Acknowledgement to the Works of Harlan Ellison

Science fiction author and all round obnoxious human being Harlan Ellison died on Wednesday, June 27. He was 84.

I'm sitting here with tears on my cheeks wondering what I could possibly say about Ellison. I tried to read a volume of his stories once, and found them so disturbing that I couldn't finish. But his contribution to the science fiction genre in general and to time travel stories in particular is immense.

Star Trek: The City on the Edge of Forever

Edith: "I think that one day they're going to take all the money that they spend now on war and death..."
Kirk: "And make them spend it on life."

"City" is widely acknowledged to be the best episode of original Star Trek. Written (mostly, anyway, and there's controversy) by well-known science fiction writer Harlan Ellison, it's time travel tragedy at its most moving.