Crichton, Michael (1942–2008)

US novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer. He wrote the screenplays for such commercial successes as Jurassic Park (1993), Rising Sun (1993), Twister (1996), and Jurassic Park: The Lost World (1997). All of these films were based on his best-selling novels of the same names. He is also the creator of the award-winning and commercially successful US television series ER.

Educated at Harvard Medical School, Crichton has combined his medical experience with science fiction themes to produce a series of highly popular novels, including The Andromeda Strain (1969), Disclosure (1994), Timeline (1999), Prey (2002), and State of Fear (2004) (most of which were also filmed). He has also directed a number of films, including Westworld (1973), Coma (1978), and The First Great Train Robbery (1979).