The Editorial Board and the Publishers of the Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology wish to express their profound grief at the untimely death of Professor Peter Baker. Aware of his international recognition as an expert on the ubiquitous role of calcium in physiological processes and their pharma­ cological control, the Board was gratified when Professor Baker accepted its invitation to edit a new Handbook volume on "Calcium in Drug Actions". He went about this task with his usual energy and effectiveness so that, in the few months before his unexpected death, Professor Baker had mustered his distinguished contributors, got them to provide their manuscripts, and seen almost the entire material into the press. This achievement is all the more remarkable when one bears in mind the extraordinary number of his other commitments during the same time; they are mentioned in Sir Alan Hodgkin's preface to this volume. With so many other professional and personal responsibilities upon him, the Board of the Handbook wishes to record its grateful appreciation for the admirable way in which Professor Baker took on and carried out the additional work of bringing this fine book into existence; and the Board wishes it to be dedicated to the memory of Professor Peter Frederick Baker. The Editorial Board: G. V. R. BORN, P. CUATRECASAS, H. HERKEN, A.