This is SKYRACK 68, dated 12th June 1964, published by Ron Bennett, 17 Newcastle Road, Wavertree, Liverpool 15 and just about the last on the scene with the TAFF results.
6d per copy. 6 issues for 2/6d or 35c (70c airmail) in the USA where subscriptions should be sent to Rbt. Coulson, RR 3, Wabash, Indiana 46992. News of interest to ye good old sf fandom is always welcomes and the cartoon on the left is by neo-émigré, Arthur “Atom” Thomson, one-time fake fringe fan, of whom further tales will be told.
ATOM ALL THE WAY
The second 1964 Trans-Atlantic Fan Fund campaign closed at midnight on the 31st May with London's Arthur Thomson leading Lincolnshire's Phil Rogers on both sides on the Pond. The final figures, collected and counted by Ron Ellik, Wally Weber and Ethel Lindsay and checked by Al Lewis and Charles Smith, were:
UK USA Total
ARTHUR THOMSON 32 63 95
PHIL ROGERS 28 13 41
British fans who voted in the campaign were: Jill Adams, Brian Allport, Ted Ball, Dave Barber, Ron Bennett, Eric Bentcliffe, Darrell & Irene Boothroyd, John Ramsey Campbell, Jim Cawthorn, Ken Cheslin, Ted Forsyth, Colin Freeman, Wendy & Keith Freeman, Jimmy Groves, Bill Harrison, John Humphries, Terry Jeeves, Eric Jones, Lang Jones, Jhim Linwood, Ian McAulay, Ken MacIntyre, Peter Mabey, Archie Mercer, Frank & Patti Milnes, Mike Moorcock, Joe Navin, Marge & Stan Nuttall, Keith Otter, John Owen, Darrol Pardoe, Ella Parker, Betty & Ian Peters, Charles Platt, Phil Rogers, John Roles, Bob Shaw, Ina and Norman Shorrock, Peter Singleton, Chas.Smith, Arthur Thomson, Norman Weedall, Peter Weston, James White, Madeleine & Walt Willis. Sincere congratulations to Arthur, who will travel as TAFF delegate to the 22nd World SF Convention held over Labor Day weekend in September in the sunny west-coastlands of the USA.
FROM THE WOODWORK OUT department: On sale over here are a) Sex, Spice & The Single Man, photographed and captioned by Bill Rotsler, and b) Famous Photographers Photograph Beautiful Women which includes work by Dave Jenrette. Old time Beard Growing Contestant, Michael Evans, has returned to fannish life, having been resident in Liverpool for the past 10 months. And also raised from the dead is Skyrack's onetime regular flier, mi, from Eric Bentcliffe, as you can well see.
LIVERPOOL FANDOM GOES MAD with enough news and socializing to fill a dozen Skyracks. The Alien/Delta invasion of Higher Bebington on 10th May is well covered in mi, and there has also been a return trip eastwards to the Ched Lum home of Beryl & Eric Bentcliffe, a return trip split into two parts, with an advance party on 31st May (the Shorrock 7, Norman Weedall and Eddie Jones) preparing the way for the 7th June visit of the Nuttalls & the Bennetts. Eric, Beryl and daughter Lindsay are recovering with a trip to Belgium on Saturday. LiG partied out at Freshfield beach on Whit Sunday, when the Shorrocks, Norman W. and Eddie hosted Wendy & Keith Freeman who also made their scheduled (cough) appearance at the Whit Monday bowling session which was well won by Eddie Jones. At the 8th June LiG AGM, the year's Chairman came through as Auntie Marge Nuttall. Norman Weedall took over as Vice Chairman, John Ramsey Campbell turns his writing talents to secretarial reporting and messrs. Nuttall S. and Shorrock N. continue as dictatorial treasurers. Split the money before mid-July, fellers. John Humphries, who joined the club on a free transfer from Cheltenham is to take up residence in the western isles shortly, it is understood, with a proposed move to Belfast.
HOLIDAYS & CONVENTIONS. In addition to Eric & Co visiting Belgium this weekend, another continental traveller is Camber's Alan Dodd who is at the moment in the middle of a trip which will take - or is taking - him via Belgium, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Roumania, Transylvania and Bulgaria to Istanbul. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, plans are in full swing for the multi-group visits to the Marquartstein (Bavaria) Castle Con over the weekend of 1st/2nd August, with high season rates of as much as eighteen shillings per night's accommodation being charged! The Liverpool Group and satellites will be there in force and details can be obtained from Tom Schluck whose address appears opposite. And around here somewhere is Brumble 1, which covers the 1965 British Castlecon.
THE DEATH is announced of Cleve Cartmill ::: John Wyndham's Web, a new novel, due out autumn ::: TAFF Delegate to the recent Petercon, Wally Weber, has been transferred by his firm to Alabama, and accordingly, the decision has been taken to fold Seattle's Hugo winning, focal point fanzine Cry. Starspinkle, which was first on the scene with the TAFF results, reports that number 174 is the last of the Nameless Ones' zines. ::: Production has begun on the films of Wyndham's Chrysalids and Wells' When The Sleeper Awakes ::: Join the Langdon B.Jones Amateur Status Preservation Society. Fans the world over are worried enough about this pressing problem and are determined to do something. A meeting will be held at Caxton Hall on Saturday, Mr. Jones presiding. Be there ::: Des Squire sends a token and claims his one-twelfth thousand of a piano. Such claims should be made in person, sir, to 69d Bold Street, Liverpool on any Monday night. Say 3rd August?
ZENITH 5 (June 64; Peter Weston, 9 Porlock Cres., Northfield, Birmingham 31 1/6 or 20c. 50pp) Articles, fiction, features and departments with the highlight being the capture of the Willis ex-Nebula column, Fanorama. The Ed. F. James article on James White's Sector General stories and the Chris Priest survey of 1963 magazine sf both deserve especially praise as does the complete coverage of newly published sf. For this last-named service alone, this well produced leader of the New Wave is a fan's "must."
VECTOR 26 (May 64; The o-o of the BSFA, edited by Roger Payton, 77 Grayswood Park Rd., Birmingham 32) As well produced as both the Mercer issues of Vector and practically every fanzine which comes out of Birmingham these days. Jimmy Groves covers the PeterCon with words and photographs. Dick Howett writes on flying saucers and the usual departments, including the Peristyle column, make up a good issue.
THE SCARR 4 (April 64; Geo.L.Charters, 3 Lancaster Ave., Bangor, N.Ireland.22 pp) Slim by present standards, which just goes to show how much we're being spoiled these days. Bob Shaw writes on headlines and Ian McAulay on chips. J.D.Peebles tells a good salesman story and there is verse from Archie McGonagall.
CAMBER 14 (Undated; Alan Dodd, 77 Stanstead Rd., Hoddesdon,Herts; 2/6 or 25c; 42pp) A very welcome return of a personal favourite, with the good old Bill Harry illos and coloured Chapmans best. A very good article by Michael Moorcock on the Elric background and some excellent artwork by Cawthorn and Gilbert. Not quite up to the old standard, but this viewpoint is coloured by the rather narrow range of material, which doesn't appeal personally.
SCENE 2 (SFCoL newszine, Arthur Thomson, 17 Brockham House, Brockham Drive, London SW2; 6d) More LonCon '65 publicity, general chitchat and a listing of available b&w and colour films.
THE SKYHACK NEWSLETTER (35th May 1964) The third and latest Skyrack lampoon under this title. Good variety of snide cracks. Own up George and Ella.
HAVERINGS 15 (Ethel Lindsay, Courage House, 6 Langley Ave., Surbiton, Surrey; 9d) Complete and up to date listings, reviews and comments on the zinescene. An invaluable guide to the careful fanzine shopper.
SATURA (twice a month from John Foyster, PO Box 57, Drouin, Victoria, Australia. Trade or LoC) Various issues, the bulkiest some 16 sides. General personal comments on fandom and filmdom etc etc from the editor. More typical of the average apazine, which comment also applies to SLIMY-HO, a 4 page announcement of the formation of the Rugby School Fantasy & SF Society, whose president and editor is Peter Alderson Smith, Jettyfields, Braunston, Nr. Rugby.
THE BUG EYE 13 (Rolf Gindorf, 5603 Willfrath, Hans-Bockler-Str, 52, W.Germany) Mainly editorial comment and letters this issue, but some of the letters are article length and the interest is maintained for 28 pages without difficulty. Rightly acclaimed as fandom's only truly international fanzine.
SOL 38 (April 64; Thomas Schluck and his merry men, 3 Hannover, Altenbekener Damm 10) Franz Rottensteiner writes on Blish, fiction, illos, letters and Gerfan news. Interesting throughout. And, yes! Sol is printed in English. This issue is the second "English-language enterprise" and accordingly, makes me something of a liar in regards to my statement about The Bug Eye.
SNIPPETS: Thank you, Alan Rispin, for the "best wishes for the exams" card and you, too, Colin Freeman, for the "Get Well Soon" card which arrived in the middle of examination week ::: Note to Ethel Lindsay and other fans slightly annoyed by the "Leon Collins" letter in the latest Spinge. I've been asked by the fan who wrote the original Collins stirrer letters that he is in no way responsible for the latest diatribe and that the pseudonym was used without his permission ::: David Redd, 66 Augustine Way, Haverfordwest, Pembs. mentions that he has come across an old Moorcock-edited Tarzan Adventures and has noted that in a story "translated from the Spanish" there appear the names of Dick Ellington and Lee Hoffman. He pleads for a write up on this happy period of fannish history. Next he'll be wanting to know who was Bob Lumley....but can anyone oblige? ::: Ethel Lindsay notes the TAFF total in the UK kitty as being £123 9s 0¾ d, mentions that D.G.Small and Eddie Jones also voted in addition to the fans listed on page 1, and says that nominations are now open to bring a U.S. TAFF delegate over here to the proposed 1965 London Worldcon. It is understood that there could be a welcome and mammoth slate for this campaign, and there are already whispers of Ted White, Bill Donaho, Bjo, Al Lewis, Dick Eney and Harry Warner being nominated :::Peter Singleton mentions a recent nightmare in which New Worlds, Science Fantasy and all the U.S.prozines had succumbed to a take over bid from Badger ::: Harry Harrison (of whom you may have heard), Rortangvej 4, Snekkersten, Denmark desperately requires a copy of New Worlds 69 which contains his story Captain Bedlam and will pay good money to anyone who can come through ::: Whilst on the N.W.front, it is understood that Alan Dodd is writing film reviews for that august publication ::: Alan himself reminds me to mention that Hannes Bok died late April and that The Twilight Zone has finally made its appearance on TV over here (tut not on Merseyside, I'm afraid; BBC 2?) :::Alma Hill reports a sale to Pohl called Answering Service, notes a title change for the N3F story contest winner from The Ticket to A For Android and mentions that the contest's runner-up, Monster Tracks by R.E.Margroff has also been snapped up by Pohl, And lastly, a Change of Address: Charles Wells, 815 Demerius (M-1), Durham, N.C. 27701, USA,