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They werent all happy tears.

A lot of them were. Maybe most of them. There were happy tears, no question, tons. There were so many

things I was feeling that I had no idea how to process them and I had to sit down. There was absolute joy, and

when I rushed over to Jay Lake, one of my favorite people on this planet, and wrapped him in a giant hug, that was

probably the moment when the second wave of emotions hit, when I could feel the facts starting to rush in.

My Pops was dead.

He died five years ago, about a year after I started the Drink Tank, and I knew that he would have been

happier than I was at that moment, that his heaving sobs would have been bigger, that hed have been jumping

up and down and screaming and he would have rushed the stage and there would have been no one who wouldhave stopped him from getting there.

That was the moment when that hit.

The moment I knew it was real, that it wasnt a weird dream? I got that it was actually happening when

I stared into Tim Powers face and he said You won! You won! and I hugged him. There arent a lot of us who

will ever have the chance to have their favorite author in the front row when the most amazing moment of our

lives happen. There arent a lot of us who can say that they got to hug said author at that time. It was then that

knew, really knew, that I had won a Hugo.

In the moments before I knew it was real, I had jumped up, run a little bit back down the aisle away from

the stage. All I could think to do at that moment was to move and I chose away from the stage for some reason

At that point, I heard some familiar voices screaming. I remember walking back towards the stage thinking Ivegot to get up there and then seeing Patty Wells, the Chair of Renovation, and grabbing her face and giving her a

kiss because it was the only thing I could think of. I then moved on to her husband Mark and gave him one too. Id

never met the man, but this seemed like a good introduction. I stopped before I kissed the entire row (I skipped

over SilverBob) and then I ran into Tim Powers.

And then, like I said, it got real.

I have rewatched the video a few times. You can see me wrap my arms around myself before climb the

stage. I was in total blinders mode. I didnt even see James climb the stairs and jump off the stage. I was just feeling

everything and when I saw Jay I knew I had to hug the man, and I did and it was a great moment.

And then, I needed to take off my jacket. I am still not sure

why I threw it off, Ill never know exactly what I was thinking, but I

can imagine that the part of my brain that is usually used to run someprimitive aspect of digestion was holding down the fort as all the ra-

tional parts had shut down and said you love your Flintstones shirt

so THATS got to be on the outside! and I threw the Armani coat to

the ground. I rejected it like a baboon heart.

James grabbed me in a hug that wasnt quick, it was sudden

He said over and over You deserve it! You so deserve it! and

was crying and I was trying to stay standing and I was hoping that

wouldnt fall and I was thinking about the last name on the slides that

showed during the pre-show: Mike Glicksohn. Id never met the man

but had admired his work, and Taral Wayne had suggested that we put

together an issue dedicated to him and that led me to seeking out his

work and the words of his friends and after I did it, I didnt stop look-

ing into his life and found that he was a guy I almost certainly would

have liked and most likely would have loved, and that I most definitely

respected.

And I didnt know any of that until after he was dead.

I had tears in my eyes during the pre-show and during the

moment of silence we held, and when I finally got to the mic, I had to

stop.

I dont remember grabbing the Hugo. I just knew that it had

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somehow ended up on the podium, the plague facing towards me, and it had my name on it. And I could see

beyond it to the audience, almost entirely faceless, and it was incredible that I was in front of a thousand people

accepting an award that had been a dream of mine for years. I had always wanted one, but never expected to win

Guys like me dont win Hugos. Hugos go to people who know what theyre doing and dont just go about writ-

ing issue after issue. Regular folks dont win Hugos. Everyone Ive ever known who has one has been an amazing

specimen. Frank Wu. Mike Glyer. Geri Sullivan. Claire Brialey. Dave Langford. The PLOKTAns. J. Randrew Byers

Brad Foster. Talented, amazing humans one-and-all.

Ive written, and mostly memorized, speeches every year, including this one, and I had once recited the

one I hoped to give to a few friends, but this was more. This was the moment and I had every single possible thingthat I had thought of saying slip away into somewhere else. I think I said Oh my Fuck! here, but really, I dont re-

member. James made a joke: Chris Garcias regular service has been interrupted and will return momentarily.

All of the things I could possibly be thinking right now, there are only two names: John Paul Garcia, my

Dad, who didnt make it, and the other is the recently late Mike Glicksohn.

I made it through what Im told was an OK speech at my Dads memorial, my voice breaking the entire

time, but this moment was so many many times harder. There was all this joy and mixed with it was a touch of

pain from not being able to share this with the man who had brought me into the World of fandom and who had

brought me into the World. It was painfully apparent that this wouldnt go well, though I did manage to say And

my Lovely and Talented, Long-suffering girlfriend, Linda Wenzelburger.

And then I just completely broke.There is no other way to say it. I had nothing. No single way to deal with what I was feeling. The joy was

bubbling up, all the other emotions moving to the front, all of them. All the hours Id spent working on the zine

all the hours Id spent thinking about the zine, all of it was there at that moment, along with the overwhelming

sense of this is AMAZING and the slight hints of missing Dad and fear, utter and complete fear, that this moment

was going to be completely lost.

Im going to let James talk now. Was all I could manage and I lowered myself to the stage next to the

podium and I could tell that whatever part of my brain was doing all the processing didnt have to worry about

keeping me upright anymore, so it just said contract, get the tears out, put every emotion youve got out there

And if you watch the video, you can see that I pull the Hugo trophy in and wrap myself around it and Im

sobbing, and sobbing, and I, at that moment, come back a little. Thats when the hurt of not having Dad around wasgone, that it was all the joy I could ever possibly feel being felt all at once, and I managed to look up, and unwrap

myself from the Hugo, I give a little smile and then start back up to my feet as James was talking.

I finally got up and I knew that I would not be able to manage a real speech. I must have been thinking get

to your feet, come up with a plan and the only plan I had was say thanks to the important ones.

And I did.

Mo Starkey, the artist who has done

so much art and who is so important to

me and who got herself onto the ballot this

year.

Taral Wayne, a Fan Artist of the finestkind and a writer whose works have made

the Drink Tank over the last two years.

Genevieve Collonge, my Ex, and her

daughter, Evelyn, who I have struggled to

keep as a part of my life, and though at times

its been the biggest challenge Ive ever had

to rise up and meet, and I once wrote a piece

called Gen and Evelyn Make My Life Hell..

and its Worth It! and I had to at least say

their name. I mention my Mom, and I mentionPhoto from Stu Segal

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that Im going to call her, and I mention that she was going to come and then she didnt and then, finally thinking

at least somewhat coherently, I said Thank you, Fandom.

That one was hard. Fandoms home. Its where I live. Ive always been a Fandom is a Hobby, guy, but the

People of Fandom are my People. No question. I broke there again. If I had tried to go on in that vein, to say what

the folks at the con meant to me, what people had meant to me, what theyd allowed me to do, I would have

totally broken into a million pieces.

Im going over there to have a nervous breakdown. If you see me, you should hug me.

And I meant it.

At that moment, the only thing keeping me going was that James had his hand on my shoulder. I neededhuman contact. Grant Krueger, after we got off-stage, helped ease me down the ramp. Marc Shirmeister basically

carried me to the back of the auditorium. I drank a bunch of water. James and I hugged a bunch.

We won a Hugo, Chris. He said. We won a Hugo.

The worst part was that I didnt get to say thanks. I even wrote a piece for the WOOF APA that listed

49 people I had to thank. The one that bugs me the most that I missed was Bill Burns. Without eFanzines.com

thered be no Drink Tank, and I am forever grateful for the site hes started. Hes good people and if I ever win

another, his names gettin said.

There are the people who started me down the path towards fan writing and The Drink Tank. Jan Stinson

and Earl Kemp are the two most important names on that list. I wrote a piece for Peregrine Nations that was

the first real fan writing Id done after giving up on writing fiction and Earl got my first LoC. Theres also Ed Mes-

keys, whose zine Niekas was handed to me at the Seattle Westercon and that started me down the path back

to fanzines. Arnie and Joyce Katz have to be mentioned too. Theyve always been so good to me and it was Vegas

Photo from Stu Segal

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Fandom Weekly that got me thinking about doing a fanzine.

I should have mentioned Lloyd Penney. Hes always so good about writing LoCs and is a great guy. It was

nice to get a chance to hang with Lloyd and Yvonne at the con, too! Theres also John Purcell, a mensch if there

ever was one. Steven H Silver too, the guy who has been nominated a bunch of times and never managed to win

I dont think hell need to worry, hes a lock for at least one of the Fan Hugos next year in Chicago. Guy Lillian

whose zine Challenger is a masterpiece, should have been mentioned too.

Oh, and theres Frank Wu. It

would be impossible for the Drink

Tank to have done anything with-out Frank. He was the first one to

write for me and to provide art

and support. The man is the rock

on which The Drink Tank was built

Thank you Frank, and Brianna, for

everything youve done for me and

for The Drink Tank. I owe yall BIG

And then theres the fact

that I didnt say a word of thanks to

James Bacon. True, the guy was upthere with me, but without James

the Drink Tank is just me doin stuff

Thanks, brother!

There are so many people

who have contributed to The Drink

Tank over the years, Steve Green

Mark Valentine, Kevin Roche, Andy

Trembley, Claire Brialey, Mark

Plummer, John The Rock Coxon

John Hertz, Jay Lake, Cheryl Mor

gan, Dave Langford, Alastair Reyn-olds, Barbara & Trey, Greg Trend

M Lloyd, Brad Foster, Steve Stiles

Jay, SaBean, Judith, Kevin Standlee

Cynthia Corral, Jason Wiener, Jaun

Sanmiguel, David Moyce, Randy Smith, Beth Zuckerman, Eric Mayer, Mike Perschon, Ken & Jerry, Helen Mont-

gomery, Adrienne Foster, Dann Lopez, Kurt Erichsen, Kelly Green, Liz Batty, Bob Hole, Ted White, Jason Schachat

Espana Sheriff, Jean Martin and so many more. Weve been very lucky to have so many great people writing for

us over the years.

And, of course, there are people who havent written for us who are also very much a part of the feeling

of The Drink Tank. Doug Berry, Chris Barkley, Milt Stevens, Mette & Bryan, Jack Avery, Anders, the other Anders

Eric Zuckerman, Unwoman, Lisa Deutsch-Harrison, Heather Yager, John Scalzi, Greg Benford, John Picacio, Mary

Robinette-Kowal, Howard Hendrix, Diana Vick, Murray Moore, Bill Mills, The Bushyagers, Nic Farey, Tycho, Bobby

Toland, Father John Blaker, and on and on.

And of course, the guys who are gone. I dont think theres a better fan writer in history than Harry

Warner. Mike Glicksohn was the only guy who came close to being as good a LoCer (though Lloyd is certainly

right up there) and hes the one Ive always said was the best historian we had. I was lucky enough to get to meet

and chat with Jack Speer. I missed getting SaM to write some of his version of history for me. I would have loved

to have gotten to know Glicksohn, Bruce Pelz, Bobby Gear, rich brown, Charles Burbee, Walt Willis, Bill Rotsler

Terry Carr, Poul Anderson (who always called me Rich for some reason) and Atom. These are all people who died

and I never got to know very well.

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Then theres Forry. My idol in just about every way and I wish he could have been around because no

matter how rough things were up there, Id have made sure to mention his name if I was on stage. I will always

be grateful to Forry. Always. He changed my life.

So, those are some, though not nearly all, of the people Id have liked to have thanked.

Moving outward a little, the Hugos were a great set this year... for the most part. There were some awe-

some winners. The ones that pop out at me are Mary Robinette Kowal for her story For Want of a Nail, and Best

Long Form Editor Lou Anders. Claire Brialey won for Best Fan Writer, which is amazing. Shes been the best fan

writer in the world since the late 1990s and shes amazing. Im so glad she has a rocket! Ted Chiang, who is my

fellow Guest of Honor at Minicon next year, won for Best Novela over Al Reynolds whose Troika was a delight.I would have loved Al to have won it, but Chiangs story was great too.

The Best Pro Artist was a bit of a disappointment, especially with John Picacio running third. Johns more

than deserving. Brad W. Foster winning the Best Fan Artist was both slightly sad, in that Mo Starkey didnt win, and

it also made me happy because he beat Randall Munroe. Of course, it doesnt hurt that the stuff that Brads been

doing for the last few years has been amazing with the addition of color to so much of his work. That was the

best part. Mo ran third and a solid third, which was very nice. Best Fanzine was interesting because StarShipSofa

was the one with the most first place votes and yet, through redistributes, we got the rocket. That was awesome

File 770 also came 2nd! That was kooky! Several other awards went to the nominee that had the second most

first place votes. Best Fan Artist, Writer, Fanzine, Semipro Magazine and Pro Artist. Thats a bunch.

I also think that this year proved that the Hugo Voters Packets were influential. I think that Claire and Icertainly benefitted from the Packets. I think that there are a bunch of things that were influenced by the packets

and I think that the future of voting will be influenced by the packets and Im glad that the WorldCon has been-

doing it.

The WorldCon itself was really good. I wasnt a fan of the facilities, there was the Air-Conditioned Death

March that was required to get from the Convention Center to the Atlantis, and then about half-a-mile from the

Atlantis to the Peppermill. The food at the Hotels was expensive, but quite good for the most part. We found

Roscoes Oakland-style BBQ and it was just like Roscoes in Oakland. I enjoyed it. We also had Jimboys Tacos,

which were quite good.

WorldCon also had a Busi-

ness Meeting where we debated

the merits of adding the Best Fan-cast category to the Hugos. I spoke

in favor of it and it managed to pass

after some marvelous parliamen-

tary debate. There was question at

first if it would have a chance, but

as the meeting went by, it became

apparent that there was support

and thats when things started hap-

penin! It was kinda fun to be a part

of it, though it was also tedious as all

hell! It got a lot of support from the

younger crowd and the folks from

Chicago. It was a good thing and I

am glad it passed.

There was some very nice

programming, only a little of which

I managed to make it to. One thing

that I was a part of after winning the

Hugo was The Match Game. Id told

Kevin Standlee that if I won, it was Photo from Stu Segal

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upright. I got a couple of rounds of applause, including

one as I walked into the Exhibit Hall. That was awe-

some! I took photos with folks, let folks take photos

of the Hugo statue. One Scandinavian fan, I wanna say

Jukke Halme but Im not sure, used this awesome lens

to take some incredible photos of the base in the sun-

light. They were amazing!

What does this all mean for The Drink Tank?

Good question. Ive got no clue. The main, and

usually only. rule is that its got to be fun, and that stil

holds. John Hertz said to me that now that weve wonwe should use that as a reason to get better. I dont

see it happening, though. The stuff that I know John con-

siders getting better is the stuff thats no fun for me, so

dont expect too much change in that area. Well prob-

ably get more folks writing for us, and weve already

seen a bump in the number of book companies willing

to send us review copies, so theres that!

So there you have it, my WorldCon with the

Hugo win. Ive been watching the various places that

put up the video and the reactions range from Wow

that was amazing! to Im so uncomfortable and scaredright now. The former is far more frequent than the

latter, luckily. The good thing is that people seem to

understand that it was a moment when the absolute

joy of winning crashed up against just about everything

else that I could possibly feel. Am I embarrassed that I

broke so heavily? Maybe a little. Im passionate, like al

us Greeks, but it is weird to have thousands of people

watching your most vulnerable moment on the inter-

net. Last time I checked, the UStream video had about

50K views. Thats a lot of people to watch you crying.So, WorldCon was great, winning the Hugo was

over-whelming, getting to see my friends from around

the world was amazing, and largely, Im down with Ren-

ovation! It was a great time.

So, what else is in this issue? Well, theres a piece

from Taral Wayne, one of the few I managed to mention

in my speech. Theres that fine Mo Starkey cover. Theres

this 52 weeks entry dealing with 2001: A Space Odyssey

including a wonderful piece fromSteve Stiles and one

from Best Fan Artist winner Brad W. Foster!

doubtful that Id make it to the Match Game. I stuck around and I understand that there was some technical dif-

ficulty and that meant that when I got there, they had only done two questions, so I came in and played. I had a

blast, we were all on our game and got some great laughs. I had a cold adult beverage or two and that might have

helped. I couldnt help but play with the Hugo. I had a set of napkins that I used to fondle the Hugo, often making

dirty motions. Then, at a certain point, Kirsten Berry took the Rocket and put it between her boobs. That was

awesome! It was a great time.

The last 24 hours were both amazing and surreal. Everyone seemed to know me. I got a lot of hugs. A

LOT OF HUGS. I Needed them because I was so exhausted in every possible way that I had to hug folks to stay

Photo from Dave McCarty

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Did we win a Hugo?

By James Bacon

If I wrote to win an award, or edited fanzines to win awards, my return would be pretty dismal. Its not

really a good purpose to write for.

Now, awards are indeed awesome, and in the last 12 months I have won my first Nova and my first Hugo

but I wrote in 2003 because I had something to say, and I edit because I either want to hear what people have to

say on something or want to see them say what they think should be said.Yet, the award does do something. I have been HYPER since I got home from America. I have worked five

early shifts and the jet lag has been in my favour, work colleagues somewhat aware that I am not at all tired like

they are. I feel energised by many things, in fairness all aspects that I would have hoped to have gone well have

gone well, and the amount of tangible success, be it the success of the kids programme, the UK in 2014 parties

the staff party, my turn as a barman at the Boston party and the fantastic social time that I had, as well as the fact

that I may have seen more programme than I have ever done before has resulted in a great feeling.

Of course the awards are weird. I was terrible nervous inside as Chris had kept banging on that I would

win one. I didnt think I would, but I even wrote a few words, and given a strange commitment that I had made

I had prepared it to be bi-lingual. I was pretty sure that Claire should and could win the best writer Hugo, but

wanted her or Chris to win.

The award process begins not as I don my nice suit in the hotel, all excited not so much about thenomination, for which I am terribly proud, and twice so in this case, but because it is such a wonderful night of

celebration.

Regardless of what the voters decide, this is a massive event, run by fans, paid for in the tens of thousands

by fans, administrated to the highest order by fans

and of course in there amongst all the professionals

are a few that will be won by fans.

The Hugos for all the times that I have been

bitterly disappointed in the voter selection, are an

incredible award, and really, although it can be ar-

gued the Clarke is more selective, or better readselection of judges, and the sidewise is more refined

into exactly my sub-genre, and the Eisners have the

skill to recognise those who definitely deserve it

there is nothing like the Hugos.

A little pomp and circumstance is indeed

a pleasant thing, everyone enjoys dressing up, and

dressing in their own unique style, and the ladies

always look stunning and its recognition for some

that is so deserved.

Yet, as I wondered about a black tie or a

green cravat, my black cuff links or Irish tricolour

ensured that my braces were correct and my odd

bilingual speech was at the ready, as well as that of

Bryan Talbots, it was not where it starts.

Months before in a darkened room in Staf-

fordshire. I was informed of nomination. I could

barely think to be honest, as it was for best writer,

was in a sorta shock and I waited to see if as well as

best writer, which was indeed a big honour, if Drink

Tank or for that matter Journey Planet had gottenPhoto from Unwoman

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one. Well for one reason or another, I sat wondering and waiting. It was a long wait. Something was wrong.

I then got really upset. This is, of course, totally irrational. Why would I be upset you may ask, as I sat there

nominated. Well its a weird thing but I like people to enjoy things, its one of my drivers for con running and fan-

zine editing, and well, I have some people, friends, who in my head at that moment in time, were suddenly going

to be left behind.

Like a train leaving a station, my friends had missed it, and I wondered would it be better to also miss that

train and join them in whatever adventure that would then befall us, rather than being on the train heading to

some sort of honorary bliss, but in solitude and loneliness.

Other people have always made the best cons, and best contributors, and it was a weird wash of emotionthat over came me.

And then my phone beeped and email refreshed and suddenly Drink Tank was on the ticket, and so Chris

Garcia was with me, and in the knowledge, and of course as co-editors allowed to discuss the nomination, we

were soon, texting and speculating and our speculation proved right some weeks later, at Eastercon and were

pleased to see Mark and Claire, and Guy and Mike and Steve all on the ticket. An excellent bunch of people who

I have worked for as a low submitter.

Its an odd old thing. Worried that your mates arent nominated. Weird eh.

Jeez, can I say thank you now?

So I shall write about the whole speech thing in great detail, and I have already gotten Dave Cake and

Grant Kruger at the keyboards typing in their version of events. I have been told that the Ustream clip of Chris

has been watched over 30,000 times which is incredible, but then some issues of drink tank have been down-

loaded in the thousands, by the silent majority who just want to read what we say. Hello there. Do write in some

time, wont you. Thatd be nice. But not necessary at all.

BUT we never ever never ever ever expected to win.

Its as simple as that.

So when I did realise what was happening and get excited and express that excitement as only I could

and did that night, it was a sudden red light that flashed in my face, when I saw Chris throw down his coat on the

ground. It was not that he had taken it off, so much as the action, and expression and for whatever reason, I knew

he was already over that edge, and well, it was now my job to hold on for both of us.

I had no speech. I just said what came into my head. I thanked other editors and our contributors and

authors, as they are the ones that do inspire much of my fan writing, especially the fan writing about science fic-

tion.

So first off a big thank you to Chris.

You see, I am grateful for being involved in Drink Tank, he could have made me an occasional guest editor

or some such, but he didnt, and I know he feels I have returned that with efforts and commitment and ideas, but

even so, he let me play with his toy.

Bill Burns, for always getting Drink Tank up online. To Claire for encouraging and helping my writing and

giving out when she should and sharing coffee and cider when she should. Mark Plummer for equally being a

writer that inspires, Mike, Guy and Steve, cause, well you keep up the standard, and to John, John, Ian, Kat, DougChristina, Espana, Jean, Tom, Nick, Rob and all the others who drop in via my post box. You are great.

And all the awesome contributors, yep, we ask a lot of you, of a lot, professionals who should be earning

a wage, not writing or drawing for free, and people who just go out of their way to add to the fanzine.

Readers, Voters and Fans, you are all awesome and brilliant to us, but keep on reading and just send us

your opinion, let us know what you think. Even if its rubbish and we disagree, we want to know.

I am really very grateful.

Cheers

James

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And Then She Was Gone by J. Daniel SawyerReviewed by Christopher J Garcia

Its pretty obvious that I love Noir and that the detective story. Theres no kind of story that so beauti-

fully combines the world we live in with the world in which I want to love. Theres nothing that I covet more

than simple adventure and detective stories proved an adventure with a hyper-realist sort of setting that I find

irresistable. Among the best things about Noir are the scripts. Double Indemnity, The Maltese Falcon, Key Largo

and my all-time favorite, The Big Sleep. William Faulkner had a hand in many of the best scripts of the genre, and

actors such as Humphrey Bogard, Alan Ladd and Barbara Stanwyck all made the words gleam like a knife stickingout a stoolies back.

J. Daniel Sawyers novel And Then She Was Gone is a solid piece of plot thats got the voice of those classic

Noirs.

This is the story of Clarke Lantham, a PI who used to be a Police Dective. The guys obviously cut from

the same cloth as Marlowe or Hammer, but hes got the twenty-first century vibe to him. His latest client has

sent him to find her daughter, a teen who lives on the wrong side of just about everything. His search takes him

around the Bay Area and into some awesome settings. It may be a bit much, not Woody Allen 1960s too much,

but maybe Woody Allen 2005 bit much. A tad over-the-top, and I enjoyed it. Its a chase, in a way, and many of the

areas in which we travel feel the sort of post-suburban angst that Noir has been using over the last two decades

The Bay Areas quirks are quite apparent and they play well against the characters, most of whom seem either

vividly nuts or kinda scummy. In a couple of cases, the scummy is some of that classic dirtbag scummy you read

about in works by Eastlake and McDonald.

The seedier side of the Bay Area where Lantham searches provides the best of the piece. Theres a great

segment in a club in The City that allows Sawyers prose to sparkle. If I have one complaint, its the treatment of

hte City of Danville. Its a great town and it becomes a sort of gag for Sawyer. I mean seriouly, its a great town!

Why so harsh? The role of the Bay Area in the story is an interesting one and Sawyer plays with teh geography

in a way that almost makes it like a gae of RISK played by the characters against the reader.

There are times when the dialogue lost me a bit, I had trouble keeping characters speaking straight. That

wasnt a huge trouble throughout, but it popped up a few times as

the novel went along. There are a few constructions that I stum-

bled over, but that might just be a part of the voice of Lanthamand the adherence to the traditional vocabulkary of the PI. Still

the sense of place comes through so beautifully that I didnt mind

a few struggles to get to the marrow.

There are also a few typography problems here and there

These things happen, and only one of them really caused me to

fumble along as I was reading.

The plot is a bit over-the-top, what with the constant

shark-like movement of our hero and the series of beatings he

takes along the way, and at times it seems that there is less-than-

necessary spotting of the quarry followed by more-than-obvious

clues dropped in our faces, but these all balance out to keep you

guessing at exactly what and where things are going.

The voice of Clarke Lantham is the voice of those Faulkner

scripts and Stanwyck reparte. Its gloriously snappy and full of the

kind of setting-setting wordplay that you expect from an author

who obviously knows his Hammett, Spilane and Eastlake. Its like

one of those Hard Case Crime novels that are on the modern

lighter side, like the Quarry Novels by Max Allen Collins, but with

a stronger sense of the traditional PI tale. I understand that this is

a part of a series and Im ready to dive in the rest of them!

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on.

In any case, I was suffused with a warm glow of childlike happiness. Being a fan yourself, you probably

know perfectly well why, but what follows takes no chance of leaving anything to the imagination.

The first thing I thought of doing, after pulling the shirt over my head, was to call on a reclusive fringe fan

who lives down the hall from me. _______ _ (for Thomas, alas) _____. We had been fencing with each othe

for years, in a half-joking, half-serious way. Id joke; hed take me seriously. Or hes be serious and Id think he was

joking. Some odd situations arose, hardly the oddest of which resulted in a threatened lawsuit involving Harlan

Ellison that prohibited me forever from printing my neighbors name. Hence _______ _ (for Thomas) _____.

Tchok, tchok, tchok, I drum on his door. Is ____ there, Mrs. _____? (_______ still lived with his

mother. I didnt feel superior about that, because I did too.)_______! she calls up the stairs, then adds, Hell be down in a second, Wayne.

(Wayne? Mothers are so awkward to deal with! Even my own had come around quicker.)

After a moment, down comes _______, arrayed in the regal majesty of bathrobe and flip-flops. How do

you like it? I ask, and throw out my chest to smooth imaginary wrinkles.

I dont. Then His Majesty ascends the royal staircase back to his throne.

It was just the encouragement I was looking for.

The action shifted to an informal Chips & Coffee meeting a few days later, where I appeared again attired

in IguanaCon grey and blue. Here there were friends, so the effect was somewhat muted. The shirt annoyed no

one, but at least it attracted attention.

I divulged to the circle of rapt Chips & Coffeers I would next take my t-shirt to an OSFiC meeting. Cer

tain uppity con fans would notice, and I would revel as it corroded their inner souls with jealousy. The next logi

cal step would be for me to attend one of the local, marginally fannish cons like... oh, say Anonycon or Maplecon

and damage more egos there. In fact, there was no end to the number of fringe and fakefans I could practice my

fansmanship on, both gratifying my own ego and extracting no little unsubtle revenge at the same time.

Did I say no end? Alas, all good things come to an end. There is one place I must never wear my Iguana

Con t-shirt, and thats at IguanaCon itself! Somebody might take me for one of the Committee if I were to wea

anything official-looking. That would never do. I might be expected to earn my right to impress people with my

importance, and that way I would be no farther ahead than if I were actukally were important.

Taral Wayne

This is an article on the fannish abuse of egoboo. The

egoboo in question was the arrival of a t-shirt from a grateful

IguanaCon Committee that sported a retouched reproduction

of a certain logo, by a certain Toronto artist for whom I have an

understandable fondness. Id never done an illustrated t-shirt

before. Id never had a reason to. No art I had seen other peo-

ple wear had any particular relevance to whatever peculiar sort

of person I am. Also, being an artist myself, it would have been

more appropriate for me to advertise my own work rather thansomeone elses. But, the Iggy t-shirt was one of those if-I-had-

the-time projects that I never actually had the time for until

then. When the shirt came a lumpy, floppy package it was an

excuse to never have to find the time!

The art was not quite as it had looked in the Progress

Reports. In fact, a local artist had touched it up for black-and-

white reproduction. The rich grey tones and shadings had been

reduced to crude stippling. Dark blue ink on grey, enlargement

of the art and the giant potato that was apparently used to do

the printing also added nothing to the appearance of the art. Ifelt rather like someone elses twiltone fanzine once I tried it

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I have a thing for films that explore. There arent that many of them, really. There are a lot of films that take

a look at a topic and dig into it, there are films that try to uncover secrets or break new ground, but there are few

that actually explore, that try and discover something new. 2001 is a film that explores. It explores the reaction

of man to change and the ways in which new intelligences can only deal in death and pain. Its an incredible piece

of cinema, and perhaps there is no film pre-Star Wars that took the art of filmmaking and so brilliantly applied i

to a SciFi mode.

Lets start with Kubrick. I talked a lot about him with Strangelove, and here hes riding a wave of films at

that point that are among the greatest movies of all-time. His previous film was Strangelove and he spent five

years working on. He co-wrote the script with Arthur C. Clarke based on his story The Sentinel. This was Kubrick

being uber-Kubrick, involved in many aspects where youd rarely see a director working. He was deeply involved

with the cinematography and effects, as well as with editing and even sound design. This was a project where

Kubrick was the truest form of Auteur.

That said, this was a movie that told a story that was very complex, layered, and more than a little bit

muddled. The story is about a monolith. Thats something of a simplification, but its pretty much the case. The

Monolith is the reason for the evolution of human consciousness, it seems. Were first shown this when a Mon-

key-man-type creature gains the ability to use tools after touching the monolith. We then see it again when a

lunar team has uncovered it and sends a team. The end brings it back. Thats for later.

The first hour of the film, after we go through the Monkey portion, is almost like Kubrick showing us wha

the future could and should be. Its not a flashy future and were not shown a big science-y world, but instead aretaken to a Space Station with a Hilton and a Howard Johnsons. Theres a lot of talk, some gossiping, and a lot of

sitting around. In fact, we see a transport spaceship that is empty save for our doctor, who is traveling and asleep

on the trip with the video screen in the seatback. Thats an interesting point, Kubrick and co. foresaw the modern

plane seat! The fact that theres one guy and a stewardess is a sign that this is not an extraordinary flight. Its just a

regular commuter flight thats not very full. Kubrick brings us to the world of ordinary space flight, and shows us

simple things like video calls and neat kinds of chairs. Its all very interesting and the vision of the Not-Too-Distan

Future is enticing.

Where things get really interesting is where we see the ship Discovery on the way to Jupiter to figure

out wheat happened to the team that encountered the Monolith. Here, we are introduced to Dave, our hero, in

a way, and HAL, the computer that is so famous now.

52 Weeks to Science Fiction Film Literacy - 2001: A Space Odyssey

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the key to the entire meaning of the film.

Or at least the last part.

You see, heres my thought: its not one movie.

Its three movies.

The first movie is everything that happens upuntil we get to the first space flight. Its the story of

the first major evolutionary flash that raises man up

from simply being a scavenger and gatherer to being

a tool-user and hunter. Its a very short film, and one

that ends with a match cut that turns a bone into

a shuttle. Its a brilliant cut, and it shows something

that I believe is far more impressive. It wasnt a slow

dissolve, it was a snap-cut. It wasnt a Monkey-man

finding a bone and using it once, then going away and

trying again later, it was a sudden evolutionary leap.

He hit some bones, then hit a tapir then hit another

Monkey-Man. It was a flash, just like the cut between

the first and second movies.

The second movie starts on that ship that was

born from bone. The mission to the Moon, the ex-

ploration and then the film of the Jupiter mission and

HALs malfunction. This is a great film, and even with

nothing else around, its still great. Its poetic, its intel-

ligent, its brutal and its quiet. Theres music, talking,

sounds, but so much of it is sound design and mise-en-

HAL is probably the most important computer in the history of film. While there are been madder com-

puters (the one from Demon Seed comes to mind) and fancier (EMORAC from Desk Set) there are none that

are more human or more fully realized. HAL as a character has inspired entire books on its own. There are so

many things that HAL represents. The first thing is that HAL malfunctions and feels that he has to take charge

of the situation after that happens. He doesnt want to be shut down (and in 2010, the sequel, he asks Will

dream? when they tell him that theyre unplugging him) so he kills the three scientists who are in hibernation

The real ending as far as a lot of viewers see it is when Dave goes on a walk-about and re-enters to unplug HAL

Its a touching scene when Dave undoes HALs memory and HAL first pleads for Dave not to do it and then the

singing of Daisy is positively heart-breaking.And Daisy is an important thing. Arthur C. Clarke was fully aware of the work of people like Marvin Min-

sky and Max Matthews. Matthews was an important figure in computer history. Max, along with Lajareen Hiller

was the Father of Computer Music. Matthews figured out a way to sample his violin playing into the computer

and synthesize the sounds and replay them. He was also involved in voice synthesis. There is a record called He

Saw The Cat which documents the work that Matthews and folks were doing at Bell Labs. Matthews recorded

Daisy (or Daisy Belle or Bicycle Built-For-Two) in 1958 or so, and the most famous version of it was recorded

in 1960, which Clarke was certainly aware of. Kubrick visited Bell Labs in the lead-up to the production of 2001

though its thought that it was a Clarke addition to use Daisy in that significant scene.

After that, it gets pretty darn triply. This is called the Starchild Sequence and is one of the most impressive

in Science Fiction film of the period. Its a bit ponderous, and eventually we see Dave become the StarChild, whichis the next step in the evolution of mankinds intellect. In a way, it could be seen that HAL is the next step after us

and then the StarChild is the step after that step. Makes sense. Thats the theme that I pick up on hardest - conti-

nuity trumped by explosion. Those monkey-men would have kept hoppin around, living in annoyed harmony with

the tapir if the Monolith hadnt showed up and given them the ability to use tools.Man would have kept relying

on thinking machines like HAL to do their thinking if the StarChild had not appeared. Of course, were not sure

what the StarChild means, really, we dont see that, but we understand that this is a hinge, a turning point. Thats

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scene. Theres so much space, things are so sparse, and everything is surrounded by empty space. Its one of the

reasons why I think that 2001 might be the most honest of all science fiction films. It gets so much right. Theres

not a ton of unnecessary sound. That is most visible in the middle movie.

The final film is what happens when Dave meets Monolith. Its philosophical to the extreme, almost im-

penetrable to those who havent truly studied it. Its impressive, innovative filmmaking for the 1960s, with effects

that were incredible for the time.

There is so much to talk about. The screens we see throughout the film are all rear-projection, film be-

ing projected onto frosted glass. Its so simple, and it makes everything look so awesome. Some of it might have

been television, but Im not convinced. The unusual camerawork, including famous tracking shots like the joggingaround the ring that is the Discovery, serves to disquiet the viewer. The shots, with cameras tilted at different

angles to give the illusion of different gravity situations. It works so very well.

The weird thing is that film should not work at all. There is a different structure that you have to sort o

scratch at the film to find. Its not a single film, like I said, and that shouldnt work in a film which is serving as an

exploration of theory more than a traditional narrative.

But the work is so strong that it over-powers structure and story and even meaning and draws you in

2001 is a film that brings you closer with the incredible production values. Kubrick might be the least sense of

wonder director I can think of, yet this is a film that is fueled by sense of wonder. Why else would you leave so

much fabric on the table? This is a film that allows you to suck it all in by giving you just enough at a time and not

overwhelming you. That is powerful filmmaking!There is so much more that I could talk about, but if there is one where I hope yallll go out watch it and

then debate my take on the film, this is the one!