Douglas Adams

Douglas Adams grew up in England, eventually receiving a scholarship to attend St. John’s College in Cambridge. He developed his talent as a writer early in life, impressing his teachers and peers with his humorous stories, poems, and essays. After graduating college, he lived in London and aspired to write for radio and television programs. Before long, he began to collaborate with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame, helping Chapman write an episode for the show. After this period, he had trouble finding work as a writer, so he moved back into his mother’s house. While living there, he continued to write and pitch ideas to various media outlets, but very few of his submissions were accepted. During this time, he became rather depressed about his prospects as an artist and his ability as a writer. Fortunately, it wasn’t long before BBC Radio 4 agreed to run The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy as a radio series. Based on the great success of this series, Adams wrote sequels and accompanying materials, eventually using the idea to write a series of five novels that came out between 1980 and 1992. After marrying his wife and having a daughter at the age of 42, Adams and his family moved to California, where he died of a heart attack seven years later.