Heinlein Society

{{short description|Society to study and promote SF writer Robert Heinlein}}

{{Infobox organization

| name = The Heinlein Society

| formation = 2000

| membership = 1150{{cite news|last1=Timberg|first1=Scott|title=The descent of a sci-fi guru|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-dec-09-ca-heinlein9-story.html|access-date=December 27, 2016|work=Los Angeles Times|date=December 9, 2007}}

| membership_year = 2023

| website = {{URL|heinleinsociety.org/}}}}

The Heinlein Society is a United States organization devoted to the study and promotion of the American science fiction author Robert Heinlein.

The Heinlein Society was founded in 2000 with the assistance of Robert Heinlein's widow, Virginia Heinlein, after a suggestion by William Patterson at WesterCon in 1998 met with an enthusiastic response. The Heinlein Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established in Texas.{{cite web|title=Heinlein Room|url=http://www.butlerpubliclibrary.org/heinlein-room/|website=Butler Public Library|publisher=City of Butler|access-date=December 27, 2016}}{{cite book|last1=Patterson|first1=William|title=Robert A. Heinlein, Vol 2: In Dialogue with His Century Volume 2: The Man Who Learned Better|date=2014|publisher=Macmillan|isbn=978-0765319616|page=476|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7GttAwAAQBAJ}}{{cite web|title=C2771002 THE HEINLEIN SOCIETY|url=https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/CBS/Detail|website=Business Entities|publisher=California Secretary of State|access-date=December 27, 2016|archive-date=May 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210502103223/https://businesssearch.sos.ca.gov/CBS/Detail|url-status=dead}} The "semi-scholarly" society exists to "preserve the legacy of renowned writer Robert Anson Heinlein left"; according to it, it accomplishes this through promoting "Heinlein blood drives", distributing copies of Heinlein's works to U.S. military personnel, awarding scholarships, and promoting scholarly research on Heinlein.{{cite book|last1=Booker|first1=Keith|title=Literature and Politics Today|date=2015|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1610699365|page=133|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o9cNBwAAQBAJ}}{{cite web|title=The Heinlein Society|url=http://www.heinleinsociety.org/|website=Heinlein Society|publisher=Heinlein Society|access-date=December 27, 2016}} The society also sponsors the Robert A. Heinlein Award.{{cite book|last1=McAleer|first1=Neil|title=Sir Arthur C. Clarke: Odyssey of a Visionary: A Biography|date=2013|publisher=Rosetta Books|isbn=978-0984811809}}

In 2016 the organization paid for a bronze bust of Heinlein for display in the Missouri State Capitol, following the author's induction into the Hall of Famous Missourians.{{cite news|last1=Ballentine|first1=Summer|title=Science Fiction Author Heinlein Honored as Famous Missourian|url=http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2016/08/23/science-fiction-author-heinlein-honored-as-famous-missourian/|access-date=December 27, 2016|work=KMOX-AM|agency=Associated Press|date=August 23, 2016}}