2 The Reluctant Famulus 119 September-October 2017 Thomas D. Sadler, Editor/Publisher, etc. 305 Gills Branch Road, Owenton, KY 40359 E-mail: [email protected] Contents Introduction, Editor 3 Some Haikus, Denney E. Marshall 4, R col. A Gentleman’s Life, Eric Barraclough 6 A Parody, Walt Wentz 11 Kentuckiana, Alfred D. Byrd 12 The Crotchety Critic, Michaele Jordan 17 NAE Part One, Gayle Perry 20 NAE Part Two, Gayle Perry 6 Another Parody, Walt Wentz 32 Letters 35 Conclusion, Editor Artwork/Photos Brad Foster 11 lower right col., 42 Denney E. Marshall 4, 11 lower left col,34, 40 Spore 4, 35, 37, 39 T. D. S. Photos, 16, 43 SF magazine covers, Internet 5, 43 From the Internet 19, bottom of right column The Reluctant Famulus is a product of Strange Dwarf Publications. Some of the comments expressed herein are solely those of the Editor/Publisher and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts of any sane, rational persons who know what they are doing and have carefully thought out beforehand what they wanted to say. Material not written or produced by the Editor/Publisher is printed by permission of the various writers and artists and is copyright by them and remains their sole property and reverts to them after publication. TRF maybe obtained for The Usual but, in return for written material and artwork, postage costs, The Meaning of Life, and Editorial Whim. Or a ton of Hershey’s Special Dark chocolate. 2 3 The Reluctant Famulus Not much going on or worthwhile Before I go any further I need to make a be- with flying colors. (It must be nice to recall things lated correction and apology. In TRF 116 I ne- Dave remembered. Showoff. glected to credit Denney Marshal for the Haikus One thing I did remember when Dave re- in that issue. I’m sorry about the omission and minded me was that Bob Sabella was at the con- will strive in the future to avoid to doing such an vention. He had attended it mainly to meet me. oversight again Give credit when credit is due. He and I had become pretty good friends as did I seem to be running low on anecdotes from Dave and George, Lan Laskowski, and, to a cer- the conventions I attended but I’m trying hard to tain extent Buck Coulson. But back to the size of come up with something, anything at all. I’ve the group. You can bet that I was as surprised as been relying on my memory which I admit is not anyone else at the size if the group. Repeating always accurate and error free. Here is, so far, myself: when I came up with the idea I had a one of the few experiences I have at least a vague smaller number in mind. Even so, they were all recollection as to what went on. Thankfully, I welcome. I never even though that so many other have the help of fan and friend Dave Rowe who fans would want to join it. With me, nobody im- was in the following event. portant or special! It was during one of the several Inconjunction I’m fairly sure it was during a Millennicon cons. It was on a Saturday. I came up with the held in Dayton Ohio. I remember another dinner idea (not an original one) of getting some of the in which I was involved but it was definitely a fans I knew together and go to some restaurant smaller one. Helen Davis and her family were for dinner. In my mind it would be only a small there and, curse it, some others whose names I number of fans I knew well for an intimate din- can’t recall (Can you see a pattern here?) I could ner. It would include my family. Dave Rowe was remember it because I paid for the group’s din- one of them (I’m ashamed to admit I can’t recall ners! And I was hardly a rich man, moneywise. I the names of the others. I fervently wish I could, was in a very good, expansive mood. It wouldn’t damn me,). Since Dave was familiar with the area surprise me that if Helen were to read this part because he lived nearby he picked the restaurant she may helpfully correct me. and made the reservation. We ended up going to a I can’t remember if I wrote about this before; Pizzeria Uno which easily accommodates groups. I hope not. Yes it is back to Dr. Who but with a As I said above it was to be a modest group. different slant. I’m sure that nothing will come of When we got there Dave was spokesman for our this. The Doctor regenerates in to a man but group. When our table became available there there’s a difference. On the Doctor’s first adven- was an announcement, “Rowe. Table for 18.” In ture there’s a glitch. He travels to a time and helping me remember, Dave wrote that, place in the universe where he’d never been. As “someone in line exclaimed “Table for 18”, “as he’s trying to learn what’s going he finds that tho’ it was an impossibility.” According to Dave he’s not alone. There’s someone else. She, too, the server said he was relatively new and was was a “Rogue” Time-lord (lordess? Lady?) who pleased to be waiting on our table it was the first appropriated a Tardis and went off on her own large party he had been given. He came through quest for adventure or solving problems. This is 3 4 part of her territory, so to speak. Some Poetry and art by Denney E. Marshall At first there would be the usual friction and disagreements between two different people. But Seven Science Fiction Haiku eventually over several episodes they learn to aliens arrive work together successfully. In one episode the with no spaceship or journey male doctor finds the solution, in another episode, born in the earth core the female does, alternately, or with the same so- lution. after million years It won’t be all sunshine and roses It should dust drop from mars, lands on yard show new dimension to the Doctor(s) I imagine hibernates for now this will make things complicated but viewers large spaceship in sky would have either their favorite Doctor or be unmanned robot alien happy with both. In my way of thinking it’s a organ harvester matter of equality between them with occasional spats. There might also be a companion or two ufo stranded involved. After all, some problems may be too nothing wrong with the spaceship great for a single Doctor to cope with. Yeah. I lost the keys again know. It’s a wacky idea and unworkable and I’m sun bakes mercury certain there are many objections to it. To me it’s the stove is getting hotter a way to show that people can work together in earth is on menu spite of their differences and gender, both of which should be equal. Ultimately they show mu- before attack starts tual respect for each other in spite of their differ- aliens block light from sun ences. Okay. So I’m an unrealistic nut. After all, too freak us out why would the BBC pay any attention to some- frozen thousand years thing of mine. They’d laugh their heads off. As you are filled with the horror the man said about the airplane without wings or when you see ex-wife wheels, “That’ll never fly.” And the idea is too late anyway. That will have to do for now, until and unless I’m able to think of anything more worth writing about. Stop laughing at my crazy idea. I’m in an alternate universe or the 13th dimension. On the next page, a few more old SF maga- zine covers. I’m featuring fewer this time partly to insure I have plenty of them left to use and partly because though the color covers are nice they sure suck up a lot of color ink. 4 5 5 6 he points out himself. Why three of Karloff'’s A Gentleman’s Life marriages ended are complete mysteries. His first marriage certificate records his religion as Catho- Eric Barraclough lic, this is the only known connection between Karloff and Catholicism. And the day before he Boris Karloff died, as he slipped in and out of consciousness, More Than a Monster he repeated the name Walter Pidgeon. The book’s Stephen Jacobs only other mention of Pidgeon is as second vice- Tomahawk Press president of the Screen Actors Guild in Novem- 2011 ber 1951. 568 pages What Jacobs’s research uncovers about Kar- loff’s relatives could fill a few more books be- sides. His great aunt was Anna Leonowens who was the Anna of The King and I. His mother was said by one admirer to be the most beautiful woman in the world. His brothers included one who was knighted and one who refused a knight- Boris Karloff'’s authorized biography has hood, was responsible for ordering the arrest of been written, again. It’s either the third or fourth. Mahatma Gandhi and lived under Nazi occupa- The previous book was Boris Karloff: A Gen- tion in the Channel Islands (the only area of the tleman’s Life by Scott Allen Nollen (Midnight United Kingdom to be invaded by Hitler).