Hugo Gernsback

Hugo Gernsback (1884–1967) was the inventor-entrepreneur who, by founding Amazing Stories in 1926, the first magazine devoted solely to the form, effectively created science fiction as a distinct commercial genre. He coined ‘scientifiction’ (and later ‘science fiction’) and wrote the influential gadget-novel Ralph 124C 41+. The field’s highest honour, the Hugo Award, is named for him.