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Friday 11 July 2025
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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Werper, Barton
A joint House Name used by the US authors Lynwood Paul Fields (1941-2003) – whose working name for other books was Peter T Scott – and Peg O'Neill Scott Fields (see the entry for her pseudonym Scott O'Neill) – who copyrighted other work under her birth name Peg O'Neill Scott – for their unauthorized Tarzan: The New Series sequence (see also Tarzan). Each worked solo, with ...
Lenkov, Peter M
(1964- ) Canadian television and film producer, screenwriter and author, in the USA from about 1990, when he began writing and producing various television segments, episodes and films, sometimes acting simultaneously in both capacities. Among these productions were several of genre interest, including the Universal Soldier (1992) sequels Universal Soldier II: Brothers in Arms (1998) and ...
Freelancer
Videogame (2003). Digital Anvil (DA). Designed by Chris Roberts. Platforms: Win. / Freelancer is a three-dimensional Space Sim which combines the open exploratory gameplay of Elite (1984) with an integrated linear plot (see Interactive Narrative). The player character is Edison Trent, a down on his luck "freelancer" who needs a new ship. Soon ...
Island Claws
Film (1980; vt Giant Claws). Produced by Ted Swanson. Directed by Hernan Cardenas. Written by Jack Cowden and Ricou Browning from a story by Hernan Cardenas and Colby Cardenas. Cast includes Dick Callinan, Steve Hanks, Robert Lansing, Jo McDonnell and Barry Nelson. 90 minutes, cut to 82 minutes. Colour. / Reporter Jan Raines (McDonnell) visit a small Island off the Florida coast to report on Dr McNeal (Nelson), who is working to improve crabs as a ...
Wild Blue Yonder, The
Film (2005). Wener Herzog Filmproduktion, Tetramedia, West Park Pictures. Written and directed by Wener Herzog (1942- ). Cast includes Brad Dourif. 81 minutes. Colour. / An unnamed Alien (Dourif) from the titular water planet arrives on Earth, seemingly one of many refugees from his dying world, though he is the only one we see and he does not seem to know the whereabouts of any of the others. The aliens attempt to set up a capital ...
Nicholls, Peter
(1939-2018) Australian editor and author, primarily a critic and historian of sf through his creation and editing of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction [see below]; resident in the UK 1970-1988, in Australia from 1988; worked as an academic in English literature (1962-1968, 1971-1977), scripted television documentaries, was a Harkness Fellow in Film-making (1968-1970) in the USA, worked as a publisher's editor (1982-1983), often broadcast film and book reviews on BBC Radio from 1974 and ...