DIY History | Transcribe | Hevelin Fanzines | Fanfare, v. 2, issue 2, whole no.8, February 1942

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Fanfare, v. 2, issue 2, whole no.8, February 1942

Page 13

14  thud and blunder

It should be explained here, for the benefit of those who haven't yet heard, that the $25 award was actually presented at the Devention through the kindness of Robert A. Heinlein, who put up the cash, and by the ministrations of a judging committee of 4, elected on the floor of the convention. 

To turn to lighter things, let us consider a few recent additions to my list of People I Wish I Hadn't Met. First, a couple of months ago, was a certain Farsaci who shall be nameless. This person, armed with a stooping stare and a nervous giggle, infested our apartment for some hours, talking a good deal without saying anything. The highlight of the occasion, as I recall it, was the point at which he lunged toward a lousy Finlay on the wall, ejaculating, "I can tell a Bok a mile away!"

Later on, just a week ago, a thing called Ackermann whose name I shan't mention, descended on us from the wilds of Baltimore. In some respects, this was less objectionable than the aforementioned Farsaci - it gave warning before it struck, for example, and it bought us Pepsi-colas, and it didn't mumble. All in all, however, it was equally awful. As I had predicted from reading its letters, it was a tall, equine object. It has a huge, bony skull with a high forehead, over which descended a forelock of hayseed, rather than hair. It laughed incessantly over its own peculiar brand of humor, displaying an impossibly huge, horsy set of teeth. And before it left, it made us a present of a large, beautiful map of Baltimore, pointing out carefully the location of its home.

Just today the final blow descended. We were visited by a chubby 15-year-old, who called himself Bill Deuten; obviously a pseudonym. I had met this particular blight at the Denvention, to my sorrow. Although I was alone most of the time he was there, he sat indefatigably on, waiting for the others to come back. From what I recall of his conversation, it was mainly about his uncle. His uncle has a lot of books. 

He is gone now, though, and I am snatching a little recuperation until the next drool comes along. It won't be long, I know.

My nomination for the best single piece of editorial butchery of the year goes to Frederik Pohl, late editor of SUPER-SCIENCE and ASTONISHING, for what he did to Charles R. Tanner's story "Tumithak of the Towers of Fire." Tanner's story was originally 12,000 words long. Pohl thought the ending too abrupt, and asked him to add another 10,000 words. Then, when that was done, Pohl didn't like the first half of the story, and had Tanner cut it down by 5,000 words. The finished, patched-together story is 14,000 words, just 2,000 longer than Tanner's original version. (Oh oh. "Here Comes Mr. Coenig"-yhos) To top it off, Pohl gave the cover for the issue to artist Brown, who drew lobster-like creatures totally unlike Tanner's shelks - and then changed the descriptions in the story to fit!

The latest issue of FANTASY-NEWS ANNUAL, dated July 27, 1941, carries a "contest" announcement, with the sub-title, "Read Fantasy News for Accuracy!" In the body of the article, it is an-

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14 thud and blunder It should be explained here, for the benefit of those who haven't yet heard, that the $25 award was actually presented at the Devention through the kindness of Robert A. Heinlein, who put up the cash, and by the ministrations of a judging committee of 4, elected on the floor of the convention. To turn to lighter things, let us consider a few recent additions to my list of People I Wish I Hadn't Met. First, a couple of months ago, was a certain Farsaci who shall be nameless. This person, armed with a stooping stare and a nervous giggle, infested our apartment for some hours, talking a good deal without saying anything. The highlight of the occasion, as I recall it, was the point at which he lunged toward a lousy Finlay on the wall, ejaculating, "I can tell a Bok a mile away!" Later on, just a week ago, a thing called Ackermann whose name I shan't mention, descended on us from the wilds of Baltimore. In some respects, this was less objectionable than the aforementioned Farsaci - it gave warning before it struck, for example, and it bought us Pepsi-colas, and it didn't mumble. All in all, however, it was equally awful. As I had predicted from reading its letters, it was a tall, equine object. It has a huge, bony skull with a high forehead, over which descended a forelock of hayseed, rather than hair. It laughed incessantly over its own peculiar brand of humor, displaying an impossibly huge, horsy set of teeth. And before it left, it made us a present of a large, beautiful map of Baltimore, pointing out carefully the location of its home. Just today the final blow descended. We were visited by a chubby 15-year-old, who called himself Bill Deuten; obviously a pseudonym. I had met this particular blight at the Denvention, to my sorrow. Although I was alone most of the time he was there, he sat indefatigably on, waiting for the others to come back. From what I recall of his conversation, it was mainly about his uncle. His uncle has a lot of books. He is gone now, though, and I am snatching a little recuperation until the next drool comes along. It won't be long, I know. My nomination for the best single piece of editorial butchery of the year goes to Frederik Pohl, late editor of SUPER-SCIENCE and ASTONISHING, for what he did to Charles R. Tanner's story "Tumithak of the Towers of Fire." Tanner's story was originally 12,000 words long. Pohl thought the ending too abrupt, and asked him to add another 10,000 words. Then, when that was done, Pohl didn't like the first half of the story, and had Tanner cut it down by 5,000 words. The finished, patched-together story is 14,000 words, just 2,000 longer than Tanner's original version. (Oh oh. "Here Comes Mr. Coenig"-yhos) To top it off, Pohl gave the cover for the issue to artist Brown, who drew lobster-like creatures totally unlike Tanner's shelks - and then changed the descriptions in the story to fit! The latest issue of FANTASY-NEWS ANNUAL, dated July 27, 1941, carries a "contest" announcement, with the sub-title, "Read Fantasy News for Accuracy!" In the body of the article, it is an-