Walter Ernsting facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Walter Ernsting
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Walter Ernsting in 1978
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| Born | 13 June 1920 Koblenz, Germany
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| Died | 15 January 2005 (aged 84) Salzburg, Austria
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| Other names | Clark Darlton |
| Occupation | Science fiction author |
Walter Ernsting (born June 13, 1920 – died January 15, 2005) was a German writer. He wrote many science fiction and fantasy stories. He was best known for writing under the pen name Clark Darlton.
Walter grew up in Koblenz, a city in Germany. When World War II started, he joined the German army. He worked in a group that gathered information in Norway. Later, he served on the Eastern Front, a major battle area. There, he was captured and became a prisoner of war. He spent several years in Siberia before returning home.
Contents
Walter Ernsting's Journey to Writing
After the war, Walter Ernsting started a new path. In 1952, he worked as a translator for British officials. This job helped him discover American and British science fiction magazines. He loved this type of story!
How Clark Darlton Was Born
Walter wanted to write his own science fiction books. But at that time, people in Germany weren't very interested in German science fiction writers. So, Walter came up with a clever idea. He created a fake British writer named Clark Darlton. Then, he sold his own stories as if they were translations of Darlton's work.
His very first book, Ufo am Nachthimmel, came out in 1955. It was published as part of a book series called Utopia Großband.
Starting a Science Fiction Club
Walter Ernsting wrote many books as "Clark Darlton." On August 4, 1955, he helped start a special group. It was called the Science Fiction Club Deutschland (SFCD). He worked as an editor for the club's magazine, Andromeda, until the late 1960s. He became a very important person in the German science fiction fan community.
Walter Ernsting's Amazing Legacy
Throughout his life, Walter Ernsting wrote over 300 science fiction books! That's a huge number of stories.
An Asteroid Named After Him
In 2003, something very special happened. An asteroid in space was named after him! This asteroid, discovered in 1990, is now called Asteroid 15265 Ernsting. It's a great way to remember his contributions to science fiction.
Working with Publishers
Walter Ernsting began his science fiction career in 1954. He worked as a translator for a new science fiction book series. This series was called Utopia Großband. It was published by Erich Pabel Verlag.
Becoming an Editor
In 1955, he became an editor for this series. He also started a section for readers called Meteoriten. He also edited a new science fiction magazine. This magazine was first called Utopia Sonderband, then later Utopia Magazin.
Moving to Moewig Verlag
In 1958, Walter Ernsting moved to a different publisher, Moewig Verlag. There, he worked on their science fiction book series Terra. He also worked on their magazine Galaxis. He kept writing science fiction books and stories. He used his pen name Clark Darlton, and sometimes even Fred McPatterson.
Creating Perry Rhodan
In 1961, Walter Ernsting and his friend K. H. Scheer had a big idea. They, along with other writers, created Perry Rhodan. This became the most successful German science fiction series ever!
Walter's Contributions to Perry Rhodan
People have discussed who came up with which ideas for the series. But it's clear that Walter Ernsting created the name of the main character, Perry Rhodan. He also developed many of Perry's personality traits. Walter also invented many of the alien types and other important characters in the series. He continued to work on the Perry Rhodan series until issue 1622, which came out in 1992.
