Jon Bing (30 April 1944 – 14 January 2014) was a Norwegian SF writer and Law Professor at the Norwegian Research Center for Computers and Law (NRCCL), and the Faculty of Law at the University of Oslo, Norway.
He was 69 years old. Rest in peace !
His style of writing was calm, and at times dreamy. He wrote about people who stand outside ordinary society, but attempt the impossible.
Jon Bing (right) and Tor Åge Bringsværd (left) in 1970.
Together with P.G.Olsen and other students at the University in Oslo, Jon Bing started in 1965, the Aniara Society, a club for science fiction fans. “Aniara” (Aniara, A Review of Man in Time and Space, 1956) is an epic SF poem written by the swedish author Harry Martinson.
Jon Bing was often profiled in the media around the topic. He published out several books, both fiction and non-fiction specialist literature. His first published work was the short story collection “Rundt solen i ring” (Ring Around the Sun), co-written with Tor Åge Bringsværd, and published in 1967.
Jon Bing was a prolific fiction author, often collaborating with other authors, he wrote more than 30 books, often in collaboration with Tor Åge Bringsværd. Jon Bing was also a translator of american science fiction or british science fiction as Douglas Adams’ “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”.
He had received the Riverton Award in 1978 and the Brage Award in 2001.
Bing was engaged with many subjects, especially in the the field of technology. He was featured on television on the anniversary of the first personal computer in Norway, for example. He was a much-loved public figure, often offering opinions on digital media, copyright, science fiction, etc. He was outspoken about cases concerning ethics in technology, copyright, and the future in general.
Jon Bing was considered a pioneer in international IT and information law. He held honorary doctorates from the University of Stockholm and the University of Copenhagen, and was a Visiting Professor at Kings College, University of London. He was a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.
Even the prestigious anglo-saxon SF Encyclopedia bothered to mention Jon Bing :
“Other Norwegian sf authors left genre sf or were never part of it, their books usually being published by mainstream houses and without the “sf” label; they include Jon Bing (1944-2014) – whose international reputation led to a guest-of-honour appearance at the 1999 UK Eastercon…” : http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/norway
Bibliography
Fiction
1967 – “Ring Around the Sun” (short stories, with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1969 – “Komplex” (short stories)
1969 – “To loose a Spaceship: a Game of Chance” (play)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1969 – “Lunarium: The Book of the Moon” (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1970 – “The Soft Landscape” (novel)
1970 – “Red Planet” (science fiction anthology) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1972 – “Sesam 71” (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1972 – “East of the Sun” ; “West of the Moon” (science fiction anthologies) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1972 – “Scenario” (novel)
1972 – “Electrical Fairytales” (editor, short stories for children)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1973 – “Me - A Machine: Cybernetic Fables” (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1974 – “Knotted Writing” (short stories)
1975 – “Azur - Planet of the Captains” (children’s book, first volume in “The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria”)
1976 – “Zalt - Planet of the Steamlords” (children’s book, second volume in “The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria”)
1976 – “The Mad Professor” (short stories)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1977 – “Backwash: A Science Fiction Anthology” (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1980 – “The New Adventures of Marco Polo” (plays, with Tor Åge Bringsværd, later adapted to a three-part television series on Norwegian TV)
1980 – “Shooting Stars” (science fiction anthology)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1982 – “Mizt - Planet of the Ghosts” (children’s book, third volume in “The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria”)
1984 – “Flood” (children’s book)
1984 – “Doppelgangers” (novel)
1984 – “The Book is Dead! Long Live the Book !” (essays)
1985 – “Tanz - Planet of Riddles” (children’s book, fourth and final volume “The Chronicles of the Starship Alexandria”)
1986 – “Hvadata? Pieces of Literature for the Information Society” (short story)
1988 – “As Sure as Data” (short stories)
1988 – “Shadows of the Moon” (children’s book)
1988 – “Dust to Dust” (play)(with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1991 – “Cases of Doubt” (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
1992 – “Stories of an Old Space Traveller” (novel)
2004 – “Oslo 2084: Four Fables of Future Crimes” (short stories) (with Tor Åge Bringsværd)
RIP !
Some Jon Bing’s pictures :
http://www.dagbladet.no/2014/01/15/kultur/jon_bing/science_fiction/forfatter/litteratur/31297023/
http://www.dagbladet.no/2014/01/15/kultur/juss/nyhet/innenriks/31296165/