Wolfe Gene

Gene Rodman Wolfe (May 7, 1931 – April 14, 2019) was an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He was noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his Catholic faith. He was a prolific short story writer and novelist, and won many literary awards.[2] Wolfe has been called "the Melville of science fiction",[3][4] and was honored as a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.[5]

Wolfe is best known for his Book of the New Sun series (four volumes, 1980–1983), the first part of his "Solar Cycle".[1] In 1998, Locus magazine ranked it the third-best fantasy novel published before 1990 based on a poll of subscribers that considered it and several other series as single entries.[a]

Wolfe was born in New York City, the son of Mary Olivia (née Ayers) and Emerson Leroy Wolfe.[9] He had polio as a small child.[10] He and his family moved to Houston when he was 6, and he went to high school and college in Texas, attending Lamar High School in Houston. While attending Texas A&M University, he published his first speculative fiction in The Commentator, a student literary journal.[b]

Wolfe dropped out during his junior year and subsequently was drafted to fight in the Korean War.[12] After returning to the United States, he earned a degree from the University of Houston and became an industrial engineer. He was a senior editor on the staff of the journal Plant Engineering for many years[13] before retiring to write full-time, but his most famous professional engineering achievement is a contribution to the machine used to make Pringles potato chips.[14]

Wolfe lived in Barrington, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, with his wife Rosemary, where they raised four children. Wolfe also has three granddaughters. The Wolfes moved to Peoria, Illinois in 2013. Wolfe underwent double bypass surgery on April 24, 2010.[15] Wolfe also underwent cataract surgery on his right eye in early 2013. Wolfe's wife, Rosemary, died on December 14, 2013, after a series of illnesses,[16][17] including Alzheimer's disease. Wolfe said, "There was a time when she did not remember my name or that we were married, but she still remembered that she loved me."[3]

Wolfe died at his Peoria home from cardiovascular disease on April 14, 2019, at the age of 87.