC reports - which you have evidently not read.
Fourth, your incompetent debating skills would embarrass a 6 year old. You've just effectively demonstrated your inability to engage in scientific debate.
Fuck off, grow up and read a fucking book. -
.. because of consistent hate-posting and generally being a total asshole.
We've had this debate before, and you had your ass kicked.
Contrary to your assumption, science is the one area where consensus ultimately is decisive.
All scientists have the right and obligation to contest consensus views, but since perfect proof is generally impossible, when those challenges have all failed, the consensus of scientists represents the state of the science on that point.
That is what has happened in respect of global warming.
Consensus is recorded in the most recent IPCC report.
You hate that conclusion for your own bizarre ideological reasons, but you're stuck with it unless you can prove error.
You can't.
You obviously haven't got the faintest clue about scientific method.
You've proved over and over again on these Talkbacks that you're an obnoxious cunt who'll say any spiteful thing, no matter how dishonest, no matter how contrary to fact, just to gratify your gigantic but fragile ego.
Why do you keep stinking up this place you pitiful loser? -
. . . at a book signing in San Francisco when he released Disclosure. Extremely personable and extremely tall. Took the time to talk for several minutes about some of his work even with a bunch of people in line behind me. Great guy and a great writer, director, doctor and more.
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You claim to have looked at the data yourself, then you use Crichton's own data from his novel about the urban heat island to back this claim up??? That's weak dude. Sorry but it's true.
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You summed it up perfectly.
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if no one gives two tits about sam alan grant whatthefuckever then i can only say fuck em, my only consolation to them is it's for the greater good, whcih, at the moment escapes me but involves something to do with beefaroni. TRUST ME. the suppression of their memory is a necessaary sacrifice~!
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"Crichton was a very conservative man (by novel author standards)." How one writes fiction shows his political ideology? Explain more! like subject matter or ideas. intriguing. could a book on ponies and rainbows reveal a fascist ideology fore xample?
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if not more, given we're probably unhealthy computer geeks as it is.
Diabetes may get the rest of us.
Terrorism? Fuck that. Spend 200 billion on curing cancer. Fuck IRAQ. Fuck Al Quaeda. Fuck IRAN.
If America had the god damned Cure for cancer, how many counties would want to be Americas friend? -
Are they going to bury him, or encase him in amber?
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Abe Vigoda will outlive everyone!! All hail the great Abe Vigoda!!
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Orcus kids you not
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