Donald R. Bensen

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Donald Roynald Bensen (* 3. October 1927 in Brooklyn , New York ; † 19th October 1997 in Croton-on-Hudson , New York) was an American science fiction - writers and publishers .

As an editor, he is best known for editing works by PG Wodehouse and his involvement in their new paperback editions in the USA. As a writer, he is best known for his humorous alternate world novel And Having Writ… (1978), first published by Bobbs-Merrill.

Career

Bensen's literary career began as a literary agent with Scott Meredith. He became the publisher of Pyramid Books in 1957 and eventually served as its editor-in-chief. He was later editor-in-chief for Ballantine Books and then for Berkley Publishing in New York. From 1976 to 1981 he worked as a consulting editor for Dell Books and Dial Press . He was instrumental in establishing and acquiring titles for the joint venture between the two prints for their Quantum Science Fiction series, which included major works such as Stardance by Spider and Jeanne Robinson , the pioneering story collection The Persistence of, a renowned international trade name Vision by John Varley , In the Ocean of Night by Gregory Benford, and The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge . During these years he also contributed to the editorial of Dell's paperback science fiction and fantasy publications. In 1983 he moved to Keats Publishing , where he also became editor-in-chief.

Bensen was the author of the novel And Having Writ ... , the Tracker western novel series, and a number of other books. He also wrote a number of media-related novels, including works based on the television series Smoking Colts and novels based on William Goldman's scripts for the 1979 television films Mr. Horn and Butch and Sundance: The Early Days .

Bensen was a member of the all-male literary banquet club The Trap Door Spiders , which served as the basis of Isaac Asimov's fictional group of puzzle solvers, the Black Widowers. Bensen himself was the model for the character Roger Halsted. Regarding the Black Widowers, he published a poem of the same name in 1977. He has also been associated with the Mystery Writers of America .

Bensen died on October 19, 1997 at the age of 70 at his home in Croton-on-Hudson.

bibliography

Tracker (Western)
  • Mask of the Tracker (1992)
  • The Renegade (1992)
  • Death in the Hills (1992)
  • Fool's Gold (1992)
  • Final Mask (1993)
  • Deathwind (1993)
  • Final Mask (1993)
Novels
  • And Having Writ ... (1978)
    • German: intermediate stop. Translated by Irene Holicki. Heyne SF & F # 4052, 1984, ISBN 3-453-30995-2 .
  • Mr Horn (1978)
  • Butch and Sundance: The Early Days (1979)
  • A Wodehouse Bestiary (1985, with PG Wodehouse )
  • Biblical Limericks: Old Testament Stories Re-Versed (1986)
  • If I Were You (1989, with PG Wodehouse)
  • Plum's Peaches: Women in Wodehouse (1991, with PG Wodehouse)
  • Wodehouse on Crime: A Dozen Tales of Fiendish Cunning (1991, with PG Wodehouse)
  • Fore !: The Best of Wodehouse on Golf (1999, with PG Wodehouse)
Anthologies
  • The Unknown (1963)
    • German: street of damnation. Translated by Lore Straßl & Susi Matthaey. Pabel (Terra Fantasy # 66), 1979.
  • The Unknown Five (1964)
    • English: Five horror stories from Unknown. Translated by Udo H. Schwager. Ullstein Books # 1183, 1968.

literature

Web links
personal data
SURNAME Bensen, Donald R.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bensen, Donald Roynald (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American science fiction writer and editor
DATE OF BIRTH October 3, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Brooklyn
DATE OF DEATH October 19, 1997
Place of death Croton-on-Hudson