Harry Harrison, creator of The Stainless Steel Rat and author of the novel that inspired the movie Soylent Green, will be honoured as the next Damon Knight Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America during the 2009 Nebula Awards Weekend in Los Angeles, California. The selection of Harrison was announced by SFWA President Russell Davis after consulting with the Board of Directors and former presidents. The Nebula Awards Weekend will be held between April the 24th and April the 26th in Los Angeles, California. The awards presentation banquet to be held on the UCLA campus to tie in with the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books. Past SFWA President and Grand Master (2004) Robert Silverberg will be presenting.
Harrison is the 26th author to be recognised by the SFWA as a Grand Master. He joins Robert A. Heinlein (1974), Jack Williamson (1975), Clifford D. Simak (1976), L. Sprague de Camp (1978), Fritz Leiber (1981), Andre Norton (1983), Arthur C. Clarke (1985), Isaac Asimov (1986), Alfred Bester (1987), Ray Bradbury (1988), Lester del Rey (1990), Frederik Pohl (1992), Damon Knight (1994), A. E. van Vogt (1995), Jack Vance (1996), Poul Anderson (1997), Hal Clement (1998), Brian Aldiss (1999), Philip Jose Farmer (2000), Ursula Le Guin (2003), Robert Silverberg (2004), Anne McCaffrey (2005), Harlan Ellison (2006), James Gunn (2007) and Michael Moorcock (2008).
Up until 2002 the title was simply “Grand Master.” In 2002 it was renamed in honour of SFWA’s founder, Damon Knight, who died that year. For more information visit www.nebulaawards.com.