Bradbury's graduation from a Los Angeles high school in 1938 ended his formal education, but he furthered it himself - at night in the library and by day at his typewriter. In 1937, he became a member of the Los Angeles Science Fiction League, whose help enabled him to publish four issues of his own science-fiction fan magazine, or 'fanzine,' Futuria Fantasia. In 1934, when he was fourteen, his family moved from Arizona to Los Angeles, where his writing career began to solidify. The following year, he and his family moved from Illinois to Arizona, and that same year, Bradbury received a toy typewriter on which he wrote his first stories. All these stories with their fantastic characters and settings were dramatic influences on Bradbury's later life.īradbury began his writing career in 1931 at age eleven, using butcher paper that he had to unroll as his story progressed. Bradbury read the series of books about the Emerald City of Oz, and his Aunt Neva read him the terror-filled tales of Poe. In addition to Bradbury's magician heroes, Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, and Tarzan ranked high on his list of favorites. In years to come, these details furnished material for Bradbury's stories. The Bradbury home was transformed into a haunted house with grinning pumpkins, ghost-like sheets hanging in the cellar, and raw chicken meat representing parts of a dead witch. When Bradbury was eight, his Aunt Neva helped him devise the grandest Halloween party imaginable. Their favorite time of the year was Halloween, which they celebrated with even more enthusiasm than they celebrated Christmas. In fact, this magician once gave young Bradbury such a convincing talk that Bradbury decided to become a magician - the best in the world!īradbury's love of fantasy was encouraged by his family. Electrico, another magician of sorts, particularly impressed Bradbury with his death-defying electric chair act. Blackstone the Magician came to town when Bradbury was eleven, and he attended every performance. Whenever traveling circuses pitched their tents in Waukegan, Bradbury and his brother were always on hand. As a young boy, Bradbury's life revolved around magic, magicians, circuses, and other such fantasies. Often said to be America's best science fiction writer, Bradbury has also earned acclaim in the fields of poetry, drama, and screenwriting. American novelist, short-story writer, essayist, playwright, screenwriter, and poet - Ray Bradbury was born in Waukegan, Illinois on August 22, 1920, the third son of Leonard Spaulding Bradbury and Esther Marie Moberg Bradbury.

451° Farenheito by Ray Bradbury