Douglas Adams Passes: So Long And Thanks For All The Fish

I'll never forget the time I read "Life, the Universe and Everything." The alien with the quest to insult every being in the universe, alphabetically, made me laugh out loud in public. I didn't care, I was in the presence of genius. Mr. Adams will be sincerely missed. In addition to the masterful radio plays (with the best cliff hanger ever left hanging) I can also recommend the Dirk Gently audio books. Mr. Adams reads them himself and they are priceless.

I've been a fan of Douglas Adam's ever since I read Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy. What a great "trilogy" of books, I don't think any series has made me laugh as hard. He will be missed. :(

Douglas Adams inspired me in many ways. He was the Monty Python of science fiction. I wish with all my heart that this wasn't true. One of the most important lessons I ever had through his books was that it's not the answer that's important - it's the question. I am incredibly sad right now. Moriarty, btw, that's my favorite passage from the books. It helped get me into college. But that's too long a story to tell here.

I'm in complete shock. I just saw him last fall, doing a reading and a talk at MIT. He had so many things he said he wanted to do ... another "Last Chance to See"-type project, a muttered-about sixth Hitchhiker book now that he was no longer in the black mood that prompted Mostly Harmless, and of course the movie. I got his signature on my copy of the HHGTTG radio scripts, and wish I'd stopped to chat longer. I nearly didn't go at all, because of other obligations, but now I'm glad I did. It's a horrid kind of glad, though Douglas was one of the reasons I became a writer, and he helped shape my sense of humor. I'm sure there are many others who can say the same, and I know that I have friends in the computer game industry who are going to be devastated by this as well. When it completely sinks in, I'm sure I'll feel the same. For now, though, I'm just in shock. Rest in peace, Douglas. The world will be less fun without you. --Chris Pierson

This can't be true. I just finished "Last Chance To See" a few days ago and it was one of the funniest, saddest, wittiest and simply best pieces of nonfiction I've ever read. I was hoping he'd give us more like that. Mr. Adams you will be missed.

this is the first post I've made for one of the saddest topics. A great writer whose humour paved the way for Pratchett. Hope you know the answer now, at least. Best wishes to his family.

Uggh...I cant believe this. He is my favorite author right up there with Dr. Seuss. This friggin sucks. I almost just shed a tear for the dearly departed man. Gosh..and I was happy when I came home from work. They had better not screw up the movie now that he's gone. I hope it comes out the way he imagined it and blows everything else away and everybody will understand 42!!!! :'(

AT 49?! Jeezus. Man does that suck. Why is it always the really good ones that die early, while total wastes of skin like Pol Pot get to go on to ripe old ages. I bet Sadam Hussien lives to be 100. What a world.

How am I going to tell my friends this? I reminisced on the book with one of them just a few days ago. I can only give one of my favorite quotes: "I seem to be having tremendous difficulty with my lifestyle." - The Hitchhiker

The previous poster was right on, Adams was the Monty Python of Science Fiction. No easy task, mind you. Jeez, I just said "Adams WAS..." I'm so depressed, I feel just like Marvin the Robot. Crap, I forgot all about Marvin, he must be downright suicidal by now. Poor chap. I met D.Adams about 13 years ago when he was signing copies of Dirk Gently's 1st. I was so nervous I nearly vomited. I've since lost that book. DAMN, cruel world. There's no justice on this planet. Goodbye Adams and good luck. I know there's a lot more laughter in Heaven today now that you're there.

I grew up reading his stuff, and this is just a damn shame. I just loved his stuff, loved his insane wit, and loved the heck out of the characters. Well, I guess Mr. Adams succeed in missing the ground. I'm going to succeed in missing him.

None At All. Just...shit. shit shit shit. Great way to start my weekend.

What's with it with genuinely funny British people and dying? This makes me really really really sad.

So few authors have such an impact on readers. Adams was one of them. I never had the honor of meeting Mr. Adams, but I did through his books: Our damn wristwatches. That damn couch. A robot with one damn leg stuck in the mud. Those beautiful Fjords. And the damn bypass that started it all. A man who shaped a great deal of my sense of humor is now gone, so now I'll go walk through life's traffic, without touching the ground, wearing my peril-sensitive sunglasses. Goodbye Mr. Adams. You mattered.

His Hitchhiker's Guide is the single funniest piece of litterature I've ever read. It's a real shame he had to die so early ;(.

well, what can I say, apart that lif sucks big time from time to time.

How do you pay tribute to a man who has inspired you? I never met the man, but I read his books, played his games, listened to his radio shows,books on tape and record albums, I surfed his site, I even had a pair of Peril sensative sun glasses. I was brought up on British Comedy, my Father introduced me to the Good Show when I was five, Monty Python when I was six and Dave Allen when I was seven. Douglas Adams was the one I discovered on my own. The fact that I have a sence of humor, a dry almost sarcastic humor, can be attributed in part (a large part) to Douglas Adams. Whe Jim Henson dies I cried, today I feel as if I lost my towel and a robot from the Frogstar is trying to force feed me a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster. Or as Marvin, the Paranoid Android said: "So pardon me for breathing which I don't do anyway so I don't see why I bothered to bring it up in the first place, oh God I'm so depressed." Solong you Whoopy Frood!

A: 42.

There have been so few writers as laugh-out-loud funny as Adams. That he was funny in a genre that strives so hard to be taken seriously in a real tribute to his genius.

....and fuzzy blue creatures from Alpha Centuri were fuzzy blue creatures from Alpha Centuri. After spending so much time writing in his own irreverent fashion about the meaning of life.....I take comfort in the idea that he now perhaps has the answers he so long sought. But, it should also be said that it was his asking of the questions, and his search itself that endeared him all to us. So long......and thanks.

I can't believe it. This is the height of suckiness. I don't know what to say. Adams was a bona fide genius, and now he's gone....I need to find my towel. Marvin got nothing on me right now....

Just to add to the voices of grief this morning. I whipped through all the 'Hitchhiker' books in high school, enjoyed the living shit out of them. Then went on to college and sort of lost touch with Adams' books (never got to the Dirk Gently books or the others). This makes me want to dig out the books and reacquaint myself. Shit, and I sold my copy of 'Don't Panic' a couple years ago (before I belatedly got turned onto Gaiman and Sandman); so, doubly kicking myself for that now. You do realize though, that with all the many people who read and were touched by Adams' work, all the many people who will post here and the many, many others who won't post...given all that, he's not really gone...he's still with us.

Adams is gone, so the Vogons must be on their way. He's just hitched a ride on a passing construction vehicle. *sigh* God bless his family. He was a good one.

Right now, on the otherside of the galaxy somewhere, an alien Dodo analog is pecking and squawking it's way out of an egg. It will grow to be absurdly tall, much taller than all the other alien Dodo analogs, and it will have a fondness for alien bass guitar analog music. It will one day tell hilarious and touching stories about a fantastical planet where people have only one head, wear Wellingtons and drink Espresso, and where the phones never, ever work...

I thougt this would turn out to be a fine day. Obviously not so. I'm going back to bed and I'm taking a bottle of old Janx spirit with me. I just want to say I really admired the man. I always tried to convert people to reading him. Be it friends or be it family. He will be dearly missed.

This is an absolute shock to start the day. Whenever you hear news of Adams you usually smile, but not this time. It's hard to believe he could die and he had so much more to give. I just started reading his books about 3 years ago, and in that time have become a big fan. I'm sure he'd thank us all for our comments. So thank you Adams and thank all you fans.

Just Friday afternoon I was driving to London, and passed Basingstoke on the way. I thought to myself, "Are you trying to tell me that we just stuck out our thumbs and some green bug-eyed monster stuck his head out and said, Hi fellas, hop right in. I can take you as far as the Basingstoke roundabout?" I had no idea as I chuckled to myself that Douglas Adams was gone. I am in shock.

His books helped me survive high school. I would have lost my mind if the school library didn't have Hitchhiker's Guild to the Galaxy. I had seen the BBC show, but I never would have know that it was based on one of the best pieces of science fiction ever till that one fateful day I went exploring the library. I went to high school in a small hick town in Georgia, to find gold like that helped to open my mind to new ideas, more so than any teacher could have done. Douglas Adams, Thank you for helping to open my eyes to this strange and unusual planet we call Earth.

A friend got me into Douglas Adams 3 years ago. I read the entire Hitchhiker's Guide series (and got extremely pissed off at the ending of "Mostly Harmless") and both Dirk Gently books. I've spent the past year in Douglas Adams withdrawal, waiting for the next book, any book, to come from him. And it'll never happen. (sigh) The world's lost a literary genius, brilliant wit, and altogether hoopy frood. RIP, DNA.

As I sit here crying, all I can say is THE ANSWER WILL ALWAYS BE 42

the sole reason I still wear a Casio digital watch to this day is because of this man...well, personally, i hope they don't make the movie now, it just won't have his touch...

I just heard about this on NPR and I'm shocked. This sucks!!! Well what else can I say but: We apoligize for the inconvience. :-(

Dammit, this really fucks up my day.... week even. I... shit.. no words.. I'll miss Ya Douglas.........ZB

I was ten years old when I first read "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", and I, of course, proceeded to read all of Douglas Adams' books when they were released. As a fan of the science-fiction genre, the news that Adams passed away hit me similarly to when I heard that Robert A. Heinlein had died in 1988. The sadness stemmed from knowing that I would never be able to read a new book by one of my favorite authors, and there is a tangible feeling of loss in that realization. The truly sad thing is that Robert Heinlein was 80 and had lived a very full life. Douglas Adams dying at age 49 is just premature, even though I know it happens every day. Since I am now 30, 49 does not seem that far away. "Why are people born? Why do they die? Why do they want to spend so much of the intervening time wearing digital watches?" I hope that Douglas Adams is having a great meal now at The Restaraunt at the End of the Universe.

you know, on the odd side, I hope his last words were "Oh no, not again!"...... ZB

Melvin, the Paranoid Android, though often depressed, never cried. Today, he does. Ford, Arthur and Zaphod has never heard a sound like it, now, or again. Goodbye, Douglas. We'll miss you.

Along with Monty Python's Flying Circus, Adams taught my friends and I what was funny and irreverent. For the rest of my life I'll fondly remember those nights during highschool that we sat in front of the TV until the wee hours, watching the entire series for the fifth time through...laughing our asses off. As Rousseau said: Comedy is hard, dying is easy.

What a shame! The world will never get another writer like him. Unique, intelligent and a nice guy in person. "42."

Check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hitchhikers/

So I type in aintitcool.com, just to check up on things before signing off and the first words I read are Douglas Adams passes... So, with an odd feeling in my chest, I click on the link, thinking "OK, maybe it means that he turned down a script for an adaption of a book or something." But no. One of the greatest pleasures in my life has been turning others on to the Hitchhiker "trilogy," surpassed only by reading said trilogy. Adams was brilliant; there's simply no other way to put it. His humor, original, yet with a distinctly British tone, shaped the outlook of many, but not nearly enough. His work is must read material. I never for a second believed that he'd let Mostly Harmless be the end of things. Now I'll never know what he had planned.

"Ford, you're turning into a penguin. Stop it."

...of course it wouldn't quite have his mark, but dammit, the guy deserves a last hurrah. He will be sorely missed. This has been a Sad Moment with User ID Indeed! It's true: white mice ARE geniuses.

i always loved this one, from slartibartfast: "if you do, you'll be late. you know, as in the late mr. prefect. it's a threat, you know. i never was very good at them."

"Its been...unexpected."

The death of Mr Adams is very shocking. As is death, in many ways. The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series was brilliant and he was very smart man who lived in a world full of idots who never really truly saw what talent he had. Disney's belated effort to get a movie made of Hitchhikers is evident. They call it a "cult status" movie, and not worthy of a large budget, because they (Disney) wants a movie that will make everyone go (like The Mummy Returns -which I have no desire to see). Adams wrote Pirate Planet for Dr Who, and oversaw most of the Who's 16th season. He also cowrote the funniest of Who's 17th season The City of Death. He also wrote Shada, the story that was upset by a strike at the BBC. However, most of Shada was novelised in Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. I am sad that there will be no more Dirk Gently books -by the way, what ever happened to the third book? I know it was aborted, but was it finished? I think the Hitchhikers series went as far as it could go, and I am one of the few who liked Mostly Harmless. Still, Adams was a man, befuddled by writers block and publishers who demand one book after another (anyone who read Stephen King's Bag of Bones will see what I mean. He really ripped on his own publishers). His death at 49 is a great loss to all sci fi fans and we'll never get a chance to see what could have been. And if I may borrow something from Star Trek, let be this: My thoughts are not for Douglas Adams, but for myself. I keep thinking how empty our lives will be without his presence. Also, Death is a state in which one exists only in the memory of others...which is why it is not an end. Rest in peace, Mr Adams. And if I may speak for all your fans, we will never let your light dim. You are a shinning example of how to have fun, and never take life so serious. My condolence to his entire family and, also, to the fans. Always remember :-(

I'm glad I heard this here among friends rather than from the AP Wire. I can't even begin to say what Adams' books meant to me (already tried on the CHUD message boards, but was crying the whole time), but I'll be spending the day re-reading "Last Chance to See." I have always cursed my time at Indiana University, but it did provide me with the chance to meet Douglas Adams there, so I'm glad of that. He told us so many funny stories that I'll never forget. I can't believe this has happened.

I don't think there's much I can say that anyone else hasn't. If I had to pick a single author who had the most influence upon my developing years, it would be Adams. ... Personally, I hope they DO go on with the movie. If Roach can do it, and do it RIGHT, it would be the most fitting eulogy possible. ... And BTW, everyone who was a fan, go out an register with the H2G2 project, if you haven't already. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/) That way, what he started will continue 'till the beginning of the next world.

This is damn depressing. HitchHikers Guide was one of my favorite books in grade school, hell, it was everyones favorite book in grade school. Now I'm really depressed. Damn, I ripped into Adams a little on the Good Omens talkback, then he goes and dies. I know the one has nothing to do with the other really, but I still feel like shit.

I'm just curious if anyone has ever read "Last Chance To See"...Douglas Adams travelled around the world with a (I can never remember, zoologist, biologist, naturalist) a scientist of some sort tracking down the 4 or 5 most endangered species on the planet. It's hilarious and moving and wonderful...and the writing is from Adams' personal point of view...my copy was stolen years ago and now more than ever I need to find another copy. But check it out if you have the chance, it's well worth it.

Don't you see? He's now out there, hitchhiking the galaxy with the best of them. Happy traveling Douglas!

Just to offer a different kind of thought on D.Adams....I was in 7th grade and my best friend suggested I read Hitchhiker's. I agreed and took it home that night to dig into it. I read the first two or three chapters I guess and went to bed. As I was preparing to go to school the next day my older sister saw me putting the book into my bag. She looked at me, laughed, and told me that only geeks read those books. I shrugged it off and left for school. When I arrived that morning I saw 2 other kids reading Hitchhiker's also. I was shocked.My sister was right..the kids were total geeks! I was relieved that my wonderful sister had saved me from a turn down the wrong road. I was considered a pretty cool kid, so just imagine what would have happened if I had been caught reading it at school...WHEW!! When I got married a couple of years ago I decided to read it, knowing I had nothing to lose anyway. And all I can say is...thank God for my sister. She helped steer me down a road filled with girls, friends, and fun for Junior High and High school. Maybe one day I can repay her. My condolences to all you out there who were actually caught reading it by kids you're age.

I remember going through the kind of depression that seems to be typical of high school students. When those around me asked if I was contemplating suicide, I would reply: "What? And miss the next Douglas Adams book?" His work was one of the few things that seemed worth living for. ...I'm not good at expressing the proper emotions at times like this, and now that I read what I just typed, it sounds kind of stupid. But Adams himself once said that so many people have told him that his books helped them through depression, he wondered if he'd inadvertently written a self-help book. Worked for me.

Come on Professor give us a link to the script you read many will enjoy it. PS, tell Harry that his house and all of Austin are in the way of an intergalactic freeway and so they will have to be vaporized, can't stand in the way of progress you know.

It was Marvin. He was the reason I loved THE IRON GIANT so much. Marvin was the first shiny, mechanical sentient that I loved. When seeing the IRON GIANT for the first time there was already within me a soft spot in my heart for robots that don

"Where land meets water. Where earth meets air. Where body meets mind. Where space meets time. We like to meet on one side, and look at the other." Mostly Harmless, page 109. When I heard that Mr. Adams had passed away my eyes teared and I felt like I had lost a dear friend. His writing brought me joy when all around me was in turmoil. He took me away from this place to somewhere better. How can you thank someone for that? Now God has taken him away to the other side to look at us. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

"I think you ought to know that I'm feeling very depressed."

... - this is shocking news especially given his young age and the joy he has brought to myself and countless others. There's a reason I possess the Hitchhiker series both in paperback and hardcover and video of the British tv shows...the genius comedy, language, and ideas used by Adams will live on after all of us have left this planet. There was a book announced years back that I kept waiting for but never appeared....I hope there is a manuscript out there that can be released as a final gift to his fans. May his family know that people around the world are grieving with them.

Yesterday I was taking the subway to work when I overheard a couple discussing the amusing ways in which pets hide under things under the assumption that if it can't see you, you can't see it. The guy then made a comment about the Ravenous Bugblatter beast causing me to glance over at him and we shared a smile. I think I'm going to go out and buy a new towel. If there is any day to do such a thing, it is today.

there was a guy who really knew where his towel was. i met douglas many years ago,a total gentleman,witty,articulate and bloody tall. he will be missed.

I'm in tears. He'll be missed.

you shall be missed and tonight I'll look up at the stars and look for you and Ford and Arthur and Zaphrod. Let us raise our thumbs in rememberance to this funny, funny man.

This is hideous. Now he won't get to see the film version of "Hitchhiker's Guide." Unbelievable. Boy, Jay Roach had better make it now, and with Hugh Laurie and whoever else Adams wanted. What terrible news.

He has certinaly influenced my outlook on the world, perhaps more than any other single writer. I first read Hitchhiker's as a precocious 8 year old, and as a read and re-read it over the years, I got more and more of the jokes. In junior high, I even attempted to write my own Adams-style humor. The radio scripts provided material for many a scene or monologue in high school drama class. I also read and appreciated the Dirk Gently books, and Last Chance to See. I read many of his essays and played his cynically brilliant game, Beaurocracy. Whether the Hitchhiker's movie project goes forward without him or not, the books will always remain as one of the cornerstones of my formative years. Rest in peace, Douglas.

other than "that was one frood who really knew where his towel was." Goodbye to the first man who ever made me laugh out loud, using only the written word. With his passing, I hope someone gets inspired to light a fire under the ass of the stalled HHGTTG movie. Gilliam, step up to the plate... and tell Roach to make due with Meet The Parents II!

Recently, while digging through my always cluttered backpack, I realized I had been inexplicably lugging around a copy of THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE for lord knows how long. Greatly bemused, I opened the yellowed volume, flipped through the first few dog-eared pages (this was the same paperback copy that first enchanted me when I was eleven,) and realized why. Should things ever go all screwy in this baffling universe, at least I've got a foolproof roadmap. Now, to clear out room for that towel.....

Well, usually I hate posting on TalkBacks that are already full, but I just feel the really really deep need to express myself tonight. Douglas Adams, although I never knew the man personally, impersonally, or intra-personally, although I've only read the 5-part Hitchhikers's Triology, I have to say that I will deeply miss him. His books were perhaps the only thing that my entire circle of friends could read together and not argue over quality. Ayn Rand, "Wizard's First Rule", Counterstrike..we quarrelled over all of those, but never over Hitchhiker's. It had a certain, special something which made everyone who read it enjoy it. My favorite Douglas Adams memory was of my 10th grade Honors English class-we actually convinced our teacher to allow "Hitchhiker's" into the summer reading curriculum. The book has stayed in, and I felt as though the little subversiveness of Adams would like to know that he and his works are being graded in my high school. Tonight, I'm going to re-read "Hitchhiker's". Maybe I am just a Paranoid Andriod, but I will do it. So long, Mr. Adams, and as it's been said, thanks for all the fish. May the power of 42 guide you.--Saulot--

My "More Than Complete Copy" of the "Hitchhiker's" isn't complete at all-it only has the first 4 Arthur Dent stories. Once again, Mr. Adams, you've won.

Man, what an unexpected turn of events... with a surpirse almost as unexpected as a single mis-spoken phrase causing war between intergalactic races in a miniturized sub-universe. At any rate, http://www.douglasadams.com/ WAS Douglas Neal Adams' official website, set up by him, friends, and fans. Currently, it is an impormptu tribute site. People have been posting day and night about the loss of their favorite (or at least my favorite) writer. Heck, I posted myself a few hours ago: http://www.douglasadams.com/cgi-bin/mboard/info/thread.cgi?3253,0 But it's already 300 or 400 posts behind. Oh,a nd for those who love the Hitchhikers, make sure and play DNA's official game, from back in the early 80s! http://www.douglasadams.com/creations/infocomjava.html

It's nice to find a place where Douglas Adams is being remembered. I posted this on AOL, but this is better arena to sare my grief over his passing, and my admiration for his work. "I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." -- Douglas Adams My most sincere wish is that this is true. Or, that Douglas Adams is on some fantastic interstellar journey. Douglas Adams has died. I expected people would be here posting about him, sharing Douglas Adams memories, fondest quotes, favorite passages. There must be admirers here, as ardent as I am, for this man, who made me feel as if I'd swallowed a magic mushroom that filled my head with psychedelic colors swirling about, exploding, and dripping down to each page as I read! I've suddenly realized that I've forgotten who first suggested that I read Douglas Adams. Did I adequately thank him or her? I'm sure I did not. How can you thank someone enough for turning you on to a book that causes you to belly laugh while you're reading? The cow. The cow who suggested cuts of meat for Arthur's dinner. The whale and the flower. The mice. The Hairdressers. Pink valleys, hermaphrodite tables, these are all natural stages through which one had to pass on the path to true enlightenment.* If you don't know what I'm talking about, read some Douglas Adams. You'll be enlightened. I had a chance to thank Douglas Adams. It was here, online, in the Science Fiction area that I don't think exists today (on AOL). He posted for a small window of time. It was electrifying, in a dorkifying way. I felt like a dork, that is. I don't remember a thing about what I said, it was years and years ago, but I do know it was a rather cheap way to express my appreciation. I wish I could have sought him out so I could have looked him in the eye, taken him by the hand, and thanked him for the fish. He probably enjoyed my slobbering devotion online more than he would have enjoyed the stalking that seeking him out would have involved. Mr. Adams, if you're on your way, please, don't forget your towel. As you know -- a towel is just about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchiker can have.* and ....may you get where you need to be. * Douglas Adams quotes

A very funny writer and a very deep intellect. A guy who not only asked very deep questions, but was wise enough to laugh at those questions. A real loss to both the world of science fiction and the world of comedy.

I'm gonna miss this guy.

But I don't think I feel good about this one.

This death ranks up there with Freddy Mercury, Kurt Cobain, John Lennon, and Jimi Hendrix... In other words, its a loss of great talent. Many around the world will morn the death of such a prominent man... We all will certainly. I personaly quote the guide daily for random reasons. From "Time is an illusion, lunchtime doubly so" to "Ford, there's an infinite number of monkeys outside that want to talk to you about the script for hamlet they have worked out" to the ever famous "Printed in large friendly letters on the cover 'Dont Panic'"... If I had the option I'd call for a nation wide moment of silence for the genious behind the Guide and inspiration to all those who adore him... Infact I am calling for one, all of those whom adore adams take a moment tomarow to remember the laughs and raised eyebrows as we read his books... And always remember, Vogon space ships hang in the air exactly the way that bricks dont. -Nicoli

5 years ago I could give a damn about any book out there. Didn't read a page. It wasn't till I bumped into a little book called "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". I cracked the book and I became a huge fan. Now I read all the time. I thank Mr. Adams for opening a new world to me. It was one of the first books I read, and as of now still the best. I wandered into the bookstore today and felt lost, as if the creativity, the reason I started reading was gone, but then I went to the sci-fi section under A, and remembered why I was there. Thank you Douglas Adams, I can't wait until I can't meet you again...

Hey, you sass that hoopy Douglas Adams?

I wanted to pitch this to Douglas himself someday. Now I shan't have the opportunity in this life. my pitch: DOuglas, I think you should write one FINAL final hitchhikers book, except it should only be one page. It would end EVERYTHING with such an ironic punctuation mark and I really think it's the way it's meant to be. That one page would consist of the following sentance: "The Great White Handkerchief Came." DOuglas--tho' you were an atheist--God bless you and thank you. You'll be sorely missed. Hope Zappa and Leary and Joey are great company! Adios amigo.

When it rains, it pours. I read both the Hitch-hiker and the Dirk Gently series and thought they were hysterical. Although I never liked his endings, everything else was great. He had such a weird, twisted and surreal sense of humor. It's funny, I always assumed he'd write another Hitch-hiker book since it seemed so odd that he killed off everyone at the end of Mostly Harmless. Your idea would've been perfect, Tensticks. Ah well. So long Doug, and thanks for all the fish.

First Joey Ramone, now Douglas Adams... Why not Fred Durst and Dean Koontz? C'mon, Death! Show a little taste!

taken at the book signing for "So Long and Thanks for All the Fist." Still have the autographed book, too. Time to dig out the laserdisk of HHGTTG. BTW, he worked on the last season of Monty Python, didn't he? Seems I recall hearing him talk about working on the series, but after John Cleese had left.

I had one! It was one of those old text based games with no graphics, but it came with a pair of peril sunglasses! d

I can't really think of anything to say but... Bye Doug, we'll miss you. And if you get a chance, send us some fish.

Played "Hitchhiker" on my old Commodore 64 just last week! He also made another game with Infocom called "Bureaucracy". Remember an interview with him on a show called Computer Chronicles when that one came out. He was a great interviewee. I'm so sad like everyone else here to hear of his passing. HHGTTG was the first sci-fi book I ever bought! His writing and look on life was just so different and so entertaining.

"They hung in the air exactly the way bricks didn't." I'm sure I could go through each book and come up with 1,500 lines just as good, and much better than the one above. Adam's writing stile was so witty, clever and full of figurative languege. Every time you read or listend to him he would make you smile in that way a kid smiles when he's taken to his first big-league game. So wholesome and funny. If I can come up with just one line of writing in my life that is as half as good as most of Adam's, I'll die happy.

to the library in middle school to see if the latest books in the HGTTG series was in. I bought the record, and the radio scripts, and the computer game (solved it btw) and the more than complete book, and.... Just loved the stuff. I don't care how many versions of HGTTG there were, I liked them all. I wish it was April First today.

God, what a loss. For my money, nobody has ever been able to capture so precisely and articulately the essence of comedy as Douglas Adams did. He was all 5 Pythons and Carl Sagan combined. His imagination was superhuman. By far, my favorite novelist ever. In the end, I'd say I'm with Moriarty on this one. If only I could make this Someone Else's Problem... I wouldn't know anything about this sad story. Take care, Mr. Adams. Thank you for all the laughs.

...and that you didn't actually mean what you said in your post. If it was just a joke, then no harm done, I guess. But if you said all that just to be some kind of aloof contrarian to the rest of us that read and loved the books at an early age, then that kind of comment is, well, pretty disgustingly obnoxious at this point in time.

The one and only true measure of your own humanity is how your fellow ape-descended lifeforms take the news of your passing. To this extent, Mr Adams must be thought of by many here to be quite simply one of the best that humanity had to offer. To quote our favorite passages from his wonderful, wonderful books doesn't seem enough to express our sorrow at this awful news. But it is. When our own words fail us we must use his to show how much he touched our lives. This is his epitaph. My own personal favorite from the books is from The Restaurant at the End of the Universe is how Marvin deals with the Frogstar Battletank on the bridge corridor of the Guides HQ. Just read it it now and you will laugh even knowing that the author is not with us. I will leave you now with this thought... "The Guide is definitive. Reality is frequently inaccurate."

first vincent price. then stanley kubrick. now douglas adams!

I really hope you are kidding. Mr. Adams has brought laughter, happiness, and joy to the lives of millions of all walks of life. For you to trivialize such a thing as his death, which is a monstrous tragedy, shows a profound lack of imagination, humanity, and a great agping hole where your heart should be. I've had the girls, the fun, the friends, and the laughs... Mr. Adams made life a little better... and a greater accomplishment is harder to come by. I respected the man, and mourn his passing.

Sugar, sugar, sugar! As someone above already said, why do the good always die young? Met the Man only the twice: first when the Theatr Clwyd did the Hitchikers on stage here in Cardiff, and he ended up sitting up next to me and he laughed so much that I missed half the jokes....The second time he was doing signing session on the fifth book and I interviewed him. He remembered me! Genius. Dead. So long and thanks for the fjords.

Its been forever and a day since I have posted but occassions like this call for some sort of comment. The first words out of my mouth when I heard this terrible news was "shit" followed by a long and mournful sigh. Like a lot of you I discovered these books in high school and they were the first books to get me to laugh out loud. I'd say more but I am truly at a loss for words. So on a final sad note I would like to say thank you to the memory of the man that brought so much laughter into this often unfunny world. So long and thanks for all the fish.

to a really cool frood who always knew where his towel was. I hope the afterlife is as crazy as his imagination.

We have lost someone special, and irreplacable.

So very sad. I can't believe he was so young, only 49. I have not read the Hitchhiker books in years but I remember they provided a sense of fun and adventure during a very dreary time in my life (being an undergraduate). Gave the books to my mother, she became an instant fan as well. Also "Last Chance to See" was a great great book. Something to ponder: the warm, witty, talented and humane Douglas Adams has been taken far before his time, and yet, Jennifer Lopez still lives and gets another 15 minutes of fame. I'm not sure even Deep Thought could answer that mystery.

always in threes they say.

As the-powers-that-be have been putting it off for over a decade. If the late Mr Adams ever approved a draft of the script, then use it and shoot the thing, so that the project he had been working towards for years can be released as a fitting tribute to the man... For those readers who know the name but not the face, stick on the first episode of the TV show and look for a large guy lurking in the background of the pub having a pint: it's the man himself.

Adams co-wrote under a pseudonym the best and funniest Dr Who ever - 1979's City of Death. A Tom Baker story of such relentless wit and invention as to shame the majority of today's Hollywood output with 200 times the budget. If you're honoring Adams with a video tribute this weekend, as you should, then check this one out.

Y'know, I still take his advice on driving, so whenever I'm lost, I just choose a car at random to follow. It mightn't take me where I want to go, but it takes me where I need to go. Funny thing is, it hardly ever works out that way...

...perhaps he is only taking the year off dead, for tax purposes. <wry smile> Last week I had just begun re-reading the hardback copy of all 5 books from the Hitchikers's "trilogy". I'm at the end of "The Resteruant at the End of the Universe". <sigh>

You're immortal now, Mr. Adams. Thank you.

I first encountered The Hitchhiker's Guide when I was in ninth grade and have been hooked ever since. Douglas was a true comedic genius, and one of the best authors I have ever read. He will be mentioned in the same breath as his fellow Brit comedy greats, Peter Sellers and Graham Chapman, whom he has now gone to meet. Perhaps he now will know what the Ultimate Question truly was. Goodbye to a great man, who taught me to laugh out loud at the printed word.

...was when I was playing an old p.c. game of Hitchhiker's, which I believe he wrote the text for. Out of frustration at a particularily difficult passage, I typed in the command "Eat me", and hit enter. The reply that came back was "Stuffing yourself in your mouth would to little good at this point." God, that made me laugh. And I'll bet he's making God laugh now.

Without a doubt, the hoopiest frood there ever was. His genius didn't extend to books, his computer games were amazing as well. The Infocom text adventure he did of Hitch-hiker's Guide kicks the ass of most modern games since its so original, funny and fiendishly difficult (The only way to complete it was to go back in time and undo actions you'd made previously!). Like somebody said, there was a man who really knew where his towel was. Just in case you're interested, I pulled a crumbly half-assed memory from the dusty back room of my brain about the reasoning of the Ultimate Answer to Life, the Universe and Everything. I can't be certain if Adams himself said this (I think he did, but don't bitch if I'm wrong) but apparently, 42 is the Answer since its the number you get from adding up the numbers on a pair of dice "because life's a gamble."

Mr adams esteemed hitchhikers "trilogy" got me through some long, difficult nights when I was in my teens. Never again have I come accross an author with such wit, surrealism and above all I think, good nature and blended the three so effortlessly. My condolences go to his family at this shocking, tragic time. Mr adams, we miss you.

.... that hasn't already. I remember reading HHGTTG over 20 years ago. The memories of some of the lines have been flooding in over the past 24 hours. I have never been this emotional over the passing of a "non-family" member before. I hope that there is a public viewing/memorial service. Picture this... His picture for the audience to see (the one that's on his site, the black background and half of his face). If this was his funeral, I love to see him in peril-free sunglasses (I had the Infocom game too!), holding a palm handheld in one hand (the guide) and a multi-colored towel in the other. For the memorial... get the people from the BBC and from the radio/tv series to speak. Maybe even get Tom Baker to say a few words. While his passing needs to be mourned... his life needs to be celebrated - especially his impact. Lest we forget, he left behind a wife and a daughter ... I hope that they know how much he was loved by all of us. (There was a suggestion on his websites' message board, that the comments should be published and given to the family.) I also agree to a point... why is it that the good ones go away so quickly?

Thanks for the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything. Your voice will be sorely missed. Here's hoping you went on to a better place.

Was the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, or at least that was one of them according to his agent. Perhaps a donation in his name would not go amiss. This news is shocking, it hangs in the air, the same way a brick doesn't. He was a huge influence on me as a writer, and as a comedian, and as a person. Now that i am actually getting paid to write comedy, I have in many ways him to thank for it, for showing me that even prose can be laugh out loud funny. "Why stop now, just when I'm hating it."

I have to admit, WFCall's remarks were weird. Here is a person who obviously has a problem with people who read books. Or is just sci fi fans he was making fun of? Books, whether you read sci fi, romance, classical works, sports, self help, ect..., are the core of what makes us human. Sure, there are some where books have replaced other stuff, but I know people who got all that he described, plus enjoyed a good book now and then. Franz Kafka once said "A book must be the axe for the frozen sea inside us." But, some sea's never melt. And for WFCall, I will leave you a message from Zora Neale Hurston: "She didn't read books so she didn't know she was the world and heavens boiled down to a drop."

I read the news today oh my, the greatest writer had just pass away, it made me cringe and want to hide, instead all I did was cry.... To the funniest writer in history: Thanks for teaching us all the meaning of Life, the Universe and Everything. You will be sorely missed!

makes jokes in base 12 and then denys it. for more deep(42)thoughts check out http://www.empirenet.com/~dljones/

When I first saw the Hitchhiker's Guide advertised on the front of the Radio Times I groaned. A Sci-fi radio comedy from the Beeb must be rubbish by definition. It took only minutes to realise that I was wrong. I spent the rest of the run of the series trying to convince everyone I met to listen to it. It remains a milestone in English comedy along with the Goons, Blackadder, Python and the rest. Douglas Adams was a fine comic writer and a genuinely good person. He will be missed.

...second only to Tolkien on my favorite authors list. A major major influence on my life. Thanks, Mr. Adams. You are missed.

Go back and actually read the post I put up earlier. If anyone can find a sentence that degrades Adams HIMSELF I'll eat your copy of Hitchhiker's. My timing might have been less than perfect, but how often do I think about the man or his books? Never. Truth be told I didn't like him to much, but I didn't say that anywhere in the post. So quit trying to make the words about something other than what they were intended to. His writing was sophmoric and smug. He was to impressed with his own cleverness. But once again: I didn't say anything about that. As for the guy who even tried to make it look like I was attacking all book readers.....let me know how many books you've read and I guaruntee I've read more. That was idiotic and juvenile. Next time everyone, please take the time to actually digest the words before you decide to go on the offensive.

So your post wasn't an attack on Adams, it was just an attack on us, his fans? Yeah, that statement will earn you understanding. As to you not directly insulting Adams; the first line of your post was about a "differend kind of thought on D. Adams." Then you went on to describe his readers as loser geeks. Since what you were offering us was your thought on Adams, AS YOU STATED, you implied that Douglas Adams himself was a loser geek. So we're the one's who are Idiotic and juvenile? Pot, meet kettle.

Damn, and I had a chance to meet him. Once back in 1993 or thereabouts, he was scheduled be one of many authors talking about their books at the Tucson Convention Center. Adams was scheduled to be one of the guests there, and me being a fan of Adams, I took my towel went down to the event only to find that he had to cancel thanks to an important something-or-other. Dissapointed, I slinked home. A week later, I found that Adams was going to make up for not being at the event by coming to the University of Arizona and holding a question and answer session. Just him, no other authors. So, again, the day came and I got my towel and rushed down there only to find that he had to cancel again due to bad weather keeping his plane from taking off in the Midwest. So, I waited once again for news when he would be coming back and

I guess the one good thing about vacationing with mom out in nowheresville this weekend was at least being spared the news a while. (now I know the answer to: "so, where's ignorance when you really need it?") Cornball setimentality moment: I bet Joey and Douglas are writing a real spiffy punk sci-fi musical up there maybe. (gimme a break, we all mourn in our own way) MOSTLY HARMLESS MY ASS!!!!!!!!

As of right now, The Ultimate Hitch Hiker's Guide is ranked #33 on Amazon.com, outselling both the new Mick Foley book and the new Steven King book. Adams will definetly be remembered for a long time to come.

Rarely does one person have such a large impact on society in such a unique way. He was such a unifying force. I mean, how many times have you had this conversation with someone you just met? "So, what's the answer?" "Ummm, 42?" "Life the Universe and Everything?" "YUP!" And, instantly, you know something about that person. You share a bond, that others JUST DON'T GET!! Well, I think we all know that if Mr. Adams stepped into an Infinite Perspective Vortex, he'd see that, in fact, he was quite an important part of the universe. Oh, and think on this... No one misses Shakespeare. In a generation, no one will miss Douglas Adams. Instead, they will discover him anew, and he WILL LIVE ON!!!

My favourite DNA quote is not from one of his books. When asked what he thinks of deadlines, he replied: "I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by." This more or less sums up my fellings towards deadlines for assesments. With HHGTG, DNA paved the way for popular programmes such as Red Dwarf. So long and thanks for all the laughs.

"The Vogon ships hung in the air much as the way that bricks don't." That's got to be one of the greatest lines ever written. This is a huge loss to the world of science fiction. The world lost something great this weekend.

I find it more geeky to hang around forums dropping offensive material at what is essentially a wake, waiting to see if anyone takes the bait, and then trying to justify yourself later. Why don't you assholes just fuck off and let us mourn. You haven't read the books, you obviously don't like the guy, so why post? Because you're a geek, who listens to his sister.

I first read H2G2 way back in grade school. I read it and re-read it over and over and over again. I can't think of any other book I've re-read nearly as often. I've watched the TV series, from start to finish, over and over and over again. There was one line from H2G2 that stuck with me through life, and really influenced how I see the world: "If Earthlings don't constantly exercise their jaws, their brains start to work." This line has had a vice-like grip on how I interact with other people, for better or for worse. It's probably gotten me into more trouble than its gotten me out of. Sniff.

Does anybody know what the status of the H2G2 movie now is? Will it actually happen? How that Douglas is gone, is some Hollywood hack going to fuck it up? Will it just fall by the wayside? If I had my way, I'd hire the creators of Red Dwarf to finish off a H2G2 movie script. They'd be able to do it justice. They worked on the original H2G2 tv series, didn't they?

If your sister said, cut your prick off with a rusty scythe cos only geeks have pricks you would have done it too. Anyone who can dream up an alien invasion force heading for earth swallowed up by a small dog is definately not sophomoric or smug.

I've taken the time to digest your words (though grammatically incorrect and misspelled) and I feel sorry for you. I hope that you enjoyed your fifteen minutes of fame-they have come and gone. You were pretty, popular and young once. Congratulations on taking your sister's advice and saving yourself from the perils of thinking for yourself. How unbearably original. I was that geeky girl in school. The one you laughed at and teased. The one who loved Douglas Adams. The one who also adores Flannery O'Connor, Ernest Hemingway, and ancient Greek poetry. And it's nice that you can "guaruntee [sic] " you've read more books than I have. It's a shame that through all of your extensive reading you couldn't have learned the value of appreciating other people's point of view. And the importance of respecting those differences. I just returned from a four week stay in Greek Islands. I took along a Douglas Adams novel, some Kerouac, and a dash of Samuel Pepys to keep my plane ride interesting. I thought back to those girls in high school who laughed and called me a geek, the ones who never invited me to their parties. And I have the last laugh. They are all overweight, driving minivans in suburban America with 2.5 kids in their prefabricated homes. Not that the status quo is wrong, mind you, just horrifically dull. I have the last laugh now. I control your mind. I publish one of those women's magazines that tell you what is "hip today." I tell you what you will wear tomorrow, what shoes are in style, and where you have to go to get the best facial in town. And you eat it up, you girls who once teased me for making my own clothes. Oh yeah- learning calculus (another "geek" activity) pays off when you apply it to the stock market. Which is where you fit in. So you traveled "down a road filled with girls, friends, and fun for Junior High and High school." Where are you today? I am typing this from my laptop, somewhere on the way to (one of) my home(s) in New York. I will have to rush tonight to get on my custom made evening gown and make it to a cocktail party on time. Then I'll go home and snuggle up with my gorgeous Greek god of a man (a dotcom jillionaire) and try to console him for losing his favorite childhood author, you guessed it- Douglas Adams. So teach your children to make fun of geeks, to make their silly sororities and fraternities, to feel superior to people they don't understand. It makes our revenge that much sweeter when we rule your insipid little lives later. (Oh, by the way- Can you name one famous person who doesn't claim to have been a "geek" earlier in life?) Cheers, darling. I'm so glad you can tell us who is cool. Without people like you, my dear gadfly, we'd never figure it out. _brevity

Last Chance to See is my favorite Douglas Adams book. It is an ecology book written after Mr. Adams traveled around the world Michael Palin-style with the express purpose of visiting the natural habitats of wild animals/reptiles on the brink of extinction. It is written with his usual sense of style and humor but packs with it the whollup of truth about what human overpopulation is doing to planet Earth. I recommend this book highly. R.I.P. Douglas Adams!!

Strangely creepy would be the feeling I got when I first read the news of Mr. Adams' passing. No, creepy isn't the right word exactly, more like a slight chill. In a few weeks, it'll be ten years since my high school days came to an end, which was about the last time I myself stepped in Mr. Adams' realm of Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters, three-armed, two-headed egotist ex-presidents and holistic detectives. I was then and continue to be a fan of science fiction, whether in filmed or written form. So, I guess it was natural that I should borrow a beaten and dog-eared copy of the first Hitchhiker's novel back around 1987 or so, based on the recommendation of a friend. I found it both extremely funny and breathtakingly imaginative. I mean, spaceships propelled by "improbability" drives, restaurants hovering at the end of time. Priceless. Great thing about Adams', though, was he wasn't really making fun of science fiction or insult it. Though he confessed to not being a real SF fan himself, he seemed to understand that the best science fiction was about the collision of far-off concepts with their effect upon normal human beings, and what it might reveal about our everyday condition. Where he differed from many others was, whereas they might try to tickle the intellect, Adams struck at the funny bone. The destruction of a planet, a moment of titanic drama in a film like 'Star Wars' is played out as a tragi-comical farce of bureaucratic block-headedness in Adams' hands. I'll admit, his writings weren't for everyone. His style was irreverant, self-referential, unapologetically glib, and well, so BRITISH, that it might grate on some (I adored it all, however). And an argument could be made that he was more clever then necessarily smart as a writer (a thought challenged by the simulataneously sweet, wry and instructive non-fiction book Last Chance to See). I myself, after reading the first four HH books, both Dirk Gentley novels, and Last Chance to See; and having watched the TV show countless times on tapes, I pretty much bid farewell to Adams. It was just around the time my adolescence came to an end as well. It wasn't that I was tired of him, or regarded his work as childish. I just had other worlds to conquer at the time; and my readings happily moved through Camus, Mishima, Joyce and Capote. (Oh yeah, and I was also keeping up with the latest episodes of "Babylon 5"). But despite the fact that it has been almost a decade since Mr. Adams and I last encountered one another, I couldn't help but feel a slight twinge at the news of his death. And I'll probably dig up a couple of books and leisurely leaf through the pages over a private beer or before drifting to sleep. And I'll recall or dream about a silly little Englishman jaunting about the universe in a bathrobe or a perpetually sullen robot. Other writers may have won more awards, written deeper books, made more money or become the focus of doctoral theses. But you know what? Who cares? He made me laugh once or twice in a lifetime, and that's good enough for me. God bless and six pints of bitter for Mr. Douglas Adams . . . . . . one clever bastard

Mr. Adams passing has now left a huge, whale-like hole in comedy/sci-fi. I weep clutching my Hitch-Hiker omnibus. City of Death was also the one of the funniest Dr. Who episodes written (He wrote that under the psudonym "David Agnew") The sci-fi world mourns.

The facts don

Well, said. WFCall claims he has read more books than some of us, but his attack on sci fi fans was his real reason for posting his message. But, as you pointed out (by the way, does your dot.com husband have gay brother?) Yes, I hear his clock ticking, but what a souless life he must wake up to everyday when he has to take the opposite view of everyone else, who feels that the passing of Douglas Adams is a great loss. He just did it to anger us -and by God, he succeded. But you know, like all bullies who think they are the law, they will find out that their world is much smaller than ours.

Douglas Adams, Perry Como, and now, Jason "Exorcist" Miller? Are they all the same level of celebrity? "Oh no, not again..."

Ooh, boy. Here I was, all happy to have my internet connection returned after a couple of days of a moving related net-blackout, and this is what I return to. Why do all the best things in life exist so briefly and end so abruptly? I feel absolutely sick. I have never submitted a talk-back before, but I do now for the sake of my own meager tribute to this brilliant man. Here's the kicker: not only he get me through middle school when puberty hit me like a ton of bricks and it seemed everyone else got to date cheerleaders; he also managed to inspire me in my future romantic endeavors (once the face cleared up) with the incredible, touching "So Long and Thanks..." Arthur and Fenchurch, right? That's how it should be. I'm rambling. Off to hide under my covers until the world ends, and hope that after that, the world might mysteriously reappear (except for all the dolphins, naturally), and Mr. Adams might return with it. But I doubt it.

Actually it would be more accurate to say that the ones I wanted to use have already been made use of by my fellow talkbackers. I was going to write my tribute in Vogon poetic style, but it just didn't seem right. I heard about this on Saturday, and it darkened an otherwise great weekend. I first read DNA's stuff in high school. I annoyed my parents and everyone else around me by constantly reading them sections. Now I've made my new wife read HG2TG. Difference is that she loved it. Aaah sweet girl. Even called her Trillian for a time. So long Doug, sleep well. Oh, and thanks.

It finally hit home for me today. I was paying a visit to my favorite bookstore (those of you from the Portland, Oregon area know which one.) I stopped by the Science Fiction section and took a look at the A's. Where last week there was just a sign that read, "If you like Douglas Adams, than read; Terry Pratchett, Esther Friesner, Spider Robinson." there was now a black ribbon around the two shelves of Hitch Hiker and Dirk Gently books. The expected 1952-2001 R.I.P. card was there, but there were also several post-it notes reading, among other things, We'll miss you Doug, So long and thanks for all the fish, and The answer is 42. I bought a used paperback of Don't Panic! by Neil Gaiman and headed straight home.

They just came out with another Hitchhiker book recently too