Death of Gardner Dozois

[Ormond]

I just happened to glance at the Locus magazine site and learned that Gardner Dozois died today. 

http://locusmag.com/2018/05/gardner-dozois-1947-2018/

Gardner Dozois was one of the great editors of science fiction and fantasy. He was co-editor with GRRM of several anthologies -- among them Dangerous Women, Rogues, Down these strange streets, Warriors, Old Venus, Old Mars, Songs of Love and Death, and Songs of the Dying Earth. 

His staff bio on the Locus site reads:

Quote

GARDNER DOZOIS, Contributing Editor, won 15 Hugo Awards during his editorial reign at Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine from 1986 to 2004. He is the author of many short stories, including Nebula Award winners “The Peacemaker” and “Morning Child”, and of novels Strangers (1978) and Hunter’s Run (2008, with George R.R. Martin and Daniel Abraham), and he remains an active anthologist, with series The Year’s Best Science Fiction in its 34th year.

Dozois was certainly one of the most important editors, reviewers, and promoters of science fiction and fantasy during the last several decades, and he will be sorely missed. It is shocking to have another great in the field leave us so soon.

[Lily Valley]

Man this is a bummer.  I know it'd mean a lot to friends and fen if we leave regards / stories about him in the comments there.  Thanks for posting the article, @Ormond. 

[Ser Scot A Ellison]

[mormont]

Gardner was a fine writer, but he was a great editor. One of the first editors whose name I recognised, and recognised as a mark of quality. I knew of Gardner's work long before I knew of George's, even. And I'm very sad he's gone. I didn't know him personally but we had mutual friends, and it makes the loss sadder to see their sorrow.

[SFDanny]

Just saw this news and was trying to verify it. This is horrible. I've never met the man, but he contributed so much both as an editor and author. Terrible loss. To George and all his friends and family my condolences for your loss.

[Ran]

A truly great editor. It's shocking that it happened so quickly, and from such a thing as a fairly standard visit to the hospital that suddenly took a turn. A real shame.

[lady narcissa]

I saw this on twitter yesterday.  Very sad.  I didn't learn about him until I found this board and it was really through his work with GRRM on the anthologies that I came to know of his work.

I am quite lucky to have a wonderful memory about him, however.  At Worldcon a few years ago in San Antonio, I happened to have the opportunity to hang out with him and GRRM and @LugaJetboyGirl-irra in the wee hours of the morning in the hotel lobby singing theme songs from tv shows.  Gardner and GRRM kept coming up with these shows from the 50s and 60s - they were quite taken with one about a man whose mother had been reincarnated as a car!  And of course Luga and I contributed with some more recent shows.  We were joined by @Prince Lodey and @Mr. X and some point in the repertoire and it was such an enjoyable time.  I remember being really tired, because it was very late, but I kept thinking I needed to stay there because when else would I experience anything like that?  Glad I did, as Luga said when I mentioned it to her, it was the best of what Worldcon is about.

[Xray the Enforcer]

Raya and I -- and maybe Katie as well? -- belted out the Log Theme Song, which confused the hell out of GRRM and Gardner but delighted the rest of the crowd. That was a really good time.

[Xray the Enforcer]

There's not much I can say about Gardner that hasn't already been said -- he was a spectacularly talented editor and the shape of modern SF would not have existed without him. 

[Calibandar]

It sounds a bit strange to say this but this is not that unexpected, I recall reading over the last few years that he's had one or two big health scares before.

RIP.

[maarsen]

I first heard of Gardner as a sf writer. I also remember him writing an article on the fine art of dumpster diving to survive as a young writer. That must have been back in the early 70s.