Now, I’ve only read a little bit of Asimov, but as an occasional sci-fi fan, I certainly acknowledge him to be one of the founding fathers of the genre. His ideas about robots have actually shaped and informed robot research for decades, which I think is one of the marks of a great sci-fi writers. Now, as you may know, Asimov died in 1992. The Robot series, as it is known, was written primarily in the 40s. Now, if Asimov had wanted more Robot stories written, don’t you think he would have done so himself?

But Asimov’s estate, apparently concerned more for the bottom line than the man’s literary legacy, has authorized a new trilogy: sequels to the Robot series, to be written by a guy I’ve never heard of, a Mr. Mickey Zucker Reichert. Classy.

Now, I understand if you want to allow, say, a crappy movie to be made — it provides exposure, introduces some younger people to Asimov, and so on. And I’d be thrilled if they wanted to do a big “75th anniversary” thing or whatever, and do a big promotion, and re-issue the book all nice. But authorizing new content to be added? I don’t think he’d approve.

[via Slashdot]