Robert Anton Wilson

Robert Anton Wilson

Robert Anton Wilson (born Robert Edward Wilson; January 18, 1932 – January 11, 2007) was an American author, novelist, essayist, editor, playwright, poet, futurist, and self-described agnostic mystic. Recognized by Discordianism as an Episkopos, Pope, and saint, Wilson helped publicize the group through his writings and interviews.

Wilson was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a poor family during the Great Depression. His family moved to Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn, when he was four. He graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1949. He was employed in a series of jobs and absorbed various philosophies and religions, which influenced his later writings.

In 1962, Wilson began working as an associate editor for Playboy magazine. During this period, he developed ideas that would later form the basis of the Illuminatus! Trilogy, co-authored with Robert Shea. The trilogy became a cult success and was later turned into a marathon-length stage show put on by the British National Theatre and broadcast on BBC Radio 4.

Wilson's writing, much of it under the pseudonym of Robert Anton Wilson, combined science fiction, other speculative fiction, poetry, and non-fiction on a wide variety of subjects. His works reflected his many interests, which included anarchism, consciousness, quantum physics, semiotics, mysticism, and discordianism.

Wilson was an advocate of Futurism, humanism, and existentialism. He incorporated these and other philosophies into his writings, presenting complex ideas in an accessible and humorous way. He was also known for his advocacy of psychedelic substances and his exploration of paranormal phenomena.

Wilson died on January 11, 2007, at his home in Capitola, California, after a long battle with post-polio syndrome.

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