Adapted from the Listserv edition
Published by Arnie Katz & Joyce Katz
Special Thanks to: Robert Lichtman & Earl KempAlso available in a PDF format
The BBB Fund: Hot as Summer!
As co-chairman of the fund to Bring Bruce Gillespie to Corflu and Potlatch in early 2005, it is a continual joy to see such a pure expression of trufannish and insurgent principles. Fans have banded together and worked harmoniously to fulfill a specific desired goal. From the strength and diversity of the support for the BBB Fund, it is certainly plain that All Known Fandom has united behind the idea of bringing/sending this multi-faceted fan to this pair of "old school" fan conventions.
Non-Donor Target Number One
I warned you that it might come to this, so the blame rests entirely on your shoulders. (I’m so damn sweet and innocent, I don’t know how I can associate with you.) Despite my valiant efforts and mighty exertions - and I assure you I am a candidate for living fannish sainthood - the Powers That Be decreed that we adopt the much-threatened Fundraising Plan B: Pick out and pillory prominent non-donors."I have combed the list of fans and found your first target," the Powers That Be told me only moments ago.
"This is wrong, wrong, wrong, Joyce," I said to the Powers That Be. "As the second-best humorist in the most recent FAAn Awards poll, I must use my satiric power only for good, never to hold up a fine fan to public obloquy."
"And yet it is something we must do," the Powers That Be insisted in a way that brooked no opposition. "And even you, as kindly and good-natured as you are, will see that this fan is ripe for it."
"I’ll grant that some fans’ standards of personal cleanliness are lower than the societal norm," I begin, gingerly.
"No, not body odor!" she snapped. "I mean ripe for the hatch job that will scare the rest of fandom into doing the right thing and forking over the dough for the BBB Fund."
"What makes you say that, Joyce?"
"He is widely known in fandom, the kind of writer, publisher and speaker who inspires respect in every quarter of Fandom."
"He does?"
"He is well-liked and gets along with just about everyone."
"Sounds like a great fan," I offered.
"A great fan, perhaps, but a fan with a great flaw," she said.
"Do you mean he reads science fiction?" I inquired.
"Well, he does, but that is not his primary defect."
"So what is it?"
"He has not sent a single dollar to the Bring Bruce Bayside Fund!" She clucked her tongue a couple of times to show how very disappointed she was.
"Not contributed to the BBB Fund?" I was incredulous.
"And he hasn’t bought the anthology, either!" she added.
"That’s downright Un-American!"
"Arnie, you may want to sit down for this," Joyce warned. "He’s not a patriotic American!"
The room spun and the floor rushed to meet me. I came this close to falling over myself and breaking both ankles. "N-not a patriotic American?" I murmured. "Thank Ghu Harry Warner isn’t alive to see this."
"That’s enough palaver," she said, lightning flashing from her hazel eyes. "It’s your duty as co-chairman to savage this non-donor. You’ve got to rip him up and down and then cut him into quarters with your incredible ability to make fans laugh."
"You think I have incredible ability to make fans laugh?" I asked, suddenly captured by the possibility of egoboo.
"Yes, and everybody agrees," she said. "When I tell people you are writing humor, they all say, ‘That’s absolutely incredible!’."
"As the apostle of sweetness and light in today’s fandom, I recoil at your suggestion," I said loftily. Still, there was the BBB Fund to consider. "As the co-chairman of the BBB Fund, give me his name and I’ll tear him a new one!"
"Here it is," Joyce said. She slid a piece of paper under my nose.
"No, not Him," I exclaimed when I saw the name.
"He hasn’t contributed," she persisted.
"True."
"He’s not a patriotic American," she reminded.
"No, he isn’t."
"So blast him with the hurricane force of your wit."
"My humor packs the power of a hurricane?" I had never heard this.
"Everybody agrees that your stuff really blows," said the Powers That Be. "Now get to work!"
"Joyce, I can’t do it. The fan you picked out... it’s Bruce Gillespie!"
"We’ve got to show them that we don’t play favorites."
"But the BBB Fund is for him," I blurted. "It makes no sense for him to contribute, since he’ll get the money for the trip anyway."
"It’s the principle," she replied. "If we let Bruce Gillespie off the hook, who’ll believe our threats when we get really nasty?"
"We have to take that chance," I said. "It’s for the good of All Known Fandom!"
"OK," she finally said with ill-concealed reluctance. "But he better toe the line or I’ll have to deal with him when he visits."
By just that slender margin did we avert an international fannish incident. The minute hand of the Fannish Doomsday Clock was one tick from midnight.
Contribute to the BBB Fund and buy The Incomplete Bruce Gillespie. Not only is it a good cause, but it might also keep Joyce from doing anything too rash.
Auction Update - Latest High Bids and a Few New Items
We have no new winners this time, but a lot of movement in the bidding as you can see below. Anyone who's won and wishes to cash out now is welcome to do so (contact me first at fmz4sale@yahoo.com for information on shipping charges), or you can hold off if you're bidding for other items (or plan to). Payment may be made to me by personal check or money order, or by Paypal (see elsewhere in this issue for details about this latter option).Here is the latest list of high bids received:
A8 - [3] - Flesh Is My Undoing, by "Clyde Allison" (actually William Knoles) - Earl Kemp $5
B11 - [3] - Boggs Bundle No. 1 - Bill Bowers $9
B12 - [3] - Boggs Bundle No. 2 - Bill Bowers $9
B14 - [2] - The first seven of nine issues of Alan Bostick's perzine, Fast & Loose - Damien Warman $15
B21 - [1] - The Double:Bill Symposium - Craig Smith $30
B22 - [1] - The Gafiate's Intelligencer - Don Fitch $5
B24 - [3] - Sky Hook No. 17 - Alexander Yudenitsch $16
C4 - [3] - Fanac No. 34 (The Fannish) - Peter Weston $35
C5 - [2] - The Fannish III - Peter Weston $30
C7 - [2] - Kratophany No. 3 - Don Fitch $10
C8 - [1] - Cipher No. 7 - Don Fitch $10
C9 - [2] - Marvel Tales, Volume 1, Number 4, March/April 1935 - Dwain Kaiser $40
G1 - [2] - The Metaphysical Review No. 1 - Larry Bigman $15
G2 - [2] - *brg* No. 2 - Janice Murray $5
G3 - [2] - The Iron Law of Bureaucracy, by Alexis Gilliland - Jukka Halme $20
J1 - [3] - Barnaby, by Crockett Johnson - Murray Moore $10
K1 - [3] - The Futurians, by Damon Knight - Thomas Bull $15
L1 - [3] - The Acolyte No. 11 - Rich Coad $50
M1 - [2] - Ouija No. 1 - Don Fitch $10
P1 - [3] - The Way The Future Was, a memoir by Frederick Pohl - Thomas Bull $15
S1 - [3] - Motel Sex Club, by "Andrew Shaw" (actually Lawrence Block) - Earl Kemp $5
W3 - [2] - Hyphen No. 3 - Michael Waite $30
W4 - [2] - Hyphen No. 10 - Michael Waite $30
W5 - [2] - Woz No. 1 - Tommy Ferguson $10
W6 - [2] - Woz No. 7 - Tommy Ferguson $10
W7 - [3] - The Best of Susan Wood - Peter Halasz $20
W8 - [2] - A complete run of Blat! - Alexander Yudenitsch $28
W9 - [3] - Harry Warner Jr. Horizons Batch - Irwin Hirsh $18Here are a couple of new listings for your delectation:
D1 - [N] - The Man in the High Castle, Hugo winning novel by Philip K. Dick. Sure, many if not most of you already have this book, but do you have it in this edition? This is the first book club edition, which shares in common with the true first edition the controversial dust jacket whose front cover artwork is split between the image of the Japanese "rising sun" on one side and the Nazi swastika on the other. None of the later edition, even the later book club ones, has this front cover, which proved to be controversial. The book itself is in near fine condition, with a very good dust jacket (minor chip bottom of spine, a little fraying top of spine, a few small holes along the fold between front and rear covers and the inner flaps...none of which particularly shows). Minimum bid: $10.
D2 - [N] - Philip K. Dick: Piper in the Woods, audio cassette tape of an interview with Phil conducted by one of his biographers, Gregg Rickman, in 1981. As the cover blurb on the paper sleeve inside the case says, "What you are about to hear is Phil Dick talking about his philosophy, his visions, his death, and his reasons for living." I think it runs at least an hour. Minimum bid: $10.
And finally, these are items that have not yet attracted bids. This is the last time they'll be listed unless someone steps forward.
B23 - [**] - What Mad Universe, by Fredric Brown, 224 pages, Boardman (London) 1951. This is the first British hardcover edition of Brown's premiere science-fiction novel and sports a magnificent full-color GGA cover by Denis McLoughlin and a back cover photo of Brown in alien garb with antennae and Spock-like ears. Both book and dust jacket (not price-clipped) are in good condition (book has slight spine lean, spine on jacket has inside tape repairs to top & bottom of spine and small tears on fold of inner flap). Cheapest copy on ABE is $54 & sounds inferior to this one. Minimum bid: $25.
M2 - [**] - Ouija No. 2, August 1972, edited by Mike McInerney and Brad Balfour, 19 pages. Donated by Mike McInerney. Contributors besides the editors include Ken Beale (a Westercon report) and Gary Deindorfer ("Some Instructions for Neodruggies from an Old Time Highly Evolved Head"). Letter column includes J. R. Christopher, Laurence Janifer, Don Fitch and others. Artwork by Brad Balfour, John D. Berry, Grant Canfield, Bill Kunkel, William Rotsler and others. Minimum bid: $5.
W1 - [**] - Master of the Macabre No. 1, June 1983, by Berni Wrightson, Pacific Comics (San Diego), 36 full-color pages and in near-new condition. Donated by Bruce Townley. Wrightson (the creator of Swamp Thing) writes and draws these beautifully-executed and lushly-printed horror comics. This issue contains "The Muck Monster," "The Pepper Lake Monster" and Poe's "The Black Cat." Minimum bid: $5.
W2 - [**] - Master of the Macabre No. 1, August 1983, also by Berni Wrightson, 36 pages and also in near-new condition. Donated by Bruce Townley. In this issue Wrightson presents "Jenifer," Lovecraft's "Cool Air," "The Laughing Man" and "Clarice." Minimum bid: $5.
All bids to fmz4sale@yahoo.com, please. Watch this space next issue for more new items and the latest high bid updates. And thanks to all who've participated. Your support is appreciated.
- Robert Lichtman, Aug. 1, 2004
How to Send the Money:
We'll take your money in just about any form, but some ways are easier.Contributions from outside the USA should be sent in American funds, if possible. Otherwise, we'll incur some fees - but we'll happily accept what's left!
Make checks payable to: Joyce M. Katz, PMB 152, 330 S. Decatur Blvd., Las Vegas, NV 89107.
PayPal Donations Are Most Welcome!
Here's how:
Go to www.paypal.com.
Choose "Send Money" and "American Funds."
Mark it for "other" (BBB Fund).
Send donation to: joyceworley1@cox.netPlease send Joyce a note saying that you've sent the donation via PayPal, and she'll check the account to see when it arrives.
The Incompleat Bruce Gillespie
Thanks to stalwart work by Irwin Hirsh, ably assisted by Bill Wright and Bruce himself, The Incomplete Bruce Gillespie is published and ready for your edification and delight.The beautiful 40-page compendium features some of Bruce Gillespie’s best personal, stfnal and fannish writings, and is profusely illustrated and impeccably printed. While the leather-bound version is not yet available to the general public, you can order the lovely one we have for $10 (cheap).
Send your orders to either Joyce Katz or Bill Wright (see below for contact info) and it will be mailed out from Australia as quickly as we can bully Bruce into posting it.
How to order from the Fund administrators:
Australia: $10 (incl. postage) to Bill Wright, Unit 4, 1 Park Street, St Kilda West VIC 3182.
USA: $10 (incl. airmail postage) to Arnie and Joyce Katz, PMB 152, 330 S Decatur Blvd, Las Vegas NV 89107.
UK: 5 pounds (incl. airmail postage) to Mark Plummer and Claire Brialey, 14 Northway Road, Croydon, Surrey CR0 6JE.
More One Percenters
A One Percenter is a BBB Fund supporter who helps prove that fans are special, one-in-a-hundred people by giving one percent of the $2,500 minimum needed to Bring Bruce Bayside.We’ll send Jason Burnett’s nifty "One Percenter" symbol to any such benefactors that wish to display it on their fanzines and websites.
Additions to the One-Percenters since the last report are: Mike Glyer; Elaine Stiles; Steve Stiles; Frank Lunney; Jeff Hamill; Zara Baxter; Jeff Roderick.
The Bottom Line
The BBB Fund, greatly aided by sales of the anthology, now stands at $3,230. That breaks down as $1,588.69 from the US and UK (in US funds) and $1,510 from Australia (in US dollars at the current rate). Additional money comes from the anthology and auction.The US account has also earned $0.52 in interest. PayPal charges, which have not been deducted from the total, stand at $15.60 with a credit of $0.04 from our use of the service.
The Wrap Up
Join us again very soon, when we’ll have all the latest BBB Fund news and, just possibly, a major announcement.- Arnie Katz, Las Vegas, NV