ultra-prolific (cca 45 novels, >120 short-stories) his twin sister Jane died when he was six weeks old first educated at Quaker schools, later at Berkeley seller in record store, gets his first short-story "R🐶🐶G" published in 1951 amphetamine abuse; married 5 times; paranoia; schizophrenia; self-described as "acosmic panentheist" - "I don't believe that the universe exists. I believe that the only thing that exists is God and (s)he is more than the universe. "