Douglas Adams, the author best known for writing The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, passed away in 2001 at the age of 49. He was an English writer, humorist, and dramatist who became famous internationally as the author of the Hitchhiker's Guide series which sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime. The series has also been adapted into several stage plays, television series, radio plays, comic books, and feature films.