Born April 26, 1912, the popular and influential writer A. E. van Vogt began his long and illustrious career writing for “true confession” style pulps. Shortly after, he decided to pursue a career as a science fiction writer. Van Vogt’s first sci fi short “The Black Destroyer” appeared in the July 1939 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. The story remained one of his most popular stories, often cited as a source for the film Alien. In 1980, he was honored with Prix Aurora Award Life Achievement and in 1996, named a Nebula Grand Master.

In a career that spanned five decades, van Vogt produced numerous legendary and acclaimed novels including Slan (1946; 2016 Retro Hugo), The Weapon Makers (1947; 2005 Prometheus Hall of Fame), The World of Null-A (1948), The Voyage of the Space Beagle (1950), and The Weapon Shops of Isher (1951). Out of the Unknown (1948), which featured stories co-written with his wife E. Mayne Hull, was the first of his many short story collections.

Tachyon was honored to publish FUTURES PAST: THE BEST SHORT FICTION OF A. E. VAN VOGT (1999), the last of his books to see print before the author’s death in 2000.