VCON 09 (1981)

1981 – (May 22-24) – VCON 9 / Canvention 2:

Guest of Honour: VONDA MCINTYRE. Toast Master: JON SINGER. Fan Guest of Honour: JON GUSTAFSON.

Venue: Holiday Inn Harbourside, Vancouver.

Attending: 650.

CONCOM: Chair – Fran Skene; Assistant Chair – Steve Forty; Treasurer – Tim Boulton; Registrar – Gay Maddin; Programming – Stuart Cooper & Steve Forty; Art Show – David Greer, jan howard finder & Lari Davidson; Films – Grandee Englehart; Audio/Visual – Al Betz & David George; Dealer’s Room – Tom Stratton; Canadian SF Award – Fran Skene; Fan Olympics – Tom Stratton; Security – Warren Oddson; Publicity – Helene Flanders; Costume Bacchanal – Cara Elrod & Joanne Burrows; Publications – Con Hiebner; Head Commissioners of the Royal Gopher Patrol – Tom Waddell & Bruce Waddell; Con Suite Bar – Kay Briggs; Bacchanal Master of Ceremonies – Paul Simms; Hotel Liaison – Fran Skene; Trivia Quiz – John Thomson; Short Story Workshop – Fran Skene; Elron Awards – David George.

Sponsored: by BCSFA, the British Columbia Science Fiction Association. Three days of mostly triple-track programming with separate rooms for films, art show, hucksters, gaming & hospitality.

FIRST VCON to feature fannish Olympics, FIRST to open the Con-Suite for partying on the Thursday preceding, and FIRST VCON to host the Canvention.

FRIDAY (May 22/81 – Vcon 9) includes:

–          FUTURE TRENDS IN COMICS panel with Leonard Wong, Ron Norton & other Vancouver Comic Book Club members;

–          ARMAGEDDEN IN SCIENCE FICTION panel with Jon Gustafson, William Gibson, Jim Welch & Stuart Cooper;

–          a READING by Mildred Downey Broxon;

–          THE HISTORY OF THE BRASS BRA slide show with Alan R. Betz & Stuart Cooper;

–          a READING by Vonda McIntyre; &

–          the TRIVIA QUIZ.

SATURDAY (May 23/81 – Vcon 9) has:

–          COLONIES IN SPACE slide show by Allan Hildebrandt;

–          the NEOFAN slide show with John Thomson;

–          RATS IN THE WALL talk on H.P. Lovecraft by Prof. Mason Harris;

–          SPACE WARFARE panel with Ed Beauregard, Ed Hutchings, Stuart Cooper & Warren Oddson;

–          CARTOON WAR moderated by Jon Gustafson with artists William Warren, Lari Davidson, Vaughn Fraser, Warren Oddson & Tim Hammell;

–          UTOPIAS panel with Vonda S. McIntyre, F.M. Busby, M.K. Wren & Frank Robinson;

–          FIAWOL VS FIJAGDH debate ( on whether fandom is a way of life or just a God-damned hobby ) with Denys Howard, Stuart Cooper, Georges Giguere, Marg Galbraith-Hamilton, Jim Welch & Steve Forty;

–          THE STEVE PANEL with Steve Forty, Steve Fahnestalk & Steve Bard moderated by Gary Farber re organizing clubs, cons, & other fannish things;

–          PREVIEWS OF UPCOMING MOVIES with Larry Rothstein;

–          TRIVIA QUIZ;

–          THE FANNISH OLYMPIAD with the following contests: Collating, Book Sorting, Ice Bucket Race, Bheer Consumption, & Finish the SF Limerick;

–          a SUSAN WOOD RETROSPECTIVE showing videos of her panels from past VCONs;

–          THE FUTURE OF CANADIAN SCIENCE FICTION FILMS panel with Michael Walsh, Ed Hutchings, Jim Welch & Grandee Englehart;

–          SPACE RESOURCES talk by Allan Hildebrandt;

–          BANQUET with GoH SPEECHES & Canvention 2 CANADIAN SF AWARD presentation;

–          ANISCOPE: A NEW ANIMATION PROCESS film & Talk by Wayne Sterloff;

–          MAX FLEISHER RETROSPECTIVE film & talk by Grandee Englehart;

–          BUT THEY HAVE A LOVING RELATIONSHIP panel on censorship with William Gibson, Frank Robinson, F.M. Busby & Mildred Downey Broxon;

–          REAL VS SCIENCE FICTIONAL COMPUTERS panel with Jon Singer, Tom Stratton & Greg Real;

–          COSTUME BACCHANAL & DANCE.

SUNDAY (May 24/81 – Vcon 9) featured:

–          the ART AUCTION;

–          the ROLE OF FOOD IN FANDOM panel with Jon Singer ( mod ) and Cliff Wind, Teresa Nielsen Hayden & John Thomson;

–          GENETICS ENGINEERING AND THE FUTURE OF MANKIND talk by Dr. Steven Wood;

–          the ELRON AWARDS BRUNCH presented by David George;

–          THE FUTURE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS talk by Doug Saxton;

–          a second ART AUCTION; followed by an auction to raise money for the Down Under Fan Fund and the Susan Wood Scholarship Fund, conducted by jan howard finder;

–          a SHORT STORY WORKSHOP with Vonda N. McIntyre, J.T. Stewart & William Gibson;

–          TRIVIA QUIZ finals;

–          WESTERCON IN 83 bid presentation by Portland fans;

–          SCIENCE FICTION HAS BEEN GOOD TO ME panel with F.M. Busby, Jon Singer & Jon Gustafson;

–          SCA MEDIEVAL DANCING organized by Winifred the Witty:

–          ending with “PARTY IN CON-SUITE”.