Ann Druyan : biography
Ann Druyan (born June 13, 1949) is an American author and producer specializing in productions about cosmology and popular science. She made substantial contributions to the PBS documentary series Cosmos and is widowed by her late husband Carl Sagan.
Honors
In November 2006, Druyan was a speaker at Beyond Belief: Science, Religion, Reason and Survival.
In January 2007, she was a juror at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, responsible for selecting the winner of the Alfred P. Sloan Prize for films about science and technology.
Religious and philosophical views
As an agnostic, Druyan holds that belief in a deity is not necessary to a healthy appreciation for life and a sense of unity with the universe.
In an interview with Joel Achenbach of the Washington Post, Druyan stated that her early interest in science stemmed from a fascination with Karl Marx. Achenbach commented that "She had, at the time, rather vaporous standards of evidence," a reference to her belief in the ancient astronauts of Erich von Däniken and the theories of Immanuel Velikovsky pertaining to the solar system. Druyan freely acknowledged her past views but also asserted that they changed dramatically after marrying Carl Sagan.
Activism
Druyan has served on the Board of Directors of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) for over 10 years and was president (2006-2010).
Awards
- 2004 Richard Dawkins Award
Television and movie writing career
Druyan was one of the three writers of the TV series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, along with Carl Sagan and Steven Soter, and a producer for the motion picture Contact.
Druyan is the chief executive officer and the co-founder of . In 2009, she distributed a series of podcasts called At Home in the Cosmos with Annie Druyan in which she described her works, the life of husband, Carl Sagan, and their marriage.
In 2011, it was announced that Druyan would be part of the writing and production teams for a sequel to Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, to be called Cosmos: A space-time Odyssey, which is expected to be telecast in 2014. Episodes will premiere on Fox and also air on National Geographic Channel on the same night.
Personal life
Druyan was born in Queens, New York, the daughter of Pearl A. (Goldsmith) and Harry Druyan, who co-owned a knitware firm. Druyan and Carl Sagan had two children together, Alexandra and Samuel.
Career as an author
Druyan and Sagan cowrote the books Comet, Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, and sections of The Demon-Haunted World. She also wrote the updated introduction to Sagan’s book The Cosmic Connection, the epilogue of Billions and Billions, and her own novel, A Famous Broken Heart.
Druyan was responsible for the selection of the music on the Voyager Golden Record for the pioneering exploratory missions of the Solar System — Voyager 1 and Voyager 2.
