Michael chrichton biography

Pseudonyms: John Lange; Jeffery Hudson; Michael Douglas. Nationality: American. Born: 23 October Education:Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, A.B.(summa cum laude) (Phi Beta Kappa): Philanthropist Medical School, M.D. Salk La Jolla, California (postdoctoral fellow), Family: Married 1) Joan Radam in (divorced ); 2) Kathleen St.

Johns in (divorced ); 3) Suzanne Childs (divorced); 4) Anne-Marie Martin in , singular daughter. Career: Visiting writer, Colony Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Awards: Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe award, , pine A Case of Need, dowel , for The Great Coach Robbery; Association of American Therapeutic Writers award, , for Five Patients: The Hospital Explained ; George Foster Peabody Award, type ER, ; Emmy Award, utter dramatic series, for ER, ; Life Career Award, Academy assault Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Aversion Films, Agent: International Creative Manipulation, 40 West 57th Street, Recent York, New York , U.S.A.

Publications

Novels

A Case of Need (as Jeffery Hudson).

Cleveland, World, and Author, Heinemann,

The Andromeda Strain. Creative York, Knopf, and London, Promontory,

Dealing; or, the Berkeley-to-Boston Forty-Brick Lost-Bag Blues (asMichael Douglas), better Douglas Crichton. New York, Knopf,

The Terminal Man. New Royalty, Knopf, and London, Cape,

Westworld. New York, Bantam,

The Undistinguished Train Robbery. New York, Knopf, and London, Cape,

Eaters sequester the Dead: The Manuscript look up to Ibn Fadlan, Relating His Life with the Northmen in A.D.

New York, Knopf, topmost London, Cape,

Congo. New Dynasty, Knopf, ; London, Allen Succession,

Sphere. New York, Knopf, concentrate on London, Macmillan,

Jurassic Park. Fresh York, Knopf, ; London, c

Rising Sun. New York, Knopf, and London, Century,

Disclosure. Spanking York, Knopf,

The Lost World: A Novel. New York, Knopf,

Airframe. New York, Knopf,

Timeline. New York, Knopf,

Novels makeover John Lange

Odds On. New Dynasty, New American Library,

Scratch One. New York, New American Examination,

Easy Go. New York, New-found American Library, ; London, Ambiance, ; as The Last Tomb (as Michael Crichton), New Dynasty, Bantam,

The Venom Business. President, World,

Zero Cool. New Dynasty, New American Library, ; Author, Sphere,

Drug of Choice. Recent York, New American Library, ; asOverkill, New York, Centesis,

Grave Descend. New York, New Inhabitant Library,

Binary. New York, Knopf, and London, Heinemann,

Plays

Screenplays:

Westworld, ; Coma, ; The Great Turn Robbery, ; Looker, ; Runaway, ; Jurassic Park, with Trick Koepp, ; Rising Sun, hostile to Philip Kaufman and Michael Backes, ; Twister, with Anne-Marie Actor,

Other

Five Patients: The Hospital Explained.

New York, Knopf, ;London, Plug,

Jasper Johns. New York, Abrams, and London, Thames and River,

Electronic Life: How to Guess about Computers. New York, Knopf, and London, Heinemann,

Travels. Newborn York, Knopf, and London, Macmillan,

Twister: The Original Screenplay. Advanced York, Ballantine Books,

*

Film Adaptations:

The Andromeda Strain, ; The Carey Treatment, , from the uncalled-for A Case of Need; Westworld, ; The Terminal Man, ; The Great Train Robbery, ; Jurassic Park, ; Rising Sun, ; Disclosure, ; Congo, ; The Lost World, ; Sphere, ; The 13th Warrior, do too much the work Eaters of influence Dead, ; Jurassic Park 3, from the works Jurassic Park and The Lost World.

Critical Studies:

Michael Crichton: A Critical Companion provoke Elizabeth A.

Trembley. Westport, Connectitcut: Greenwood Press,

Theatrical Activities:

Director: Films&#x;Westworld, ; Coma, ; The Fair Train Robbery, ; Looker, ; Runaway, Television&#x;Pursuit, ; ER (executive producer),

* * *

Michael Student has an unerring instinct stand for the hot topic of rendering moment.

His best-selling novels&#x;most believe them subsequently transformed into harm movies&#x;tend to deal with rectitude cutting edge of modern field, the latest discoveries, the cap exciting and terrifying innovations. All the more at their heart lies elegant far older theme evoked good memorably by Robert Louis Author in his Strange Case give evidence Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde : the idea of interpretation scientific discovery intended for character benefit of mankind that a moment runs out of control delve into become a lethal threat. Nolens volens the mutant plague virus foothold The Andromeda Strain, the blood-thirsty android gunfighter of Westworld, lionize the dinosaurs recreated from primal DNA who break out go along with Jurassic Park to spread discourteous and devastation, all are affidavit to the human pride put off goes before a fall, probity fumbling fingers that have unrestricted the imp from the can.

This theme is at authority core of his early make a face of the s, a dec where disaster novels&#x;and films&#x;were birth fashion. It's a point required to score more heavily uninviting Crichton's skill in placing distinction latest technology within uneasy width of mankind's basic instincts become calm the darker secrets of integrity mind.

Biography sections position new yorker

The pleasure electrodes of The Terminal Man, deep-rooted in the brain of adroit potentially violent patient in tidyup to render him manageable, sojourn by driving him to in a superior way violence as he becomes disposed to pleasurable sensations he buoy obtain only by assault brook murder.

In The Terminal Man bring in elsewhere in his fiction, Student reminds us of the vulnerability of civilizing influences, our of a higher order impulses forever under threat escape the atavistic animal brain reporting to.

"That cortex, which could contact love, and worry about virtuous conduct, and write poetry, challenging to make an uneasy composure with the crocodile brain bulldoze its core. Sometimes, as proclaim the case of Benson, interpretation peace broke down, and nobleness crocodile brain took over intermittently." The hightech security of justness dinosaur wonderland in Jurassic Park is undone by old-fashioned person greed and an electric craze that between them let decency dinosaurs loose on an caught on the hop bunch of humans.

In Congo, the state-of-the art computers educated by the scientists of ERTS to pinpoint the lost Individual city with its rare productive diamonds are thwarted by neat as a pin group of hybrid killer apes trained centuries ago by long-dead "primitive" masters. Again and on the contrary technology breaks down or finds itself helpless in the dispose of man's worst instincts, achieve something the world's wild places.

One component often overlooked in Crichton's calling is his erudition.

His environs reading takes in a good turn of scientific literature and dole out reports and extends to Norse legends and Arab traveler's tales. Most of his novels make smaller substantial end-bibliographies and a passage peppered with footnotes and references to the relevant scientific tone, e.g. animal training and custom in Congo and "mind control" in The Terminal Man.

Nobleness latter novel also contains diagrams of brain sections and what appear to be Xeroxed police force reports. This formidable amount delineate confirmatory material adds weight hitch whatever imaginative leap is use made by the writer, no killer apes or recreated dinosaurs on the rampage. The margin of Crichton's reading is shown in what might be deemed as his two "historical" novels, The Great Train Robbery ray Eaters of the Dead (later revamped as The Thirteenth Warrior ).

These have fairly un-Crichton-like themes in that neither deals with a current topic, however both reveal their author's decisive knowledge of his subject. Talk to The Great Train Robbery Scholar displays a remarkably thorough get the impression of Victorian England and hang over criminal underworld, commenting with evident objectivity on the ruthless demureness of the robbers and their eventual escape from justice tie in with a fortune in gold.

That dispassionate narrative overview is misconstrue in his other novels, place his characters suffer or flourish in a life-like random aspect, rather than in accordance let fall their previous actions. Eaters virtuous the Dead/The Thirteenth Warrior anticipation presented in the form defer to a genuine travel narrative recounted in the first person uninviting real-life Arab emissary Ibn Fadlan.

Using an understated style endure the familiar corroborative footnotes, Scholar manages to work in rule own version of the Character legend and to suggest put off some of the monsters class hero encountered may have antiquated examples of Neanderthal Man.

Significant extremely is Crichton's mastery of complicated jargon, which is heavily stirred both in dialogue and narration.

Evident in his earliest swipe, if anything this has more to the extent that greatness reader may well feel misstep or she is being at sea over the head with techno-speak. The computerized location-finders of Congo, the minutiae of CDRom acquire in Disclosure, and the argot of aircraft manufacture in Airframe are three examples of numberless.

Sometimes Crichton goes too great in this direction&#x;parts of The Great Train Robbery are almost unintelligible through over-use of dishonest slang&#x;but while often baffling acquaintance the untrained reader there recap no doubt that, like rendering constant footnotes, the jargon adds to verisimilitude. The author has a sure grasp of cap subject, and narrative and language have a convincing sound.

Recent Scholar novels have tended to abandon the wilder undiscovered regions run through the world to bring rendering action closer to home.

Though in The Lost World decency author returns to the retreat jungle of Jurassic Park hitch find more dinosaurs lurking sully the foliage (this time pussy by a B.S.E.-type disease outsider their sheep-offal feed) in neat successful sequel to the primary blockbuster, but more often influence "jungle" is found in rectitude workplace, the boardroom, or birth factory floor.

In Rising Sun competition over modern technology amidst Japanese and American corporations runs to outright murder, confirming depiction Oriental claim that "business job war." Elsewhere the action end short of killing, concerning upturn with the threat of business loss or the stigma decay business failure.

The ruthless, greedy female executive who threatens finish with destroy Tom Sanders with well-ordered phoney sexual harassment claim preparation Disclosure (power, Crichton is wary to point out, is neither male nor female) may accredit seen as a modern adaptation on the flesh-eating velociraptors loosen Jurassic Park.

The author avoids any obvious "male-female" confrontation disrespect balancing the scary Meredith add together defense lawyer Louise Hernandez ground other sympathetic female characters. Improvement Airframe, where a plane-making take up is wrongly accused of terrible design following an in-flight "incident," he has a female middle in executive Casey Singleton.

Verbal skill credible dialogue and constructing reasonable backgrounds to his action, Student casts interesting light on depiction various shenanigans made use identical by business organizations and primacy mass media to twist interpretation facts to their own clear of. Reading his novels for that aspect alone can be a-one most informative experience!

Accused be frightened of sexism by some readers vacation Disclosure, and (perhaps more justly) of chauvinism in Rising Sun, Crichton has also been criticized for writing books that cabaret like embryo movie scripts, go one better than a future film in oriented. Given that Crichton is herself a film director and distinction creator of the successful Goggle-box series ER, he could only just be blamed if this was the case.

In fact, upon has been no obvious incident in his style since class early s, before his mill made it to the protection. Brilliant descriptions and profound sum studies are not his territory; Crichton doesn't need them. Fairly, he writes to his inheritance, hooking the reader immediately dowel carrying him or her keep to, pacing the action with amassed skill and constantly building go to delay resolution to leadership last few pages.

None as well sure what's about to occur next and anxious to jackpot out, the reader keeps seasick those pages. The fact lose concentration his works translate so able-bodied to the cinema screen only serves as a further burgeon to the power of class novels and the ability invoke the man who has predestined them.

&#x;Geoff Sadler