Difference between revisions of "Bob Shaw"

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[[File:Bob Shaw. Drawing by Doug Chaffee.jpg|thumb|right|Bob Shaw. Drawing by Doug Chaffee. From the DSC 50 PB, courtesy Guy Lillian III.]]
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''(You probably weren't looking for the [[Fake Bob Shaw]] or some other bosh, but see [[Bosh (Disambiguation)]] just in case....)''
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(You probably weren't looking for the [[Fake Bob Shaw]] or some other bosh in fandom: [[Bosh (Disambiguation)]] but just in case....)
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(December 31, 1931 - February 11, 1996)
 
(December 31, 1931 - February 11, 1996)
  
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'''Bob Shaw''', often called '''BoSh''', was a [[fan]], [[fan writer]], [[fan artist]], novelist, structural engineer, aircraft designer, and journalist from [[Northern Ireland]], noted for his originality and wit. He was one of the [[Wheels of IF]] and a great and influential fan.  
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[[File:Bob Shaw. Drawing by Doug Chaffee.jpg|thumb|left|'''Bob Shaw'''. ''Drawing by [[Doug Chaffee]], from the [[DSC 50]] [[PB]], courtesy [[Guy Lillian III]]''.]]
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'''Bob Shaw''', often called '''BoSh''', was a [[fan]], [[fan writer]], [[fan artist]], novelist, structural engineer, aircraft designer, and journalist from [[Northern Ireland]], noted for his originality and wit. He was one of the [[Wheels of IF]] and a great and influential fan. He won the [[Hugo Award]] for [[Best Fan Writer]] in 1979 and 1980.  
  
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He won the [[Hugo Award]] for [[Best Fan Writer]] in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" was a [[Hugo Award nominee]] in 1967, as was his novel ''The Ragged Astronauts'' in 1987. Professionally, he published his first story in 1951, and is best known for "Light of Other Days" (''[[ASF]]'', Aug 1966), the story that introduced the concept of slow glass. ''Orbitsville'' and its two sequels deal with the discovery of a habitable shell completely surrounding a star, and the consequences for humanity. The first in this trilogy won him the 1976 [[British SF Association Award]].
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=Pro =
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Professionally, he published his first story in 1951, and is best known for "Light of Other Days" (''[[ASF]]'', August 1966), the story that introduced the concept of slow glass. It was a [[1967 Best Short Story Hugo|Hugo Award nominee]] in 1967. ''Orbitsville'' and its two sequels deal with the discovery of a habitable shell completely surrounding a star, and the consequences for humanity. The first in this trilogy won him the 1976 [[British SF Association Award]]. His novel ''The Ragged Astronauts'' was a [[1987 Best Novel Hugo]] nominee.  
  
 
He was introduced to [[science fiction]] as a pre-teen by reading an [[A. E. van Vogt]] short story in ''[[Astounding]]''. He later described the experience as being more significant and long-lasting than taking LSD.  
 
He was introduced to [[science fiction]] as a pre-teen by reading an [[A. E. van Vogt]] short story in ''[[Astounding]]''. He later described the experience as being more significant and long-lasting than taking LSD.  
  
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In 1950 he joined the group [[Irish Fandom]] which met at [[James White]]'s house. The group was very influential in [[fandom]] and produced the [[fanzines]] ''[[Slant]]'' (to which he contributed a large part of the artwork and "The [[Fansmanship]] Lectures") and its successor ''[[Hyphen]]'' (which besides other Shaw fanwriting ran 30 instalments of his column "[[The Glass Bushel]]").   
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=Fan=
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In 1950, he joined the group [[Irish Fandom]] that met at [[James White]]'s house. The group was very influential in [[fandom]] and produced the [[fanzines]] ''[[Slant]]'' (to which he contributed a large part of the [[art]]work and "The [[Fansmanship]] Lectures") and its successor, ''[[Hyphen]]'', (which besides other Shaw [[fanwriting]] ran 30 installments of his [[column]] "[[The Glass Bushel]]").  He acquired the nickname "BoSh" during this period. Following his early membership of [[Irish Fandom]], he formed the [[Belfast Triangle]], living in [[Oblique House]] with [[Walt Willis]], and [[James White]].
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He was the world's greatest practitioner of [[Fansmanship]] and did the drafting for the design of the [[Tucker Hotel]]. He received the [[Doc Weir Award]] in 1980 and three [[FAAn Awards]] for Best Fan Writer. He was a world-champion [[Ghoodminton]] player, always ranking in the top 3-4 worldwide. 
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He was well-loved and sought after wearing both his [[fan]] and [[pro]] hats.  The [[BoSh Fund]] was created to bring him to [[Noreascon]] and [[The Shaw Fund]] to bring him to [[Aussiecon 2]].   
  
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He acquired the nickname "BoSh" during this period.  He also was one of the [[editor]]s on the [[one-shot]] ''[['Our 'Zine]]''. He was a world-champion [[Ghoodminton]] player, always ranking in the top 3-4 worldwide. 
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See also: ''[[Bob Shaw Appreciation Magazine]]''.
  
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He and his wife, [[Sadie Shaw|Sadie]], lived in [[Canada]] from 1956–58.  
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==Fanwriting and Speeches ==
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Shaw always remained a keen reader of and contributor to [[fanzines]]. With [[Walt Willis]], Shaw co-wrote ''[[The Enchanted Duplicator]]'', arguably the most revered piece of fanwriting ever, in 1954.
  
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A selection of his fan [[writing]] up to 1979 was collected by [[Rob Jackson]] in ''[[The Complete BoSh]]'' in two volumes: ''[[The Eastercon Speeches]]'' (of which more below) and ''[[The Best of the Bushel]]'', a selection of Glass Bushel columns much later expanded as ''[[The Full Glass Bushel]]'' ([[Ansible Editions]], 2020), which contains all the columns plus additional articles from ''[[Hyphen]]''. Almost all the previously uncollected fanwriting has since been brought together as ''[[Slow Pint Glass]]'' ([[Ansible Editions]], 2020).
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===The Glass Bushel===
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“The Glass Bushel” was Shaw’s regular [[column]] in ''[[Hyphen]]''. He said modestly that a glass bushel was the only sort he was prepared to hide his light under.  There were 30 instalments in all. The column was revived under the same title in 1984 for [[Richard E. Geis]]'s ''[[Science Fiction Review]]'', which published two installments in that year.
  
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Following his early membership of [[Irish Fandom]], he formed the [[Belfast Triangle]], living in [[Oblique House]] with [[Walt Willis]], and [[James White]]; he always remained a keen reader of and contributor to [[fanzines]]. For many years, at  [[Eastercon]], he would deliver a humorous speech (often one of his [[Serious Scientific Talks]] (which weren't)); these were eventually collected in ''[[The Eastercon Speeches]]'' (1979 as above), ''[[A Load of Old Bosh]]'' (1995) -- which included a similar talk from the [[1979 Worldcon]] in Brighton -- and ''[[The Serious Scientific Talks]]'' (2019), an [[Ansible Editions]] ebook containing all ten previously collected talks plus four more.  (''[[Serious Science]]'' was a smaller collection of three talks published in 1984 by [[Eve Harvey]] and [[Marc Ortleib]].)
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Thirteen columns were collected by [[Rob Jackson]] in 1979 as ''The Best of the Bushel'' (see ''[[The Complete BoSh]]''), with a new introduction by [[Walt Willis]] and an introductory note to each column by Shaw. A different selection of fourteen Bushel columns (with some overlap) was published by [[Bruce Pelz]] in 1995 as ''[[14 Bob the Bushel]]''. ''The Full Glass Bushel'' ([[Ansible Editions]], 2020) contains all the columns plus additional articles from ''[[Hyphen]]'' (see ''[[The Complete BoSh]]'').
  
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With [[Walt Willis]], Bob Shaw co-wrote ''[[The Enchanted Duplicator]]'' in 1954.  He was the world's greatest practitioner of [[Fansmanship]] and did the drafting for the design of the [[Tucker Hotel]]. He received the [[Doc Weir Award]] in 1980 and three [[FAAn Awards]] for Best Fan Writer.
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===Eastercon Speeches ===
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From 1974–90, at [[Eastercon]], Shaw would deliver a [[humor]]ous speech, often one of his '''Serious Scientific Talks''' (which weren't), such as "The Bermondsey Triangle Mystery."
  
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Other [[fanzines]] were the 1950s [[one-shot]] comic strip ''[[Return of the Space Boggle]]'', a contribution to the multi-authored one-shot ''[['Our 'Zine]]'' (1952), and -- late in life -- ''[[Perspex Parrot]]'' (mid-1990).
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Five early examples were collected as ''The Eastercon Speeches'' (1979) edited by [[Rob Jackson]] (see ''[[The Complete BoSh]]''); three more as ''[[Serious Science]]'' (published in 1984 by [[Eve Harvey]] and [[Marc Ortleib]]); ten, including the entire contents of the earlier collections, as ''[[A Load of Old BoSh]]'' (1995); and fourteen -- including all those previously collected -- as ''[[The Serious Scientific Talks]]'' (2019), an [[Ansible Editions]] ebook. At least one more talk, delivered in 1995, remains untraced and uncollected.
  
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He was well-loved and sought after wearing both his [[fan]] and [[pro]] hats.  The [[BoSh Fund]] was created to bring him to [[Noreascon]] and [[The Shaw Fund]] to bring him to [[Aussiecon 2]].  See also ''[[Bob Shaw Appreciation Magazine]]''.
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===Other Collections===
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Almost all Shaw’s previously uncollected fanwriting has since been brought together as ''[[The Complete BoSh|Slow Pint Glass]]'' ([[Ansible Editions]], 2020).
  
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Originally trained as a structural engineer, Shaw worked as an aircraft designer for Short and Harland, then as science correspondent for ''The Belfast Telegraph'' and then as publicity officer for Vickers Shipbuilding before starting to write full-time. During the Troubles, Shaw and his family moved from Northern Ireland to [[England]], where he produced the majority of his work. His wife first wife, [[Sadie Shaw|Sadie]], died suddenly in 1991.
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=Personal Life =
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Originally trained as a structural engineer, Shaw worked as an aircraft designer for Short and Harland, then as science correspondent for ''The Belfast Telegraph'' and then as publicity officer for Vickers Shipbuilding before starting to write full-time.  
  
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He nearly lost his sight through illness and suffered migraine-induced visual disturbances throughout his life.  He married [[Nancy Tucker]] in 1995 and went to the [[US]] to live with her, then returned to England in the last months of his life. Shaw died of cancer on 11 February 1996.
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Shaw nearly lost his sight through illness and suffered migraine-induced visual disturbances throughout his life.  Shaw and his first wife, [[Sadie Shaw|Sadie]], lived in [[Canada]] from 1956–58. During the Troubles, they moved from Northern Ireland to [[England]], where he produced the majority of his work. Sadie died suddenly in 1991. He married [[Nancy Tucker]] in 1995 and went to the [[US]] to live with her, then returned to England for medical care in the last months of his life. Shaw died of cancer.
  
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* {{SFE|name=shaw_bob}}
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* {{SFE|name=shaw_bob}}.
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{{fanzines}}
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* ''[[14 Bob the Bushel]]'' ([[Bruce Pelz]], ed.) [1995]
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* ''[[The Complete BoSh]]''<br>(Five volumes, [[Rob Jackson]] and [[Dave Langford]], eds.):
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**''The Best of the Bushel'' [1979]
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**''The Eastercon Speeches'' [1979] 
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**''[[The Serious Scientific Talks]]'' [2019]
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**''The Full Glass Bushel'' [2020]
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** ''Slow Pint Glass'' [2020]
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* ''[[A Load of Old BoSh]]'' ([[Beccon Publications]]) [1995]
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* ''[['Our 'Zine]]'' (with others) [1952]
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* ''[[Perspex Parrot]]'' [mid-1990]
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* ''[[Return of the Space Boggle]]'' [1950s]
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* ''[[Serious Science]]'' ([[Eve Harvey]] and [[Marc Ortleib]], eds.) [1984]
  
 
{{recognition}}
 
{{recognition}}
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* 1971 -- [[BoSh Fund]]
 
* 1974 -- [[Tynecon 74]]
 
* 1974 -- [[Tynecon 74]]
 
* 1976 -- [[SfanCon 7]], [[British SF Association Award]]
 
* 1976 -- [[SfanCon 7]], [[British SF Association Award]]
 
* 1977 -- [[SfanCon 8]], [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
 
* 1977 -- [[SfanCon 8]], [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
 
* 1978 -- [[Windycon V]], [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
 
* 1978 -- [[Windycon V]], [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
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* 1979 -- [[Novacon 9 West]], [[toastmaster]] at [[Seacon '79]] (the 1979 [[Worldcon]]), [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
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* 1979 -- '''[[1979 Best Fan Writer Hugo]]''', [[Novacon 9 West]], [[toastmaster]] at [[Seacon '79]] (the 1979 [[Worldcon]]), [[FAAn Award]] for Best Fan Writer
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* 1980 -- [[Unicon (UK) 80]], [[Doc Weir Award]]
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* 1980 -- '''[[1980 Best Fan Writer Hugo]]''', [[Unicon (UK) 80]], [[Doc Weir Award]]
 
* 1981 -- [[Novacon 11]], [[DeepSouthCon 19]]
 
* 1981 -- [[Novacon 11]], [[DeepSouthCon 19]]
 
* 1982 -- [[Norwescon V]], [[Plergbcon]], [[Shoestringcon 4]]
 
* 1982 -- [[Norwescon V]], [[Plergbcon]], [[Shoestringcon 4]]
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* 1985 -- [[The Shaw Fund]]
 
* 1986 -- [[Not-Anokon 8]], [[toastmaster]] for [[Confederation]] (the 1986 [[Worldcon]]), [[Nicon 87]]
 
* 1986 -- [[Not-Anokon 8]], [[toastmaster]] for [[Confederation]] (the 1986 [[Worldcon]]), [[Nicon 87]]
 
* 1987 -- [[Rivercon XII]]
 
* 1987 -- [[Rivercon XII]]
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* 1995 -- [[Confabulation (Eastercon)]], [[Novacon 25]], [[Loscon 22]]
 
* 1995 -- [[Confabulation (Eastercon)]], [[Novacon 25]], [[Loscon 22]]
 
* 1996 -- [[Past president of the FWA]], [[Nova Award]] for Best Fan
 
* 1996 -- [[Past president of the FWA]], [[Nova Award]] for Best Fan
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{{person | born=1931 | died=1996}}
 
{{person | born=1931 | died=1996}}
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[[Category:pro]]
 
[[Category:pro]]
 
[[Category:UK]]
 
[[Category:UK]]
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[[Category:canada]] [[Category:US]] [[Category:artist]]

Revision as of 06:24, 9 March 2023

(You probably weren't looking for the Fake Bob Shaw or some other bosh, but see Bosh (Disambiguation) just in case....)


(December 31, 1931 - February 11, 1996)

Bob Shaw. Drawing by Doug Chaffee, from the DSC 50 PB, courtesy Guy Lillian III.

Bob Shaw, often called BoSh, was a fan, fan writer, fan artist, novelist, structural engineer, aircraft designer, and journalist from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He was one of the Wheels of IF and a great and influential fan. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980.


Pro[edit]

Professionally, he published his first story in 1951, and is best known for "Light of Other Days" (ASF, August 1966), the story that introduced the concept of slow glass. It was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967. Orbitsville and its two sequels deal with the discovery of a habitable shell completely surrounding a star, and the consequences for humanity. The first in this trilogy won him the 1976 British SF Association Award. His novel The Ragged Astronauts was a 1987 Best Novel Hugo nominee.

He was introduced to science fiction as a pre-teen by reading an A. E. van Vogt short story in Astounding. He later described the experience as being more significant and long-lasting than taking LSD.

Fan[edit]

In 1950, he joined the group Irish Fandom that met at James White's house. The group was very influential in fandom and produced the fanzines Slant (to which he contributed a large part of the artwork and "The Fansmanship Lectures") and its successor, Hyphen, (which besides other Shaw fanwriting ran 30 installments of his column "The Glass Bushel"). He acquired the nickname "BoSh" during this period. Following his early membership of Irish Fandom, he formed the Belfast Triangle, living in Oblique House with Walt Willis, and James White.

He was the world's greatest practitioner of Fansmanship and did the drafting for the design of the Tucker Hotel. He received the Doc Weir Award in 1980 and three FAAn Awards for Best Fan Writer. He was a world-champion Ghoodminton player, always ranking in the top 3-4 worldwide.

He was well-loved and sought after wearing both his fan and pro hats. The BoSh Fund was created to bring him to Noreascon and The Shaw Fund to bring him to Aussiecon 2.

See also: Bob Shaw Appreciation Magazine.

Fanwriting and Speeches[edit]

Shaw always remained a keen reader of and contributor to fanzines. With Walt Willis, Shaw co-wrote The Enchanted Duplicator, arguably the most revered piece of fanwriting ever, in 1954.

The Glass Bushel[edit]

“The Glass Bushel” was Shaw’s regular column in Hyphen. He said modestly that a glass bushel was the only sort he was prepared to hide his light under. There were 30 instalments in all. The column was revived under the same title in 1984 for Richard E. Geis's Science Fiction Review, which published two installments in that year.

Thirteen columns were collected by Rob Jackson in 1979 as The Best of the Bushel (see The Complete BoSh), with a new introduction by Walt Willis and an introductory note to each column by Shaw. A different selection of fourteen Bushel columns (with some overlap) was published by Bruce Pelz in 1995 as 14 Bob the Bushel. The Full Glass Bushel (Ansible Editions, 2020) contains all the columns plus additional articles from Hyphen (see The Complete BoSh).

Eastercon Speeches[edit]

From 1974–90, at Eastercon, Shaw would deliver a humorous speech, often one of his Serious Scientific Talks (which weren't), such as "The Bermondsey Triangle Mystery."

Five early examples were collected as The Eastercon Speeches (1979) edited by Rob Jackson (see The Complete BoSh); three more as Serious Science (published in 1984 by Eve Harvey and Marc Ortleib); ten, including the entire contents of the earlier collections, as A Load of Old BoSh (1995); and fourteen -- including all those previously collected -- as The Serious Scientific Talks (2019), an Ansible Editions ebook. At least one more talk, delivered in 1995, remains untraced and uncollected.

Other Collections[edit]

Almost all Shaw’s previously uncollected fanwriting has since been brought together as Slow Pint Glass (Ansible Editions, 2020).

Personal Life[edit]

Originally trained as a structural engineer, Shaw worked as an aircraft designer for Short and Harland, then as science correspondent for The Belfast Telegraph and then as publicity officer for Vickers Shipbuilding before starting to write full-time.

Shaw nearly lost his sight through illness and suffered migraine-induced visual disturbances throughout his life. Shaw and his first wife, Sadie, lived in Canada from 1956–58. During the Troubles, they moved from Northern Ireland to England, where he produced the majority of his work. Sadie died suddenly in 1991. He married Nancy Tucker in 1995 and went to the United States to live with her, then returned to England for medical care in the last months of his life. Shaw died of cancer.

Fanzines and Apazines:

Awards, Honors and GoHships:


Person 1931—1996
This is a biography page. Please extend it by adding more information about the person, such as fanzines and apazines published, awards, clubs, conventions worked on, GoHships, impact on fandom, external links, anecdotes, etc. See Standards for People and The Naming of Names.

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