The Blot was shocked and saddened yesterday to learn that my favorite author, Michael Crichton, had passed away unexpectedly Tuesday at the age of 66 after privately battling cancer. (link) I had been eagerly awaiting his newest novel and like most of America, had no clue the accomplished novelist was even sick. It is hard for me to remember a time I wasn’t either reading a Michael Crichton novel, watching a feature film adaptation of his work or watching NBC’s ER on Thursday nights, a show he created back in 1994.
I first discovered Mr. Crichton’s work the same way most people my age did, by seeing the 1992 blockbuster Jurassic Park. It seemed like raptor fever was sweeping the globe in the early ‘90s and my love of the film drove me to Crichton’s written work such as A Case of Need, The Andromeda Strain, Eaters of the Dead, Rising Sun, Disclosure and the Jurassic Park sequel The Lost World. Each book was better than the last, and even when his film adaptations began to flop (Sphere, Congo) I always knew his novels, from his early medical thrillers to his more recent sci-fi techno-thrillers, would never disappoint.ER executive producer John Wells told the AP that Crichton was "an extraordinary man. Brilliant, funny, erudite, gracious, exceptionally inquisitive and always thoughtful." (link) Director Steven Spielberg, a friend of Crichton’s for 40 years, said “Michael’s talent out-scaled even his own dinosaurs of Jurassic Park.” (link) I think this latter quote is a fitting description of Crichton’s legacy, and I know he will be sorely missed by his legion of fans around the world.
Crichton’s final novel had been tentatively scheduled to be released next month, but has now been postponed indefinitely by publisher HarperCollins. (link) According to Crichton’s Wikipedia page, the untitled novel will be released posthumously on May 4, 2009. (link)
