Nydahl's Disease
Nydahl's Disease (aka annishthesia) is a particular kind of gafia resulting from fannish burnout. Originally applied to over-ambitious faneds who left fandom soon after producing an elaborate annish, Nydahl's Disease has become the diagnosis of any fan who gafiates amid or immediately after any big exertion of fanac, from running a convention to publishing a major fanzine.
The Patient Zero for whom the disease is named was Joel Nydahl, who published a monthly focal point fanzine called Vega from 1952 to 1953. For the first anniversary, Nydahl knocked himself out producing a 100-page annish – a rare accomplishment in those days, particularly for a 16-year-old. Then Nydahl promptly gafiated, overwhelmed by his huge effort.
Walt Willis coined the term annishthesia soon after in "Up the Garden Pathology" (Oopsla 12, March/April 1954).
I know that Professor Boggs in the Vegannish pointed out that annishes are a plague, but as Dean Grennell is my witness I thought of it first, and as the discoverer of Stigwort's Disease I feel that my researches go more deeply into this vital matter.
Willis said there are two forms of it: Primary annishthesia is invariably fatal; the effort of putting together an annish becomes too much, and before it can be printed the faned succumbs to gafiation.
Secondary annishthesia, in which the annish is actually published leaving the faned "haggard, wan, his fingers bleeding from misguided staples, his back stooped from gathering, his pores stopped up with mimeo ink, in advanced malnutrition through poverty brought on by the high cost of paper", only to receive little reaction. "If the fan survives this he will slowly recover. The treatment is complete rest and frequent injections of egoboo."
Some fans inferred that this was what happened to Nydahl. However, Harry Warner, Jr. cited correspondence from Nydahl saying he received plenty of locs full of egoboo and praise for the issue, and friends of his said that Nydahl had been falling behind at school while publishing his fanzine and had to leave fandom (see fafia) to keep his grades up.
Nydahl made a brief return to fandom in 2001, attending Millennium Philcon, and was shocked to find out about his fannish fame. In Trap Door 21, the revenant Nydahl wrote that his gafiation was the result of moving from a family farm, miles out of town, to the town itself. He became interested in girls and basketball and lost interest in sf.
- “Revisiting Nydahl’s Disease” by Joel Nydahl, Trap Door 21 (March 2002, p. 16).
See also other Fannish Ailments.
Fanspeak | 1953— |
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