Pop Spotlight

William F. Nolan, the science fiction author best known for co-penning the 1967 classic Logan’s Run with the late George Clayton Johnson, has died, a representative confirmed to Rolling Stone. He was 93.

Nolan passed away on July 15th after a brief hospital stay following complications from an infection.

The prolific author penned hundreds of works that stretched beyond the limits of sci-fi into nonfiction, poetry, and biographies, but he rose to prominence after the publication of Logan’s Run, which told the story of a domed city in the year 2116 where citizens were euthanized at age 21 to control the population. The novel was adapted into a 1976 film starring Michael York.

Born on March 6th, 1928 in Kansas City, Missouri, as the only child of an adventurer and a stenographer, Nolan grew up a fan of comics and pulp novels, particularly the works of Jack Kirby. After his family relocated to Chula Vista, California, after World War II, he developed a talent for drawing, but later became fascinated with sci-fi writing after being introduced to author Ray Bradbury. Nolan’s first book, 1952’s Ray Bradbury Review, was a compilation of short stories, nonfiction, and artwork by Bradbury and several other writers and illustrators, including Chad Oliver.

Much of Nolan’s work revolved around fanzines and commissioned artwork before he sold his first professional piece, “The Darendinger Build-Up,” to Playboy. In addition to his published work, Nolan also worked as a screenwriter, primarily for director Dan Curtis, and was a member of the writing collective “The Group” that also consisted of Johnson, Oliver, Charles Beaumont, Kris Neville, Mari Wolf, and more.

Another adaptation of Logan’s Run is currently in the works at Warner Bros., and as recently as last month, Nolan was outspoken about how he wished for the new project to skew closer to the original book.

“I am not a fan of the idea that Logan should be female,” Nolan told THR. “Mainly because Logan’s story is his story. If there is another story, then that could be in a TV episode or something, but it would not be Logan’s story. That would be a different character. Just changing to a woman to be fashionable doesn’t work, and George told me he felt the same. George was always tougher on the movie than I was. Over the years I came over more to his side about it, which is why I’d like to see it remade with the current technology. I also think it would be a really good streaming series, like Westworld.”