MAINE, Charles Eric

   Pseudonym used by UK writer David McIlwain (1921-1981) for his sf; two other pseudonyms, Richard Rayner and Robert Wade, were not used for sf. CEM was one of the relatively few but extremely active UK fans beforeWWII, in 1938 publishing his first story, "The Mirror", in his FANZINE The Satellite, which he edited with Jonathan BURKE. His first novel was Spaceways: A Story of the Very Near Future * (1953; vt Spaceways Satellite 1958 US), based on his own 1952 radio play; it was filmed as SPACEWAYS (1953). Also developed from a script, in this case his own screenplay for TIMESLIP (1955; vt The Atomic Man), is CEM's The Isotope Man * (1957), which begins his only series, the Mike Delaney books, the other volumes in which are Subterfuge (1959) and Never Let Up (1964). Like most of his sf, these have a leaning towards thriller-like plots and a disinclination to argue too closely scientific pinnings that are often shaky; the latter tendency is particularly visible in stories featuring HARD-SF themes like space travel, as in High Vacuum (1957). Sometimes lightly, sometimes with gravity, CEM's numerous books touch on a variety of sf themes from ROCKETS to SOCIOLOGY, but generally without more than fitfully illuminating them; he was determinedly an author of middle-of-the-road GENRE SF, and as such was successful. His finest novel is generally thought to be The Mind of Mr Soames (1961), a story of a man who does not reach consciousness until theage of 30, and of the arguments about how best to educate him. The moral issues are dealt with quite sensitively. The book was filmed as The MIND OF MR SOAMES (1969).

   JC/PN

   Other works: Timeliner: A Story of Time and Space (1955); Crisis 2000 (1955); Escapement (1956; vt The Man who Couldn't Sleep 1958 US), filmed as The Electronic Monster (1957; vt The Dream Machine); World without Men (1958 US; rev vt Alph 1972); The Tide Went Out (1958; rev vt Thirst! 1977); Count-Down (1958 AMZ as "The Big Count-Down"; 1959; vt Fire Past the Future 1959 US); Calculated Risk (1960); He Owned the World (1960 US; vt The Man who Owned the World 1961 UK); The Darkest of Nights (1962; vt Survival Margin 1968 US; rev vt The Big Death 1978 UK); B.E.A.S.T.: Biological Evolutionary Animal Simulation Test (1966); The Random Factor (1971).

   See also: ANTIGRAVITY; CLONES; DISASTER; MEDICINE; MONEY; MOON.