Love at first sight and 57 years of unconditional happiness of eccentric science fiction genius Ray Bradbury

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

He was very shy, eccentric and incredibly talented. And Ray Bradbury remained a child all his life. He looked at the world with interest, retained a childlike spontaneity and accepted exclusively children's toys as gifts for Christmas. For 57 years, his beloved wife Maggie was next to the writer. If not for her, the world might never have read Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, or perhaps his other works.

Suspicious buyer

Margaret McClure was forced to leave university in Los Angeles after an unpleasant incident between a student and a swimming instructor. Not only did he allow himself to look at the girl unceremoniously, he also made a rather ugly comment about her, noting that Margaret needed to devote more time to training to improve her figure. However, the student did not go into her pocket for a word, answering that nothing could help the coach's figure at all. Surely, this was not the first incident that forced young Margaret to leave a place where people were treated like inanimate objects.

The girl's dream of getting a higher education was destroyed, but this did not become a reason for her despair at all. She took a job at the Fowler Brothers bookstore in Los Angeles, where a very suspicious young man entered one day in April 1946.

He was dressed in a long baggy coat, in his hands was a thick briefcase, and on the whole he resembled those "intellectuals" who were often caught stealing books from the store. Margaret approached and politely asked if she could help him with something. He really needed help finding the collection of fiction where his story was printed. And the guy who introduced himself as Ray Bradbury asked if the sweet girl had heard his name before? He did not hear, but showed interest and, passing the found collection, introduced herself: her name is Margaret, but you can just Maggie.

True, Maggie refused a cup of coffee in the company of a new acquaintance, but after he left, she firmly decided to get acquainted with his story. Margaret McClure had no idea that Ray Bradbury was walking down the street at this very time, smiling broadly and thanking God for the feelings that flared up so suddenly.

The genius and his muse

Less than a few days later, Ray Bradbury reappeared at Fowler Brothers and invited Maggie back for coffee. This time the girl agreed. She managed to read the young man's story and was greatly impressed.

Already during the very first meeting, they could not stop talking. Ray Bradbury and Maggie McClure had a lot in common. They seemed to be two halves of one whole. By the way, Ray, like Maggie herself, had no higher education. As the writer himself admitted, his family was so poor that they could not afford to pay for their studies at the university. But the future writer was educated in libraries, where he spent all his time.

At first, with Maggie, they read a lot together, discussed books, got closer and closer and less and less imagined how they could live without each other. But how could Bradbury make the usual proposal to his beloved ?! Instead of simply offering to get married, he informed Maggie of his plans to fly to the Moon and Mars. And then he asked if she wanted to go on this journey with him. Of course she did. And in the fall of 1947 they became husband and wife.

Maggie has become a real muse for the writer. At first, the family lived very cramped, but the young wife never reproached her husband for the lack of funds. On the contrary, she was ready to work tirelessly so that her talented Ray had the opportunity to calmly engage in creativity.

Maggie had a rather modest salary, but the couple managed to live on it for three whole years. Ray Bradbury's fees at the time were small and irregular. Naturally, the spouses at that time lived very modestly, they could not afford much, but at the same time they were happy, because they loved each other and were ready to go through any trials together.

And in 1950 the novel "The Martian Chronicles" was published, which turned out to be incredibly successful. Ray Bradbury dedicated this work to his wife and never tired of repeating: if it were not for the patience and care of his beloved Maggie, who created all the conditions for his work, the novel might not have happened.

It was the writer's wife who always remained the first reader of his works, the first critic and advisor. Ray Bradbury's muse was earthy, very dear and patient. She clearly understood that her husband was a real genius, and therefore allowed him to always remain himself. When he asked for all sorts of interesting things like robots and toy ray guns as gifts for Christmas, she did not try to remake him, did not finally force him to grow up and become more serious.

The four daughters of Maggie and Ray Bradbury, and then the grandchildren, remembered: the famous writer adored sweets, loved carnivals, and numerous toys helped him come up with new and new fascinating subjects for his works.

When Ray Bradbury became famous, his fees increased enormously. He was able to purchase a large comfortable home for the family, and Maggie also tirelessly took care of her husband. She could argue with him, criticize or approve, advise and support her beloved husband, who always remained a child.

They lived together for 57 years, until Maggie's last day. At the same time, Ray Bradbury always spoke honestly: everything that he achieved in life, he achieved thanks to love.

In the Soviet Union, the writer Ray Bradbury was recognized back in 1964 - as the author of science fiction works. His "Dandelion Wine" is now recognized as one of the books without which it is impossible to imagine the literary development of a teenager. Reading books has shaped the writer himself, who became one of the most famous authors of the 20th century.