27 May 2005

Sheckley Returns to America
Robert Sheckley has returned to the US following his hospitalization in Kiev. His doctors say that his condition is still not satisfactory, but he can make the flight. His insurance had been cancelled and his bill wound up being paid by private donations.

Obituary
Actor Eddie Albert (b.1908) died of pneumonia on March 27. Although best known for his role as Oliver Wendell Douglas on the television series "Green Acres." He has appeared in a variety of genre films as well, including "Escape to Witch Mountain" and "The Borrowers." He Provided the voice of the narrator for "The Lorax"

25 May 2005

Aurora Award Nominations
The finalists for the 2005 Prix Aurora, given out to Canadian science fiction in both English and French, have been announced. This year's winners will be announced at Westercon 58 in Calgary during the weekend of July 1-4. Any Canadian citizen or permanent resident may vote. Balloting ends on June 22.

Best Long-Form Work in English/Meilleur livre en anglais
Fallen Angel, Stephanie Bedwell-Grime
Survival, Julie E. Czerneda
Radiant, James Alan Gardner
Black Brillion, Matthew Hughes
The Alchemist's Daughter, Eileen Kernaghan
Wolf Pack, Edo van Belkom

Meilleur livre en français/Best Long-Form Work in French
Terre des Autres, Sylvie Bérard
Les Mémoires de l'Arc, Michèle Laframboise
Les Jours de l`ombre, Francine Pelletier
Oniria, Patrick Senécal
Suzanne, ouvre-toi, Yves Steinmetz

Best Short-Form Work in English/Meilleure nouvelle en anglais
"The Smile on the Face", Nalo Hopkinson
"The Forgotten Ones", Karin Lowachee
"Mikeys", Robert J. Sawyer
"Enlightenment", Douglas Smith
"Jigsaw", Douglas Smith
"When the Morning Stars Sang Together", Isaac Szpindel
"The Luck of Willie Lumen", Hayden Trenholm

Meilleure nouvelle en français/Best Short-Form Work in French
"Galdana", Richard Blanchette
"Anne de la Terre", Mehdi Bouhalassa
"Ceux qui ne comptent pas", Michèle Laframboise
"Poussière de diamant", Mario Tessier

Best Work in English (Other)/Meilleur ouvrage en anglais (Autre)
Julie E. Czerneda and Isaac Szpindel for editing ReVisions
Nalo Hopkinson and Uppinder Mehan for editing So Long Been Dreaming: Postcolonial Science Fiction & Fantasy
Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine, Karl Johanson, ed.
Odyssey: Tales From the Wonder Zone, edited by Julie E. Czerneda
Relativity: Essays and Stories, Robert J. Sawyer

Meilleur ouvrage en français (Autre)/Best Work in French (Other)
Dû au manque de nominations, aucun prix ne sera décerné dans cette categorie.
Due to lack of nominations, this category will not be awarded.

Artistic Achievement/Accomplissement artistique
Lar deSouza
Stephanie Ann Johanson
Jean-Pierre Normand
Martin Springett
Ronn Sutton

Fan Achievement (Publication)/Accomplissement fanique (Publication)
MensuHell, direction: Francis Hervieux
Opuntia, Dale Speirs, ed.

Fan Achievement (Organizational)/Accomplissement fanique (Organisation)
Roy Miles
Greg Cairns
Rebecca M. Senese
Joan Sherman
Brian Upward

Fan Achievement (Other)/Accomplissement fanique (autre)
Made in Canada, Don Bassie (website/site web)
Karen Linsley, filksinging
Bright Weaving CD, Martin Springett
Larry Stewart, entertainer / personnalité: amuseur
Urban Tapestry, filksinging

Obituary
Voice artist Thurl Ravenscroft (b.1914) died on May 22 of prostate cancer. Ravencroft is best known as the voice of cereal spokescreature Tony the Tiger. He also provided the voice for Kirby in the Brave Little Toaster series and voices in a variety of Disney films. He voices Thing 1 in The Cat in the Hat.

23 May 2005

Sidewise Awards Nominations
The Sidewise Award nominations have been announced. The Sidewise Awards honor excellence in alternate history fiction. This year's awards will be presented at Interaction in Glasgow, Scotland.

Short Form
"The Ashbazu Effect," by John McDaid
"Five Guys Named Moe," by Sean Klein
"The Gladiator's War: A Dialogue," by Lois Tilton
"The Heloise Archive," by L. Timmel Duchamp
Ministry of Space, by Warren Ellis
"Red Hands, Black Hands," by Chris Roberson

Long Form
The Plot Against America, by Philip Roth

Mythopoeic Awards Nominations
The Mythopoeic Awards are presented annually to works that exemplify the spirit of the Inklings and scholarly works into the Inklings' writings. The winners of this year's awards will be announced at the Tolkien 2005 conference (incorporating Mythcon XXXVI) in Birmingham, England, from August 11-15, 2005.

Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, Adult Literature
The Anvil of the World, by Kage Baker
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, by Susanna Clarke
Mortal Love, by Elizabeth Hand
Alphabet of Thorn, by Patricia A. McKillip
The Wizard Knight, consisting of The Knight and The Wizard, by Gene Wolfe

Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, Children's Literature
Arthur Trilogy, consisting of The Seeing Stone, At the Crossing Places, and King of the Middle March, by Kevin Crossley-Holland
Sea of Trolls, by Nancy Farmer
Trilogy consisting of Wise Child, Juniper, and Colman, by Monica Furlong
The Abhorsen Trilogy, consisting of Sabriel, Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr, and Abhorsen, by Garth Nix
A Hat Full of Sky, by Terry Pratchett

Mythopoeic Scholarship Award for Inklings Studies
Tolkien the Medievalist, edited by Jane Chance
War and the Works of J.R.R. Tolkien , by Janet Brennan Croft
Following Gandalf: Epic Battles and Moral Victory in The Lord of the Rings, by Matthew Dickerson
Bareface: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's Last Novel, by Doris T. Myers
Tolkien in the Land of Heroes, by Anne C. Petty

Mythopoeic Scholarship Award for Myth and Fantasy Studies
Vampire Legends in Contemporary American Culture: What Becomes a Legend Most, by William Patrick Day
The Meanings of Beauty and the Beast, by Jerry Griswold
Robin Hood: A Mythic Biography, by Stephen Thomas Knight
Diana Wynne Jones: An Exciting and Exacting Wisdom, edited by Teya Rosenberg

Obituary
Editor and publisher Samuel Herbert Post (b.1924) died from inoperable cancer on May 20. Post published numerous science fiction authors in his career, including Poul Anderson, Gordon Dickson, C.M. Kornbluth and H.P. Lovecraft.

22 May 2005

Philip K. Dick in Chicago
Wired Magazine is sponsoring the NextFest, an exhibition of futuristic technology to be held at Chicago's Navy Pier from June 24-June 26. Among the many pieces displayed will be a robotic bust of science fiction author Philip K. Dick which can make eye contact and uses artificial intelligence and spech software to carry on complex conversations.

Obituaries
Author Pat York was killed in a car accident in Columbus, Ohio on May 21. She was visiting family at the time of her death. York began publishing in 1995 with the story "Truckin'" in Tomorrow SF. Her story "You Wandered off Like a Foolish Child to Break Your Heart and Mine" made the Nebula ballot in 2000, and her stories made the preliminary Nebula ballot on two other occasions.

Actor Howard Morris (b.1919) died on May 21. Morris did voice work in numerous television shows, including "The Flintstones," "Winnie the Pooh (as the gopher), "Magilla Gorilla" (as Mr. Peebles), and Atom Ant (in the title role). In 1998, he appeared in "The Wonderful Ice Cream Suit."

Actor Henry Corden (b.1920) died of emphysema om May 19. Corden got his start in films in "The Secret Life of Walty Mitty" and went on to appear in 90 films, playing Paw Rugg in the "Atom Ant" series and eventually taking over the role of Fred Flintstone in 1977. In the "Return to the Planet of the Apes, he voiced General Urko.

19 May 2005

Roots of Writing Award
Science Fiction and Fantasy Female Writers (SF-FFW) has announced the creation of the Roots of Writing Award. The award recognizes seven of the most influential women in the field of science fiction and fantasy literature, including Betty Ballantine, Madeleine L'Engle, Anne McCaffrey, Ursula K. Le Guin, Kate Wilhelm, Joanna Russ, and the late Andre Norton.

Sheckley Update
Robert Sheckley is improving and is now able to breathe on his own for limited periods of time. His doctors hope to remove the respirator entirely in the near future and have hopes that Sheckley will be able to stand and walk on his own by the end of the month.

Locus Nominees
Locus has released a list of the top five vote-getters in this year's Locus poll. The winners will be announced at Westercon in Calgary during the weekend of July 1-4.

Best Science Fiction Novel
The Algebraist, Iain M. Banks
Eastern Standard Tribe, Cory Doctorow
Forty Signs of Rain, Kim Stanley Robinson
The Baroque Cycle: The Confusion; The System of the World, Neal Stephenson
Iron Sunrise, Charles Stross

Best Fantasy Novel
The Dark Tower: Song of Susannah; The Dark Tower, Stephen King
Iron Council, China Miéville
Going Postal, Terry Pratchett
The Family Trade, Charles Stross
The Wizard Knight, Gene Wolfe

Best First Novel
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke
The Coyote Kings of the Space-Age Bachelor Pad, Minister Faust
Trash Sex Magic, Jennifer Stevenson
The Year of Our War, Steph Swainston
City of Pearl, Karen Traviss

Best Young Adult Book
Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War, Clive Barker
The Faery Reel: Tales from the Twilight Realm, Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling, eds.
The Blue Girl, Charles de Lint
Gifts, Ursula K. Le Guin
A Hat Full of Sky, Terry Pratchett

Best Novella
Baxter, Stephen, Mayflower II
Denton, Bradley, "Sergeant Chip"
Shepard, Lucius, Viator
Stross, Charles, "The Concrete Jungle"
Wolfe, Gene, "Golden City Far"

Best Novelette
Baxter, Stephen, "PeriAndry's Quest"
Beagle, Peter S., "Quarry"
Kelly, James Patrick, "Men are Trouble"
Link, Kelly "The Faery Handbag"
Miéville, China, "Reports of Certain Events in London"
VanderMeer, Jeff, "Three Days in a Border Town"

Best Short Story
Ford, Jeffrey, "The Annals of Eelin-Ok"
Gaiman, Neil, "Forbidden Brides of the Faceless Slaves in the Nameless House of the Night of Dread Desire"
Miéville, China, "'Tis the Season"
Waldrop, Howard, "The Wolf-man of Alcatraz"
Wolfe, Gene, "Pulp Cover"

Best Magazine (Locus excluded)
Analog Science Fiction, Science Fact
Asimov's Science Fiction
The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
Realms of Fantasy
Sci Fiction

Best Publisher
Ace
Baen
DAW
Del Rey
Tor

Best Anthology
The Locus Awards: Thirty Years of the Best in Science Fiction and Fantasy, Charles N. Brown & Jonathan Strahan, eds.
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Seventeenth Annual Collection, Ellen Datlow, Kelly Link & Gavin Grant, eds.
The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-First Annual Collection, Gardner Dozois, ed.
Year's Best SF 9, David G. Hartwell & Kathryn Cramer, eds.
Between Worlds, Robert Silverberg, ed.

Best Collection
Mother Aegypt and Other Stories, Kage Baker
The Collected Short Fiction Of C.J. Cherryh, C.J. Cherryh
Phases of the Moon: Stories of Six Decades, Robert Silverberg
The John Varley Reader, John Varley
Innocents Aboard, Gene Wolfe

Best Editor
Ellen Datlow
Gardner Dozois
David G. Hartwell
Patrick Nielsen Hayden
Gordon Van Gelder

Best Artist
Kinuko Y. Craft
Bob Eggleton
Donato Giancola
Frank Kelly Freas
Michael Whelan

Best Non-Fiction
The Gernsback Days: A Study of the Evolution of Modern Science Fiction from 1911 to 1936, Mike Ashley & Robert A.W. Lowndes
Ray Bradbury: The Life of Fiction, Jonathan R. Eller & William F. Touponce
The Wave in the Mind: Talks and Essays on the Writer, the Reader, and the Imagination, Ursula K. Le Guin
The Annotated Brothers Grimm, Maria Tatar, ed.
Dancing Naked: The Unexpurgated William Tenn, William Tenn

Best Art Book
Alan M. Clark, The Paint in My Blood: Illustration and Fine Art
Spectrum 11: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art, Cathy & Arnie Fenner, eds.
Paul Kidby, The Art of Discworld, Terry Pratchett
Luis Royo, Fantastic Art: The Best of Luis Royo
Gahan Wilson, The Best of Gahan Wilson

NASA Discovers Ancient Texts
A NASA developed technology called multispectral imaging, which was developed to map Mars has been successfully used by scientists at Oxford to determine the texts of badly burned manuscripts recovered from Pompeii. Using the technique on the Oxyrhynchus Papyri, scientists have uncovered early Gospel writings, works by Sophocles and Euripides and a 30 line fragment by the soldier poet Archilochos about the Trojan War.

Obituary
Actor Frank Gorshin, (b.1934), best known to fans as The Riddler on the 1960s Batman television series, died on May 17 after a long struggle with lung cancer, emphysema and pneumonia. Gorshin received an Emmy nomination for his role as The Riddler and another Emmy nomination for his role as Commander Bele in the Star Trek episode "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield."

Tiedemann Named President
Author Mark W. Tiedemann has been named president of the Missouri Center For The Book. The Center is a state affiliate of the Library of Congress program, the mission of which is to promote books, reading, an appreciation of literature, and general literacy.

Fountain Award
The Science Fiction Literature Foundation has announced the winner of the 2004 Fountain Award. This award, presented to a speculative short story of exceptional literary quality, was first given last year. The winner is selected by a jury. This year's winner is Jeffrey Ford for the story "The Annals of Eelin-Ok," published in The Faery Reel.

SESFA Nominations
The South Eastern Science Fiction Association has announced the nominees for this year's SESFA Award. All members of the organization (which may be joined at www.sesfa.com) may vote for the winner through June 30. The award is presented to authors who have a tie to the Southern United States.

Best Novel of 2004
Beyond Infinity by Gregory Benford
Camouflage by Joe Haldeman
Coyote Rising by Allen Steele
Viator by Lucius Shepard

Best Short Fiction of 2004
"Alabama" by Kalamu ya Salaam
"Christus Destitutus" by Bud Webster
"Faces" by Joe Haldeman
"My Life Is Good" by Scott Edelman

Lifetime Achievement in SF/F/H
Gregory Benford
Nelson Bond
Ben Bova
Orson Scott Card
William S. Gibson

SpecFicWorld Fiction Contest
SpecFicWorld.com's Third Annual Speculative Fiction Contest is open to submissions. $300 in cash prizes will be awarded. The 2005 contest is open to both published and unpublished writers. More details about the contest can be found at http://www.specficworld.com/contest.html

12 May 2005

Filk Fan Baby
German Filk Fan Alexa Karina gave birth to a daughter, Emily Magdelena on May 12.

Clarke Award
The 2005 Arthur C. Clarke Award was presented to China Miéville for the novel Iron Council on May 11. This year's prize included a cheque for £2005. The Clarke Award is presented each year to a science fiction novel which received its first British publication during the previous calendar year.

Obituary
Kansas City fan Vince Kohler (b.1940) died on May 11. Kohler's death came at the end of a two year battle with cancer. Kohler's activity with KCSFFS dates back more than 20 years and he has long been a resource for films for the Kansas City community and served as a liaison between Kansas City fandom and Hollywood.

10 May 2005

Samantha Stevens Statue
In recent years, TVLand has been sponsoring statues of famous television characters as public art in the towns with which they are associated. Their latest statue is a replica of the Elizabeth Montgomery character Samantha Stevens from Bewitched, recently unveiled in the town of Salem, Massachusetts. Other, non-genre statues include Mary Richards in Minneapolis, Andy & Opie Taylor in Raleigh, and Bob Hartley in Chicago.

Polar Lander Found
NASA scientists believe they have located the remains of the Mars Polar Lander, which was destroyed upon attempted landing on Mars in December of 1999. Orbital searches in 1999 and 2000 were unable to locate the wreckage, but re-examination of grainy, black-and-white images from that search apparently include pictures of the lander. Higher resolution images will be taken later this year to confirm the discovery.

Obituary
Animator Joe Grant (b.1908) died on May 6. Grant designed the character of the witch for Disney's first feature length film, "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." In a decades spanning career, he co-wrote "Dumbo" and worked on character design for Aladdin, The Lion King and Mulan. He was also one of the writers of the Donald Duck short "Der Fuehrer's Face."

5 May 2005

Sheckley Ill
Robert Sheckley was admitted to a hospital in Kiev, Ukraine after falling ill in Odessa. He has been diagnosed with progressive respiratory insufficiency and is on artificial respiration.

SFSFC Announces SMOFCon Scholarships
The Board of Directors of San Francisco Science Fiction Conventions, Inc. (SFSFC) have voted to award two scholarships of $300 to help Bay area convention runners in training attend the SMOFCon convention-runners convention in Portland OR this year over the weekend of December 2-4, 2005.

Dell Magazine Awards
Asimov's and Analog presented their annual reader's awards at a breakfast on April 30 at the Nebula Awards Weekend in Chicago.

Asimov's Readers Award:
Short story: "Travels With My Cats," Mike Resnick
Novelette: "The Garcia Narrows Bridge," Allen Steele
Novella: "Liberation Day," Allen Steele
Poem: "Heavy Weather," Bruce Boston
Cover artist: Donato Giancola (August)

Analog Readers Award:
Short story: "Shed Skin," Robert J. Sawyer
Novelette: "Short Line Loco," Stephen L. Burns
Novella: "Layna's Mirror," Rajnar Vajra
Fact: "Open Minds, Open Source," Eric S. Raymond
Cover: November, David A. Hardy

Saturn Awards
The Saturn Awards are given out annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films to honor genre films and television shows. The awards have been presented since 1972. The Academy and the awards were founded by Dr. Donald A. Reed.
Best Science Fiction Film: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Best Fantasy Film: Spider-Man 2
Best Horror Film: Shaun of the Dead
Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film: Kill Bill: Vol. 2
Best Animated Film: The Incredibles
Best Actor: Tobey Maguire (Spider-Man 2)
Best Actress: Blanchard Ryan (Open Water)
Best Supporting Actor: David Carradine (Kill Bill: Vol. 2)
Best Supporting Actress: Daryl Hannah (Kill Bill: Vol. 2)
Best Performance by a Younger Actor: Emmy Rossum (Phantom of the Opera)
Best Director: Sam Raimi (Spider-Man 2)
Best Writer: Alvin Sargent (Spider-Man 2)
Best Music: Alan Silvestri (Van Helsing)
Best Costume: Kevin Conran (Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow)
Best Make-Up: Hellboy (Jake Garber, Matt Rose, Mike Elizalde)
Best Special Effects: Spider-Man 2 (John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara, John Frazier)

Best Network Television Series: Lost
Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series: Stargate SG-1
Best Television Presentation: Farscape: Peacekeeper Wars
Best Actor on Television: Ben Browder (Farscape: Peacekeeper Wars)
Best Actress on Television: Claudia Black (Farscape: Peacekeeper Wars)
Best Supporting Actor on Television: Terry O'Quinn (Lost)
Best Supporting Actress on Television: Amanda Tapping (Stargate SG-1)

Best DVD Release: Starship Troopers: Hero of the Federation
Best DVD Special Edition Release: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Best DVD Classic Film Release: Dawn of the Dead
Best DVD Collection: Star Wars Trilogy
Best DVD Television Release: Smallville (seasons two and three)
Best DVD Retro Television Release: Star Trek (the original series)

The Life Career Award: Tom Rothman
The Life Career Award: Stephen J. Cannell
The Filmmakers Showcase Award: Kerry Conran
The Special Recognition Award: Star Trek

2 May 2005

GUFF Winners
Damien Warman and Juliette Woods have been elected GUFF delegates to Interaction. GUFF pays for fans to travel between Europe and Australasia. Warman and Woods defeated Sue Ann Barber, Alison Barton and David Cake in the race.

SFWA Election
The election results for the next year's officers of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America were announced during the Nebula Award weekend in Chicago. The offices of Treasurer and Eastern Regional Director were uncontested.
President: Robin Wayne Bailey
Vice-President: Howard V. Hendrix
Secretary: Cartherine Mintz
Treasurer: Justin Stanfield
Eastern Regional Director: Diane Turnshek

2006 Nebula Weekend
The 2006 Nebula Weekend will be held in Tempe, Arizona at the Tempe Mission Palms. The weekend will be chaired by Lee Whiteside from May 4-7. The room rate will be $137/night.

Obituary
Josef Nesvadba (b.1926) died on April 26. Born in Prague, Nesvadba was a practicing psychiatrist who began writing science fiction stories in the 1950s and later turned to novels and plays. His story "Captain Nemo's Last Adventure" was translated into English and often reprinted.

1 May 2005

Nebula Awards Announced
The Nebula Awards were presented in Chicago, Illinois on April 30. Neil Gaiman was toastmaster. Anne McCaffrey received the Damon Knight Grand Master Award and Kevin O'Donnell, Jr. received the Service to SFWA Award.
Best Novel: Paladin of Souls, by Lois McMaster Bujold
Best Novella: "The Green Leopard Plague," by Walter Jon Williams
Best Novelette: "Basement Magic," by Ellen Klages
Best Short Story: "Coming to Terms," by Eileen Gunn
Best Script: "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens & Peter Jackson