E.E. "Doc" Smith
Edward Elmer Smith, known as E.E. "Doc" Smith or "Skylark" Smith, was an American food engineer specializing in doughnut and pastry mixes who became a pioneering science fiction author.
Born in Sheboygan, he is often called the father of space opera for his influential Lensman and Skylark series written between the 1920s-1950s.
His work established many foundational tropes of the genre, influencing later science fiction masterpieces, visual media like Star Trek and Star Wars, and even DC Comics' Green Lantern.
Despite wooden characterization and dated elements, his imaginative technological concepts and epic cosmic scope shaped modern science fiction storytelling.
