Harlan Ellison, a loyal friend
Proof that a friend in need is a friend indeed
There was never a friend more loyal than Harlan Ellison.
We met in the 1970s when my business partner and I started Unearth: The Magazine of Science Fiction Discoveries. We wrote to him and said the magazine would be dedicated to publishing stories from previously unpublished writers, but we needed big names to help sell it, so would he contribute a column? Incredibly, he said yes, and not only wrote for us, but offered unflagging support every step of the way, including flying to Boston for a fundraising evening organized around a celebrity roast of him. He didn’t have to do any of this, but he believed in our mission.
Twenty-five years later, I was out of work and relaunching my old freelance writing and editing career. Harlan knew my editing chops from when I’d edited Shatterday for Houghton Mifflin; would he write a testimonial that I could put on my website? Of course he said yes, and sent me what you see above.
I treasured our friendship and cherish this letter, particularly since most of it is dedicated to establishing his bona fides, not mine. :-)
-Jonathan