July
17: Some
Electronic Hugo Ballots Lost!
July
17, 2001)
Some Electronic Hugo
Ballots Lost!From the Millennium Philcon:
"Alert! We've had a technical problem with online voting for the Hugo and Retro Hugo awards. We recognize that some ballots have been lost. Any online votes sent prior to July 12, 2001, at 7:20 p.m. EDT may be lost. If in doubt, please cast another ballot.
"The deadline for all ballots has been extended to 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Wednesday, July 25, 2001. All ballots must be submitted electronically or postmarked by that time and date to be counted.
"The Millennium Philcon apologizes for any inconvenience that this may cause.
- Saul Jaffe, Rick Katze
Hugo Award administrators"
If you want to vote by mail this time, print out a ballot (in Adobe Acrobat .pdf format, meaning you need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to print it), and mail it in. Or you can simply vote electronically again. To find out your membership number, click here. (Remember, you still need your secret identifying #, which is on the mailing label of your progress reports and other mailings from Mill Phil.)
[posted July 17, 2001]
The Millennium Philcon, the 59th World Science Fiction Convention (to be held this Aug. 30-Sept. 3 at the Philadelphia Convention Center and Philadelphia Marriott), has extended the deadline to join for all five days at the current rate ($170 for a full five-day attending membership) until July 18. The at-the-door rate for a five-day attending membership will be significantly higher, so if you haven't joined yet and would like to attend for the entire convention, join now!
[posted June 22, 2001]
You can now read all the nominated short fiction on this year's Hugo ballot courtesy of the Millennium Philcon Web site, which has provided links to each nominated story in the Novella, Novelette, and Short Story categories.
All ballots must be postmarked July 18, 2001.
BUT SEE ABOVE!!!!!To vote for the Hugos, you must be an attending or supporting member of the Millennium Philcon.
The Hugo ceremony will be Sunday, September 2, at 8 p.m., in Room 204, Philadelphia Convention Center. (There will be an overflow room, with a cash bar, in Room 108 of the Philadelphia Convention Center.)
The Millennium Philcon is also awarding the "Retro Hugos" for 1951. Again, only attending and supporting members of the Mill Phil may vote on these. The Retro Hugos will be awarded Friday, August 31, at 8:30 p.m. in Room 204 of the Philadelphia Convention Center.
[posted June 22, 2001]
The Federation, an innovative media club in Illinois, has announced their latest "Six Minute Movie":
The Six Minute Survivor, presented by BTR Productions. "A group of 'survivors' takes part in the latest challenge - this time, set in the Dr Who universe! Watch as BTR pokes fun at the whole terrible concept of Reality TV!"
[posted June 22, 2001]
Chicago TARDIS announces
first guestsChicago TARDIS, the new Doctor Who convention in the Windy City, which will hold its second incarnation this Nov. 23-25, has announced its first invited guests, with many more to come:
Jason Haigh-Ellery and Gary Russell of Big Finish Productions; India Fisher ("Charley Pollard" in Big Finish's 8th Doctor audios starring Paul McGann); and Bill Baggs of BBV Productions.
Jennifer Adams Kelley of Chicago TARDIS says, "We are working on a couple of other guests, as well. We don't want to say who, just yet, but we will say that a) it's a theme we're working on, rather than just some random guests and b) we really hope to announce shortly!"
[posted April 22, 2001]
Outpost
Gallifrey creates cool new Doctor Who ForumIn addition to its great Doctor Who news and other stuff, Outpost Gallifrey has now added the Doctor Who Forum, a terrific set of message boards on just about every topic of interest to Doctor Who fans. You can post your opinions of the BBC's books, the 1996 TV movie, favorite fan-made videos, ideal Doctor/Companion combos, and almost anything else you can think of.
Fans have overwhelmed the service with postings, so much so that Outpost Gallifrey impresario Shaun Lyon had to find a new host for the boards! You can access these new boards through Outpost Gallifrey or you can go directly to the Doctor Who Forum (this URL will change soon). Either way, you'll get through to the most active, friendly Doctor Who site on the Internet. Post away!
[posted April 12, 2001]
Created to recognize and honor excellence in filking. They will be presented at the Ohio Valley Filk Fest in Columbus OH, Oct. 26-28. For more information on the Pegasus Awards, click here.
[posted March 18, 2001]
"The Friends of Doctor Who, America's officially licensed Doctor Who fan club since 1988, has been disbanded, has been disbanded. 800-TREKKER, the parent company sponsoring FDW, is in the process of being sold. The Winter 2001 issue of The Friends of Doctor Who, the FDW's quarterly newsletter, which came out last month, is the final issue. Members of FDW who have issues remaining on their subscriptions will receive refunds.
Here is a personal message on the demise of FDW from Prydonian Tom Beck:
"I've been a member of FDW since it started in 1988, and editor of the newsletter since 1994. During my tenure, I introduced fan fiction, polls, op-ed pieces, and other new features, along with the news (provided by Doctor Who Alliance editor Shaun Lyon). As the Internet spread, it became harder and harder for FDW to match the Alliance, Outpost Gallifrey, and other online news sources for timeliness; and we eventually stopped trying. But we continued to be the main connection to Doctor Who fandom for thousands of members, many of whom were without regular (or even any) connection to the Internet.
"I've been in Doctor Who fandom since 1983, so I've seen countless changes and developments. The Internet has been a tremendous boon to fans and fandom; it has linked us together in ways that would have been otherwise impossible. It has knit together worldwide networks, as well as more local and regional groupings. But by enabling fans to create instant, far-flung friendships, it has also in some ways damaged local fandom, not to mention put pressure on local clubs trying to survive by printing monthly or quarterly newsletters.
"FDW ultimately did not survive this pressure. But that does not vitiate the contribution we made over the past 13 years. I'd like to thank, first, David Blaise, creator of the club and its president since its inception; Mark Gasper, my predecessor as editor; and all the friends and fans who contributed to the newsletter during my tenure as editor. First of all, Shaun Lyon, without whom there'd have been no news column. Also Kathy Sullivan, for her many reviews of audio adventures; Mark Phippen, for his Doctor Who merchandise reports; Charles Martin for his many articles; Hiram L. Doup for his wonderful letters and other contributions; and the many fans who contributed original Doctor Who fiction, including Brian Calahan, Kenneth Morgan, John Clifford, Danny Bell, and everyone else who shared their creativity with our members. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to receive the contributions of these talented, dedicated fans.
"FDW is no more; and some might argue that it is no longer needed, what with the Alliance, Outpost Gallifrey, et al. However, not everyone as access to the Internet (even now!); and there are limitations to online media, along with advantages. The Internet tends to do better with news than it does with features, for example; and there's a permanency to print that is appealing.
"Therefore, I leave you with this recommendation: fans searching for a Doctor Who club need look no further than the Doctor Who Information Network (DWIN), which recently marked its 20th anniversary. DWIN, based in Toronto, has chapters throughout Canada (and a few in the United States); but you needn't join a chapter to belong. (I've been a member for over 15 years!) Besides throwing terrific parties at cons, DWIN prints a terrific bimonthly magazine called Enlightenment, for which I've written numerous articles over the years. With the demise of FDW, I am swearing my allegiance to DWIN and Enlightenment; and I urge everyone reading this to do so as well.
"DWIN can be reached at PO Box 912, Station F, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M4Y 2N9. Tell 'em I sent you!
"And thanks for all the fun I've had these past 7 years as the editor of FDW."
[posted Feb. 11, 2001]
Missing Pieces ready to orderMissing Pieces, the new charity Doctor Who fanzine, can now be ordered. It has stories by many well-known Doctor Who professional and fan writers, as well as contributions by several Doctor Who performers (the Introduction is by Peter Davison, the Afterword is by Sylvester McCoy, and stories have been contributed by Colin Baker and Wendy Padbury!) Proceeds will benefit the Foundation for the Study of Infant Death and the Downs Syndrome Association.
Missing Pieces is 378 pages long, perfect bound, featuring 84 stories, over 40 pages of artwork, with a full color cover. It is $25 in the US, $41 in Canada. A limited number of copies will be sold at Gallifrey 2001 for $22 (check or money order only).
To order by mail, send a check for $25 (or $41 from Canada) to Missing Pieces, 29 Havendale, Hedge End, Southampton, Hampshire, SO30 0FD, United Kingdom, along with your name, address, and e-mail address.
To order using a MasterCard or Visa, click here.
[posted Feb. 11, 2001]
The Millennium Philcon is next year's World Science Fiction Convention, the 59th, in fact. As its name suggests, it will take place in nearby Philadelphia from Aug. 30 to Sept. 3 (Labor Day weekend), at the Philadelphia Convention Center and Philadelphia Marriott Hotel. A full attending membership (all 5 days) is currently $160; a supporting membership (which gets you all publications, plus you can nominate for the Hugos) is $40. For more information, write The Millennium Philcon, PO Box 310, Huntingdon Valley PA, 19006-0310 or click here; e-mail.
We really want to urge as many of you as possible to attend the Mill Phil. It's very rare to have a Worldcon so close to where most of our members live; the next one may not be for many years. We plan to be very involved with the convention, including a table, several room parties, and even some programming. It would be great if we could show off our presence as a fannish force in the region by having lots of our members there.
And yes, we know it seems expensive; but it is for five full days. There's nothing quite like a Worldcon, and if you've never been, this is your best chance ever to experience one.
[posted Dec. 8, 2000]
The Cat Who Walked Through Time is a charity Doctor Who fanzine to raise funds for the O'Bryonville Animal Rescue in southern Ohio. It will have stories (some but not all on a cat theme) by such well-known professional Doctor Who writers as Kate Orman, Lance Parkin, Diane Duane, Paul Cornell, and Stephen Cole, and Tom Beck, Sarah Hadley, Shaun Lyon, Jay McIntyre, Mark Phippen, Trina L. Short, Kathy Sullivan, Jennifer G. Tifft, Susannah Tiller and other well-known Doctor Who fan writers. It is 230 pages long with a full-color cover.
Advance orders are now being accepted, by mail (download the order form here and return with your check to The Cat Who Walked Through Time, c/o Tom & Alryssa Kelly, 4201 Victory Parkway #309, Cincinnati, OH 45229-1661, USA.) or directly over the Internet with a credit card through PayPal by clicking here and clicking on the PayPal button. The cost is $17.50 (including postage).
[posted Dec. 8, 2000]
: July
17, 2001