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{{redirect|Jack Chalker|the English artist|Jack Bridger Chalker}}
{{Short description|American science fiction and fantasy author (1944–2005)}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Jack Laurence Chalker
Line 13 ⟶ 14:
| spouse = Eva C. Whitley
| parents =
| children = David W. Chalker, Steven L. Chalker2
}}
 
'''Jack Laurence Chalker''' (December 17, 1944 – February 11, 2005) was an American [[science fiction author]] author. Chalker was also a [[BCPSS|Baltimore City Schools]] history teacher in [[Maryland]] for 12 years, retiring during 1978 to write full-time. He also was a member of the [[Washington Science Fiction Association]] and was involved in the founding of the [[Baltimore Science Fiction Society]].
 
==Career and family life==
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2021}}
He was born and raised in [[Baltimore, Maryland]]. Some of his books said that he was born in [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], [[Virginia]] although he later claimed that was a mistake; he attended high school at the [[Baltimore City College]]. Chalker earned a BA degree in English from [[Towson University]] in [[Towson, Maryland]], where he was a theater critic for the school newspaper, [[The Towerlight]]. During 2003, Towson University named Chalker their Liberal Arts Alumnus of the Year. He received a [[Master of Arts in Liberal Studies]] from [[Johns Hopkins University]] in Baltimore.
Chalker was born and raised in [[Baltimore]], [[Maryland]]. Some of his books said that he was born in [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], [[Virginia]] although he later claimed that was a mistake; he attended high school at the [[Baltimore City College]]. Chalker earned a BA degree in English from [[Towson University]] in [[Towson, Maryland]], where he was a theater critic for the school newspaper, ''[[The Towerlight]]''. During 2003, Towson University named Chalker their Liberal Arts Alumnus of the Year. He received a [[Master of Arts in Liberal Studies]] from [[Johns Hopkins University]] in Baltimore.
 
Chalker intended to become a lawyer, but financial problems caused him to become a teacher instead. He taught history and geography in the [[Baltimore City Public Schools]] from 1966 to 1978, most notably at [[Baltimore City College]] and the now defunct [[Southwestern Senior High School (Baltimore, Maryland)|SouthwestSouthwestern Senior High School]]. Chalker lectured on [[science fiction]] and technology at the [[Smithsonian Institution]] in [[Washington, D.C.]], the [[National Institutes of Health]] in [[Bethesda, Maryland]], and numerous universities.
 
Chalker was a member of the [[Maryland Air National Guard]]'s 135th Special Operations Group, where he was a member of the group information office. He was deployed into Baltimore during the [[Baltimore riot of 1968]].<ref>Chalker, Jack L. "Viva Mark?" Sunday American, Dec. 21, 1969</ref>
Chalker was married in 1978 and had two children, David, a game designer, and Steven (later Samantha), a computer security consultant.
 
Chalker was married in 1978 and had two children, David, a game designer, and Samantha, a computer security consultant.

Chalker's hobbies included esoteric audio, travel, and working on science-fiction convention committees. He also had a great interest in [[ferryboatFerry|ferryboats]]s; at his fianceefiancée's suggestion, their marriage was performed on the Roaring Bull boat, part of the [[Millersburg Ferry]], in the middle of the [[Susquehanna River]] in [[Pennsylvania]].
<!--[[Image:JackChalkerauctioning.jpg|thumb|left|Jack Chalker auctioneering when he was younger. {{Deletable image-caption|Saturday, 4 September 2010|date=May 2012}}]]-->
 
==Science fiction==
Chalker joined the [[Washington Science Fiction Association]] during 1958, and during 1963 he and two friends founded the [[Baltimore Science Fiction Society]]. Chalker attended every [[Worldcon|World Science Fiction Convention]], except one, from 1965 until 2004. He published an amateur SF journal, ''Mirage'', from 1960 to 1971 (a Hugofinalist nominee duringfor the 1963 [[Hugo Award for Best Fanzine]]),<ref>[http://www.thehugoawards.org/?page_id=56 Best Fanzine:Mirage ed. by Jack L. Chalker] 1963 Hugo Awards - The Hugo Awards</ref> producing ten issues. Another journal, ''Interjection'', was published 1968–1987 in association with the [[Fantasy Amateur Press Association]]. Chalker also initiated a publishing house, Mirage Press, Ltd., for releasing nonfiction and bibliographic works concerning science fiction and fantasy.
 
Chalker's awards included the [[Daedalus]] Award (1983), The Gold Medal of the West Coast Review of Books (1984), [[Skylark Award]] (1980), and the Hamilton-Brackett Memorial Award (1979). He was twice a nominee for the [[CampbellAstounding awardAward (bestfor novel)Best New Writer|John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer]] twice and for the [[Hugo Award]] twice. Chalker was posthumously awarded the [[Phoenix Award (science fiction)|Phoenix Award]] by the [[Southern Fandom Confederation]] on April 9, 2005.
 
Chalker was a three-term treasurer of the [[Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America]]. Chalker was also the co-author (with Mark Owings<ref>Of the family for whom [[Owings Mills, Maryland]], is named.</ref>) of ''[[The Science Fantasy Publishers]]'' (third edition during 1991, updated annually), published by [[Mirage Press]], Ltd,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.miragepress.com |title=The Mirage Press Ltd. |accessdateaccess-date=2006-03-05 |year=2004 |deadurlurl-status=yesdead |archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050404230445/http://www.miragepress.com/ |archivedatearchive-date=4 April 2005 }}</ref> a bibliographic guide to genre small press publishers which was a Hugo Award nominee during 1992. The Maryland Young Writers Contest, sponsored by the [[Baltimore Science Fiction Society]], was renamed "'The Jack L. Chalker Young Writers Contest" effective April 8, 2006.
 
===Novels===
Chalker is best known for his ''[[Well World series|Well World]]'' series of novels, but he also wrote many other novels (most, but not all, part of a series, or large novels which were split into 'series' by the publishers), and at least nine short stories.
 
Many of Chalker's works involve some physical [[Shapeshifting|transformation]] of the main characters. For instance, in the ''Well World'' novels, immigrants to the Well World are transformed from their original form to become a member of one of the 1,560 [[Sentience|sentient]] species that inhabit that artificial planet. Another example would be that the ''Wonderland Gambit'' series resembles traditional [[Buddhist]] [[jataka]]-type [[reincarnation]] stories set in a science fiction environment. StevenSamantha Chalker announced that ''Wonderland Gambit'' might be made into a movie, but supposedly its close resemblance to ''[[The Matrix]]'' resulted in the project being canceled.<ref name="stevensamantha chalker">{{cite web| url=http://www.meteorologistlife.com/| title=Meteorologist Life| accessdateaccess-date=2006-03-05| deadurlurl-status=yesdead| archiveurlarchive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050403161035/http://www.meteorologistlife.com/| archivedatearchive-date=2005-04-03| df=}}</ref>
 
At the time of his death, Chalker left one unfinished novel, ''Chameleon''. He was planning to write another novel, ''Ripsaw'', after ''Chameleon''.
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==Illness and death==
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2021}}
On September 18, 2003, during [[Hurricane Isabel]], Chalker passed out and was rushed to the hospital with a diagnosis of a [[heart attack|coronary occlusion]]. He was later released, but was severely weakened. On December 6, 2004, he was again rushed to hospital with breathing problems and disorientation, and was diagnosed with [[congestive heart failure]] and a [[pneumothorax]]. Chalker was hospitalized in critical condition, then upgraded to stable condition on December 9, though he did not regain consciousness until December 15. After several more weeks in deteriorating condition and in a [[persistent vegetative state]], with several transfers to different hospitals, Chalker died on February 11, 2005, of [[kidney failure]] and [[sepsis]] at [[Bon Secours Hospital (Baltimore)|Bon Secours Hospital]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland|Baltimore]], [[Maryland]].
On September 18, 2003, during [[Hurricane Isabel]], Chalker passed out and was taken to a hospital where he was diagnosed with a [[heart attack|coronary occlusion]]. He was later released, but was severely weakened. On December 6, 2004, he was again taken to hospital with breathing problems and disorientation, and was diagnosed with [[congestive heart failure]] and a [[pneumothorax]]. Chalker was hospitalized in critical condition, then upgraded to stable condition on December 9, although he did not regain consciousness until December 15. After several more weeks in deteriorating condition and in a [[persistent vegetative state]], with several transfers to different hospitals, Chalker died on February 11, 2005, of [[kidney failure]] and [[sepsis]] at [[Grace Medical Center (Baltimore)|Bon Secours Hospital]] in [[Baltimore]], [[Maryland]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mitchell |first1=Josh |title=Jack L. Chalker, 60, science-fiction writer |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2005-02-13-0502130040-story.html |work=The Baltimore Sun |date=13 February 2005 |access-date=January 15, 2023 |archive-date=2021-06-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622193010/https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-2005-02-13-0502130040-story.html |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>
 
Some of Chalker's remains are interred in the family plot at [[Loudon Park Cemetery]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Jack L. Chalker|url=https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/10632314&|publisher=[[Find a Grave]]}}</ref> in Baltimore. The remainder were distributed off a ferry near [[Hong Kong]], the ferry between [[Hainan Island]] and the Chinese mainland, a ferry in [[Vietnam]], [[White's Ferry]] on the [[Potomac River]] in [[Virginia]] on Father's Day 2007, and on author [[H. P. Lovecraft]]'s grave in [[Providence, Rhode Island]] on December 17, 2005.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chalker |first1=Steven |title=Jack's Ashes |url=http://www.jackchalker.com/news/2005/12/27/jacks-ashes |website=Jack Chalker.com News |access-date=January 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 13, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060213034730/http://www.jackchalker.com/news/2005/12/27/jacks-ashes |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>
 
== Bibliography ==
{{Main|Jack L. Chalker bibliography}}
 
===''The Saga of the Well World'' series===
*''[[Midnight at the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, 1977 ({{ISBN|0-7434-3522-2}})
*''[[Exiles at the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, 1978 ({{ISBN|0-7434-3603-2}})
*''[[Quest for the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, 1978 ({{ISBN|0-7434-7153-9}})
*''[[The Return of Nathan Brazil]]'', Del Rey, 1980 ({{ISBN|0-345-28367-8}})
*''[[Twilight at the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, 1980 ({{ISBN|0-345-28368-6}})
*''[[The Sea is Full of Stars]]'', December, 1999 ({{ISBN|0-345-39486-0}})
*''[[Ghost of the Well of Souls]]'', 2000 ({{ISBN|0-345-39485-2}})
 
===''The Watchers at the Well'' series===
*''[[Echoes of the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, trade paperback, May, 1993 ({{ISBN|0-345-38686-8}})
*''[[Shadow of the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey Feb. 1994 ({{ISBN|0-345-36202-0}})
*''[[Gods of the Well of Souls]]'', Del Rey, 1994 ({{ISBN|0-345-38850-X}})
*''The Watchers at the Well'', Science Fiction Book Club (omnibus edition), 1994
 
===''The Four Lords of the Diamond'' series===
*''[[Lilith: A Snake in the Grass]]'', Del Rey, 1981 ({{ISBN|0-345-29369-X}})
*''[[Cerberus: A Wolf in the Fold]]'', Del Rey, 1982 ({{ISBN|0-345-31122-1}})
*''[[Charon: A Dragon at the Gate]]'', Del Rey, 1982 ({{ISBN|0-345-29370-3}})
*''[[Medusa: A Tiger by the Tail]]'', Del Rey, 1983 ({{ISBN|0-345-29372-X}})
*''The Four Lords of the Diamond'', The Science Fiction Book Club (omnibus edition), 1983
 
===''The Dancing Gods'' series===
*''The River of Dancing Gods'', Del Rey, 1984 ({{ISBN|0-345-30892-1}})
*''Demons of the Dancing Gods'', Del Rey, 1984 ({{ISBN|0-345-30893-X}})
*''Vengeance of the Dancing Gods'', Del Rey, July, 1985 ({{ISBN|0-345-31549-9}})
*''Songs of the Dancing Gods'', Del Rey, August, 1990 ({{ISBN|0-345-34799-4}})
*''Horrors of the Dancing Gods'', 1994 ({{ISBN|0-345-37692-7}})
*''The Dancing Gods: Part One'', Del Rey, November, 1995 ({{ISBN|0-345-40246-4}}). This is an omnibus volume containing ''The River of Dancing Gods'' and ''Demons of the Dancing Gods''
*''The Dancing Gods II'', Del Rey, September, 1996 ({{ISBN|0-345-40771-7}}). This is an omnibus volume containing ''Vengeance of the Dancing Gods'' and ''Songs of the Dancing Gods''
 
===''The Soul Rider'' series===
*''Spirits of Flux and Anchor'', Tor Books, 1984 ({{ISBN|0-8125-3320-8}})
*''Empires of Flux and Anchor'', Tor Books, 1984 ({{ISBN|0-8125-3329-1}})
*''Masters of Flux and Anchor'', Tor Books, January, 1985 ({{ISBN|0-8125-3281-3}})
*''The Birth of Flux and Anchor'', Tor Books, 1985 ({{ISBN|0-8125-2292-3}})
*''Children of Flux and Anchor'', Tor Books, September, 1986 ({{ISBN|0-8125-2340-7}})
 
===''The Rings of the Master'' series===
*''Lords of the Middle Dark'', Del Rey Books, May, 1986 ({{ISBN|0-345-32560-5}})
*''Pirates of the Thunder'', Del Rey Books, March, 1987 ({{ISBN|0-345-32561-3}})
*''Warriors of the Storm'', Del Rey Books, August, 1987 ({{ISBN|0-345-32562-1}})
*''Masks of the Martyrs'', Del Rey, February, 1988 ({{ISBN|0-345-34309-3}})
 
===''The G.O.D. Inc'' series===
*''The Labyrinth of Dreams'', Tor Books, March, 1987 ({{ISBN|0-8125-3306-2}})
*''The Shadow Dancers'', Tor Books, July, 1987 ({{ISBN|0-812-53308-9}})
*''The Maze in the Mirror'', Tor Books, January, 1989 ({{ISBN|0-8125-2069-6}})
 
===''The Changewinds'' series===
*''When the Changewinds Blow'', Ace-Putnam's, September, 1987
*''Riders of the Winds'', Ace Books, May, 1988
*''War of the Maelstrom'', Ace-Putnam's, October, 1988 ({{ISBN|0-441-10268-9}})
*''Changewinds'', Baen (omnibus edition), August, 1996
 
===''The Quintara Marathon'' series===
*''The Demons at Rainbow Bridge'', Ace-Putnam's, hardcover, September, 1989 ({{ISBN|0-441-69992-8}})
*''The Run to Chaos Keep'', Ace-Putnam's, May, 1991 ({{ISBN|0-441-69348-2}})
*''The Ninety Trillion Fausts'' (a.k.a. ''90 Trillion Fausts''), Ace-Putnam's, October 1991 ({{ISBN|0-441-58103-X}})
 
===''The Wonderland Gambit'' series===<!-- This section is linked from [[Simulated reality]] -->
*''The Cybernetic Walrus'', Del Rey, trade pb in November, 1995
*''The March Hare Network'', 1996
*''The Hot-Wired Dodo'', Del Rey, Feb. 1997
 
===''The Three Kings'' series===
*''Balshazzar's Serpent'', Baen Books 1999
*''Melchior's Fire'', Baen Books, 2001.
*''Kaspar's Box'', 2003
 
===Stand-alone novels===
* ''A Jungle of Stars'', Ballantine, Del Rey, 1976 ({{ISBN|0-345-28960-9}})
* ''[[The Web of the Chozen]]'', Del Rey, 1978 ({{ISBN|0-345-27376-1}})
* ''[[And the Devil Will Drag You Under]]'', Del Rey, 1979 ({{ISBN|0-345-30504-3}})
* ''A War of Shadows'', Ace: An Analog Book, 1979
* ''Dancers in the Afterglow'', Del Rey, 1979, 1982 ({{ISBN|0-345-30493-4}})
* ''[[The Devil's Voyage]]'', Doubleday, 1980
* ''[[The Identity Matrix]]'', [[Timescape Books|Timescape]]: Pocket Books, 1982 ({{ISBN|0-671-65547-7}})
* ''Downtiming the Night Side'', Tor Books, May 1985 ({{ISBN|0-8125-3288-0}})
* ''The Messiah Choice'', St. Martins - Blue Jay, May 1985
* ''The Red Tape War'' (with [[Mike Resnick]] and [[George Alec Effinger]]). Tor hardcover, April 1991
* ''Priam's Lens'', Del Rey, 1997 ({{ISBN|0-345-40294-4}})
* ''The Moreau Factor'', Del Rey, Feb. 2000
* ''Chameleon'' (partially completed at time of death)
 
===Collection and anthology===
*''Dance Band on the Titanic'', Del Rey Books, July, 1988 (short stories)
*''Hotel Andromeda'' [edited by], Ace, 1994 ({{ISBN|0-441-00010-X}})
 
Besides the short stories included in ''Dance Band on the Titanic'', Chalker wrote at least one other short story:
 
*"And Now Falls the Cold, Cold Night". ''[[Alternate Presidents]]'', ed. [[Mike Resnick]], [[Tor Books|Tor]] 1992.
 
===Miscellaneous===
*''An Informal Biography of Scrooge McDuck'', Mirage, 1974.
 
==See also==
Line 153 ⟶ 63:
 
==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{isfdb name|id=272|name=Jack L. Chalker}}
* [http://www.bsfs.org/bsfsywc.htm Jack L. Chalker Young Writers' Contest]
* [http://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/chalker_jack_l Jack L. Chalker] at ''[[The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction]]''
* {{worldcat id|id=lccn-n80-123523}}
 
{{Jack L. Chalker}}
{{Authority control}}
 
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[[Category:1944 births]]
[[Category:2005 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century American short story writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American novelists]]
[[Category:21st-century American short story writers]]
[[Category:American fantasy writers]]
[[Category:American male novelists]]
[[Category:American male short story writers]]
[[Category:American science fiction writers]]
[[Category:Baltimore City College alumni]]
[[Category:Deaths from kidney failure in the United States]]
[[Category:Deaths from sepsis in the United States]]
[[Category:Infectious disease deaths in Maryland]]
[[Category:Novelists from Maryland]]
[[Category:Schoolteachers from Maryland]]
[[Category:Towson University alumni]]
[[Category:Writers from Baltimore]]
[[Category:Science fiction fans]]
[[Category:Towson University alumni]]
[[Category:Novelists from Maryland]]
[[Category:American male short story writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American short story writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American short story writers]]
[[Category:20th-century American male writers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male writers]]
[[Category:American schoolteachers]]
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