About
Ray Bradbury, born August 22, 1920 in Waukegan, Illinois, and died June 5, 2012 in Los Angeles, was a major American author of science fiction and fantasy. Self-taught, he never attended college, famously saying that libraries raised him. He published nearly 50 books and about 600 short stories, including the famous The Martian Chronicles (1950) and Fahrenheit 451 (1953). His work explores themes of censorship, technology, and nostalgia. He also wrote screenplays for film and television, and received numerous honors, including the National Medal of Arts and a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation.
* 1920-08-22 — † 2012-06-05
Major works
- The Martian Chronicles (1950)novel
- The Illustrated Man (1951)short story collection
- Fahrenheit 451 (1953)novel
- Dandelion Wine (1957)novel
- Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962)novel
Key milestones
- 1953Publication of Fahrenheit 451, written on a rented typewriter at UCLA's Powell Library.
- 2004Awarded the National Medal of Arts, the highest U.S. arts honor.
- 2007Awarded a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation for his distinguished career.
Themes
CensorshipTechnologyNostalgiaImaginationConformity
Sources: nationalbook.org · arts.gov · loc.gov
