Open access to The Heinlein Journal archives is being considered as a way to maximize the reach, impact, and preservation of Heinlein scholarship by making it freely available and easily discoverable to readers, teachers, and researchers worldwide. The Heinlein Society became stewards of The Heinlein Journal following the death of its founder Bill Patterson in…
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For the tenth year in a row, the Society will raffle off a complete set of the Virginia Edition in September, 2026. All you have to do is join or stay a member! A $45 Regular membership is all it takes to enter. The rules follow: Eligibility: “Regular” members who join or renew their…
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The Annual Meeting was held on 14 September 2025, 4:00 pm eastern time. DRAFT 2024 Annual Meeting Minutes with Roll Call were approved as submitted with no corrections. The presentation slides are linked here: 2025 THS Annual Meeting Slides .
by Peter Scott October 15, 1960 – April 3, 2025 It is my sad duty to report the unexpected death of a luminary within the Heinleinsphere. Jim Gifford passed away at his Colorado home on April 3 of natural causes. The fandom pool we swim in would have been a puddle without his efforts, most…
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We ended our Heinlein birthday celebration by dropping the newest issue of The Heinlein Journal! Some really good stuff in there. Current regular and lifetime members get the issue as a benefit of their membership and should have gotten a direct email announcing it. Not a member? You can join us right now and then…
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Happy Birthday Mr. Heinlein! In your honor we have awarded four more scholarships in STEM fields today. Read all about it at: Scholarship Program
New member, Wayne Hicks, has kindly shared this song he wrote. Wayne said “I believe it speaks clearly about the many beneficial ways that reading Robert’s works have touched so many of us.” Please give it a listen! Lyrics included below. The Spaceman’s Song by Wayne Hicks They linger like the mem’ry…
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(There always seems to be someone that believes Juan Rico was from Buenos Aires. I can only assume that comes from the movie. In fact Rico was Filipino which is revealed near the end of the book when he says his native language is Tagalog. The following passage from the book states unequivocally that Rico…
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It is not clear how Heinlein got from this germ to the story he eventually did write up as his first story, “LifeLine.” Switching it from pure fantasy to science fiction may have suggested the pulp gadget-story format, which is typically about the inventor and his invention. Heinlein began in a way that would become…
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The casual Saturday “at homes” Robert and Leslyn had started for political purposes gradually changed over the course of 1939 into a writers’ group for the local science-fiction professionals. If anything, the changeover of personalities could only have sharpened the sense of being involved in something purposivful and progressive: socializing with writers instead of politicians…
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Since late in 1944, Nelson Eddy’s recording of “The Ballad of Rodger Young” had been playing on the radio, and that song became intensely meaningful to Heinlein. Young, an infantry private, had been killed on July 31, 1943, in the campaign for the Solomon Islands. He had been a runt—five feet two inches—and so nearly…
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By the end of January (1956) he (Heinlein) was generating a new “adult” book. He had an engineer/inventor on a bender because his wife dumped him to marry a rich man. But the elements weren’t coming together quite right, and he kept turning them over in his mind, changing a bit here and a bit…
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Balticon 59 took place May 23-26, 2025 at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel. The Society had its “usual” presence with a fan table and stalwarts Betsey Wilcox, Will Hamilton, and Ty Arnold travelling in. We had local members Beatrice & Ursula Kondo, Herb Gilliland, and John Tilden to complete the “staffing” of the fan table.…
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Sharon Lee, novelist, is the 2025 winner of the Robert A. Heinlein Award. The award is bestowed for outstanding published works in science fiction and technical writings that inspire the human exploration of space. This award is in recognition of Ms. Lee’s body of work of over thirty-eight novels and short stories. A majority of…
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The Heinlein Society asks for your birthdate to have some demographic information about its members and website users. We have found that some operating systems (Android in particular) have a non-intuitive way to change your year of birth. If you are presented with this: Your next step to change the year will be to click…
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Recently, a member of The Heinlein Society board of directors received the following email. Since THS has a scholarship program, it only seems logical to share information about internship programs. I can’t imagine a more fitting internship for a Heinlein fan! We have launched our application for the National Air and Space Museum’s 2025 Summer…
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The Annual Meeting was held on 8 September 2024, 4:00 pm eastern time. DRAFT 2024 Annual Meeting Minutes with Roll Call are now available. These will be approved at the 2025 Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting Slides are linked. Zoom link and call-in information were sent out to members. You can reference a copy…
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by the Board & Chairs Peanut Gallery Balticon 58 was held over Memorial Day weekend May 24-27, 2024. Secretary Betsey Wilcox and Elections Chair Will Hamilton travelled along with Director Jim Dutton to join up with locals Director Beatrice Kondo, Heinlein Journal Editor Herb Gilliland, and Operations Chair John Tilden. We met up with several…
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Come to a meal during Balticon 58 honoring 2024 Heinlein Award Winner Tom Doherty! 3 Course meal with choice of 4 Entrees, non-alcoholic drinks, tip, tax and surcharge, private room $80.00 per person Attendance Limited to 20 guests with payment by 15 May 2024 Alcoholic beverages are available on a separate per person check…
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William Shatner (Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore) to Appear at the National Space Society’s Annual International Space Development Convention Famed Star Trek actor, celebrity, and private astronaut William Shatner will appear at the National Space Society’s 2024 International Space Development Conference (ISDC) in May. Mr. Shatner will be accepting the Robert A. Heinlein Memorial Award, which…
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Tom Doherty, founder of TOR Books and Chair of Tom Doherty Associates, publishing under the Tor, Forge, Tordotcom, Starscape, Tor Teen, and Nightfire imprints, is the 2024 winner of the Robert A. Heinlein Award. The award is bestowed for outstanding published works in science fiction and technical writings that inspire the human exploration of space.…
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It was worth the wait! follow the link for Issue #31 of The Heinlein Journal to purchase outright or download with a coupon code as a regular or Lifetime member. Check your email by 16 Feb 2024 for the particular code you should use.
BE SURE TO USE YOUR ORIGINAL EMAIL ADDRESS WITH US. IF YOU ARE NOT SURE email TO CHECK BEFORE YOU ACCIDENTALLY CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT…WE CAN HELP CHANGE AN EMAIL ADDRESS AS WELL. 1. Log into your account on heinleinsociety.org 2. At the left side of the “dashboard” page for “My Account” there will…
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The Board of the Society voted tonight for its new leadership & Executive Committee effective immediately: President & Chairman: Ken Walters Vice President: Walt Boyes Treasurer: Geo Rule Secretary: Betsey Wilcox Congratulations to all of them! Note: The website contact addresses will be updated over a short period of time; you may continue to use…
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Thanks to all who voted in the Society’s recent election for the Board of Directors. There were 4 open slots voted upon due to Herb Gilliland resigning from the Board. •The 3-year terms will be filled by Geo Rule, Jim Dutton, and John Seltzer (reelected) •Walt Boyes (reelected) will fill the remainder of Herb Gilliland’s…
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