Back in the late 1970s I actually had the fortune of being cast in a small bit part for an amateur audio production of ACC's "Nine Million Names of God" sponsored by our local Science Fiction community based in Madison, Wisconsin. Thirty years later I remember very little about the experience other than the fact that I think I played the part of one of the programmer troglodytes. It was a fun experience, however I felt intimidated every time it was time to read my lines. Occasional bouts of what I eventually learned was a form of Dyslexia (which had the capacity of striking at any time) made the experience somewhat stressful.
I agree with Jed that ACC was an atheist through and through, even though I suspect we are both probably in agreement over the fact that he was more spiritual than most beings. I found ACC's novel "3001 The Final Odyssey" to be one of my favorites. It wasn't one of his better stories. Nevertheless, I got the distinct feeling as I read it that Arthur wrote it more for his own enjoyment than for any other reason. I think he was having fun speculating on what he hoped the world would evolve into in another thousand years. I liked his reptilian raptors, which when genetically altered turned out to be excellent gardeners. They also made great nannies. It was a fun romp. I suspect that if anyone were to be so foolish as to conduct a seance and attempt to communicate with the spirit of Arthur from the Great Beyond all they would get back for their efforts would be disturbing visions of a black void filled with stern emptiness. Nobody here! Nothing! Zilch! Well, of course, you ninny! Arthur was an atheist. He's dead! And that's the way it's gong to stay. I can respect that. Same with Douglas Adams too. Regards, Steven Vincent Johnson www.OrionWorks.com www.Zazzle.com/orionworks
