6

I've discovered an interesting sci-fi author named Dannie Plachta (read a couple of his short stories, Alien Artifact and Revival Meeting, by pure chance and found them rather charming). I would read more of his writings if I could just find them. But the information on him is so scarce, not even a Wikipedia page. Does anyone have any details on his bio?

I thought it to be a Polish family name first (like Zelazny, for example), but a couple of dubious sources mention that his real name was Daniel Plettey (???), so I'm not sure any more. Has anyone perchance happened to hear his name spoken aloud by someone knowledgeable?

Improve this question
3
  • Plachta is quite a common name in Poland. It's "pl-oack-tar"
    – Valorum
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 9:37
  • Thanks, exactly, but I'm not sure he was of Polish origin. That's why I asked
    – dcn2005
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:19
  • 1
    He was born in the US, but I'd assume his family name is Polish or Russian.
    – Valorum
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:25

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
8

Daniel "Dannie" Paul Plachta (Russian translations of his works give his name as Daniel Plektey) was born in 1935 in Michigan, USA. In the 1960s Plachta was an active participant in the Detroit fandom, participated in various science fiction conventions and co-wrote at least two pieces of short fiction with Roger Zelazny. There's a bibliography here; https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?12715

enter image description here enter image description here

At present he appears to live in retirement in Dearborn Heights, Michigan.

With regard to the pronunciation of his name, his brother (Leonard Plachta of Central Michigan University) is pronounced "Plak-ta (/Plæxtæ/)" by those who knew him professionally and personally.

Improve this answer
4
  • Thanks a lot. Is he really Plektey (like "plack-tei")? That seems to be how some of his Russian translators transcribed his name, indeed (Плектей), but this is not their only variant (I've seen "platch-tah" and "pluck-tah" as well). Besides that, as we can see from the link above, he was also known as Domnic Plachten (in the German translation - God only knows why so!), Deni Plahta (in Serbian - pronounced exactly like the Polish word "płachta" mentioned above). I wonder how does HE pronounce his own name...
    – dcn2005
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:39
  • @dcn2005 - I can't speak to how he pronounced his own name, but his brother was locally famous as an educator and is basically pronounced as read; Plak-ta
    – Valorum
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:49
  • Great info, thanks! Do you perchance mean Mr. Leonard Plachta?
    – dcn2005
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:51
  • 1
    @dcn2005 - Yes, Daniel Plachta (of Dearborn Heights, MI) is mentioned in the linked article above; blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/01/… - "Surviving him are ... his brother, Daniel Plachta, of Dearborn Heights."
    – Valorum
    Commented Oct 19, 2018 at 12:51
10

I am Dannie (Daniel) Plachta's niece and Leonard Plachta's daughter. You have the correct information; Dan's friend is/was Roger Zelazny and they apparently co-authored or supported each other on similar works.
Probably the most popular writing of Dannie's was the Man from When. I know he had more but nothing I recall easily. I have lost touch with Dan in the last few years (my father is deceased) but know he is still in the Detroit Michigan area. I'm pleased and intrigued you are asking about him, he had an interesting life.

Improve this answer
2
  • Hi, thanks for signing up to give us this information and personal angle on the question! I edited out your email address from this answer, because including it on a high-SEO website like this is opening yourself up to all kinds of spam. (Anyone who's interested can still check the post's revision history if they want to contact you for more info.)
    – Rand al'Thor ♦
    Commented Jan 25, 2019 at 16:24
  • 1
    Linda, thank you so much for posting about your uncle Dannie. His stories are really special. We've tried sending you a few emails and messages but were unsure whether or not you received them. Please respond when you have a chance!
    – Drew Maron
    Commented Feb 8, 2019 at 18:24

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.