Cat-Man_America

Excellent! The more links the merrier, so please feel free to provide them! (thumbs u

Is that Carl Barks? No, I think that this gentleman may have been either B-western star Monte Hall or a Republic serial star/stuntman (Jim Bannon or I. Stanford Jolley), all of whom were guests of the American Nostalgia Convention (I may have referred to this one as D-Con because prior Dallas conventions had been under that name in years past and the name "D-Con" would rise again before the end of the decade); Larry Herndon was the con Chair of this convention ('74).

Another shot from a late 70's or early '80's Wintercon (not sure of the date, '79 perhaps) put on by OAF; several fans working registration (names unknown; any help identifying dates and who's who is greatly appreciated)...

http://starokc.blogspot.com/2010/09/lets-throw-bigger-con-babelcon-81.html He was a guest at BabelCon in OKC in 1981; I was there. It was one of the first purely SF oriented conventions that I participated in. As I recall, I did a special video and lecture presentation on Jim Morrison and the Doors to a surprisingly packed room; I still don't know how I talked the convention into letting me put that on or what it had to do with SF, but I think it was a big hit (I don't know, I was really drunk at the time; it was method acting and I was totally in character).

Guest, D-Con '74 (can anyone help me put a name to this photo?)

Oh, I was there; that was one of the last Multicons I attended and may have been where Anna took those posed photographs of me to promote my SF work. BTW, I'm actually on that OAF reunion blog-site from the members only con several years ago. In fact, I'm in several photos there. I'm auctioneering with Eric Groves (my back is to the camera); my hair is quite long in those shots and I'm disguised by an Aussie hat that I used to wear a lot at shows. I've been an frequent auctioneer at a number of the bigger SF shows, including World Cons. Oh, and not that I'm trying to SHILL for the club, but Bart Bush and Robert A. Brown are putting on a full open to the public convention this year in OKC (unfortunately, at the fleabag Biltmore again); lots of GA paper will be on display & sale for collectors to drool over. I already have my tables reserved. http://oafcon2011.blogspot.com/2011/03/oafcon-2011-comic-book-comic-creator.html

I have that ST print. It is by Ken Barr. Also,Not sure when you left Oklahoma but were you still around in 1980 or 1981. I think it was a SoonerCon when LB Cole was the featured guest. It was around when he did the cover to Overstreet's price guide (#11). I wish I could find the program - I know I have it somewhere but I had Cole sign it. He was such a nice gentleman. Great memories and thanks for starting the thread. Like Okon in Tulsa, SoonerCon was (and still is) an SF oriented convention (unless we're talking about entirely different cons, in which case I don't recall any comic cons that went by that name). I'll see if I can't pull up some research on LB Cole's appearance at an Okla. con though. I didn't leave Oklahoma until the early 90's, but I gravitated to SF cons in the early 80's, thanks to a suggestion from a wonderful lady, author CJ Cherryh, who recommended showing my paintings at SF cons to expose my art to a more receptive market. This involved transitioning into a somewhat more flamboyant lifestyle (...not a problem ). At one point I was throwing the first adult Relaxicons out of my home in Chickasha, Okla (called ChickCons, complete with convention flyers) which were little more than adult BYOB parties that attracted folks from the SF fan community from as far away as Tulsa, OKC and Dallas. Although I don't want this thread to be about my history, "personal journey" or whatever, I will post a photo that I posed for about the time of my transition into SF cons (attribution is to amateur photographer and long time friend Anna Akers)... This was from one of the last OAF mini-cons (comics) that I attended in OKC. Soon afterwards I discovered Okon in Tulsa, NOSFA (The Norman Okla. Science Fiction Association, affiliated with OU) and my portfolio of SF related work started getting traction. If I do decide to post scans of photos from my purely SF period, I'll start another thread for it and call it something like Shameless Self-Aggrandizement, Part I (if my buddy Adam Strange doesn't think it's a cool idea and beat me to the punch).

Bruce Schultz (dealer; Popeye collector/historian) and son (probably Wintercon '76) ... Bruce now resides in the D/FW Metroplex and has a site devoted to Popeye collectables.

B-western guest (Smith Ballew?) from D-Con '74 ...

Real nice, Billy! (thumbs u Love that Kirby cover; your 5.0 doesn't look any worse for wear than my 8.5 ... Sorry about the quality of my scan (still looking to buy a better scanner; ordered one off of Amazon and as luck would have it just found out it was OOS). The point is that your copy looks under-graded to me and presents really well. And yes, technically it is a Red Skull cover!

Thanks Gator! My hope is that folks will contribute their own anecdotes and fan collected memorabilia here, not limited to photos and my flawed recollections. I'd like to see this thread grow to include the information from convention programs (cover art, schedules and guests), all those stinkin' badges, and even branch out to include rare early fanzines and clubzines (like my near run of the OAFzine), ...a real potpourri. Fandom has always been messy; never just one thing. At least that was my original concept when I started this thread. With all respect to Alan, I hope that this doesn't expand into too many narrowly focused threads as the history will end up scrolling off and get lost in the archives. My suggestion would be to post in more than one thread (like we do our scans of books) to insure that the information is easily accessible and remains on page one. What do you think, Gator?

Several more photos before I wrap for the evening; my plans are to scan in some fanzine and con program memorabilia tomorrow along with more images, as time allows. Lovely lady, Cathy Fisher (working admissions at Houstoncon '75)... Jim Behnke (dug a little deeper and got the spelling of his name right) and Spanky McFarland (caught by surprise) and an unknown redshirt (Wintercon '76)... George Takei (probably Houstoncon '75)...

You're probably right, but was Bosley around back then? I'm voting against Barks and even think I should retract my vote on the original pic. I dug through my old con programs and think I've solved the mystery! The confusion was that I thought these photos with Spanky McFarland were from Multicon in '74 or earlier because I'm pretty sure that he'd been a featured guest at an earlier Multicon. In fact, those photos (the ones with noticeable emulsion damage) are from Wintercon '76. Spanky was back, and the other featured guest was (drum roll please) ...George Evans! So, without further a'doo-doo, here is another photo from Wintercon '76 of George Evans visiting with Robert A. Brown.

You're probably right, but was Bosley around back then?

I'm pretty sure that this is a photo is of Paul Schleicher, a comic fan and talented artist from the Dallas area (convention unknown, mid/late-70's); Paul was a somewhat reclusive acquaintance of Bob Wayne, Ray Files, Howard Waldrop and myself who moved to Europe in the late 70's and then back to the states, but to my knowledge hasn't reconnected with fandom. Two nice shots of Roddy McDowell from a Houstoncon in the mid-70's (notice the fans lined up for autographs and his con security liaison in the first one)...

Nice Frazetta in the background. Would that have been the original or a poster? The way its set up sure makes it look like an original. And check out that ash tray on the table in front of him. Smoking on the convention floor My how times have changed That is the original. It was bought at some point by Burrell Rowe and hung in Camelot when he first opened the store. Good call, Richard. (thumbs u That provides a bit of background history on that magnificent piece of art. I only wish I'd been able to get better color balance with these old photos and the emulsion scratches are pretty bad in the darker areas. While I'm thinking about it, here is a photo from Multicon (Okla. City) ; I believe I took this one back in '72; I'll have to check my con program for verification. In this shot are Spanky McFarland, Ed Baldwin, Carl Barks and not sure about the last one (perhaps Lum of Lum and Abner as Multicon had an old time Radio guest that year as well). I don't think that was Barks in the photo. He was tall compared to others. Perhaps Hogarth was at the Con?? bb I wouldn't swear to it, but I'm pretty sure it's Carl Barks. Besides, the photo of Barks and Hogarth together is much later (the '82 SDCC, isn't it?) and Barks was white haired even back in the early 70's. In the photo I took, Spanky was probably standing on a worshiping fan something (he was very short, but quite clever about finding ways to hoist himself up to eye level) and slender Ed Baldwin was also a tall guy. I wonder, how tall was Burne Hogarth?

More photos from fandom's GA... Not sure about these folks, but the dealer with the outback hat may have gone by the name Binky. Bart Bush, in front of the banner of his first comic book store, Down Memory Lane.

Excellent article; fascinating story! Here are a couple of more dealers room shots from an early 70's convention (probably Multicon in OKC)... I haven't been able to identify many folks in these (except perhaps a red bearded John Harper looking through books in the bottom photo); if anyone thinks that they recognize anyone, please jump in.

Nice Frazetta in the background. Would that have been the original or a poster? The way its set up sure makes it look like an original. And check out that ash tray on the table in front of him. Smoking on the convention floor My how times have changed That is the original. It was bought at some point by Burrell Rowe and hung in Camelot when he first opened the store. Good call, Richard. (thumbs u That provides a bit of background history on that magnificent piece of art. I only wish I'd been able to get better color balance with these old photos and the emulsion scratches are pretty bad in the darker areas. While I'm thinking about it, here is a photo from Multicon (Okla. City) ; I believe I took this one back in '72; I'll have to check my con program for verification. In this shot are Spanky McFarland, Ed Baldwin, Carl Barks and not sure about the last one (perhaps Lum of Lum and Abner as Multicon had an old time Radio guest that year as well).

Wow! Yeah, I knew Eisner, but have never met Moldoff; both were such phenomenal artists, and Moldoff still is. Stan Lee, of course, is and always will be the MAN. Here is my geekiest photograph, ...and one that I was holding off posting for that very reason, but there are other reasons that I'm proud of it. Me in geek-suit and tie with my cooler friend, Al, from Houstoncon '74. He's holding one of my paintings and I'm holding a Secret Agent X-9 daily that he gave me. One of the nicest guys I've ever met and sorely missed... Jerry Weist urged me to send this photo to Squa Tront which was still being compiled for publication a few years ago, but I wanted to contribute a better shot of my oil painting (a detailed work based on a Feldstein Weird Fantasy cover that I'd completed in a college art studio) which had been sold many moons ago. All other images and transparencies have apparently been lost, but the painting is probably safely tucked away in an EC collector's collection somewhere.

Awesome photo highlighted by a nice copy of FF#1! You rock, Bill!

Hal Crawford (film collector) reading a book while waiting for the next feature (Houstoncon '74).

1974 Houstoncon ... Walter Koenig The infamous con party anecdote: At this particular Houstoncon I invited Walter to a fan room party, the room having been "graciously" offered by a fellow who seriously didn't believe that I could get the convention guests to show up. He then calmly disappeared into one of the film rooms and forgot all about it leaving me holding the bag since I didn't have access to his room. Assuming that the room would be available, Bob Wayne and I had gone out of the con hotel to obtain refreshments and ice for the gathering while dodging invitations from the hookers in downtown Houston. When we got back to the hotel with about 10 minutes to spare we discovered the guys room was still locked and he was nowhere to be found. Bob and I looked at each other in desperation and after brief consideration I said I've got a plan. I went down to the lobby and told the hotel's desk clerk that I'd locked myself out of my room and couldn't get to my wallet while providing the clerk with the room holder's name. To my relief the desk clerk offered me a replacement key without further explanation required. Luck was with us. I got off the elevator and unlocked the door just as fans started showing up at the room expecting a party. Back then I was much better remembering names, so as new folks came in I'd introduce everyone. We'd done a pretty good job getting the word out. My late friend Al Williamson dropped by and Walter Koenig showed up with his date, promptly sat in the floor and socialized most of the evening without asking anyone to move as the room was already packed. About thirty minutes into the party I noticed the guy who'd originally offered me his room for our party walking slowly by the door; he stopped, looked at the room number, scratched his head and walked on down the hall reappearing in the doorway about a minute later, slack-jawed. "WTF?" ... "How did you get in?" ... "You actually DID it?" Then he noticed Walter Koenig sitting in the floor next to him; I introduced everyone again, he sat down shaking his head and joined the party still wondering how this had happened.

That's Carl Barks. Nice pics! Why's he holding a bong, and what's in that bag on the chair next to him? If that was JoeBob Williams standing in back it might explain a lot. Seriously, I think that's either a classic european pipe or a some kind of gun (toy or real), not a bong. The contents of the bag is anyone's guess.

Duncan Renaldo (film and television's Cisco Kid) signing autographs for fans at a convention in Dallas (1974)... Producer/Director George Pal at the same convention addressing a packed audience and providing a rare glimpse into his upcoming "blockbuster" film Doc Savage... Former Olympic star, actor and swimming pool salesman Buster Crabbe, also from the '74 Dallas Convention, captivating an audience with his anecdotal exploits in the movies, serials and television...