Where is Dr. Sleep?

[Job]

My deepest condolences to the Anderson family for your recent losses. Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences with John, and confirmation of his passing. 

 

Although it's likely little comfort, he really was an important, influential person in our community due to his contributions. Others before have said it as well as, or better than, I could what his works meant to us. His Master Levels were a vivid part of my childhood recollections playing Doom. His style was unique and also, in my opinion, managed to represent the perfectly-distilled essence of Doom. The atmosphere captured my young mind and remains a foundational reference point within my own mapping style. Whether he realized it or not, the significance of his canon cannot be overstated.

 

He lives on by the indelible mark he left upon us individually, and as an entire community. He lives on in every Master Levels and Playstation Final Doom disc. He lives on in our memories and our own works. He is passed but not truly gone, but still alive in our reverent remembrance. 

 

For some reason, as I read all of this, I felt compelled to share this Final Doom intermission screen as a capstone to this eulogy:

 

Episode 3, PLUTONIA:

YOU GLOAT OVER THE CARCASS OF THE GUARDIAN. WITH ITS DEATH YOU HAVE WRESTED THE ACCELERATOR FROM THE STINKING CLAWS OF HELL. YOU ARE DONE. HELL HAS RETURNED TO POUNDING DEAD FOLKS INSTEAD OF GOOD LIVE ONES. REMEMBER TO TELL YOUR GRANDKIDS TO PUT A ROCKET LAUNCHER IN YOUR COFFIN. IF YOU GO TO HELL WHEN YOU DIE YOU WILL NEED IT FOR SOME CLEANING UP.

[Linguica]

For a little time capsule, this is still online: https://www.doomworld.com/drsleep/

[Avoozl]

I am sorry for the loss, but I am sure they are fine wherever they may be now outside of reality as we know it.

[Altima]

This sucks. His maps in Master Levels were among some of my favorites. Rest well, Dr. Sleep.

[jerrysheppy]

Like so many others, I cherished his levels back in the 90s when I played them. 

 

Thank you for taking the time to bring us this news, and my condolences for your loss.  :(

[ThePlamzJoker]

Another old-school mapper has sadly left us. I played through the Master Levels back in March and April, and I still remember his work fondly alongside the late Jim Flynn who passed before him. May his legacy continue to entertain players and be immortalised in a Doom mapping hall of fame.

[A_D_M_E_R_A_L]

(I'm probably gonna get massacred for this pun)

Sleep well, Dr. Sleep. His maps in Master Levels are very enjoyable. Weird thing is that I JUST found out about it this morning. (at least for me it was morning)

[valkiriforce]

Sad to hear another veteran has left us, and just the following month after Jim Flynn. Dr. Sleep had that Id-quality map creation process and he was one of the early masters of memorable lighting effects seen in his levels which I'm sure would be lost on many people today seeing how easily such things could be taken for granted.

 

[Pirx]

thank you sbrangard67 and fraulein for posting here. dr. sleep's site was one of the first doom sites i stumbled upon by going from link to link and writing down the urls in the mid-90's. those maps he had here were amazing.

[Lizardcommando]

Damn, I can't believe it. Another Doom legend has gone off to the great Doom LAN party in the sky. That really sucks. My condolences to Dr. Sleep's family and friends.

[G Wikky]

Dr. Sleep's son Josh is my best friend, was the best man in my wedding, and was my roommate for a while, my boss for awhile and my employee for awhile after I opened my bakery. Recently we started talking about his father over drinks. I honestly didn't even know Dr. Sleep was his father until then, literally this week. The ironic part is that I loved playing his mods years, actually decades  before we ever even met, and I've known Josh for 12 years now. But judging from Josh's personality and how great of a guy he is, I can tell that Dr. Sleep was a great man as well. I only wish I had the opportunity to meet a legend before his passing. It's also nice seeing some of his family posting about him on here. I hope to meet you all someday as well.

[Doom_Dude]

I remember talking to Dr. Sleep in email around the time he joined us on Newdoom. I was all for talkin to him since his early Doom maps were definitley an influence on my desire to start level designing. After he set up his site on Newdoom he started working on the Doom Builder Illustrated Guide. I was pretty sure he also released a new level for Doom around that time and for the life of me I forget what it was called... and I can't find it on /id Games. Maybe I'm mistaken. What was it called? Also he was going to do some follow up level but I seem to recall he never finished it. Anyhow I wish I still had those emails, but my olde email provider is long gone. He was a cool guy and it's very sad to know he is no longer with us.

 

[Edit] Maybe my mind is just foggy and the new map he was working on was the one he never got to finish.

Edited October 26, 2018 by Doom_Dude

[SiFi270]

You mean the one in the screenshot here? I was wondering lately if there was anything left of it, but I thought I'd seem selfish if I asked that here because it might have seemed like I was more upset about the loss of a promising map than a human life, which obviously isn't the case. I doubt even his family knows what might have become of it, but I think it may still be worth asking. And if, despite my caution, I've still managed to cross a line in a way I hadn't considered, then I'm truly sorry.

[Doom_Dude]

Yeah SiFi270, that's the one... Waters of Lethe. Guess it was a dream that I thought he finished a level around that time.

[THEBaratusII]

Sorry to bump, A friend of mine from the Unreal community had found out about Dr. Sleeps passing, and will be dedicating his full release of Unreal PSX Rework to him, as Dr. Sleep had worked on Unreal since Nov. 1995 and such.

 

Here's the LITE version of the rework on Moddb if anyone's interested

https://www.moddb.com/mods/unreal-psx-rework-rise-of-jrath

 

You will be missed Dr. Sleep.

 

EDIT : The LITE release also has Dr. Sleep's levels itself, like E1L6 that was almost whole by him.

[Avoozl]

I'm sorry to hear it, however I am sure he's fine wherever he is now if not on this plane. My condolences to his family and friends.

[Jimmysteelpipe]

This is the last Image I have of him I was his roomate in York pa in 2015.  We stayed together for about a year in a half.   I got him a kitty named te te.  It was a struggle for john and I we went through a lot of crap as to where we lived.  Do to reasons we had to part where he moved to Pittsburgh pa with his mother and his brother. I do not know if John died but I do know that moving back to pittsburg was a good idea at the time.  Sincerely David Huggins

Edited April 18, 2019 by Jimmysteelpipe

[Jimmysteelpipe]

I knew he had this really bad cough as to were he would cough so bad that he would pass out and recover short after.  I did not know about the amputation I seemed to loss contact after a while.  I knew about his brother and it was not good either nor his mother.  He always loved his cats or kitties and he told me his brother or mother left his cats out and they got hit by a car.  Also he had another addiction I will not bring up that is not the real point.  I miss him and I can only remember that we would discuss if te te was male or female me I still think te te is a male.  He loved his anime Stiensgate.  And few others like welcome to the N.H.K  And shikii.  He never planned to release water of lethe he wanted to remain a legend. And yes very stern on being an atheist hahaha.

Edited April 18, 2019 by Jimmysteelpipe

[Jimmysteelpipe]

And yes he was wanted from the FBI for stock of books that were bought from E-BAY but went confronted at his house with the FBI the stock was not opened or damaged and the fbi took the stock of books.  charges were dropped.