ok I found out that they are ray's favorite Science Fiction writers, so for example "Fritz Wong" is Fritz Leiber and "Stanislav Groc" is Stanislaus Lem.

But who are the other aliases for, Roy, Rattigan, Arbuthnot etc?

thanks a lot
sh

Although Leiber seems a possibility, I don't remember Bradbury saying much about Stanislaw Lem.

But surely Fritz Wong is much more likely to be a composite of Fritz Lang (film director, director of Metropolis, and a personal friend of Ray's) and James Wong Howe (cinematographer).

I don't know who the other characters might be modelled on.

- Phil

Best friend Roy is based on Ray Harryhausen, longtime friend who served as best man at Ray's wedding. As recently as this June, Ray was at a party or ceremony honoring Harryhausen. The short story "Tyrannosaurus Rex" ("The Prehistoric Producer") was also inspired by Harryhausen.

I'm very sure that Fritz Wong is at least in part based on Fritz Lang. His description matches perfectly, and I even asked Ray about this character (at a booksigning a few years back) and whether it was based on him, he said yes and recited the story of their ritual greeting of "hello you goddamn son of a bitch." I read graceyard a few years ago, but was it Constance Rattigan? My guess is silent film actress, Constance Talmadge. Her footprints are among the smallest at the Chinese Theater.

Constance was supposed to have been based on a girl Ray knew in high school--a pretty mature one, it would seem!