28 November 2007

Denvention Names Special Guest
Denvention 3, the 2008 Worldcon to be held in Denver, Colorado from August 6-10, has announced the addition of Kathy Mar as a Special Music Guest. Mar discovered filk music at Denvention 2 in 1981 and has won several Pegasus Awards and was inducted into the Filk Hall of Fame in its second year of existence.
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Endeavor Award
The 2007 Endeavor Award, presented at Orycon, was given to Robin Hobb for her novel Forest Mage. The Endeavor Award honors science fiction or fantasy published by an author with ties to the Pacific Northwest. The award includes a grant of $1,000. The Endeavor Award is sponsored by Oregon Science Fiction Conventions, Inc.
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Obituary
Mitchell Harding (b.1928 as E. Loring Ware) died on November 9. Harding was a co-founder, with Mike Hodel, of "Hour 25," later renamed "Mike Hodel's Hour 25," a Los Angeles area radio show devoted to science fiction. Harding appeared on the show as "John Henry Thong." He also read the news on KCRW.

26 November 2007

Obituaries
Verity Lambert (b.1935) died on November 22, five days shy of her birthday. Lambert was the first female producer working at the BBC when she was appointed to oversee the production of the 1963 children's television series "Doctor Who." Lambert stayed with the series for three years and also served as executive producer of Quatermass in 1979.

Michael Blodgett (b.1940) died on November 14. Although best known for his appearance in the film "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls," Blodgett had genre credits with appearances in the television series "The Munsters," "Isis" and "Electra Woman and Dyna Girl." Blodgett also wrote the script for the film "Turner and Hooch."

21 November 2007

TAFF Winner Announced
Chris Garcia was announced as the winner of the Trans Atlantic Fan Fund. Garcia beat a field of three other contenders, including Chris Barkley, Christian MacGuire, and Linda Deneroff. The high density of Chrises in the race apparently did not negate Garcia's campaign slogan "Vote for Chris." Garcia plans to arrive in the UK in mid March, prior to Eastercon, and try to hit P-con in Ireland before returning to the US on April 1.

First North American Discworld Convention Announced
Lee Whiteside has announced that the first North American Discworld Convention will be held in Tempe, Arizona from September 4-7, 2009. Terry Pratchett will attend as guest of honor and other guests will include Diane Duane, Peter Morwood, and Esther Friesner.
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Obituaries
Sidney Coleman (b.1937) died on November 18. Although best known as a physics professor, most recently at Harvard, Coleman was one of the founders of Advent:Publishing, the Chicago-based fan-run press which published Heinlein in Dimension, among other non-fiction books on science fiction.

Anthologist Peter Haining (b.1940) died on November 19. Haining not only edited several anthologies of short stories, including , but also wrote several books about Doctor Who, including Doctor Who: A Celebration Two Decades Through Time and Space, Doctor Who: The Key to Time A year by year record, and The Nine Lives of Doctor Who.

Actor Dick Wilson (b.1916) died on November 19. Although best known for his role in Charmin bath tissue commercials as Mr. Whipple, Wilson also had a recurring role on the television series "Bewitched," in which he appeared as a drunk who would vow to go sober after seeing Samantha Stevens perform magic. He also had bit parts in several other fantasy and science fiction themed television shows.

14 November 2007

ISFiC Writers Contest
The winner of the ISFiC Writers Contest was announced on November 9 at Windycon in Rosemont, IL. The ISFiC Writers Contest was founded in 1986 and is open to unpublished writers in the Midwest. The winner's story is published in the Windycon program book and they receive a gold coin, convention membership, and a hotel room. This year's winner was Joe McCauley for his story "Ivan and the Plate of Fried Chicken." This year's judges were Roland Green, Elizabeth Ann Hull, and Bill Fawcett.

Obituaries
Novelist Ira Levin (b.1929) died on November 12. Levin is best known for his novels Rosemary's Baby, The Boys from Brazil, and The Stepford Wives, all of which were turned into successful films. His first play, "No Time for Privates" helped launch Andy Griffiths's career and his first novel, A Kiss Before Dying, won the Edgar Award for First Novel.

Anime fan Steve Pearl died on November 12. Pearl was the moderator of rec.arts.anime.info from 1993 to 2001. In 1992, he founded the Atlantic Anime Alliance and was the permanent Fan Guest of Honor at Otakon from 1994 through 2000. Pearl had been suffering from diabetes for several years.

5 November 2007

World Fantasy Awards
The World Fantasy Awards were presented at World Fantasy Con in Saratoga Springs, New York. In addition, locations for the 2009 and 2010 two World Fantasy Cons were announced. 2009 will take place in San Jose, California and 2010 will be in Columbus, Ohio.
Life Achievement: Betty Ballantine and Diana Wynne Jones
Novel: Soldier of Sidon, by Gene Wolfe
Novella: "Botch Town," by Jeffrey Ford
Short Fiction: "Journey Into the Kingdom," by M. Rickert
Anthology: Salon Fantastique, edited by Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling
Collection: Map of Dreams, by M. Rickert
Artist: Shaun Tan
Special Award, Professional: Ellen Asher
Special Award, Non-Professional: Gary K. Wolfe

Pegasus Awards
The Pegasus Awards for excellence in filk music were presented at the Ohio Valley Filk Festival the weekend of October 26-28. The awards are selected by the membership of OVFF and other fans.
Best Dorsai Song: "Shai" by Steve Simmons and Steve MacDonald
Best "Home" song: "Emerald Green" by Michelle Dockery and Tony Fabris
Best Writer/Composer: Talis Kimberley
Best Performer (tie): Seanan McGuire and Dr. Mary Crowell
Best Classic Filk Song: "Falling Down On New Jersey" by Mitchell Burnside Clapp
Best Filk Song: "Rich Fantasy Lives" by Rob Balder and Tom Smith

International Horror Guild Awards
The International Horror Guild Awards were presented the evening of November 1 World Fantasy Con in Saratoga Springs, New York. The winners are:
Novel: The Unblemished, by Conrad Williams
Long Fiction: "Dark Harvest," by Norman Partridge
Mid-Length Fiction: "The Old North Road," by Paul Finch
Short Fiction: "The Box," by Stephen Gallagher
Collection (tie): Basic Black, by Terry Dowling and American Morons, by Glen Hirshberg
Anthology: Lords of the Razor, edited by William Sheehan and Bill Schafer
Periodical: Subterranean, edited by Bill Schafer
Non-Fiction: Icons of Horror and the Supernatural, edited by S.T. Joshi
Illustrated Narrative: A.L.I.E.E.N., by Lewis Trondheim
Artwork (tie): Exhibits from the Imaginary Museum, Aeron Alfrey and Cover Story: The Art of John Picacio, by John Picacio
Living Legend Award: Ramsey Campbell

Obituaries
Actor and singer Robert Goulet (b.1933) died on October 30. Goulet made his debut in the play "Camelot," in which he portrayed Sir Lancelot. He went on to appear in many made-for-television musicals with fantasy elements, including "Brigadoon" and "Carousel." In the early 1980s, he appeared in several episodes of "Fantasy Island" and the film "Beetlejuice."

Producer Robert F. O'Neill (b.1921) died on October 23. O'Neill produced the short lived horror anthology series "Darkroom" in 1981, the series "The Invisible Man" in 1975, and the paranormal series "The Sixth Sense." He also produced the made-for-tv film "Gemini Man."