KLEIN, Gerard

(1937-)

   French writer, anthologist, critic and editor. An economist by profession, GK is one of the few European sf writers known in the USA. He has used the pseudonyms Gilles d'Argyre, François Pagery and Mark Starr. His first stories, heavily influenced by Ray BRADBURY, appeared in 1955when he was only 18 years old, and he soon made a major impact on the field in France, publishing over 40 delicately crafted stories 1956-62 (60 by 1977), while also establishing himself as a forceful and literate critic of the genre with a series of 30 penetrating essays in various publications. His first novel, Le gambit des etoiles (1958; trans C.J. Richards as Starmaster's Gambit 1973 US), a clever and wide-rangingadventure yarn, shows the increasing influence that US GENRE SF was having on GK, a trend which comes strongly to the fore in novels like Le temps n'a pas d'odeur (1963; trans P.J. Skolowski as The Day before Tomorrow 1972 US) and Les seigneurs de la guerre (1971; trans John BRUNNER as TheOverlords of War 1973 US); these, though well conducted and interesting, lack the poetic invention of his early work. From 1969, GK edited the Ailleurs et Demain imprint for publisher Robert Laffont, where he wasinstrumental in introducing some of the major modern US-UK sf writers to the French public while also encouraging the better local authors - Philippe CURVAL, Michel Jeury, Christian LEOURIER, Andre Ruellan andStefan WUL. Many of GK's works feature an imagery and even a structure influenced by chess.

   MJ

   Other works: Agent galactique ("Galactic Agent") (1958) as by Mark Starr; Embuches dans l'espace ("Ambushes in Space") (1958 as by François Pagery); Les perles du temps ("Pearls of Time") (coll 1958); Chirurgiens d'une planete ("Planet-Surgeons") (1960) as by Gilles d'Argyre; Les voiliers du soleil ("Sailors of the Sun") (1961) as by d'Argyre; Le long voyage ("The Long Journey") (1964) as by d'Argyre; Les tueurs du temps (1965; trans C.J. Richards as The Mote in Time's Eye 1975 US), as by d'Argyre in France, GK in USA; Le sceptre du hasard ("TheSceptre of Chance") (1966) as by d'Argyre; Un chant de pierre ("Stone Song") (coll 1966); La loi du talion ("The Law of Retaliation") (coll 1973); Histoires comme si ("Stories as If") (coll 1975); Anthologie de la science-fiction francaise (anth in 3 vols 1975, 1976, 1977) with others; Le Livre d'or du Gerard Klein ("The Book of Gold of Gerard Klein") (coll1979).

   See also: CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL WORKS ABOUT SF; FRANCE; GALACTIC EMPIRES; GAMES AND SPORTS; LIVING WORLDS.