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News of Fandom
True Grit
George Alec Effinger confesses: "I was in L.A. at the end of May -- I went to a convention as a fan, to a 'Days of Our Lives' convention. Debbie was appalled. I had a great time, met the cast, and talked with some people about how they go about hiring writers. It's something I'd love to do, to get a regular paycheck...."
I'm sure you have a future with them, George. There's such natural affinity between the setting for your famous novel series and a show that introduces itself: "Like sand through an hourglass, so are the Days of Our Lives...."
Special Hugo Nominees - Exclusive to Locus Readers
Blame the antidemocratic forces of Locus for getting the news right. File 770, Science Fiction Chronicle, and the Australian newzine Thyme, published Hugo nominee lists based on Intersection's e-mail press release which omitted Ursula K. LeGuin's other nominated novelette, "Solitude," from the list. (The story was even missing from the list Glasgow chairman Martin Easterbrook sent by internal e-mail to his own committtee.)
Editors who dealt directly with Mike and Debby Moir, Intersection's Hugo Award Administrators, got an accurate list of nominees for publication. Dave Langford, who ran the correct list in Ansible, explains: "To be fair, I suppose Ansible got special treatment this year, in that I was conveniently accessible in person (at Eastercon) and by fax for Mike and Debby Moir to consult (mostly about nominated fans' addresses). The LeGuin, Burns and Feintuch errors never actually appeared in any of the Moirs' faxed drafts, but were inserted by some other Intersection hand. Somehow." (The same release had "Ian Burns" for "Jim Burns" under pro artist, and misspelled "Feintuch," one of the Campbell nominees.)
Langford adds, "I was amused by your hot news item to the effect that I would have been nominated in three Hugo categories in 1993 were it not that I wasn't. This is what investigative journalism is all about...."
DUFF Winners Journey to Oz, or
Of News and New Zealand
Report by Pat and Rogert Sims: "We have returned from our whirlwind DUFF trip, in 17 days visiting fans in Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney in Australia and Wellington, New Zealand. This, in addition to attending Thylacon, the Australian National Convention in Hobart.
"We had a fabulous, exciting time seeing friends from 20 years ago (Aussiecon 1) and meeting many new people. Everyone was great, extending themselves to make us feel welcome -- some to the point of even giving us their own bedroom! Although with only about 100 in attendance, our room and breakfast at Thylacon was taken care of by the Convention. Special thanks go to Alan Stewart, Donna Heenen, Bruce Gillespie, Elaine Cochrane, Roman Orzanski, Nick Stathopoulous, Jean Weber, Eric Lindsay, Robin Johnson and Cary Lenehan (co-chairs of Thylacon), David Russell, Mervyn Barrett, Kay Guggins, Timothy Jones, and many, many more for making our trip so fantastic.
"The Down Under fans really set a standard of graciousness and welcoming that we will have to work hard to match for the next candidate."
Follow-Up DUFF Report by Tim Jones
"At the end of their DUFF trip to Australasia, Pat and Roger Sims spent two days in Wellington, New Zealand. Despite cold and wet mid-winter weather, they seemed to enjoy their stay in this nation's fair capital (cue National Anthem, etc.) Long-time NZ fan Mervyn Barrett met them at the airport and entertained them on Thursday afternoon and all Friday, when he took them around most of the sights that are to be seen in the Wellington region. Their hosts, Tim Jones and Kay Gubbins, took them out to dinner with one bunch of fans on Thursday night, and a different bunch on Friday night, so they got to meet a reasonable sample of local fandom. They also garnered at least one amusing story for their Trip Report -- but I'll leave that to them to tell."
Heenan Takes FFANZ Trip
Fan Fund of Australia and New Zealand, Report by Tim Jones: Donna Heenan of Melbourne, Australia was the 1995 winner of the Fan Fund of Australia and New Zealand. She and travelling companion Neil Murray attended Conquest, the New Zealand NatCon, held in Auckland (GsoH Roger Zelazny, Vonda Macintyre, Jane Lindskold (not sure of the spelling on that last one)) at Easter, and then spent just under two weeks travelling around New Zealand, going from south to north, meeting fans in Dunedin, Christchurch, and Wellington before driving back to Auckland via Lyn McConchie's place in Norsewood. Donna and Neil made an excellent impression on the many fans who met them and seemed to have a good time - all will doubtless be revealed in their trip report!
NZ fans were saddened to hear of the death of Roger Zelazny so soon after he had been a GoH at Conquest. Though obviously unwell, he was generous of his time and attention with con members.
Talking of trip reports, the 1994 FFANZ Trip Report, "Australian Crawl," detailing Tim Jones' and Kay Gubbins' trip to Australia, is now available for $5 (NZ, US, Australian, or Canadian) or 3 UK pounds to the NZ Administrator, Tim Jones, 87 Ellice St, Wellington 6001, New Zealand. Cost includes surface mail.
Nominations for the 1996 FFANZ race, to Swancon 21 in Perth, Western Australia, don't close until 10 August, but one couple and one individual have already confirmed that they will stand, so prospects seem bright for a good contest.
Mimosa Update
Dick and Nicki Lynch have been putting their lives in order since their townhouse burned on January 3. They recently updated friends online about the recovery. The fire started in another home that shared a common wall with theirs. "By the time it was over, six homes in the subdivision had experienced damage. Ours sustained the second-most-severe damage (the home where the fire started was completely destroyed), and as a result, we haven't been able to live there for the past six months.
"There is no end yet in sight. The contractors tell us that it will be at least another two months before the home is rebuilt, so meanwhile, we've been living in a small two bedroom apartment (a fourth floor walk-up) about five miles away. Most of our belongings are in storage, including the mimeographs, all of the mimeograph supplies, and our entire inventory of current and back issues of Mimosa [[their Hugo-winning genzine]]. We haven't seen them since January, and don't know what condition they are in.
"But this doesn't mean that we won't be publishing another issue! In fact, planning for Mimosa 17 is well underway, and we hope to publish it (via a commercial reproduction service) before the end of summer. " We wish the Lynches a full recovery from their disaster, and look forward to more issues of their excellent fanzine.
Wollheim Scholarship Winner Announced
New York's Lunarians club has awarded Robert Emmett Murphy, Jr. of Brooklyn the 1995 Donald A. Wollheim Memorial Scholarship. Murphy received $1,000 to help him attend the Clarion West Writer's Workshop.
The Scholarship Fund was established in 1989 and renamed in 1991 in memory of the late Donald A. Wollheim, legendary science fiction fan, writer, editor and publisher. The Fund helps beginning science fiction and fantasy writers from the New York Metropolitan area attend the Clarion or Clarion West science fiction and fantasy writers workshop. Scholarship funds come from individual donors and Lunarians, Inc., and through donations, ticket sales at Lunacon's Book Exhibit Raffle and special auctions. The New York Science Fiction Society, the Lunarians, Inc., is a nonprofit corporation recognized under IRS section 501(c)(3).
Standlee Scores
Kevin Standlee received notice from the National Association of Parliamentarians that he scored 100 percent on his NAP admission exam. We expected nothing less, Kevin!
Mythopoeic Awards
The Mythopoeic Awards were presented August 6 at Mythcon in Berkeley. The awards are sponosred by the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization of readers, scholars, and fans of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams (The Inklings), and the related genres of myth and fantasy studies.
The nominees and winners are chosen by committees formed of members of the Mythopoeic Society. The physical awards are small statuettes of a seated lion (intended to evoke, but not officially named after, Aslan from C.S. Lewis's Narnia books) inscribed with a plaque on the base. The awards are given in four categories. The nominees are shown, with the winner indicated in boldface.
The Mythopoeic Fantasy Awards are given to book-length work of fantasy, in the spirit of the Inklings, published during the previous year. (Paperback reprints of recent years' hardcovers are also eligible.) Since 1992, the award has been split into two categories, one for Adult Literature and one for Children's Literature.
The nominees and winners in the Mythopoeic Awards for 1995 in the Adult Literature category are:
Dean, Pamela. The Dubious Hills (Tor)
Holdstock, Robert. The Hollowing (Roc)
McKillip, Patricia A. Something Rich and Strange (Bantam)
Pollack, Rachel. Temporary Agency (St Martins)
The nominees for Children's Literature are:
Bull, Emma. The Princess and the Lord of Night (Harcourt Brace)
Griffin, Peni R. Switching Well (McElderry, Puffin)
Kindl, Patrice. Owl in Love (Houghton Mifflin, Puffin)
McKinley, Robin. A Knot in the Grain and other stories (Greenwillow)
Yolen, Jane. Good Griselle (Harcourt Brace)
The Mythopoeic Scholarship Award for Inklings Studies is given to a work of scholarship on J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, or Charles Williams published during the previous three years. The nominees are:
Filmer, Kath. The Fiction of C.S. Lewis: Mask and Mirror (St Martin's Press, 1993)
J.R.R. Tolkien: Life and Legend, introduction by Judith Priestman. Exhibition catalogue. (Bodleian Library, 1992)
Manlove, Colin. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Patterning of a Fantastic World (Twayne, 1993)
Myers, Doris T. C.S. Lewis in Context (Kent State University Press, 1994)
Rosebury, Brian. Tolkien: A Critical Assessment (St Martin's Press, 1992)
The Mythopoeic Scholarship Award for Myth and Fantasy Studies is given to a work of scholarship on the broader field of mythopoeic fantasy published during the previous three years. The nominees are:
King, James Roy. Old Tales and New Truths: Charting the Bright-Shadow World (State University of New York Press, 1992)
Kuznets, Lois Rostow. When Toys Come Alive: Narratives of Animation, Metamorphosis, and Development (Yale University Press, 1994)
McGillis, Roderick, ed. For the Childlike: George MacDonald's Fantasies for Children (Children's Literature Association & Scarecrow Press, 1992)
Warner, Marina. From the Beast to the Blonde: On Fairy Tales and Their Tellers (Chatto & Windus, 1994)
Zipes, Jack. Fairy Tale as Myth/Myth as Fairy Tale (University Press of Kentucky, 1994)
The Society publishes three magazines as well as sponsoring local discussion groups and the annual Mythcons. For further general information on the Society, write the address above.
OBITUARIES
Harry B. Moore, NOLAcon I Chairman
by Guy Lillian III
Harry B. (for Browning) Moore was chairman of the 1952 Worldcon, Nolacon, and had lived a hermit's life practically ever since. So reclusive was he that of my generation of New Orleans fandom, the Nolacon II era, only John Guidry, author Pat Adkins and Justin Winston ever met the man. The stories they told of a refrigerator without hinges on the door, and a .45 toted in a Playtex glove, made me, at least, feel that meeting Harry was a pleasure best postponed indefinitely.
Moore lived in a small house in a lower-middle-class suburb of the city, having moved from his famous Orange Street address. Talking with his neighbors after his death, I heard that Moore's fannish reputation for eccentricity remained intact in his daily living. He never cut his lawn, which grew thigh-high. His windows lacked screens. Neighborhood kids terrorized him. When the terrible May 9th flood sent a foot of water into houses on his street, his only effort to clean up afterward was to open his doors so the water could drain out. His next-door neighbor figured that living in the resulting filth for three weeks may have led to his death. He was found at home on Memorial Day. No one knew the reason for his demise, but it was almost certainly due to natural causes.
This was a fannish as well as a human disaster. Harry was a collector of original art, which he stored carelessly at the bottom of closets. He also owned stacks of ancient pulps, many of which I found drying in his carport. His correspondence, scattered haphazardly throughout his house, included letters from some of the great names of the genre. We locals were very concerned that the flood could have ruined all.
From looking over the aforementioned magazines, I found that whatever damage had been done had only compounded Moore's own neglect. A box of Gold Galaxys was almost completely covered in white mold. The Astoundings and Amazings and Thrilling Wonders which filled his carport all showed signs of disregard, loose or torn or lost covers, grimy edges and the like. One item in better shape than most was the August 1928 issue of Amazing Stories featuring the first chapter of Skylark of Space and Armageddon - 2148 A.D. Though Moore had, in ages past, taped the interior edges of its covers, the book wasn't in too bad shape, yet Moore's relatives had laid it out where the rain and wind could destroy it, or any thief could pinch it. I wrapped it and the other dried pulps in plastic bags, asked a kind neighbor to look after them and contacted the heirs, begging them to take better care of Moore's tattered legacy.
They told me that they were having the magazines evaluated for auction. Moore's closest relative, a California cousin, had inventoried the original artwork and taken it home. Of the letters, and even worse, of the Nolacon register with the names, addresses and signatures of all of the convention's attendees, there was no word. The worst is feared.
Curt Clemmer, Chicago Conrunner
and Dorsai Irregular
Report by Ross Pavlac
Curt Clemmer, longtime Chicago SF fan, died in his sleep on June 8 at age 63: probable cause of death was a heart attack. Curt was a robust fan, a giant of a man in just about all ways. Known as Redbeard in some fan circles, his presence and boisterous laugh would light up a room whenever he entered it.
He was a veteran of the Korean War, and was always proud of his military service. Over the years he had been extremely active in Veterans of Foreign Wars and other veterans' organizations. Curt's main hobby other than sf was stamp collecting, and he had a huge stamp collection. In particular, the U.N., as I recall, coordinated a series of many countries issuing anti-malaria stamps during the 1960's; Curt had a complete collection of this hard-to-get item, and loved showing it off to visitors.
Curt first became prominent in fandom during the era of large Star Trek conventions in the 1970's -- back when they would draw 20,000-30,000 people and overwhelm the capabilities of the hotels (and concom!) Curt was a major player, helping to keep things going as smoothly as possible in the trying atmosphere of these cons. He gained a reputation as a solid, reliable force who could be depended on in a pinch. When the Dorsai Irregulars were formed in fandom, Curt was one of the early members and helped to keep the organization from becoming too stuck on itself.
I first met Curt in 1977, when Larry Propp and I were putting together the bid for the 1982 World Science Fiction Convention. I vividly remember Larry at Wilcon, (a private con thrown by Jon and Joni Stopa each year over 4th of July at their ski lodge in Wisconsin), taking me to Curt's hotel room and introducing us. I was awed not so much of Curt as I was that Larry was awed by Curt, and Larry Propp was in awe of darn few people!
Although I had been present at the Worldcon in 1966 where Gene Roddenberry premiered Star Trek to fandom, I had not been involved in Trek fandom. Curt took me under his wing and, with his future wife Melissa, introduced me to all the movers and shakers in Trekdom. He was also responsible for getting me on the committee of Cleveland Trek, the one Trek con that I worked on in a major role.
Curt became one of the core architects of the bid for the 1982 Worldcon, along with Larry, Yale Edeiken, and myself. Curt's contributions were twofold. He was our conscience in insisting that while the Worldcon's primary thrust should be literary SF, that media fandom had a role too, and that many literati in fandom were too snobbish towards these folks; this resulted in our bid (and the eventual Worldcon) being more balanced. He also was one of the best "idea men" I ever met -- he had all kinds of grandiose ideas; some of them were even practical. The fact that he never understood that not all of his ideas could be done simultaneously did not detract from his usefulness in generating ideas that would make bidding and conventions more fun, and many of us valued him for that.
Curt was also one of the best recruiters I have ever worked with. He had a gift for recognizing convention-running talent, and for quietly walking up to me and saying,"You know, Ross, you guys really are under-utilizing so-and-so; you really should look at her more closely...."
In addition to his work on the 1982 and 1991 Worldcons in Chicago, Curt was a former member of the Board of Directors for ISFiC, the parent body of Windycon. He worked on Windycons for many, many years. For the past several years (no one is quite sure how many), he had been the guru of Program Operations, settling himself down in Program Ops at the beginning of the con and running the Program Ops desk. While others were titularly in charge of Program Ops, it was by common consent that Curt ran things on the floor.
My own favorite anecdote with Curt has to do with his wedding to Melissa Bayard in 1980. It was to be a fan wedding, held at the annual Dorsai Thing in Ann Arbor. A couple of months before the wedding, Curt called me up and said, "Ross, we'd like you to wear your aardvark costume to the wedding." (Yes, for those of you who don't know me very well, I do happen to have an aardvark costume).
"To the wedding itself?" I gasped out, astonished. "Put Melissa on the phone."
"Yes?" she said. I repeated, "Melissa, Curt claims you guys want me to wear the aardvark suit to the wedding." She corrected, "No. I want you to wear the aardvark suit to the wedding."
I gasped again. "You're sure? This is your day, and I want you to really enjoy it. You know the aardvark suit will um, attract attention." Melissa answered, "No, we understand. I really want you to wear it."
...On the day of the wedding, I strolled into the hotel meeting room where the wedding would be, wearing my bright blue aardvark suit, complete with long ears, tail, nose, etc. It being a formal occasion, I carried a cane. Also, since Melissa and I are descended from the McKenzie clan, I wore a tie of Dress McKenzie tartan.
Curt was chatting with the pastor. The pastor took one look at me and shook his head. "I know you guys warned me about this, but I didn't really believe it..."
I sat on the bride's side, since Melissa specifically invited me. All of her relatives took one look at me, and politely eased as far from me as they could. The ceremony began. Melissa wore a beautiful white dress. Curt and his best man, Gordon R. Dickson, wore formal Scottish kilts. Many Dorsai were present, all in paramilitary uniform.
As the vows were recited, Dr. Bob Passovoy's daughter Robin (who was about three at the time) suddenly noticed me. She turned to her father. "Who dat, daddy? Who dat?" The Passovoys were sitting in the front row, only a few feet away from where the vows were even then being spoken. Bob tried to quiet her by whispering, "That's your uncle Aardvark, Robin."
Robin's reaction was to wave wildly to me, shouting, "Hi, uncie Aardvark! Hi, uncie Aardvark!"
Curt, who was well within earshot of this, said afterwards that it took the greatest concentration of his life to pay attention to the vows and not break out laughing. As the couple exited, the Dorsai whipped out swords, switchblades and such to form a military arch of steel. I proudly participated, using my cane in lieu of a weapon....
After they got back from the honeymoon, they called to thank me for wearing the costume. "After all," said Melissa, "We couldn't have gotten married without you." I said, "Huh?" still not understanding.
Melissa laughed. "Well in order to get married I had to have something old, something new, something borrowed...." Curt chimed in, "And you were the something blue Uncle Aardvark!" Laughing boisterously.
Over the years since then, whenever Curt or I have been at a fan gathering, and the other of us enters the room, Curt always took great pleasure in regaling the room with this anecdote. I put it here in memorial to him, as a remembrance of one of the best moments of both our lives.
As those who know me are aware, Curt and I had disagreements from time to time. Some of them were quite loud. But we always had more in common than we had in differences, and we always remained friends. My God, I'm going to miss him.
Cards may be sent to Melissa Clemmer at P.O. Box 156, Tinley Park, IL 60477. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Curt's name to the American Heart Association.
The End of Civilization as Somebody Besides Us Knows It
by Mike Glyer
Last June, the Glasgow committee was caught in one of those e-mail forest fires that flare up on Internet at the slightest provocation. Someone asked if the '95 Worldcon was providing free rooms to the TAFF and DUFF delegates. The committee gave a politically incorrect answer.
As Kevin Standlee explained, "It has been more-or-less standard practice for hosting conventions to give the fan-fund winner a free hotel room. Not knowing that the host con was expected to give the fan fund winners free rooms, Intersection never budgeted for it. This is easier at larger U.S. and Canadian conventions, where the host cons usually end up with a number of comp rooms (earned in exchange for members' room bookings) that are otherwise not going to very good use. In the U.K., however, Intersection doesn't earn comp rooms, and therefore every hotel room must be purchased by the convention. "
Even when a North American worldcon gives a fan fund winner use of a comp room, that's arguably the same as spending money for a room. Several recent Worldcons turned extra comp rooms into cash by renting them to trusty fans who paid the committee instead of the hotel. The tactic generated from $7,000 to $10,000 per con.
While rich brown fanned the flames online, past TAFF administrators quietly talked to the Glasgow committee and handled things, graciously agreeing that TAFF would cover its own room and leave the con's available support for the GUFF winner (from Australia), so I hear. Former European TAFF administrator Pam Wells also asked the L.A.con III committee whether they planned to give the TAFF and DUFF delegates comp rooms at the 1996 Worldcon. The '96 con's parent group, SCIFI, has a long tradition of supporting fan funds. Between its donations of 1984 Worldcon profits and $500 bounties for completed trip reports, SCIFI has contributed thousands of dollars to fan funds in the past 10 years. L.A.con III will follow that tradition and offer TAFF and DUFF delegates a comp room for the core nights of the convention.
Leah Zeldes wrote on GEnie, "It's most unfortunate that a few loudmouthed snobs have put people off the fan funds, which do serve a valuable purpose in promoting communication
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