Index

 

This is SKYRACK number 76 published on 4th March 1965 by Ron Bennett at 52 Fairways Drive, Forest Lane, Harrogate, Yorkshire, England. 6 issues for 2/6. Six issues for 35 cents in the USA (6 issues airmailed for 70cents) where subscriptions may be sent to Bob  Coulson, Route 3, Wabash, Indiana 46992. News of interest to sf fans always welcome. Cartoon by Arthur Thomson, captioned by Ron Bennett. Contributions from Ethel Lindsay, Mike Moorcock, George Locke, Phil Harbottle and others.

TERRY FOR TAFF

THE TRANS-ATLANTIC FAN FUND wound up its latest campaign on 1st March with a clear cut leader in the ballot to bring a Stateside fan across the Pond as official U.S  fan delegate to the August World Convention which will be held in London. The final figures, subject to the traditional neutral check, are:

                                   U.S.A        UK        TOTAL

 TERRY CARR              168          39                207

 JOCK ROOT                  95           19               114

 BILL DONAHO             71           18                 89

In addition, there were two write-in votes for Len Moffatt, and one each for Dick Eney, Ben Starke, Bjo Trimble and Wally Weber.

Thus the Fund winds up its latest campaign after a lengthy period of hyper-activity during which it has functioned virtually continuously with Ethel Lindsay at its helm for almost three years. Terry will be the fifth American fan to travel under the Fund’s auspices, the others being Bob Madle (1957 London Worldcon), Don Ford (1960 LonCon), Ron Ellik (1962 Harrogate Con) and Wally-Weber (1964 PeterCon II).

Terry is at present employed as an editor with Ace Books, last year’s Hugo winner in the Best Publisher category of the Awards, is author of the Ace novel  The Warlord of Kor, and has had several short stories published by F&SF. Following Ken Bulmer (1955), he is the second professional writer to be elected a TAFF delegate and like Ken he wins the honour for his hyper-activity in the fan field. A fan since the age of twelve, Terry is now most active in FAPA with his excellent fanzine LIGHTHOUSE but is undoubtedly best known in the field for his work under the “Carl Brandon” by-line (for example, My Fair Femme Fan), his brilliant fanzine Innuendo and his Hugo Award winning newszine Fanac. Absolutely wonderful to know you’re coming,Terry.Congratulations.

TWENTY NINE FANS LODGED VOTES with TAFF administratrix Ethel Lindsay, who will now be handing over the U.K. end of the Fund to last year’s delegate Arthur Thomson after an almost record stint of Fund handling since September 1962. The twenty nine were: Mal Ashworth, Dave Barber, “Carl Brandon Jr." George Charters, Jim Cawthorn, Horst Uvermann, Keith and Wendy Freeman, Jimmy Groves, John Hautz, Rosemary Hickey, Terry and Val Jeeves, George Locke, Ian McAulay, Peter Mabey, Ella Parker, Charles Platt, Michael Rosenblum, Bob and Sadie Shaw, Peter Singleton, Wolfgang Thadewald, Arthur Thomson, Brian and Frances Varley, James White, Madeleine and Walt Willis.

Donations to the Fund were made as follows: Peterborough Convention £22 2s 10d; Ivor Latto 25/6d; Science Fiction Club of London, Peter Mabey, Michael Rosenblum £1 each; Horst Evermann, Terry Jeeves, Keith Otter, Peter Singleton. 15/- each; Kevin Dillon 14/6d; Dave Barber 10/6d; Jim Cawthorn, Jimmy Groves, Ian McAulay, Brian Varley and Frances Varley 10/- each; Archie Mercer 10/-; Rolf Gindorf and Wolfie Thadewald 8/- each; Charles Platt 7/6d; Rosemary Hickey 7/- ; Liverpool Group Quotecards 6/6d; Bill Danner 6/-; George Locke 6/-; Ron Bennett 5/ld; Mal Ashworth, Carl Brandon, George Charters, Keith Freeman, Wendy Freeman, John Hautz, Val Jeeves, Ella Parker; Bob Shaw, Sadie Shaw, Arthur Thomson, James White, Madeleine Willis and Walt Willis 5/- each; Terry Carr 2/-; Tom Perry 2/- and Joe Zajaczkowski 1d.

THE ULTIMATE ANALYSIS, a complete bibliography and estimation of John Russell Fearn, running to 60 foolscap sides with 20 illustrations, is all but finished. Two fanzine articles are urgently wanted before it can be finalised. These are “Concerning Webwork” by Thornton Ayre in New Worlds (1940), and “Why Copy the Americans?” by Vargo Statten in S.F.Satellite (1954), the first issue of Don Allen’s fanzine. Anyone wishing to sell or merely loan those items will be well rewarded, in addition to receiving free copies of the bibliography. Contact, please, who else but Phil Harbottle, 27 Cheshire Gardens, Wallsend-on-Tyne, Northumberland.

FURTHER ON THE LONDON WORLDCON this coming August. An excellent savings scheme .is in operation. Cash, postal orders, details or what have you to/from (respectively), Ella Parker, 43 William Dunbar House, Albert Road, London .NW 6. Following the list of expectcd continental attendees last issue, let's balance the scales with the latest list of fans expected to arrive from North America:
Dick Eney, Ron Ellik, Al Lewis, Don and Elsie  Wollheim, Frank and Elinor Busby, Karen and  Poul Anderson, Boyd Raeburn, Forry Ackerman, Anthony Boucher, Leigh Brackett, Wally Cole, Frank Dietz, Harlan Ellison, Edmond Hamilton, Dave and Ruth Kyle, Dick and Pat Lupoff, Ed Meskys, Schuyler Miller, Bob and Barbara Silverberg, George Nims Raybin, Harry Harrison ((from North America? Well, that’s what it says here!)).

MORE ON FAPA. Following the recent annual FAPA Awards ballot during which was invited the blackballing of waiting listers....  the entire waiting list was so blackballed (reports Focal Point, a new and very meaty newszine from Rich Brown and Mike McInerney, 268 East 4th Street (apt 4C), New York City, New York). The report continues to say that Bob Pavlat,. the FAPA’s Secretary-Treasurer, had compensated for this loss of an entire waiting list by in inventing his own. It is understood that quite coincidentally the new list resembles the old in many respects.

FOCAL POINT also reports that Ace Books are publishing an anthology World’s Best Science Fiction 1965 edited by Don Wollheim and Terry Carr, that Ted White has recently sold novels to Ace, Monarch and Lancer, and that Analog is to revert to digest size with its April issue, a change occurring slap in the middle of a five part serial and in the middle of a volume.

CHARLES PLATT THROWS PARTY - FANS VISIT LONDON. Which seems a fair enough headline to wipe clean the slate of last issue. Fans and other invited guests queued up with gatecrashers to get into the house warming party thrown by Beyond editor Charles Platt on Saturday, 27th February. Attendees were first sorted out into different rooms, a good filter plan for ridding the party of the unwanted, the fans being ushered into the Platt bedroom which was strewn with fanzines, lps, clothes, Playboy cutouts and the occasional duplicator. On the wall was an impressive sheet headed “Things to prepare for the party,” certainly an innovation as far as parties are concerned in fandom. Here Norman Sherlock, who a year or so ago was fast becoming thought of as a one joke man (“Let me tell you about the last Japanese suicide pilot. His name was...” showed how wrong is this tag by cracking another joke. In a little while our host, the Twisher himself appeared, said that it was now clear downstairs and would we please move down again as he was worried about the carpet in his room getting messed up. Following his own recent remarks in a fanzine on such matters this struck us as hilariously funny. Shortly afterwards, after much vibrant conversation we were entertained by our host with, of all things, an electric organ and by Mike Moorcock on an electric guitar. During the evening Charles would rarely be seen in one spot. He kept popping up to fish a bottle from some hiding place and then would disappear to do the same for some other group of fans, The forthcoming BSFA election for the post of publications officer was discussed calmly with the merits of contenders Charles and Roger Peyton viewed most dispassionately. All in all a very good party, or perhaps several good parties, in different rooms, at the same times. Present at some time or other were Archie Mercer, Norman Sherlock, Lang Jones, Pat Kearney, Des Squire, Peter White, Mary Reed, Daphne Sewell, John and Marjorie Brunner, Julia Stone, Ethel Lindsay, Jim Ballard, Mike Moorcock, Cliff Teague, Pete Weston, Graham Hall, and of course Charles the Platt himself. And probably, amongst, the milling hordes, Alan Dodd .

THE MIDDLE OF FEBRUARY saw Eric Bentcliffe and Harry Nadler brave the blizzards ranging over Stand Edge and drive over to Harrogate in Harry’s Skoda. A very good evening (from my point of view) ensued, with Chateau Shorrock sampled in the Yorkshire air. The temptation to mix it with the natural waters of the spa was resisted. Before returning the visitors set up shop and showed the Delta group’s latest epic, the famed Castle of Terrors, due to be screened to the public at large in London late in August.

THE OTHER PARTY, continued. It is not every day that Skyrack receives a report written by an attendee of an all night party - the day after that very party. But there’s always a first time. George Locke writes: "Saturday 27th February. Pre-wedding party to celebrate the forthcoming wedding of Alan Rispin and Linda Crowe on 3rd March. Geldart, Locke and Bette Woodhead drove up from London, visiting some neo-fan name of Bennett en route. Party started properly at 10pm with one large beer barrel and a couple of thousand University of Newcastle students complete with cloth caps and depressed areas. Finished about 4 am with a suspected depressed area on a fellow’s skull who had a mild contretemps with a door. Visited Fapan Colin Freeman on the way back.” Which report smacks of a little arm levering to get Colin to join FAPA. George omits mention of a suction rattle owned by Andrew (John Berry’s plonker gun fandom is not dead) which was stuck to his forehead on the Saturday. George returned to Yorkshire on the Sunday afternoon with the mark still plainly visible. Don Geldart is believed to be running a book on the length of time it takes for the mark to disappear.

CHANGE.OF ADDRESS: Charles Platt, 325a Westbourne Park Road, London W. 11.

SNIPPETS: Bill Harry, ex-fan and editor of the Liverpool pop music paper, Mersey Beat expands the publication this week to include the whole world of pop music. New title for the sheet will be Music Echo ::: Lovecraft’s Colour Out of Space is being filmed under the title House at the End of the World. Screenplay by Jerry Sohl. In colour. Will star Karloff, Terence de Marney (how are the Marney fallen) and that refugee from the TV newspaper world Nick Adams ::: Congratulations to Steve Tolliver on his engagement to Sylvia Dees ::: New Worlds 150 is corning up with a special all-star issue, with a photo feature of British contributors, a guest editorial by Ted Carnell and stories by Charles Harness, Jack Vance, Ted Tubb, Brian Aldiss, Jim Ballard and John Brunner. NW 151 will feature a new style cover, probably in memory of the good old days at 151 in NW 6 ::: Also regarding New Worlds comes the news that Penguin will publish the NW anthology Lambda One and Other Stories in July ::: Ron Bennett has resigned from the London WorldCon committee. The main body in London just wouldn’t agree to move to a con site a few miles out of London, to Harrogate, and there was the odd minor reason, like sheer lack of time. Programming has now been taken over by Miss Ella Parker, address elsewhere thish. ::: That National Film Theatre showing of King Kong mentioned a couple of issues back, was attended by Alan Dodd, Chuck Partington, John Ramsey Campbell and Harry Nadler ::: Coincidence. At the same time as Ratatosk announces that Bruce Pelz has for sale 20 copies of the 2nd edition of Walt Willis’ The Enchanted Duplicator (with Eddie Jones illos), PeteWeston announces that he plans a summertime limited edition of another reprint of the same epic, sporting card covers and Atom illos. The Pelz edition costs 75cents and the Weston edition will undoubtedly be a sell out at 3/6d ::: This issue is for Ethel Lindsay, a keener worker than whom fandom never possessed.

LETTER DEPARTMENT  William F. Temple, Skyrack’s Pet Professional, writes: ”Here with arf-a-crown being a renewal of sub. to SKYRACK, a magazine of a quality hard to beat....for making paper darts. Actually, I’ve retired from fandom - but I still like to throw paper darts at my wife.”

And lastly, a note frorn Terry Carr’s FAPAzine, Lighthouse, mentioning that, no, the Larz Bourne of Hollywood cartoon fame is not the Oregon fannish Lars.