We lost a great storyteller

Michael Crichton, author of Jurassic Park, has died at age 66, after a "courageous and private battle against cancer," his family said. That was Wednesday morning's shocker.
With the exception of Tom Clancy, nobody perfected the techno-thriller like Crichton. I've read my share of both authors' works, preferring the early installments of both. Crichton possessed such a mastery of technical detail that his books didn't always translate well to film. Stephen King suffered a similar problem - his writing was so adept, evoking horror from a mundane world beset by fantastic challenges, that the ideas didn't always transfer well to the big screen. Crichton, likewise, loaded up his books with material that can't be captured on film. Crichton's "Jurassic Park" is a happy exception. Technical detail - convincing us that dinosaurs could be replicated from prehistoric mosquitoes - made the film work. Sorry to hear about the passing of a wonderful author.