Posted on December 26, 2014 at 12:00 AM by Jeffrey Bruner
Ray Bradbury's novella "The Fireman" became the basis for one of his most famous novels. When the publisher asked him to expand the story into a full novel, Bradbury did so in just nine days. Neither of them, though, was wild about the title, which they thought was boring. So Bradbury called the local fire station to ask at what temperature paper burned. "451 degrees," the fireman told him. Bradbury then titled the novel "Fahrenheit 451." It's too bad publisher Ballantine Books didn't have a scientist on staff -- paper, it turns out, burns at 450 degrees CELSIUS, not Fahrenheit.
Categories: Today in Books
<p>I knew Ray Bradbury and he was a friend. I acted in many of his plays in Pasadena, California, including Fahrenheit 451. He was a caring and very giving man. He loved to share his life and writing processes. The way he told it to me was that he got the idea from a newspaper article that had the temperature at which paper burned in it. Either way, he has sadly passed and will be missed. He is an icon and was a wonderful, fascinating person.</p>