Monthly Archives: September 2014

770 Pound Colossal Squid

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If it had been a 769-pound squid I’d never have heard about it.

But fishermen have turned over to scientists a 770-pound colossal squid they caught in Antarctic waters, believed to be only the second intact specimen ever found.

It is a different species from the giant squid which Cheryl Morgan used to write about on the theory that it would boost her blog’s hit count.

Does the colossal squid have that same black magic? I’ll soon know. In any case, researchers are awfully happy with their find:

“This one had two perfect eyes,” scientist Kat Bolstad from Auckland University of Technology who led the examination told AFP.

“They have very large and very delicate eyes because they live in the deep sea. It’s very rare to see an eye in good condition at all.”

Measurements revealed the animal’s eye was 35 centimetres (14 inches) in diameter, and confirmed that the specimen was a female….

“This was by far the most perfect colossal squid that I have seen.”

Persistence of Lovecraft

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HPL filmWhat is your take on Lovecraft?

As World Fantasy Con approaches some authors are suffering paroxysms of disgust at the prospect of winning an award in the likeness of notorious racist H.P. Lovecraft.

Meanwhile, others are planning to spend the September 26 weekend celebrating HPL’s impact on the horror genre at the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival & ChthulhuCon in Los Angeles.

The fifth annual festival takes place at the Warner Grand Theatre in San Pedro, CA. This year’s theme is “The Shadow Over Innsmouth.” Writers Anthony Parker, Cody Goodfellow, Gary Myers, John Shirley, Joshua Hoffine, Leslie S. Klinger, Michael Tice and Nancy Holder will be on hand.

The LA event is an offshoot of a festival that started almost 20 years ago in Portland, Oregon. It’s locally sponsored by the San Pedro Historic Waterfront Business Improvement District (PBID), the Grand Vision Foundation, and Crafted at the Port of Los Angeles.

Besides films, on Sunday there will be a “sanity-blasting Cthulhu Prayer Breakfast” led by the High Priest of the Esoteric Order of Dagon. Those who survive will spend the balance of the day playing Lovecraft-themed games.

HPL prayer breakfast SMALL

 

Bonus Birthday Boy 9/21

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Chuck Jones

Chuck Jones

Born September 21, 1912: Animation legend Chuck Jones, known for his work with Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Wile E. Coyote, and one very talented musical frog.

I recently took my daughter, Sierra, to the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity in Costa Mesa, CA. It’s open six days a week and every Saturday kids of all ages are invited to “Drop In and Draw” from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

There is a large exhibit of art inspired by Jones’ cartoons, much of it for sale by the artists. Sierra enjoyed that far more than I’d have predicted.

Tasmanian Devil by Mike Glyer 001 SMALL

Shading lesson 001 SMALLThen we spent an hour drawing, encouraged by two highly energetic volunteer artists. I turned out a recognizable Tasmanian Devil. Sierra drew some covers for YA novels she’s been reading – and took them home to show Mom. She did let me have her turtle, where she tried to implement the lesson we were given in shading things to make them look three-dimensional.

Turtle by Sierra Glyer 001 SMALL

Two SMOFcon Scholarships Offered

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CanSMOF Inc. is taking applications for two scholarships of up to 500 CAD each to help conrunners defray the cost of attending SMOFCon 32, being held in Manhattan Beach, CA December 5-7.

One scholarship is open to Canadian citizens or residents; the other is open to all. Eligible applicants will be automatically considered for both scholarships. Preference will be given to fans who have not previously attended a SMOFCon. Click the link for the application form.

Gleeson Exhibit Opens in Pasadena

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Eye_of_Cat_lrBy John King Tarpinian: This evening I went to the opening of a friend’s sci-fi art exhibit — Tony Gleeson, in Century Books’ upstairs gallery in Pasadena, CA.

I took some very bad photos of some very nice artwork, some of which you might recognize. He’s done covers for books by Richard Matheson, Arthur C. Clarke, and many pulps; Fantastic Stories, Science Fiction Book Club (Eye of the Cat, in the poster above) Galaxy Magazine, (Jabberwock 3000), and Amazing (Looking Glass).

Tony Gleeson. Tales From The White Hart (cover)
Tony Gleeson. Jabberwock 3000. (Galaxy)
Tony Gleeson. I Am Legend, cover
Tony Gleeson. Looking Glass. (Amazing Stories)

If you happen to find yourself in Pasadena, visit the bookshop gallery. The exhibit is on now thru October 3 during the bookshop’s normal operating hours.

Century Books is located at 1039 E. Green St, Pasadena, CA

Tony’s bio:  After studies in Fine Arts at Georgetown University and Illustration at the Art Center College of Design, Tony began his career in New York. His earliest illustration work was for science fiction magazines such as Galaxy, Amazing, and Fantastic. A series of assignments followed for book cover paintings for Doubleday & Co’s Science Fiction Book Club.

Upon moving to Los Angeles in 1977, Tony opened his own studio, creating book cover art as well as interior illustrations for a wide range of books, magazines and newspapers. His work has been featured in numerous advertising campaigns and product packaging and he has also extensively created storyboard and concept art for television, film and music videos. His science fiction and fantasy related paintings were exhibited at the legendary Dream Masters Gallery in Los Angeles and the gallery of the original Change of Hobbit in Santa Monica.

Through most of the 1990s, Tony was associated with Neal Adams Continuity Studios as a designer, letterform/logo artist, and illustrator. Throughout that time and to the present, he has continued to operate his own studio, creating illustration, concept art, and commissioned art pieces, utilizing both digital and traditional approaches. In 2005, he was commissioned to create a dinosaur giclée print that was presented to Ray Bradbury on the occasion of his 85th birthday.

Among his recent projects have been a print edition of pencil renderings of fantastic saurian creatures, “Fanciful Visions of Dinos and Dragons,” and a series of portraits of authors of imaginative fiction. In the past three years, he has been the subject of three solo art exhibitions and participated in four group exhibitions.

2014 Copper Cylinder Awards

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Copper Cylinder Award

Copper Cylinder Award

Members of the Sunburst Award Society have selected the 2014 winners of its Copper Cylinder Awards.

Best Adult Novel
River of Stars by Guy Gavriel Kay

Best Young Adult Novel
Homeland by Cory Doctorow

This is a popularly voted award. The award’s name is a homage to the first Canadian scientific romance, “A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder,” by James De Mille (1833-1880).

The winners receive a handcrafted copper cylinder trophy designed by Peter Halasz & Rebecca Simkin.

The Sunburst Society also gives the juried Sunburst Awards for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic. Both awards celebrate Canadian fantastic literature published during the previous calendar year.

Pournelle Resumes Chaos Manor Reviews

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Chaos Manor Reviews is back. Jerry Pournelle’s computer column, which originated in Byte Magazine and made the leap to the internet, went dormant three years ago after he missed its deadline for the first time.

I had fiction projects to pursue, and my day book The View From Chaos Manor took up time, and having missed the deadline there wasn’t so much incentive to continue, I was recovering from radiation sickness from the successful cancer treatment, time went by, and that’s about all the excuses I’m going to make.

Weekly installments will appear throughout the month at Chaos Manor Reviews where they can be read free.

He sends an advance copy of the full column to subscribers – I plan to take the hint and renew.

Topics in the first Chaos Manor Reviews columns include:

  • Moore’s Law and Good Enough
  • Upgrading to DOCSIS3 Cable Modem
  • Wireless and Ethernet and Powerline Networking
  • Upgrading Chaos Manor Systems
  • Hard Drive Life Cycles and SSD Drives
  • Wireless – Faster and Faster
  • Good Enough and Ethernet
  • Docking Stations
  • Living with Firefox
  • The Bulging Mac Book Air
  • SD Memory Cards
  • Winding Down – Books and Movies

Lovecraft 2, PC 1

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World Fantasy Award

World Fantasy Award

The Guardian is reporting that the board of the World Fantasy Awards is “in discussion” about the award statuette, an image of H.P. Lovecraft, because a number of authors, including past winners, have said it’s awkward to receive and display the bust of a flagrant racist.

Lovecraft Bar NYCYet at the same time, a new Lovecraft Bar is opening in New York on Avenue B. On September 20, Gordon Linzer’s “Eldritch Pub Crawl” will stop there, and at two other haunted pubs with literary associations (The Library, and KGB), plus some haunted sites in-between.

Obviously this is not the week to be looking for a unanimous opinion about Lovecraft in the fantasy field.

Also, The Lovecraft Bar in Portland, Oregon stresses on its website that they have no connection with the New York establishment.

But it’s apparently not bad for business to name a place after HPL.

[Thanks to Andrew Porter for the story.]