24 December 2006

Obituary
Fan Dick Eney (b.1937) died on December 22 following a series of strokes. Eney's strokes were small and had atypical symptoms so were not diagnosed properly before a larger stroke killed him. In 1959, Eney published Fancyclopedia II, explaining several terms and jokes used by fans of that era. Two years later, Eney ran for TAFF, losing to Ron Ellik. Eney worked on committees for Discons I and II and Constellation and was the Fan Guest of Honor at LACon II, the 1984 Worldcon. In addition to Fancyclopedia II, Eney published numerous other fanzines since discovering fandom in 1949.

21 December 2006

Harry Potter and the Book Seven
Author J.K. Rowling has announced the title of the seventh, and final, Harry Potter novel. The book, without a release date yet, will be called Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Rowling has stated that two characters will die in the book, but hasn't given any indication as to which characters they will be.

Firefly Sets Sail
The group that created the documentary "Done the Impossible" has announced a Browncoat Cruise scheduled for December 2007. The cruise will leave from San Diego and make three stops over five days. At least two of the stars of Serenity and Firefly are expected on board, as well as several other actors who appeared in Firefly and Serenity. More information can be found at www.browncoatcruise.com.

Worldcon Literacy Donations
L.A.con IV raised $8,463.75 to divide between RIF (Reading is Fundamental) and the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. The funds were raised by auctioning off books which were displayed in Cadet Central at the Worldcon. The Book Exhibit was overseen by Ron and Val Ontell.

Call for Papers
ASLE 2007 is announced a call for papers on the topic "Environmental Science Fiction: Genre and Possibility" Proposals should be sent to Eric Otto at eco2@psu.edu.by January 10. For more information, see www.woffordcollege.org/asle/

Obituaries
Author Marj Krueger (b.1941) died on December 20. Krueger published science fiction novels and short stories under the pseudonym "Jayge Carr," beginning in 1976 with the story "Alienation." She also published the four novels in the Rabelais series.

Comic Book Artist Jack Burnley (b.1911) died on December 19. Burnley was the second artist to draw Superman for DC Comics. Along with Gardner Fox, he created Starman. In 1939, Burnley drew the cover of New York World's Fair Comics which was the first to feature both Superman and Batman.

19 December 2006

Obituaries
Screenwriter Chris Hayward (b.1925) died on November 20. Hayward got his start working with Jay Ward on "Crusader Rabbit," the first created-for-television cartoon. He continued to work with Ward on " The Bullwinkle Show" and was instrumental in the creation of Dudley Do-Right. In 1964, he was the writer of the first episode of The Munsters as well of as developer of the series.

Joseph Barbera (b.1911) died on December 18. Barbera, who along with partner William Hanna formed Hanna-Barbera Productions, was responsible for cartoons including "Tom and Jerry," "The Flintstones," "The Jetsons," and "Scooby Doo."

Comic book artist Martin Nodell (b.1915) died on December 9. Nodell was the artist who created the original Green Lantern in 1939 when All American Comics editor told him that the only way to get a permanent position was to create a character. Nodell left DC Comics, which had absorbed All-American, in 1947 when he moved to Timely (Marvel) and drew Captain America, Sub Mariner, and the Human Torch. In 1950, he retired from comics and turned to advertising, during which time he helped create the Pillsbury Doughboy.

15 December 2006

Golden Globe Nominations
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen for Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006)
Johnny Depp for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006)
Aaron Eckhart for Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Chiwetel Ejiofor for Kinky Boots (2005)
Will Ferrell for Stranger Than Fiction (2006)

Best Animated Film
Cars (2006)
Happy Feet (2006)
Monster House (2006)

Best Television Series - Drama
"24" (2001)
"Big Love" (2006)
"Grey's Anatomy" (2005)
"Heroes" (2006/II)
"Lost" (2004)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Drama
Patricia Arquette for "Medium" (2005)
Edie Falco for "The Sopranos" (1999)
Evangeline Lilly for "Lost" (2004)
Ellen Pompeo for "Grey's Anatomy" (2005)
Kyra Sedgwick for "The Closer" (2005)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Thomas Haden Church for "Broken Trail" (2006) (mini)
Jeremy Irons for Elizabeth I (2005) (TV)
Justin Kirk for "Weeds" (2005)
Masi Oka for "Heroes" (2006/II)
Jeremy Piven for "Entourage" (2004)

Obituary
Actor Michael Gilden (b.1962) apparently committed suicide on December 5. Gilden made his acting debut as one of the Ewoks in "Return of the Jedi," also appeared on television in several episodes of "Charmed" and did voice work for "Aliens in the Family."

13 December 2006

Contemplation Announced
Contemplation has been announced as a replacement for the 2007 Eastercon. The convention will take place from April 6-9 at the Crowne Plaze in Chester. The con will be chaired by Chris O'Shea and Fran Dowd. More information and registration materials may be found at http://contemplation.conventions.org.uk/.

Author Emeritus Named
D.G. Compton will be honored as the Author Emeritus at the Nebula Awards in New York in 2007. Compton is the Nebula-nominated author of the novel The Steel Crocodile and has also written Chronocules and his debut novel The Quality of Mercy.

JETS to Japan
A one-off fan fund has been established to send a European fan to Yokohama for the Worldcon. The Japanese Expeditionary Travel Scholarship has a voting deadline of April 13. Seven fans are running for the trip: Abi Brown, Jim de Liscard, Jukka Halme, Tom Nanson ("FanTom") and Teddy, Chris OÂ'Shea ("The Magician"), Liam Proven, and Robert "nojay" Sneddon.

Letterhack Undergoes Surgery
Lloyd Penney, renowned fannish letter writer, has undergone eye surgery to reattach the retina in his right eye. Full recovery is expected to take eight weeks and his wife Yvonne has asked that any inquiries or wishes be routed through e-mail to help Lloyd get the rest he needs.

Moesta Joins WotF
Rebecca Moesta has joined the panel of judges for the Writers of the Future Contest. Moesta, who is married the author Kevin J. Anderson, has written more than thirty science fiction and fantasy novels.

Obituaries
Author Patricia Matthews (b.1927) died on December 7. Matthews wrote fantasy, historical romances, and mysteries, often using pseudonyms including Patty Brisco, Laura Wylie, P.A. Brisco, Pat A. Briscoe, and Denise Matthews.

Actor Peter Boyle (b.1935) died on December 12. Boyle is best known for his role as Frankenstein's Monster in the Mel Brooks spoof "Young Frankenstein" and more recently as the father on the non-genre show "Everybody Loves Raymond." Boyle also appeared in several films and television shows of interest to SF fans, including "The X-Files," "Outland," and "Lois and Clark." His role as Clyde Bruckman on "The X-Files" earned him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

3 December 2006

SMOFcon 25
SMOFcon 25 will be held the weekend of December 7-9, 2007 in Boston, MA at the Hilton Boston Logan Airport. The con will be chaired by Geri Sullivan. The con will have a focus on marketing, public relations, and advertising

Sweet Exhibition
An exhibition of the artwork of science fiction artist Darrell K. Sweet will be held at the Wyoming State Museum in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The exhibition opens on January 22, 2007 and will run through March 23. More than twenty-five paintings by Sweet will be displayed and Sweet will give a lecture at the museum on January 25.

Obituaries
Film writer/producer/director Don Dohler died on December 2 following a diagnosis of lung and brain cancer. Dohler, of Timewarp Films, produced sf films such as "The Alien Factor," "The Galaxy Invader," and "Vampire Sisters," mostly created films for the direct to video market. Dohler also created and edited the magazine Cinemagic.

Comics fan Jerry Bails (b.1933) died on November 26. Bails was known as the Father of Comic Book Fandom and was the publisher of Alter-Ego, which was the first fanzine to put comic fans in touch with each other.

Author Pierce Askegren died on December 3. Askegren was a life-long comic fan and wrote several comic novelizations, including Spider-Man and Iron Man: Sabotage and The Avengers and the Thunderbolts.

Composer Shirley Walker (b.1945) died on November 29 following a stroke. Walker's compositions could be heard on the television series "The Flash," "Batman: The Animated Series," "Space: Above and Beyond," and the Final Destination films.