WRITER · BORN 1948
George R.R. Martin
- Born
- 20 September 1948, Bayonne, New Jersey, USA
- Known for
- Game of Thrones (2011), Game of Thrones (2012)
21 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
George R.R. Martin (born 20 September 1948) is a producer best known for Game of Thrones.
21 Interesting Facts About George R.R. Martin
Interesting Facts (9)
- #001
George R. R. Martin writes everything on a DOS-based word processor, WordStar 4.0, released in 1987, preferring its simplicity and efficiency to all the conveniences of modern software.
- #002
George R. R. Martin writes at his own unhurried pace, which often tests fans' patience, and when fans kept pestering him about the next book's release date, he'd find out their favorite character and threaten to kill them off if the nagging continued, a joke that also shows how much he values control over his work.
- #003
George R. R. Martin has lived in the same Santa Fe house since the 1970s and bought a second one on the same street to use as an office and library; he believes a comfortable, stable place to write helps his creativity, and Santa Fe's calm suits his long writing stints.
- #004
When British record producer George Martin died, some George R. R. Martin fans thought the author had died, so he had to announce that he was still alive, a comic mix-up that also showed how closely fans follow news about him.
- #005
George R. R. Martin lives in New Mexico, where he has spent much of his life and whose varied landscape and culture find their way into the atmosphere of his stories.
- #006
Trey Parker parodied George R. R. Martin in the South Park (1997) episodes 'A Song of Ass and Fire' and 'Titties and Dragons,' a sign of how far his work has spread into popular culture.
- #007
George R. R. Martin is the subject of Paul & Storm's song "George RR Martin please write and write faster," a fan's comic plea about how long his books take.
- #008
George R. R. Martin was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War and did community service instead of military service, an experience that shaped his worldview and the themes of war and conflict in his work.
- #009
George R. R. Martin contributed to the worldbuilding of the video game RPG Elden Ring (2022), helping shape its mythology and universe.
Characters & Cast (1)
- #010
George R. R. Martin was born on exactly the same date as Joanna Cameron, star of Filmation's "Secrets of Isis," a coincidence he has shared with fans.
Deeper Meaning (1)
- #011
Asked in an interview where his female characters' individuality and realism came from, George R. R. Martin looked a little surprised and answered, "I've always considered women to be people," a reply that sums up his approach of giving every character human depth regardless of gender and is seen as a cornerstone of his writing philosophy.
Career & Awards (4)
- #012
Before returning to novels, George R. R. Martin spent about 10 years in television, where he found that the networks, not the writers, had the final say, which he didn't like; writing books gave him full control over his stories with no network or studio to please, a turning point that set him on his independent path.
- #013
The first science fiction book George R. R. Martin read was Robert A. Heinlein's "Have Space Suit - Will Travel" (1958), which sparked his love of the genre. His favorite authors include J.R.R. Tolkien, with whom he shares his middle initials, and Robert E. Howard (the "Conan" stories), both of whom helped shape his own fantasy world.
- #014
George R. R. Martin wrote the teleplay for "Last Defender of Camelot," a Twilight Zone (1985) episode based on a story by his friend Roger Zelazny, an important step in his TV writing career.
- #015
George R. R. Martin edits the shared-world series Wild Cards, which collects stories by different authors set in the same universe, a showcase for his editing skills and his love of creative collaboration.
Life & Family (6)
- #016
George R. R. Martin was the first person to register for the very first Comic-Con, held in New York in 1964, a young fan who had no idea he'd one day be one of the stars of such events, an early sign of his deep roots in fan culture.
- #017
At the 2011 San Diego Comic-Con, George R. R. Martin revealed that his favorite "A Song of Ice and Fire" character is Tyrion Lannister, one of the series' most complex figures thanks to his intelligence, dark humor and fight to survive against the odds, a choice that reflects Martin's affection for outsiders.
- #018
George R. R. Martin's comic collection includes the first issues of "The Amazing Spider-Man" and "Fantastic Four," classics from Marvel's early days that reflect his passion for comics as a fan, not just a writer.
- #019
George R. R. Martin enjoys role-playing games, a hobby that has fed his worldbuilding and character development and his love of interactive storytelling.
- #020
George R. R. Martin's ancestry is mostly Irish, with smaller amounts of English, German and French-Canadian. For most of his life he believed his paternal grandfather was Louis Joseph Martin, an Italian immigrant from Naples who changed his name from Luigi Mazzuoccolo, but a DNA test on Finding Your Roots (2012) revealed that his biological paternal grandfather was a different man, an Ashkenazi Jew, upending what he'd long believed about his family history.
- #021
George R. R. Martin's father was a dockworker, and Martin took pride in his working-class roots, which shaped his work ethic.
Related pages
- Sansa Stark — George R.R. Martin comes up in the facts on that page
- Jon Snow — George R.R. Martin comes up in the facts on that page
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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