Alright, /lit/, favourite Harlan Ellison short story and why

>Pennies Off A Dead Man's Eyes
>Grail
>Jeffty is Five
>The Deathbird
>Status Quo at Troyden's
>Valerie: A True Memoir

There's also one about a sheriff in the old west that I love but fuck if I can remember the name.

>>8676719

Pennies is great because it combines offhand science fiction with the racial concept of 'passing'. Really insightful piece.

Grail I like because, well, it just reads well. I like it, it's a good story. Maybe not his best but it's a read that I enjoy.

Jeffty is straight-up a masterpiece of a story. Brilliantly told.

Status Quo is just a story about an old man in a flophouse but he tells it so well thAt you cAre.

Valerie is an autobiographical story that bites you hard. You get to understand Ellison and his bitterness.

God bless you little life hutch

because unlike most of Ellison's work it has a protagonist in a situation who solves a problem and survives the situation.

>>8676719
You seem to know this stuff well. What's a good collection of his work? 'Valerie' sounds particularly interesting.

>>8676839

I'm a huge fan.

Check out the 35 or 50 year retrospective collections. They've got his best work, including everyone I mentioned. Also look out for his essay "From Alabamy With Hate" about when Ellison marched with MLK in Selma.

>>8676887
I see. I'll try to find those on gen-lib

>>8676887
>>8676890
Just found the 50-year retrospective. Thanks.

>>8675998
>implying the video game isn't great

>>8676839
the essential ellison has two vignettes he wrote as a teenager. they read like /b/ copypasta. each story in that collection has an intro by ellison, and a postscript.. by ellison. in which he talks about ellison. as you might expect.

>>8675998
>poorly adapted
The game was better than the short story.
t.watched the longplay.
The short story is shit.

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>>8676719

>There's also one about a sheriff in the old west that I love but fuck if I can remember the name.

"The End of the Time of Leinard".

I enjoyed "Laugh Track" and "Jeffty Is Five". Harlan Ellison is an amazing narrator; I would highly recommend listening to him telling his stories.

Prince Myshkin and Hold the Relish

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Dr5NsTOXAyE

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His Scooby Doo appearance

LONELYACHE

NO GF? NO PROBLEM

>>8675998
Strange Wine of course

>>8677896

Fucking thank you. "I don't want to draw on you, Gus." fucking moves me.

>>8677751
Ellison is as much known for his mythos as his writing. He got success for being personality so it's not unforgivable for him to focus on that.

And I agree, I bought all the Voice from the Edge audio books and "Laugh Track" especially is told really well. Sometimes I suspect the stories wouldn't be as good if I had only read them.

>>8677909

Patrician.

>>8678274

>Sometimes I suspect the stories wouldn't be as good if I had only read them.

I'm sure that's the case. Ellison knew how to get the most from his work.

I don't consider him a seminal figure in fiction but he certainly is entertaining and knew how to get paid for it.