The Crotchety Old Fan

Wow. It is finally finished.
For those who have not been following along, getting this first issue out, as rough as it is, has been a beeyatch!
Turns out I had a codecs issue with movie maker.
I screwed around for an entire day trying to get it chopped up into 4 managable eight+ minute segments, but [...]

For quite some time now I have known about Raumpatrouille, a German television series, from 1966.
Germany’s own Star Trek.
I think I happened across it while doing a search for Space Patrol things and a Youtube Video purportedly showing free form dance of the future popped up.
Rather than being yet another Youtube mashup, this clip turned [...]

Winchell Chung, well known for his gaming, (particularly Ogre) artwork, his work on bringing mathematical certitude to space map illustration and his collecting and cataloging of nifty (and often obscure) information and imagery related to spaceships, space drives, spacesuits and lots of other spacey stuff, sent along a pic of a Buck Rogers trading card [...]

particularly of the fannish variety.
I would like to discuss a project with any and all interested fan artists (pros can apply too – no discrimination here).
I’d be very interested in any and all who have been nominated for or have received a Hugo Award for their work.
I would also appreciate greatly anyone who is currently [...]

Looks like Masumi has been busy: Evelyn sent along email word that the Japanese Import imprint Haikasoru has gotten two titles out the door – All You Need Is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka (great name!) and The Lord of the Sands of Time by Issui Ogawa (ok name, great title!)
Reading the author’s names kind of [...]

Matt from Enter the Octopus wants me to let you all know about the Shared Worlds summer camp.? In pursuit of input for the camp activities, Michael Moorecock, Ursula LeGuin, China Mieville, Elizabeth Hand and Nalo Hopkinson were asked: “What’s your pick for the top real-life science fiction or fantasy city”?
This is an interesting summer [...]

What with all of the internet hype ramping up big time for the Pixar John Carter On Mars film project, I figured I’d take a quick look at past illustrations of one of ERB’s more enduring (and frequently imagined) characters, the Princess of Helium and interplanetary babe of babes – Dejah Thoris.
Most are familiar with [...]

Cheryl & Kevin, over at The Hugo Awards website are reporting that the open submissions for the contest have closed, having received 390 submissions.
Ought to be able to come up with a logo from that.? I hope the committee eventually makes all of the submissions available.
More here
and more from me later – maybe I’ll have [...]

No, I don’t mean names like Asimov or Heinlein, nor am I referring to Amazing Stories, Hugo Gernsback or The Day The Earth Stood Still.
I mean icons.? Little symbols used to convey concepts or as standins for words like bathroom or NO something or other.
A while back I got involved in some discussion about the [...]

via one of many news services, I learned today that Frank R Paul – the guy who painted science fiction cover art like this -

(which is my all-time favorite Paul cover – so much so that I used to have an unauthorized poster pasted to my bedroom door that my brother destroyed – but that’s [...]