Radio Prague reports that the greatest Czech science fiction author, Josef Nesvadba, has died unexpectedly at the age of 78. Mr Nesvadba's family made the announcement on April 26 without disclosing further details.

Born in Prague, Czechoslovakia on June 19, 1926, Nesvadba received a medical degree in psychiatry in 1950. He was a practicing psychiatrist.

Nesvadba’s writing career began with translating work from English into Czech, then with writing plays. In the late 1950s he began writing short stories, but he expanded into novels and radio plays later in his career. Several of his stories were made into films.

English translations of his work included "Captain Nemo’s Last Adventure" which was published in View from Another Shore and the collections Einstein's Brain and Tarzan's Death.

Posted April 27, 2005