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Voice of the Imagination, whole no. 20, January 1942

Page 10

10  NEW YR 42

boxes finely, and is a topnotch rifle-shot, as well as a most talented actor and tap-dancer. 

You all know him as an author and will not be surprised when I tell his trade is journalistic in nature, being on the staff of one of London's greatest dailies, though when I first knew him he was with a newsreel Film Company, which is, after all, much the same thing! " All in all, FJA of Great Britain is just as splendid a fellow, just as ardent and kind a friend and just as vital a personality as his American FJA counterpart! 

I am truly grateful o have known.....FRANK ARNOLD.     (Seriously)"
 
 RON LEVY of Australia, with a signature rather too large to reproduce, in the educed circumstances rote Sep 5 from "Domremy", 18 Dudley St. Coogee, Sydney NSW: "Dear VoM, Tonight I have become disgusted, fed up and sick to death f fandom. I have been trying - God knows how hard! - to become friendly, companionable and unprejudiced with all other fans. There are from what I can see only two people in all  Sydney fandom who I can even talk about as being a nice chap. First of these people s Bart Castellari. Because of him and only because of him do I find myself at all indebted to fandom. From among that crowd of much and dirt I found one who in himself was, as David Evans would say, 'clean.' I also found a friend and that alone is enough. The second is David R. Evans. I am in agreement with few of his ideas and yet I like him because he is sincere and a decent person, a person who has some ideals and who tries to live up to them; and the most important point is that he is a nice chap, but one who unlike the rest, is (I repeat myself) sincere.

Of the others they are less than people, they are less than animals. Fandom is unsuccessful not because the individual lacks merits as a fan, but because he lacks as a human being. He is selfish, petty, ego, egotistical, ill-mannered and is summed up, in a word, which so aptly expresses my feelings, as odious. I feel so tired, so full of distress and unhappiness I assure you that when I say that if my only interests lay in
fandom I should have no compunction in shooting myself through the temple as our friend Earl Singleton was reputed to have done. Poor fool, I am sorry that it was a
hoax, sorry for him.    But now I'm wrong, that's American fandom I'm talking about.
They are so different, so very very different. It is a sort of paradise which you dream about being able to get there, to be able to be a fan there, to be able to talk to your neighbour without knowing that he is either laughing at  you inside or hearing him sneer and see him, oh hell! just see him. Just to look at them is enough. You're all such decent chaps over there, or so you appear. So unreal because we have never come across you in our own circle, that is, never really come across you.   You live in a sort of mythical Olympus and your lives and activities are as those of the legendary Gods. You must think I'm mad, what else could you think?   But can't you see what I:m driving at, it's the comparison. You don't know
what it is like to try and be friendly with a chap, to smile and shake his hand, while he makes fun of you, to apologize to him as he picks up your most casual remark. It breaks you and tears your heart out, because you've wasted so much time, such a long, long time in doing what? Nothing, absolutely nothing. This afternoon I was madly enthusiastic. I was printing my fanmag and it was coming out very successfully. I was feeling proud, but only as proud as I should feel.   And happy too. I smiled to myself as I wondered if I'd receive any letters congratulating me. Congratulating me, fooeey!   Thoy wouldn't know how to, none of them.

They're so wrapped up in themselves that they would be breaking a code of their own ethics to dare to smile on their neighbour.    'Faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these
is love.'   My God, how funny, how very, very funny.    Some of them kid themselves they're Christians too.   I'm not a Christian, I don't profess to be, but I guarantee if it came to a showdown I know more of Christian principles - natural ones - than they ever heard of.    

Tonight I am frustrated, I am unhappy, terribly, terribly unhappy.   I'll get over it, I know I will.   I'll become philosophical and return crack for crack even though I hate myself as I do it. ...   Now you'll laugh at me. 'There,' you'll say, 'He says that he hates it, but he does it himself.' My answer to that is:   I am merely following the natural law of self-preservation. I must keep going, I will keep going. I can't believe that this is all it is, but I
do believe that some day I will really taste the sweetness of that nectar of which I dream.   Some day I will see the pleasures of that paradise, yes to me it's a paradise, which you chaps are enjoying, and now I make a promise to myself that if we never achieve it out here (and we never will if we keep going as we are now) somehow and some way I shall come across to America, and although it will be for perhaps only one short month I will enjoy the delights of fandom, a fandom in which man loves his fellow man .... How go on and laugh, because by crikey I'm laughing, but I
mean it.   I may be slightly hysterical, that's what it does to you, you know .... but you don't know, you never will know.   How can you ....?
   Two months later, David R. Evans reported from 130 Brook St. Coogee, Sydney, NSW: The Futurian Society of Sydney celebrated its 2nd anniversary on Sunday, Nov 9 with Graham Stone as our host.   Those present were:   Russell Bros, Molesworth (recently out of hospital)
Colin Roden, Arthur Duncan, Dave Bollette, William D. Veney and Yours Trewlv. General fraternisation preceded the actual party which eventually started with an interesting quiz; the winner of the quiz was Eric Russell who scored the greatest
number of points while Yours Trewly received the lowest possible number. My consistency in always being 'bottom of the class' is really awe inspiring.   A large
birthday cake with two candles was contributed by Colin's mother while the rest of the delectables were supplied by Graham's mother who was kept busy replenishing cups of tea and coffee.   We all had fun and the party atmosphere was well sustained throughout the whole afternoon.   The nudes (Vomaidens Portfolio #1) were distributed but not enthusiastically received.   Great enthusiasm was evident when Vol distributed a number of the latest Voms.   Enid, my wife, who is something of an artist, spent a happy Sunday evening 'dressing' several of the rejected nudes with pen, 
pencil, and crayons. These 'dressed' nudes were eagerly snapped up by Levy and
Castelleri who added them to their ration of nudes. These two 'outlaws' left my

Saving...

10 NEW YR 42 boxes finely, and is a topnotch rifle-shot, as well as a most talented actor and tap-dancer. You all know him as an author and will not be surprised when I tell his trade is journalistic in nature, being on the staff of one of London's greatest dailies, though when I first knew him he was with a newsreel Film Company, which is, after all, much the same thing! " All in all, FJA of Great Britain is just as splendid a fellow, just as ardent and kind a friend and just as vital a personality as his American FJA counterpart! I am truly grateful o have known.....FRANK ARNOLD. (Seriously)" RON LEVY of Australia, with a signature rather too large to reproduce, in the educed circumstances rote Sep 5 from "Domremy", 18 Dudley St. Coogee, Sydney NSW: "Dear VoM, Tonight I have become disgusted, fed up and sick to death f fandom. I have been trying - God knows how hard! - to become friendly, companionable and unprejudiced with all other fans. There are from what I can see only two people in all Sydney fandom who I can even talk about as being a nice chap. First of these people s Bart Castellari. Because of him and only because of him do I find myself at all indebted to fandom. From among that crowd of much and dirt I found one who in himself was, as David Evans would say, 'clean.' I also found a friend and that alone is enough. The second is David R. Evans. I am in agreement with few of his ideas and yet I like him because he is sincere and a decent person, a person who has some ideals and who tries to live up to them; and the most important point is that he is a nice chap, but one who unlike the rest, is (I repeat myself) sincere. Of the others they are less than people, they are less than animals. Fandom is unsuccessful not because the individual lacks merits as a fan, but because he lacks as a human being. He is selfish, petty, ego, egotistical, ill-mannered and is summed up, in a word, which so aptly expresses my feelings, as odious. I feel so tired, so full of distress and unhappiness I assure you that when I say that if my only interests lay in fandom I should have no compunction in shooting myself through the temple as our friend Earl Singleton was reputed to have done. Poor fool, I am sorry that it was a hoax, sorry for him. But now I'm wrong, that's American fandom I'm talking about. They are so different, so very very different. It is a sort of paradise which you dream about being able to get there, to be able to be a fan there, to be able to talk to your neighbour without knowing that he is either laughing at you inside or hearing him sneer and see him, oh hell! just see him. Just to look at them is enough. You're all such decent chaps over there, or so you appear. So unreal because we have never come across you in our own circle, that is, never really come across you. You live in a sort of mythical Olympus and your lives and activities are as those of the legendary Gods. You must think I'm mad, what else could you think? But can't you see what I:m driving at, it's the comparison. You don't know what it is like to try and be friendly with a chap, to smile and shake his hand, while he makes fun of you, to apologize to him as he picks up your most casual remark. It breaks you and tears your heart out, because you've wasted so much time, such a long, long time in doing what? Nothing, absolutely nothing. This afternoon I was madly enthusiastic. I was printing my fanmag and it was coming out very successfully. I was feeling proud, but only as proud as I should feel. And happy too. I smiled to myself as I wondered if I'd receive any letters congratulating me. Congratulating me, fooeey! Thoy wouldn't know how to, none of them. They're so wrapped up in themselves that they would be breaking a code of their own ethics to dare to smile on their neighbour. 'Faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love.' My God, how funny, how very, very funny. Some of them kid themselves they're Christians too. I'm not a Christian, I don't profess to be, but I guarantee if it came to a showdown I know more of Christian principles - natural ones - than they ever heard of. Tonight I am frustrated, I am unhappy, terribly, terribly unhappy. I'll get over it, I know I will. I'll become philosophical and return crack for crack even though I hate myself as I do it. ... Now you'll laugh at me. 'There,' you'll say, 'He says that he hates it, but he does it himself.' My answer to that is: I am merely following the natural law of self-preservation. I must keep going, I will keep going. I can't believe that this is all it is, but I do believe that some day I will really taste the sweetness of that nectar of which I dream. Some day I will see the pleasures of that paradise, yes to me it's a paradise, which you chaps are enjoying, and now I make a promise to myself that if we never achieve it out here (and we never will if we keep going as we are now) somehow and some way I shall come across to America, and although it will be for perhaps only one short month I will enjoy the delights of fandom, a fandom in which man loves his fellow man .... How go on and laugh, because by crikey I'm laughing, but I mean it. I may be slightly hysterical, that's what it does to you, you know .... but you don't know, you never will know. How can you ....? Two months later, David R. Evans reported from 130 Brook St. Coogee, Sydney, NSW: The Futurian Society of Sydney celebrated its 2nd anniversary on Sunday, Nov 9 with Graham Stone as our host. Those present were: Russell Bros, Molesworth (recently out of hospital) Colin Roden, Arthur Duncan, Dave Bollette, William D. Veney and Yours Trewlv. General fraternisation preceded the actual party which eventually started with an interesting quiz; the winner of the quiz was Eric Russell who scored the greatest number of points while Yours Trewly received the lowest possible number. My consistency in always being 'bottom of the class' is really awe inspiring. A large birthday cake with two candles was contributed by Colin's mother while the rest of the delectables were supplied by Graham's mother who was kept busy replenishing cups of tea and coffee. We all had fun and the party atmosphere was well sustained throughout the whole afternoon. The nudes (Vomaidens Portfolio #1) were distributed but not enthusiastically received. Great enthusiasm was evident when Vol distributed a number of the latest Voms. Enid, my wife, who is something of an artist, spent a happy Sunday evening 'dressing' several of the rejected nudes with pen, pencil, and crayons. These 'dressed' nudes were eagerly snapped up by Levy and Castelleri who added them to their ration of nudes. These two 'outlaws' left my