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The novelization of Escape from the Planet of the Apes was written by Jerry Pournelle, ex-president of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and published by Award Books in 1973.

The book is notable for having added names and background details on many of the minor characters who featured on-screen or in the shooting script, or even adding new characters to the story. Among them:

  • Major General Raymond Hamilton, USAF divisional commander of 'SAC' (Strategic Air Command), was called upon to decide if the strange unidentified vehicle was the opening shot in a nuclear war. This character is also referenced in the 2011 novel Conspiracy of the Planet of the Apes.
  • Surgeon Lt. Commander Gordon Ashmead, subordinate to 'Snapper' Jardin. He was onboard the recovery ship that picked up the 'ape-o-nauts'.
  • Bill Cummings, reporter sent to interview Cornelius and Zira for Men's Hunting And Outdoors.
  • Jeanna Robbins, reporter for Fur and Feather magazine. She thought Zira was "..an absolute pet".
  • Joe Simpson, reporter sent by Ebony magazine to interview the apes from the future, asked some difficult questions.
  • Doctor Raymond Wilson, a naturalist specializing in the great apes, and a later member of the Inquiry Commission.
  • Sergeant Miessner, an aide to Hasslein, and the actual killer of Cornelius.

A German translation of Pournelle's novel by Walter Brumm was published in 1976 by 'Pabel Terra TB'.

Escape novel germany

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