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Fanfare, v. 2, issue 1, whole no. 7, August 1941
Page 4
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DOTS Doings Of The Strangers TWELVE HOURS AND CAMPBELL On April 27th, John W. Campbell, Jr., his wife, Doña, and daughter Philinda Duane, (alias P.D.) were at the brick house on the hill, visiting with their old friends, the Swishers. But several Strangers were aware of this, and early in the afternoon the sporadic invasion started. First, Art Widner and Jack Bell dropped in, bringing along Art Gnaedinger, whom they had managed to locate amidst the labyrinth of Harvard dorms. Campbell ensconed himself in a large easy chair, Widner sprawled on the davenport, Bell ultralaxed in another easy chair, Gnaedinger draped himself comfortably against the mantelpiece, (leaving Swisher to a conventional upright chair) and a severe case of conversation set in. Without any particular effort, Campbell became the hub of the discussion, since he invariably knew more about the subject of the moment than any of the others present. Widner mentioned Gilbert's contention that Campbell had propagandized SLAN so well that those who didn't think the story was an epic were rather ashamed to admit it --- since everybody else (influenced by the Campbell ballyhoo) thought it was super. Widner averred that the ending was hack, which took Campbell aback, and he defended the story, but both sides being of solid, prefabricated opinion, the argument didn't get anywhere and finally drifted off into Campbell's theory that the slans all already with us, right where they's be expected to be---running things. JWC figues that the slans themselves dont know it, and cited Henry Ford as an example of one. The of course JWC's favourite subject, atomic power, was dragged out, dusted off, and given a thorough going over. Some astonishing items that came to light were Campbell's statements that the present was is likely to be decided by atomic power. He declared it to be a fact that the US War Dept. has taken over all the cyclotrons in the country in an effort to speed up the discovery, and that all countries possessing cyclotrons are doing the respective same. About this time cousins and recent Strangers, Chandler and Allen Davis, dropped in, and the talk shifted to Heinlein, his biography and bibliography, with numerous sidelights on both. 'Twas amusing to find how JWC has assured himself of a steady stream of Heinleinarratived, but we can't elucidate, for fear of putting Campbell in the soup (no pun intended, but as long as it's there...!) and incidentially all of fandom, for if RAH found out he might stop writing, which would indeed be a catastrophe. Van Vogt was discussedm with Campbell denying that he was VV, but furnishing no particular proof. Then we all beat our breasts and banged our heads on the floor over the drafting of Schneeman, but were electrified to hallelujahs over the news of UNKNOWN'S increase in size and content.
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DOTS Doings Of The Strangers TWELVE HOURS AND CAMPBELL On April 27th, John W. Campbell, Jr., his wife, Doña, and daughter Philinda Duane, (alias P.D.) were at the brick house on the hill, visiting with their old friends, the Swishers. But several Strangers were aware of this, and early in the afternoon the sporadic invasion started. First, Art Widner and Jack Bell dropped in, bringing along Art Gnaedinger, whom they had managed to locate amidst the labyrinth of Harvard dorms. Campbell ensconed himself in a large easy chair, Widner sprawled on the davenport, Bell ultralaxed in another easy chair, Gnaedinger draped himself comfortably against the mantelpiece, (leaving Swisher to a conventional upright chair) and a severe case of conversation set in. Without any particular effort, Campbell became the hub of the discussion, since he invariably knew more about the subject of the moment than any of the others present. Widner mentioned Gilbert's contention that Campbell had propagandized SLAN so well that those who didn't think the story was an epic were rather ashamed to admit it --- since everybody else (influenced by the Campbell ballyhoo) thought it was super. Widner averred that the ending was hack, which took Campbell aback, and he defended the story, but both sides being of solid, prefabricated opinion, the argument didn't get anywhere and finally drifted off into Campbell's theory that the slans all already with us, right where they's be expected to be---running things. JWC figues that the slans themselves dont know it, and cited Henry Ford as an example of one. The of course JWC's favourite subject, atomic power, was dragged out, dusted off, and given a thorough going over. Some astonishing items that came to light were Campbell's statements that the present was is likely to be decided by atomic power. He declared it to be a fact that the US War Dept. has taken over all the cyclotrons in the country in an effort to speed up the discovery, and that all countries possessing cyclotrons are doing the respective same. About this time cousins and recent Strangers, Chandler and Allen Davis, dropped in, and the talk shifted to Heinlein, his biography and bibliography, with numerous sidelights on both. 'Twas amusing to find how JWC has assured himself of a steady stream of Heinleinarratived, but we can't elucidate, for fear of putting Campbell in the soup (no pun intended, but as long as it's there...!) and incidentially all of fandom, for if RAH found out he might stop writing, which would indeed be a catastrophe. Van Vogt was discussedm with Campbell denying that he was VV, but furnishing no particular proof. Then we all beat our breasts and banged our heads on the floor over the drafting of Schneeman, but were electrified to hallelujahs over the news of UNKNOWN'S increase in size and content.
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