Introduction
William F. Nolan writes mostly in the science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres. Though best known for co-authoring the classic dystopian science fiction novel Logan’s Run with George Clayton Johnson, Nolan is the author of more than 2000 pieces (fiction, nonfiction, articles and books), and has edited 26 anthologies in his 50+ year career. An artist, Nolan was born in Kansas City, Missouri, and worked at Hallmark Cards, Inc. and in comic books before becoming an author. In the 1950s, Nolan was an integral part of the writing ensemble known as “The Group,” which included many well-known genre writers, such as Ray Bradbury, Charles Beaumont, John Tomerlin, Richard Matheson, Johnson and others, many of whom wrote for Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone. Nolan is considered a leading expert on Dashiell Hammett, pulps such as Black Mask and Western Story, and is the world authority on the works of prolific scribe Max Brand. Of his numerous awards, there are a few of which he is most proud: being voted a Living Legend in Dark Fantasy by the International Horror Guild in 2002; twice winning the Edgar Allan Poe Award from the Mystery Writers of America; being awarded the honorary title of Author Emeritus by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. in 2006, and receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association in 2010.
Literature Review
Logan’s Run
Originally published in 1967, Logan’s Run is a classic science fiction novel that was immediately considered a classic. The terminology of the book has since entered the mainstream, with terms such as runners and sandmen. In the world of 2116, a person’s maximum age is strictly legislated: twenty one years, to the day. When people reach this Last day they report to a Sleep shop in which they are willingly executed via a pleasure-inducing toxic gas. A person’s age is revealed by their palm flower crystal embedded in the palm of their right hand that changes color every seven years, yellow (age 0-6), then blue (age 7-13), then red (age 14-20), then blinks red and black on Last day, and finally turns black at 21. The story follows the actions of Logan, a Sandman charged with enforcing the rule, as he tracks down and kills citizens who run from society’s lethal demand, only to end up running himself.
Logan’s Run depicts a dystopic ageist society in the future in which both population and resource consumption are kept in check by requiring the death of everyone reaching a particular age – population control at its most extreme. As in the movie, Logan is a Sandman charged with enforcing the rule by tracking down and killing citizens who “run”. When Logan reaches his own Lastday, he becomes a runner as well.
Nolan and Johnson weave an interesting tale that acts as a commentary on what might happen as life spans increase and resources dwindle. It is a critique on a world where the beauty of the young has become far more desirable than the wisdom of the aged, and limited resources can no longer be spared for those over a certain age. Logan’s Run provides a glimpse into a society that use age to determine one’s usefulness and worth. It is a scary proposition, and Nolan and Johnson bring it to life well in Logan’s Run.
The book, however, offers more than just a dismal view of the future. Logan’s Run follows Logan as he approaches his own Lastday, and learns firsthand why citizen become runners. You could call it a “coming of age” story, one where Logan’s eyes are opened to the true nature of the society in which he lives.
The novel itself was originally published in 1967 and takes place in a future when human society seems to have achieved Utopia. Everyone is young and beautiful. (And if you don’t like your appearance, you can easily change it.) You can have anything you want, go anywhere you want, do anything you want. In short, it’s a sex-drugs-and-rock-n-roll culture where personal bliss can be obtained either naturally or artificially. There’s only one catch: you have to die at age 21.
In the world of Logan’s Run, everyone has a crystal flower embedded in their palm at birth that tracks their age: up until age 7, the crystal is yellow. From 7-14, it’s blue. After age 14, it becomes red.
On your 21st birthday, the crystal starts to flash, alternating between it’s normal red color and black. This means that you are on “Last day” and have twenty-four hours before reporting for mandatory “Sleep.” After twenty-four hours, the crystal goes permanently dark. If you haven’t reported for Sleep by that point, you are said to be “on Black” and are considered the worst kind of criminal – a “Runner.” Agents of the Deep Sleep organization – popularly known as “Sandmen” – rigorously enforce the law by hunting down and mercilessly killing all Runners, with no exceptions.
Logan is a Sandman – one of the best. But when his own crystal starts to blink he has a critical decision to make. By almost blind luck, he stumbles across information about a legendary place called Sanctuary, where people can allegedly live out their lives in peace and die of old age. Eventually he teams up with another Runner named Jessica, and they decide to seek out Sanctuary together
In terms of characterization, Jessica is a fairly straightforward individual whose motivations are easy to understand: she wants to live, plain and simple. Logan, on the other hand, is clearly a tortured soul. He’s dedicated and devoted everything he is to being a Sandman and upholding the law, but at the same time he clearly has reverence for his own life. For much of the novel – as he and Jessica traverse an exotically dangerous futuristic landscape that includes everything from undersea cities to arctic prisons to killer cyborgs – it’s not entirely clear whether Logan wants to find Sanctuary in order to save himself…or destroy it. Further complicating matters is the fact that the two Runners are being relentlessly pursued by Logan’s friend and colleague, Francis (whom even Logan admits is probably the most competent Sandman alive).
Among the characters there is little or no mention of a need for resources.
There is no personal transit, property, weapons (except for government
officials) or even one’s sexuality. There are no children to argue with
parents and no marital conflict. While the computer can provide the
population with consumerism, it cannot simultaneously provide them with
Time. Time to live is the one thing that threatens the consumerist paradise
and this is the basis for conflict in the plot.
However, the purpose of my input is not to point out Logan’s Run is about
the dangers of consumerism. Consumerism has been with us since the dawn of
humanity and probably before it. What is original about Logan’s Run is its’
premise of how post-war socialism is getting out of control. I don’t believe
that it is about the US of the time but societies like Canada where people
have lost much of their desire to think for and govern themselves.
Consumerism coupled with socialism (not capitalism) is the means to the
false paradise of Logan’s Run. Dependency upon a central computer or a
contrived “benevolent” socialist government is the means to peace and
comfort. Food and all social services are provided for so there is no need
for a labor force, military, exploration, or commerce. This is to say that
that there is no need for creative thought – except for the purpose of
living past 30.
The society inside operates under a strict system most don’t question. All inhabitants are disallowed from living past the age of 30; everything, including reproduction, is controlled by an all-knowing computer system
Logan’s World
Logan and Jessica escaped to the moon colony Argos, where they had a son, Jaq, but over the years the ships bringing the food stopped coming and famine has resulted in most all of Argos being dead, and now Logan and family have come back to Earth, ten years after the last novel, to survive. And six years ago Ballard, the guy who got Logan to the sanctuary of Argos and saved so many others, came down to Earth, destroyed the AI construct “the Thinker,” and thus broke down the entire roboticized civilization of America, sacrificing himself.
Logan and Jessica have lived on Argos (the fabled Sanctuary), a space station in orbit above Mars, for four years, along with three thousand other Runners. They have a two-year-old son named Jaq.
On Earth, Ballard’s escape line for Runners at Cape Steinbeck is discovered and destroyed by Deep Sleep operatives. Ballard escapes to Crazy Horse Mountain, and sabotages the Thinker complex buried in the catacombs below the statue. Although he is killed in the explosion, he succeeds in destroying the computer network and making the world free.
With Ballard’s death, supply ships to Argos cease. For six more years the Runners there hang on, until there are less than a few dozen of them. They have no more food, and plague is running rampant. They draw straws-a handful will return to Earth. Logan, Jessica and Jaq are among those chosen.
Logan and family settle with a group called the Wilderness People along the Potomac River in Washington D. C. Life is tough-learning to farm is not easy-but good until Jaq falls deathly ill. Logan sneaks back into the Angeles Complex to get medicine for his son. While he is gone, an insane pack of devilstick-riding Borgia gypsies murders Jaq and kidnaps Jessica. Logan finds himself on the run again, this time to save his wife, and to avenge his murdered child.
As the story unfolds, he meets blind mystics who live on the rusted shell of the Golden Gate Bridge, he travels to the New York Complex, and finally back to Crazy Horse Mountain where he discovers the Thinker is being reactivated by Gant, a former DS man, one who passionately hates Logan for his part in destroying his world. Gant has purchased Jessica from the gypsies to lure Logan into a trap.
Mary Mary, a young woman, who as a “Cub” met Logan and Jessica on their earlier run, helps them defeat Gant’s plan to reenslave mankind.
Logan’s Return
“Logan’s Return” tells the story of Logan, Jessica and their eight-year-old son living with other ‘Wilderness’ people in the Angeles Complex on Earth. The Thinker who had controlled Earth’s population has long since been destroyed and the people of Earth are still learning how to live with each other in peace in this strange, changed world.
Logan has been having recurring nightmares of himself as a Sandman again, running through Los Angeles Complex – hunting runners. The dreams are so real and haunting to him, that he is afraid that they are a premonition of things to come. He is afraid that he will have to kill again. His wife Jessica (now pregnant with their second child) tries to reassure him that those days are well over with and that they can all finally live together as a family, in peace and safety.
Meanwhile, in Nassau Complex, a new and ruthless leader is emerging. His name is Stendar and he has recently built a large stadium for his people to watch enemy combatants fight to the death. But these combatants are not of Logan’s and Stendar’s time. They are warriors from Earth’s long past history. Stendar has discovered a way to ressurrect them, so that they may fight each other to the death for the amusement of all his citizens!
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