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Joe Haldeman

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Author

The Resume

    (June 9, 1943- )
    Born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
    American science fiction author most well known for his 'Forever War' series
    Winner of the Nebula and Hugo Awards five times apiece
    Has also won the JW Campbell, Locus, World Fantasy, and the James Tiptree Jr Awards
    Three time winner of the Rhysling Award
    BS in Physics and Astronomy from the University of Maryland and holds a MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Iowa
    SFWA Grandmaster and became a member of the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2012
    Books in the Forever War series include: The Forever War, (1974) Forever Free, (1999) A Separate Peace, (2006)
    The Worlds Series books have included; Worlds, (1981) Worlds Apart, (1983) and Worlds Enough and Time in 1992
    The Marsbound Trilogy consists of; Marsbound, (2008) Starbound, (2010) and Earthbound in 2011
    Stand alone novels include; War Year, (1972) All My Sins Remembered, (1977) Tool of the Trade, (1987) 1968, (1994) About Vietnam and Guardian in 2002, and Old Twentieth in 2005
    Short story collections; Infinite Dreams, (1978) Vietnam and Other Alternate Worlds, (1993) Saul's Death and Other Poems, (1997) and War Stories in 2006
    Full name: Joseph William Haldeman
    Professor at MIT since 1983

Why he might be annoying:

    The awful movie Robot Jox and part of a Twilight Zone episode are his only works to be filmed.
    He likes the smell of plastic, especially Bakelite.
    According to his own unofficial biography, he tried to get out of military service during the Vietnam War by getting a job with the Naval Observatory or joining the Peace Corps but was drafted before either replied to his application. Upon arriving in Vietnam, literally the first thing he did was get lost.
    He says the reason he didn't try to dodge the draft or go to Canada or Sweden was that doing so would keep him from ever becoming an astronaut but ended up never even applying at NASA.
    He took writing classes while working on his BS because he thought they looked easy.
    He's a bit of a name dropper.
    He quit a PhD program at the University of Maryland after one day when he found out one of the professors he wanted to take a class with had left to work at another university.
    He refers to other writers as 'self-serving and bitchy.'
    He refers to the publishing business as a 'trap' and a 'game.'
    Once while stoned he wrote a short story about a garbage truck that didn't know it was a garbage truck and whose friends felt too sorry for him to tell him, so he would get up every day and make his rounds and make his rounds dressed in a coat and tie.
    He referred to the movie, Full Metal Jacket as 'silly melodrama' and when he heard its author was arrested for stealing books from the Los Angeles public library, he said the news filled him 'with joy.'
    He contracted to write two of the first Star Trek 'original' novels; Planet of Judgement and World Without End without ever having seen a single episode of the TV series.
    It took him twenty-five years to write a sequel to The Forever War.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He sold his first short story,(written as a college senior) first novel, (to the first publisher that saw it) first stage play, first screen play, and had his first poem, written at age nine published in the Washington Post.
    He has a large circle of friends among other science fiction writers.
    He and his wife have been married since 1965.
    His novel, War Year about his time in Vietnam is one of the finest first novels ever.
    His IQ was tested at 188 in the fifth grade.
    The Forever War was the thesis for his MFA and is as he notes, 'The only master's thesis that won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards.'
    According to the laws of physics, time passes much more quickly while traveling in space than on Earth. The Forever War is about a war between Earth and space aliens where years and even decades pass on Earth while humans fighting in the war only experience the passage of days and weeks. It is universally considered one of the greatest novels in science fiction history.
    He and his wife helped care for fellow science fiction writer, Keith Laumer after he had his first stroke and cared for his mother after she also suffered a stroke.
    Although opposed to the war in Vietnam, he served honorably and was badly wounded during his tour of duty and his time there permanently influenced his work and several of his best known works; The Forever War, War Year, and 1968 were directly inspired by it. Indeed, War Year consisted almost entirely of reedited letters to his wife.
    He got fired from his job of writing the novelization of the movie, Poltergeist (he called the script appalling) when he told Stephen Spielberg's assistant that Spielberg, 'sucks eggs.'
    As a child, he used his chemistry set to make 'gunpowder and other pyrotechnics' to sell to other children.
    He likes George Lucas.
    He successfully kicked a drug addiction caused by his wounds in Vietnam.
    He only sleeps about four or five hours a night and bicycles 30 - 50 miles a day.
    He has worked as a librarian, computer programmer, musician, and manual laborer.
    In college, he tutored; astronomy, mathematics, and English. In addition, he coached the fencing team and taught classical guitar.
    His books have been translated into nineteen languages.
    He is one of the greatest, most successful, and most decorated authors in science fiction history.

Credit: tom_jeffords


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 7 Votes: 57.14% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 7 Votes: 57.14% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying