THE ZINE DUMP 49 a Zine About Zines by GUY LILLIAN III 1390 Holly Avenue Merritt Island FL 32952 [email protected] 318/218-2345 GHLIII Press Pub #1278 May, 2020
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THE ZINE DUMP 49 A zine about zines by GUY LILLIAN III 1390 Holly Avenue Merritt Island FL 32952 [email protected] 318/218-2345 GHLIII Press Pub #1278 May, 2020 The Zine Dump is a fanzine devoted to the science fiction fanzine world. It wants to see and list every generally- distributed amateur publication devoted to SF and its fandom published in English, and hear and comment on all news connected with the hobby. Published on eFanzines.com, by e-mail, by hard copy for trade and in mailings of the Worldcon Order of Fan-Editors. Dedicated to Marty Pasko, writer, editor and wit, who added mad humor and excitement to my year at DC Comics. Among the many superheroes he sent to fight injustice: Superman, Batman, the Metal Men, Swamp Thing, the Justice League of America, the Tick, E-Man, and many others. He wrote for Roseanne Barr and brought superhero TV animation high esteem, winning an Emmy for his work on the Batman animated series. He was brilliant and iconoclastic and hilarious. His work and his wit were wondrous, and I’m proud I knew him. God rest his epic soul. The Zine Dump 49 Some new tactics for this issue of The Zine Dump. For one thing, I’m not letting zines stack up to review all at once as I formerly – and stupidly – did. For years, la belle Rose-Marie has advised me to write up a zine as soon as it shows, in the mail, e-mail or on eFanzines. I did so this time, and the difference in my energy and enthusiasm has been amazing. Also, if there is a 2020 edition of WOOF, or W.O.O.F., or the Worldcon Order of Fan-Editors, this issue may well be included. WOOF is a “yearbook” for science fiction fandom, so a zine aspiring to list every non-blog fanzine published in English should be comprehensive – as complete a guide to current science fiction fanzines as can be made. For that reason I’ve merged this issue’s listings with reviews from previous TZDs. If no recent issue of a pub is available for review, I’m including older notices (marked with asterisks: ** for last issue, *** for the one before. I’m also adding descriptions of long-missing zines in italics. Thereby, I hope, we convey the facts and the feel of almost every zine being published out there. Confusing enough? Most productions, new or old, can be found on Bill Burns’ magnificent and generous site, eFanzines.com, which is probably where you found this zine. Go thou and read. And as always, if you find any goofs in TZD, please alert me at once. I’ll fix’em. Most of us know the lingo of our hobby, of course, but for the benefit of neos – those new to our Jurassic segment of fandom – a very basic glossary. You’ll see publications here listed with certain prefixes. A genzine is a general magazine, usually with articles and features by various hands. Example: Banana Wings. A clubzine ca n either be a bulletin or a genzine, produced by and/or for an SF fan group. Examples: DASFAx, Warp. A perzine is most often one person’s output. Example: MarkTime. An apazine is produced for an amateur press alliance, a group of fan editors who ship a number of their productions to a central mailer, who distributes them to its members. Example: Purrsonal Mewsings for Stipple-Apa. You get it. Apas, by the way, are a fine way to grow easy with written-language expression. They instill a sense of community identity that can sustain your fannishness for a lifetime. (For instance, I’ve been in SFPA, the mighty Southern Fandom Press Alliance, for fifty years.) There are lots of amateur press associations: Apa-L, LASFAPA (both Los Angeles-based), SAPS, FAPA (the granpere of them all), Golden Apa, SFPA, Stipple-Apa, etc. etc. Contact the member listed for information. Enough blather. ON TO THE ZINES. Coverage: late 2019 to June 1, 2020. Alexiad #110 Vol. 19 No. 2 / Joe & Lisa Major, 1409 Christy Avenue, Louisville KY 40204-2040 / [email protected] / efanzines.com or trade / And here I worried that the virus would keep the Majors from their regular fanac. April 2020 brings forth another Alexiad, reminding us that among fanzine editors, pandemics and politics are so much noise and nothing more. Herein Joe laments the decline in stature of the Hugo Award, since he, like I, knows nothing of most of the nominees (but see Chris Garcia’s later letter), announces revival of a Sherlock Holmes journal, mourns Earl Kemp and astronaut Al Worden (a girlfriend once claimed she’d dated him, but she also said she’d met Charlies Watts and Manson), and lists the royals – including another Charlie – who have contracted COVID-19. He’s then off into his reviews, including a pained notice of the “new” Heinlein, which he contends should never have been published. Three Matt Jenne thrillers, parts to Blue Gemini, he next mentions sound cool. Lisa discusses pets and horses (of course), and Rodford Edmiston enthusiastically discourses on the history of the telescope. With a comet above, that would be a popular subject. After a repulsive anecdote about Isaac Asimov, who might not have been a suitable guest at Wiscon, Sue Burke talks Rogue Moon and this year’s Nebula short fiction nominees. (The nominees for both Nebula and Hugo are listed. You will know the “Nubble-Bubble” winners by now.) Sue also has a LOC in Joe’s admirable lettercol. Admirable indeed is all of Alexiad, consistently superb over the decades, not just years. 2 The Zine Dump 49 Ansible / David Langford, 94 London Road, Reading, Berks, RG1 5AU, UK / news.ansible.uk. / The indispensable British newszine, wherein updates on the genre are presented with Langford’s powerful, sometimes bitter, but ever-kindly wit. Perhaps in concert with the devastation wreaked by the virus worldwide, May’s “R.I.P.” section is not only long, it literally refuses to stop: Dave has to continue it twice. (It includes my old Greensboro friend Keith Ferrell and Al Fitzpatrick, with whom I shared a hysterical ride to MidAmeriCon in 1976.) But there’s joy here, too, in “Thog’s Masterclass” (even fine writers can do damage to the language) and “As Others See Us”, as well as lists of award winners and nominees and other business. By all means check out the Ansible homepage; whatever you need to know about SF fandom, it’s there. Askance 48 / John Purcell, 3744 Marielene Circle, College Station, TX 77845-3926 / [email protected] / eFanzines / John was kind enough to send TZD a review copy of his jolly genzine just prior to publication. Recent issues have centered on his Trans-Atlantic Fan Fund delegacy, which took him and his to the 2017 Worldcon in Helsinki. John went on to chair a Corflu, “the fanzine fans’ convention,” on which he reports here with enthused text and photos (grand to see fan-ed faces) … and a worry that, thanks to COVID-19, Corflu Heatwave may have been the last fan-run con of 2020. He looks back with further regret on the fate of AggieCon, listing the 50 to date, lamenting the degeneration of the once-epic Texas convention into a gamers’ event. Will it revive? He has no answer. After Bill Fischer’s Trumpfic – a chuckler – John reviews a few zines, we see a Figby ‘toon (or you will; my copy lacks it), a short lettercol, and a promise to try for a quarterly schedule – two more issues this year. Professor Purcell will be teaching online courses this fall, just like my wife – damn, this pandemic is a bummer! Askew / John Purcell, see above / John’s perzine last appeared in the early spring, where he gave statistics on his Corflu’s FAAn Awards and engaged Nic Farey in some hearty debate on the subject. ** Banana Wings #76 / Claire Brialey & Mark Plummer, 59 Shirley Road, Croydon, Surrey CR0 7ES U.K. / [email protected] / BW is an outstanding zine of excellent production values and strong content. As you see, it won this year’s FAAn Award for the field’s best fanzine and tied for best genzine. Coming forth just before the virus bit, its emphasis is on the Dublin Worldcon – a superlative report from Caroline Mullan – and highlights of the past. Andy Hooper, who has become the best writer on fannish history around, breaks into real history with a piece on the Japanese submarine that sunk the USS Wasp during World War II. (Well, one should hope that the Japanese didn’t sink any American ships after World War II.) Tony Keen talks Beatles (debate over the White Album is ne’er-ending). Niftiest item is a reprinted article by Walt Willis and Vinc Clarke on the revered fan cartoonist, Arthur Thomson (ATom). Mark and Claire always contribute entertaining editorials to Banana Wings; here Mark endorses Alison Scott for this year’s GUFF, a fan fund that lofts winners from the U.K. to Australia/New Zealand. [No trip for the winner this year! Someday!] Since they’re helping with the Hugo Awards this year, Claire and Mark decline any 2020 nominations. There’s always next year. [God, I hope so!] BCSFAzine #540 / R. Graeme Cameron, [email protected] / The British Columbia SF Association’s monthly clubzine, which new editor Cameron – “The Graeme”; excuse me – has turned into a righteous genzine. Robert Sawyer contributes some “random thoughts,” always welcome from this charming guy, a review is proffered of a unique Moby Dick play/movie by Orson Welles, no less, there’s a Taral Wayne portfolio, regional news and lots of reviews in Cameron’s shy and restrained (NOT!) style.