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 Alfred Bester (also known as “Alfie”) was an American science fiction author and writer born on 18 December 1913 in Manhattan, New York City.
He was born the second child (and only son) to James, a first-generation American of Austrian descent, and Belle Bester, who was born in Russia and spoke Yiddish as her first language.
Bester was educated at the University of Pennsylvania and was also a member of the Philomathean Society. He later attended Columbia Law School but grew tired of it and later dropped out.
He married Rolly Goulko, a successful Broadway, radio and television actress, in 1936 and they remained married until her death 48 years later on January 12, 1984.
Bester was 25 and working in public relations when he decided to start writing science fiction, beginning his career with a story called The Broken Axiom which was published in Thrilling Wonder Stories.
He won an amateur story competition for this story before it was published, arranged by editors who knew him and were favourably inclined toward his early work as a way of giving him a break into the field, and this competition was the same one that fellow science fiction author Robert A Heinlein famously chose not to enter.
Bester continued to publish short fiction during the coming years, most notably in John W Jr Campbell’s Astounding Science Fiction, and also began contributing to various DC Comic titles – a job he would take more permanently in the near future working on comics such as Superman and Green Lantern.
Fours year into his career working on comics Bester decided to turn his attention to radio scripts, writing for Nick Carter, Master Detective, The Shadow, Nero Wolfe and The CBS Radio Mystery Theatre.
Bester also worked on a few lesser-known television projects during the late 40s and 50s.
In Spider Robinson’s Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon series the time-travelling pest named “Al Phee” is based on Alfred Bester, while the Psi-Cop character 'Alfred Bester' is named after him.
Bester died on 30 September 1987 having written numerous short stories, novels and radio scripts. Although he excelled in each of the various fields into which he ventured he is probably best known as a science fiction author and as the first winner of the Hugo Award in 1953 for his novel The Demolished Man.
He also won the Science Fiction Writers of America Grand Master Award in 1988. [edit]
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