Lieutenant Robert Anson Heinlein, A Soldier's Story
Lieutenant Robert Anson Heinlein, A Soldier's Story
Lieutenant Robert Anson Heinlein was born on July 7, 1907, in Butler, Missouri, and raised in Kansas City. He attended Kansas City Central High School, where he participated in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps and enlisted in the Missouri National Guard during his senior year. He graduated in 1924 and immediately sought admission to the United States Naval Academy.
His initial petition to the Academy was denied, in part because a sibling was already enrolled. With the support of Senator James A. Reed, Heinlein was ultimately appointed in 1925. He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1929 with training as an engineer, entering the Navy at a time of rapid technological change and evolving naval doctrine.
Heinlein’s early naval service included duty aboard the USS Lexington, where he worked as a radio operator, followed by assignment to the USS Roper as a gunnery officer. His career showed promise, but in 1934 it was abruptly cut short when he contracted tuberculosis. The illness forced his medical retirement from active service, ending his prospects for a lifelong naval career.
Following his release from the Navy, Heinlein briefly pursued graduate studies at the University of California before working a series of civilian jobs, including real estate agent, silver miner, and stone mason. During this period, he became politically active, supporting Upton Sinclair’s End Poverty in California movement. Heinlein contributed to the EPIC Newsletter and assisted in Sinclair’s unsuccessful 1934 gubernatorial campaign.
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In 1939, Heinlein turned seriously to writing, selling his first short story, “Life Line,” to Astounding Science Fiction. He also hosted a literary discussion group in the Los Angeles area, immersing himself in speculative thought, science, and social critique.
At the outset of World War II, Heinlein returned to government service as a civilian engineer, working in Naval Aircraft Materials at the Philadelphia shipyards. There, he contributed to research and development efforts, including studies aimed at countering enemy tactics such as kamikaze attacks.
Deeply affected by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Heinlein increasingly used fiction as a vehicle for social and moral inquiry. In the years following the war, he became one of the most prolific and influential American writers of the twentieth century, publishing more than 150 works. He is best known for novels such as Stranger in a Strange Land and Starship Troopers, which explored citizenship, responsibility, freedom, and the costs of power.
Lieutenant Robert Anson Heinlein died on May 8, 1988. In keeping with his naval roots, his ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
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