In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, what's the name of the main human character?
And the answer: Arthur Dent.
Created by Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is comic science fiction that started as a British radio program in 1978, and went on to become a series of novels and comic books. It follows the humorous adventures of Earth's last surviving man, after Earth was demolished by aliens to make way for an intergalactic freeway.
What is the answer to life, the universe, and everything? Douglas Adams, while stargazing on a field in Innsbruck, Austria, had a bit of a cosmic revelation – perhaps, if he couldn't answer that plaguing, eternal question, he could have a bit of fun with it. Thus, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was conceived.
In the story, hapless ordinary man Arthur Dent finds himself at the center of an absurd universe. With apt cynicism of modern society and brilliant humor, Adams creates a world that, for all intents and purposes, can be characterized only by randomness. However, it is within this world of intelligent dolphins, Vogons, and Zaphod Beeblebrox that the meaning of life and everything is nestled. And (no spoilers), it's a little less grand than you might guess.
Hitchhiker's began as a radio show, airing on BBC in six parts. When Adams' sights turned to publishing, he was turned down several times. Eventually, when he was accepted to move forward with the novel, his publisher had to crack down. Adams famously said:
“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they go by.”
Us too, Adams. Us too. Read a synopsis about this iconic novel here, and check out the trailer for the 2005 adaptation below.
