28 October 2006

Obituaries
Chicago fan Philip Friedman (known as Cyohtee) died on October 25 of dilated cardiomyopathy. He was one of the founders of the Barbarian Wine & Cheese Society and performed filk.

Actor Arthur Hill (b.1922) died on October 22. Hill appeared in several films and television shows of genre interest, including "The Andromeda Strain" and "Futureworld." He provided the voice of the narrator in the film adaptation of Ray Bradbury's "Something Wicked This Way Comes."

22 October 2006

Obituaries
Actress Jane Wyatt (b.1910) died on October 20 of natural causes. Wyatt was best known for her role as Margaret Anderson on television's "Father Knows Best," bust she also appeared in films and television shows of genre interest, including Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and the original "Star Trek," and the television series "Starman."

Actress Phyllis Kirk (b.1929) died on October 19 from a post cerebral aneurysm. Kirk, born Phyllis Kirkegaard, portrayed Sue Allen in House of Wax, opposite Vincent Price. She also appeared in the Twilight Zone episode "A World of His Own."

21 October 2006

Geffen Awards
The Geffen Awards, presented in Israel for the best SF published there, were presented at Icon on October 12. The award, given by the Israeli Society for Science Fiction and Fantasy, is named after Amos Geffen. This year's winners are listed below.
Best Translated Science Fiction Book: Spin, by Robert Charles Wilson
Best Translated Fantasy Book: Anansi Boys, by Neil Gaiman
Best Original Israeli SF/Fantasy Short Story: East of Eden, by Higal Averbach

L. Ron Hubbard Garners New Guinness Records
Guinness World Records has confirmed that L. Ron Hubbard is the worlds most published author, with 1,084 works published, exceeding the record previously held by José Carlos Ryoki, with 1,058. In addition, Guinness notes that Hubbard has surpassed his own records as most translated author with the addition of six more languages, to bring his total to 71.

Marvel at the Guiding Light
Marvel Comics is seeking synergy with the daytime soap opera The Guiding Light. Beginning November 1, a new superhero developed by Marvel will appear on the soap opera, which was created in 1937 on radio and moved to television in 1952. The character will also appear interacting with The Guiding Light characters in an eight-page insert to appear in several Marvel comics.

14 October 2006

Quill Awards
The Quill Awards have been announced. The presentation of the Awards will be shown on NBC on October 28. Categories with winners of genre interest are listed below.
Children's Chapter Book/Middle Grade: The Penultimate Peril, by Lemony Snicket
Young Adult/Teen: Eldest, by Christopher Paolini
General Fiction: A Dirty Job: A Novel, by Christopher Moore
Graphic Novel: Naruto, Volume 7, by Masashi Kishimoto
Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror: A Breath of Snow and Ashes, by Diana Gabaldon

National Book Nominees
Winners will be announced in New York on November 15. Categories with nominees of genre interest are listed below.

Fiction
Mark Z. Danielewski, Only Revolutions
Ken Kalfus, A Disorder Peculiar to the Country
Richard Powers, The Echo Maker
Dana Spiotta, Eat the Document
Jess Walter, The Zero

Young People's Literature
M.T. Anderson, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol. 1: The Pox Party
Martine Leavitt, Keturah and Lord Death
Patricia McCormick, Sold
Nancy Werlin, The Rules of Survival
Gene Luen Yang, American Born Chinese

Obituaries
Animator Ed Benedict (b.1912) died on August 28. Benedict designed many of the Hannah-Barbera characters, including Yogi Bear, Fred Flintstone, and Dino. He got his start as an animator on the 1934 Walter Lantz film "The Dizzy Dwarf." In 1946, he worked on the Disney film "Make Mine Music."

Fan David Stewart (b.1960) died on October 12 following a battle with esophageal cancer. Stewart was an active Irish fan who was heavily involved in running Octocon and served as the Irish agent for Interaction. Outside of fandom, he worked as a freelance journalist specializing in technology and had an interest in jazz.

9 October 2006

TAFF Race
The two nominees for TAFF have been announced. Chris Garcis and Mary Kay Kare will be running for a trip toEurope in 2007. Ballots are available at http://taff.org.uk/ballots/taff2007.html. TAFF was created in 1953 to aid in fannish relations between Europe and North America. Ballots are due to the administrators by January 6, 2007.

Obituary: Not a Hoax
Arthur Wilson "Bob" Tucker (b.1914) died on October 6, four months after his wife, Fern. Tucker was a long-time fan and author, responsible for such notable fanzines as the 1930s The Planetoid, Le Zombie (1938-1975) and The Bloomington News Letter. His novels included The Lincoln Hunters, The Year of the Quiet Sun, and To Tombaugh Station. In 1970, Tucker received the Hugo for Best Fan Writer and was the second SFWA Author Emeritus in 1996. In 2003, he was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. Tucker's tendency to name characters in his books and stories after friends and fans resulted in that process being known as "tuckerization." In 1941, he coined the term "space opera." On at least two occasions, Tucker's death was announced in fandom, once in 1934 during the fannish "Staple War" and again in 1949 at Cinvention. Unfortunately, this announcement is not a hoax.