Arthur C. Clarke

(1917 - 2008)

Born in Somerset, England, the science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke served in the Royal Air Force during World War II and as chair of the British Interplanetary Society shortly after. He cowrote the screenplay for the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey with director Stanley Kubrick, and appeared on CBS as a commentator during the Apollo 11 lunar landing a year later. In 1956 he moved to Sri Lanka, where he opened up a diving school and remained for the rest of his life.