Adam Link is a fictional

robot A robot is a machine—especially one Computer program, programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions Automation, automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the robot control, co ...

, made in the likeness of a man, who becomes self-aware, and the protagonist of several

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

short stories written by

Eando Binder Eando Binder () is a pen name used by two mid-20th-century science fiction authors, Earl Andrew Binder (1904–1966) and his brother Otto Binder (1911–1974). The name is derived from their first initials ''(E and O Binder).'' Under the Eando ...

, the pen name of Earl Andrew Binder and his brother,

Otto Binder Otto Oscar Binder (; August 26, 1911 – October 13, 1974) was an American author of science fiction and non-fiction books and stories, and comic books. He is best known as the co-creator of Supergirl and for his many scripts for '' Captain Ma ...

. The stories were originally published in the science fiction magazine ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearance ...

'' from 1939 to 1942. In all, ten Adam Link stories were published. In ''The American Robot: A Cultural History'', Dustin A. Abnet says that Adam was the "most popular science fiction robot of the era".

Overview

The first story, published in January 1939, was "

I, Robot ''I, Robot'' is a fixup collection of science fiction short stories by American writer Isaac Asimov. The stories originally appeared in the American magazines '' Super Science Stories'' and ''Astounding Science Fiction'' between 1940 and 1950 ...

" (not to be confused with the book of the same name by

Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov ( ; – April 6, 1992) was an Russian-born American writer and professor of biochemistry at Boston University. During his lifetime, Asimov was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers, along with Robert A. H ...

). The story is written in the first person, from the point of view of a newly sentient robot, in the form of a written confession. In the story, the robot explains that it was built and educated by Dr. Charles Link. When Dr. Link dies in an accident, the housekeeper assumes that the robot murdered his master, and the robot goes on the run. At the end of the story, the robot realizes that its flight endangers other living creatures, and prepares to turn itself off. Immediately popular, the robot was featured in nine more stories published in ''Amazing Stories''. The character was translated into the comic book medium in the pages of

EC Comics E.C. Publications, Inc., (doing business as EC Comics) is an American comic book publisher. It specialized in horror fiction, crime fiction, satire, military fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction from the 1940s through the mid-1950s, nota ...

' '' Weird Science-Fantasy'' in 1955, and then in Warren Publishing's ''

Creepy Creepiness is the state of being creepy, or causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease to someone and/or something. Certain traits or hobbies may make people seem creepy to others; interest in horror or the macabre might come across as 'c ...

'' in the mid-60s. In 1964, the original story was also adapted for television in '' The Outer Limits''.

Paperback Library Grand Central Publishing is a book publishing imprint of Hachette Book Group, originally established in 1970 as Warner Books when Kinney National Company acquired the New York City-based Paperback Library. When Time Warner sold their book publis ...

published a mass market paperback collection entitled ''Adam Link - Robot'' in 1965, which tells the character's story in a first person narrative from Creation to Citizenship in twenty-one chapters. The collection ends with an Epilogue, encouraging humanity's future. The volume was reprinted in 1970 by Fawcett Crest Books and by Warner in 1974;

Ballantine Books Ballantine Books is a major American book publisher that is a subsidiary of German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. Ballantine was founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. Ballantine was acquired by Random House in ...

also reprinted the book.

Stories

All stories were published in ''

''. * "

", Jan 1939
story
* "The Trial of Adam Link, Robot", July 1939
story
* "Adam Link in Business", Jan 1940
story
* "Adam Link’s Vengeance", Feb 1940
story
* "Adam Link, Robot Detective", May 1940
story
* "Adam Link, Champion Athlete", July 1940
story
* "Adam Link Fights a War", Dec 1940
story
* "Adam Link in the Past", Feb 1941
story
* "Adam Link Faces a Revolt", May 1941
story
* "Adam Link Saves the World", Apr 1942
story

Legacy

Isaac Asimov says that his robot stories were influenced by the first Adam Link story: "It certainly caught my attention. Two months after I read it, I began '

Robbie Robbie and Robby, also Robbi and Roby, are given names. They are usually encountered as a nickname or a shortened form of Robert, Rob or Robin. The name experienced a significant rise in popularity in Northern Ireland in 2003. Robbie is also a s ...

', about a sympathetic robot, and that was the start of my positronic robot series. Eleven years later, when nine of my robot stories were collected into a book, the publisher named the collection ''I, Robot'' over my objections. My book is now the more famous, but Otto's story was there first."

Adaptations

"I, Robot" and "The Trial of Adam Link, Robot" were adapted for a 1964 episode of the television show '' The Outer Limits'' called "

". In the 1995 revival of ''The Outer Limits'', the show again aired an adaptation titled "

". Both versions featured

Leonard Nimoy Leonard Simon Nimoy ( ; March 26, 1931 – February 27, 2015) was an American actor and director, famous for playing Spock in the ''Star Trek'' franchise for almost 50 years. This includes Development of Spock, originating Spock in Star Trek: T ...

. The series has been adapted for comic books twice, once for

' '' Weird Science-Fantasy'' in 1955 (issues 27–29), and again for

Warren Publishing Warren Publishing was an American magazine company founded by James Warren (publisher), James Warren, who published his first magazines in 1957 and continued in the business for decades. Magazines published by Warren include ''After Hours (magazin ...

's ''

'' in 1965-67 (issues 2, 4, 6, 8–9, 12–13 and 15). In each case, the adaptation was scripted by Binder and drawn by

Joe Orlando Joseph Orlando (April 4, 1927 – December 23, 1998) was an Italian Americans, Italian-American illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist during a lengthy career spanning six decades. He was the associate publisher of ''Mad (magazine), Mad'' and ...

. Both series were discontinued before they could be completed. In 1964, an adaptation of "Adam Link's Vengeance" was published in the fanzine ''Fantasy Illustrated'' # 1, script by Otto Binder and illustrated by

D. Bruce Berry Douglas Bruce Berry (January 24, 1924 – September 30, 1998) was an American comic book artist who is best known as the inker of several of Jack Kirby's comic book series in the 1970s. Biography D. Bruce Berry was born in Oakland, California ...

and Bill Spicer, the adaptation won the Alley Award for Best Fan Comic Strip of the same year.Schelly, Bill. ''Founders of Comic Fandom'', 2010.
/ref>

References

External links

a

* * i-robot.html "I, Robot" on The Outer Limits (1964) {{DEFAULTSORT:Link, Adam Fictional robots Literary characters introduced in 1939