Seattle (Reuters) -- Filmmaker Steven Spielberg and author Philip K. Dick were among the luminaries of the science fiction world inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame on Friday for their contribution to the medium of fact, fiction and fantasy.
The induction ceremony, which also honored stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen and artist Chesley Bonestell, was the first for the year-old Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame, a pet project of Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen.
Spielberg, known for science fiction films such as "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" and "Jurassic Park," said he was humbled to join the group.
"It (science fiction) really is the only genre that lets you use your imagination without limitations," Spielberg said in a pre-taped acceptance speech.
Harryhausen, known for animating tiny figures for classic science fiction films such as "The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms" and "Jason and the Argonauts," is still alive but was unable to attend from London, where he lives.
The late Dick, whose fiction inspired some of Hollywood's most famous science fiction films including "Blade Runner," "Total Recall," and "Minority Report," joined other Science Fiction Hall of Fame authors such as Isaac Asimov, Robert A. Heinlein and Jules Verne.
The late Bonestell's artwork of planetary exploration and futuristic worlds graced the covers of the classic science fiction magazine "Astounding," and "The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction."
The Science Fiction Hall of Fame was founded in 1996 in Kansas but moved nearly a year ago to the museum in the shadow of Seattle's Space Needle.
The museum houses such artifacts as Captain Kirk's chair from the "Star Trek" series, the first edition of H.G. Well's "Time Machine," and numerous high-tech exhibits.
With Friday's four inductees, the Hall of Fame now includes 40 science fiction figures.
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