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Wednesday 13 May 2026
Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Fourth Edition. Some sample entries appear below. Click here for the Introduction; here for what we mean by Science Fiction; here for the masthead; here for some Statistics; here for the Acknowledgments; here for the FAQ; here for advice on citations. Find entries via the search box above (more details here) or browse the menu categories in the grey bar at the top of this page.
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Suzuki Kōji
(1957-2026) Japanese author and essayist, largely known in English through the Cinema adaptations of several of his books, the international success of which obscured his wide-ranging domestic output. His horror and Equipoisal fiction proceeded in tandem with a wide array (not listed here) of books on young fatherhood and occasional works on motorcycle travel. He was also the translator of Simon Brett's ...
Stranger Within, The
Made-for-tv film (1974). Lorimar/ABC TV. Directed by Lee Philips. Teleplay Richard Matheson, based on his "Mother by Protest" (September/October 1953 Fantastic; vt "Trespass" in The Shores of Space, coll 1957). Cast includes David Doyle, Barbara Eden, George Grizzard and Joyce Van Patten. 72 minutes. Colour. / A woman (Eden) becomes pregnant – inexplicably, as her husband (Grizzard) is certified to ...
Toombs, Alfred
(1912-1986) US author in whose Good as Gold (1955), a Satire set in Near Future Washington, District of Columbia, the Transmutation of gold, reversing the traditional alchemical process, produces shit. [JC]
Scientology
In its early years Scientology was known as Dianetics (which see for details), a term still used within Scientology. The word "Scientology" was coined in 1952 by L Ron Hubbard, its founder; two of his books on the subject are This Is Scientology: The Science of Certainty (1955) and Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought (1956). / The activities of the Scientologists have evolved in many curious ...
Secret of NIMH, The
US animated film (1982). United Artists, Aurora Productions, Don Bluth Productions. Based on the novel Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (1971) by Robert C O'Brien. Directed by Don Bluth. Written by Don Bluth, Will Finn, Gary Goldman and John Pomeroy. Voice cast includes Hermione Baddeley, John Carradine, Dom DeLuise, Elizabeth Hartman, Derek Jacobi, Arthur Malet and Paul Shenar. 82 minutes. Colour. / In a society of anthropomorphized ...
Langford, David
(1953- ) UK author, critic, editor, publisher and sf fan, in the latter capacity recipient of 21 Hugo awards for fan writing – some of the best of his several hundred pieces are assembled as Let's Hear It for the Deaf Man (coll 1992 chap US; much exp vt The Silence of the Langford 1996; exp 2015 ebook) as Dave Langford, edited by Ben Yalow – plus five Best Fanzine Hugos ...