Establishing a Baseline

I have already begun digging into things, but thought I should pause and try to establish some sort of a baseline on my knowledge with regard to Crichton. I do this because, as I learn more, I might develop different impressions and it is useful to know what I knew when and what I thought when.

I knew that Crichton's first major book was Andromeda Strain. I had read it many years ago. I also knew that he had written A Case of Need under a pseudonym but did not know that he had written detective stories under the pen name of John Lange. Nor did I know that he had written those to help pay for medical school. I attempted to get some of these from used book stores, but the price is outrageous. I will look into that later but for now I ordered a couple that had been reprinted by Hard Case Crime.

I knew that Crichton had written a fairly wide variety of books. I was vaguely aware of The Great Train Robbery. I had read Eaters of the Dead years ago. I was aware of Travels but had not read it. I knew he had written something called Electronic Life but did not know it was about Basic Programming. I suspect that early on in his career he was attracted to 'cool ideas' of things to write about whereas later he fell into a more predictable pattern.

I knew that he was involved in movies and tv and knew he had a large role in the TV series E/R. I did not know that he had written the screen play for Westworld and Twister.

On a more personal level, I knew he had attended Harvard Medical School and that he was very tall (6'9"). I knew he was extraordinarily intelligent. I did not know that his height and IQ made him feel separated from other people.

In short, I know what most people know and maybe just a tad more. But, I am far, far from an expert and am looking forward to developing some expertise. This is a fascinating, talented, highly intelligent person who leaves behind a fascinating trail.