My Arthur C. Clarke memory
01/04/2008 . Source: Mark R. Leeper 
There are probably few readers of this notice who do not know that Sir Arthur C. Clarke died in Sri Lanka recently, says Mark. He has seen Heinlein die and Asimov die. Clarke was the last of the three writers he grew up thinking of as the giants. But he felt he had a special connection to Clarke. Buy Arthur C. Clarke in the USA - or Buy Arthur C. Clarke in the UK 
I was a sophomore at the University of
Massachusetts back in the spring of 1970.
Evelyn and I were members of the UMass Science
Fiction Club. In fact, our second date was
to see the film 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, so
the film holds very fond memories for us.
In any case, this was a few months later
and the Science Fiction Club got an invitation
from the school's Distinguished Visitors
Program.
It seems that they were going to have Arthur
C. Clarke visit the campus and give a speech
at the Student Union. Beforehand that there
was be a dinner for him. We were asked would
the club like to send some people to the
dinner they asked? Evelyn and I were among
a group of five chosen to attend the dinner.
At the dinner Clarke was polite and cordial,
but perhaps not greatly enthusiastic as
he talked mostly about science and about
diving. He produced two coins he had found
on the sea floor when he dived. None of
us from the science fiction club were doing
much to enter into the conversation. Eventually
I decided that it would be a missed opportunity
if I did not bring up the subject of science
fiction at least temporarily.
So I asked about his science fiction; I
do not remember exactly what. And it was
a lot like the sun had came out from behind
a rain cloud. Suddenly the conversation
had drifted to what clearly was his favorite
subject. His talking speeded up and became
much more animated. He talked about how
Isaac Asimov had said he would not be writing
any more science fiction because he did
find that it was worthwhile.
He said that he, on the other hand, found
nothing but science fiction worthwhile writing
about. It was pretty much a three-way conversation
with him, Evelyn, and me. And that seemed
to be just how everybody in the room liked
it, especially Clarke himself. It was great
in spite of the fact that I could not make
my mouth say "CHILDHOOD'S END". I two or
three times said, "CHILDSHOOD END." Clarke
pretended not to notice.
When the dinner was over the organizer asked
if I would be willing to keep Dr. Clarke
company in the preparation room while he
awaited the time of his speech. There are
occasions when the word "yes", while it
conveys the idea, still seems somehow insufficient.
However, it was the word I used. We had
a good conversation in the small room with
just the two of us waiting for him to be
called to the stage. In fact it is probably
the best conversation I think I have ever
had with any well-known science fiction
writer. I wish I could remember what all
we talked about.
When Clarke gave his speech I had a seat
behind him on the dais. I think we still
have the front page of the University of
Massachusetts the next day that had a picture
of him giving the speech with me in the
background. But even then it was not over.
The University was to drive Dr. Clarke to
an interview at a local radio station and
then to the airport. Again there was the
question of who could keep him company that
he could talk to. And Evelyn and I could
talk about science fiction. It was the first,
last, and only time that I ever skipped
a scheduled class in college. (It was my
favorite class, too. It was a problem solving
colloquium that was a preparation for the
Putnam Mathematics Exam.
I got the professor's permission.) Clarke
and I talked about science fiction films.
I remember I had not long before seen QUATERMASS
AND THE PIT and loved that film. I mentioned
it to Clarke and he said he had never heard
of it. I still find that strange because
he was English and it seems strange that
an English science fiction fan would not
know Quatermass. Quatermass has considerably
more name recognition in England than it
did in the United States. The original 1950s
broadcasts became real media events. Eventually
it had to end and the four of us--Evelyn,
me, Clarke, and the driver--went to Bradley
Field Airport for Clarke's plane.
Clarke was the real thing. He was a scientist
and a science fiction writer. The synchronous
satellite was his idea, so he changed the
world. His interest in science fiction lasted
him his entire life. He became the "Grand
Old Man of Science Fiction" by outliving
both Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov by
20 and 16 years respectively. He had been
the foundation of my most optimistic views
of the future with novels like ISLANDS IN
THE SKY, AGAINST THE FALL OF NIGHT, EARTHLIGHT,
THE DEEP RANGE, A FALL OF MOONDUST (a personal
favorite), and RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA. These
are probably what I consider his first-rank
novels. Of them only RENDEZVOUS WITH RAMA
was published after I met him. But he was
always a class act.
So what did I learn from Clarke? At the
dinner Clarke had produced some coins he
had found skindiving on the sea floor. And
he was showing them to others. The real
joy was finding the coins, but it was not
enough to just find them, he got the additional
pleasure of sharing his exciting find with
others. He was a man who spent his life
chasing wonder, finding it, and then showing
it to others so they could appreciate it--not
appreciate it at the same level he could,
but there was enough spark there to share.
The pursuit of wonder may not seem to have
that much useful value. Our society values
the practical and the short-term gain. This
was a man who knew the value of wonder.
I think that when we lost Clarke we lost
one of the great ones.
Mark R Leeper
(c) Mark R Leeper 2008
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