Edward Elmer Smith (May 2, 1890 – August 31, 1965), better known by his pen name E. E. "Doc" Smith, was an American food engineer and science fiction author, best known for the Lensman and Skylark series. He is sometimes called the father of space opera. Smith was born in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and educated at the University of Idaho and George Washington University, where he received a degree in chemical engineering. He worked mainly as a food engineer, developing food production machinery for the US Army during World War I. Smith wrote his first science fiction story in 1917, and published his first novel, The Skylark of Space, in 1928. He went on to write a number of popular science fiction series, including the Lensman, Skylark, and Subspace series. He also wrote several short stories and non-fiction works. Smith was a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and was awarded the first Grand Master Nebula Award in 1975. He died in 1965 in Pasadena, California.
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