This page is for site visitors to post remembrances and thoughts at the time of Dr. Pournelle’s passing (8 Sep 2017). Your thoughts can be added using the form at the bottom of this page. Comments that are not related to words of encouragement or condolences will be removed.
Dr. Pournelle’s family appreciates those that have taken the time to send condolences and well wishes.
For those that are interested in Dr. Pournelle’s books, please see the e-books page or the Amazon page . Here’s a list of all of Jerry’s books: All The Books.
Jerry’s last post is here. The text of the eulogy given at the memorial is here. Site news is here. – Editor
Years ago while at Comdex, I was waiting for a helicopter to take us to a concert. Jerry was in front of me and had forgotten his ticket. I told the guy he was with me, plus if he didn’t let us on the chopper his boss would read about it next weeks trade rags. It was my official brush with greatness, a few minutes with Jerry on a helicopter. Sad to hear he passed. He was always an interesting read and unique thinker. Sad day.
God bless you Mr. Pournelle
My condolences to the family. I really enjoyed his columns a long time ago. A very astute man. You all can be very proud of him.
Jerry will be fondly remembered and missed in our household. I am just in the process of introducing my daughter to his works. Rest in peace, and to his surviving family, my sympathy for your troubles.
Jerry is one of my favorite authors and I couldn’t believe it when I saw he had passed. Dante’s Inferno and The Mote in God’s Eye are two of my favorites.
RIP Jerry and my condolences to his family for their loss.
I am so glad to hear that this great man did not suffer. I am sure the same does not apply to his widow and children, and I hope your sufferings and mourning are bearable and pass quickly. It seems as if he left a great body of work, and a worthy progeny. I had written a number of times in the past, and had some interesting on-line conversations with Dr. Pournelle. I was a great fan of his work, and he was one of the very few authors that I enjoyed from my teens, up to my present age. He did that most wonderful thing that any author might do – he made me see things in different ways, and opened my eyes to things I had not considered. He and Jack Vance (also recently passed) were masters of the craft, and (with apologies to Niven, Drake, Saberhaggen, and a few others) probably the best writers, of any genre, I ever read. I am glad to have known him through his books and occasional correspondence, and through the weekly (sometimes daily) visits to this page. I more than once assured him that he would live to be a hundred, due to the constant progress of medical technology. What a pity I Was so wrong. He occasionally said that he was sad for the direction things were going, worried for his children, and was glad he would not live long enough to see the final collapse, which may already have started. Confidentially, I don’t believe it, but true or not, wherever he is, he will be valued, and find he no longer needs to worry, struggle, or be dismayed about the future course of events.
Jerry, I will miss you very, very, very much. Thanks for all that you have been, in print and through email, to me and Rima over the last 20 plus years. Much love and admiration and my deepest, heartfelt condolences to your family and friends.
I have long enjoyed Jerry’s books & Chaos Manor. I’ll miss his voice, humane and reasonable. Peace and best wishes to his family.
“Well done, thou good and faithful servant”
As one of many lurkers (subscribed, but only wrote once), I want to thank Jerry’s family for the time he devoted to his readers and fans. His words were a point of sanity in a chaotic world, well worth a daily visit. He will be missed. May he find peace in his eternal reward.
Dr Pournelle was an amazing American. Quite beyond his books and articles he was one of the men who ended the cold war.
My condolences to his family. He was truly a great man.
At times, I would read something Dr. Pournelle had written and think, “No one could have said that better.” At other times, I would think, “I can’t believe anyone would say that.”
He was always thought-provoking and provocative. He forced his readers to question and clarify their own thoughts and positions, even if (or maybe, because) those readers disagreed with him.
(He was, after all, completely wrong on climate change.)
I will tremendously miss reading his take on world events, present and past.
Jerry will be fondly remembered. May he Rest In Peace.
God bless all his family and friends.
I have been reading Pournelle’s fiction for over 40-years. I really like his collaborations with Niven. His books followed me from Montana to Spain to California to Germany to Idaho to Spain, again, to Qatar and back to California, all during my USAF and DoD career. I started reading his ‘blog’ over 10-years ago and looked forward to each new posting.
One thing that I can say about Jerry is that his writing on his blog confirmed my own conservatism and help to put my mind at rest that I was what I was raised to be.
God be with you on your new journey and maybe many of your fans, colleges and associates meet you at the Pearly Gates. RIP
As a 57 year-old sci-fi fan *and* professional computer geek, Jerry has loooooong been an important part of my life. His books, columns, and blog were visited, read, and re-read. It’s not too much hyperbole to say he greatly and positively influenced many men’s paths, including my own. My he rest in peace, and may his family take solace in what he wrought.
I am saddened by Jerry’s passing. In my youth, I was looking forward to the next issue of BYTE magazine just to read his columns. His “user” commentary on computing were always on the point and extremely helpful not only to users but the industry as well. He found many imitators, but none as good as he. I think that whoever would be researching in the future the advent of personal computing, he/she would find Jerry’s columns an invaluable resource!!
A giant of imagination and breadth of vision. Rest in peace.
I cannot imagine having my teen years without Jerry (and others) who dared me not only to think outside the box, but outside the warehouse, and even off the planet with the warehouse containing the box! He dared me to dream, to imagine and most importantly, to do. I never had the chance to meet him in person or to say thank you so this will have to do. You will be missed, I only hope my own writing efforts can do for others a mere tenth of what his did for me.
Just found out about Jerry’s passing and I feel like I’ve lost a good friend and also a mentor. Jerry’s columns and musings were always a learning experience; my horizons are broader for having read him all these years. Sometime again, Jerry……
I have been a fan of his writing since Lucifer’s Hammer. I have introduced my children and many co-workers to his writing. His insight and intelligent discourse will be sorely missed. Condolences.
I loved his books. He will be sorely missed by so many of us.