Difference between revisions of "Cytricon I"

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  There was a sort of concerted sigh of relief from [[London]], and Kettering was handed the baby with a speed that surprised them. But two active London fans are acting in an advisory capacity on the Kettering Con Committee, and no doubt the newcomers will be relying heavily on the experiences gained in other cities too.
 
  There was a sort of concerted sigh of relief from [[London]], and Kettering was handed the baby with a speed that surprised them. But two active London fans are acting in an advisory capacity on the Kettering Con Committee, and no doubt the newcomers will be relying heavily on the experiences gained in other cities too.
  
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Clarke also credited the convention with two firsts, 'the first time a whole hotel has been booked for a British s-f Con, and the first time arrangements have been made to accommodate guests for three whole days.' Membership of the Society was 2/6 with an additional 6d for the daily sessions on Saturday and Sunday. 'Wives' were offered a reduced rate of 4d. Rooms were 20/6d per day.
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Clarke also credited the convention with two firsts, 'the first time a whole hotel has been booked for a British s-f Con, and the first time arrangements have been made to accommodate guests for three whole days.' Membership of the Society was 2/6 with an additional 6/- for the daily sessions on Saturday and Sunday. 'Wives' were offered a reduced rate of 4/-. Rooms were 20/6d per day.
  
 
=== Venue ===
 
=== Venue ===
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# [[John Owen]] (A)
 
# [[John Owen]] (A)
 
# [[David Page]] (AN)
 
# [[David Page]] (AN)
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# [[Bill Panter]]
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# [[Bill Panter]] (A)
 
# [[Derek Pickles]]
 
# [[Derek Pickles]]
 
# ''Brian Poole''
 
# ''Brian Poole''
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</div>
 
</div>
  
−
The membership list includes the six known or likely members of the [[Kettering Astronautics Society]] but only Denny Cowen is explicitly mentioned as being in attendance. There is also a significant contingent of known or likely members of the [[North East Science Fiction Society]] although in most cases we don't know if they were present.
+
The membership list includes the six known or likely members of the [[Kettering Astronautics Society]] but only Denny Cowen and Bill Panter are explicitly mentioned as being in attendance. There is also a significant contingent of known or likely members of the [[North East Science Fiction Society]] although in most cases we don't know if they were present.
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 +
Notable first-time convention attendees include [[Arthur Thomson]].
  
 
== The convention ==
 
== The convention ==
  
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The [[Liverpool Group]] presented their [[tapera]] ''[[The March of Slime]]'' and the convention saw several fans wearing [[Propeller-beanie|propeller beanies]] and, according to [[Rob Hansen]], 'the first real appearance of [[costuming]] at a [[British]] convention'. The convention gave awards to [[Ted Tubb]] as [[author]] of the year and ''[[Eye]]'' as best [[fanzine]], the latter accepted by [[Vince Clarke]].
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Many fans arrived on the Friday night. The rooms in The George were all booked out and some fans such as [[Chuck Harris]] had to be found rooms in the overflow. Many fans wore [[propeller beanies]] in the bar. Willis felt that 'As with Conventions themselves, British fandom is acting out what US fandom only dreams'<ref>''[[Hyphen]]'' #14 (June 1955).</ref>. Fan also met 'Boris', the night porter, who became something of a hero for delivering drinks at all hours.
 +
 
 +
On Saturday the hotel attempted to serve lunch for 8/6, too much for most fans' taste who opted instead for cheap cafes. On Sunday they tried again with a 'Fans' Special' at 6/-. The convention formally started at 2pm with speeches from [[Ted Carnell]] and [[Bert Campbell]]. There were a number of presentations: to Carnell as 'The Year's Most Popular Author', [[Ken Slater]] receiving the [[1953 #1 Fan Personality Hugo]] that was officially given to [[Forrest J Ackerman]] but which Ackerman passed on to Slater, and to [[Vince Clarke]] on behalf of ''[[Eye]]'' for the Fanzine of the Year. Chuck Harris later receive the 'Fan Of The Year (1866)' from 'The Bradford Society For The Care And Feeding Of Elderly Sex-Fiends' in the form of [[Sheila O'Donnell]]<ref>Ibid ''Hyphen''.</ref>.
 +
 
 +
The [[Liverpool Group]] presented their [[tapera]] ''[[The March of Slime]]'' followed later by a screening of ''War of the Worlds''. Some fans decided to fire [[zap-guns]] at the screen, upsetting the hotel manager. Vince Clarke and Walt Willis took up a collection to pay for damage, collecting more than enough so the balance went to [[TAFF]] and staff gratuities<ref>Strikingly similar to the [[St. Louiscon#Movie Screen Affair|St. Louiscon Movie Screen Affair]] of 1969.</ref>.
 +
 
 +
The Saturday evening parties saw many [[Liverpool Group]] fans in fancy dress, 'where costuming first truly started at British cons' according to [[Rob Hansen]].
  
 
== Publications ==
 
== Publications ==

Revision as of 07:41, 3 November 2024

Cytricon was the 1955 Eastercon, held April 8-10, 1955 (Easter weekend) at the George Hotel in Kettering, UK. There was no guest of honour. The committee was Bill Panter (chair), Denny Cowen (secretary), Joe Ayres (treasurer), and Al Lee (publicity).

It is regarded as the sixth convention in the Eastercon sequence although most of its predecessors had been held at Whitsun. Thereafter Easter became the traditional date for the Eastercon, something that shouldn't really need stating. It was also the first of four consecutive Cytricons.

The traditional fan view has been that the name was derived from an earlier Roman settlement and that may be what fans believed at at the time. However, it now seems more likely that it comes from a later Anglo-Saxon settlement variously spelled Cytringan, Kyteringas and Keteiringan. This in turn implies that the name should more properly be pronounced with a hard C, Kitricon, rather than the soft C, Sitricon, that's invariably used.

Preparations[edit]

While six members of the Kettering Astronautics Society had been members of the Supermancon in 1954 only Denny Cowen is known to have attended. During the business session, Ted Tubb called for nominations for the 1955 site and hearing none unilaterally decided it would be in London, However, at some later point Cowen and the Kettering group volunteered to run the convention.

Again, if progress reports were issued they've not been traced. Vin¢ Clarke, writing as 'Inquisitor' in Vargo Statten Science Fiction Magazine #10 (February 1955), reported the Cytricon as 'news' and said that Cowen: 

... openly revolted against the constant siting of the Convention in the big cities — London, Manchester, etc[1]. Why, asked Denny, shouldn’t one of the smaller towns have a go? Kettering was mid-way between the largest English centres of fan-activity, and its choice would resolve the problem of jealousy which occasionally arises amongst those who have never had the doubtful pleasure of holding a Convention.

There was a sort of concerted sigh of relief from London, and Kettering was handed the baby with a speed that surprised them. But two active London fans are acting in an advisory capacity on the Kettering Con Committee, and no doubt the newcomers will be relying heavily on the experiences gained in other cities too.

Clarke also credited the convention with two firsts, 'the first time a whole hotel has been booked for a British s-f Con, and the first time arrangements have been made to accommodate guests for three whole days.' Membership of the Society was 2/6 with an additional 6/- for the daily sessions on Saturday and Sunday. 'Wives' were offered a reduced rate of 4/-. Rooms were 20/6d per day.

Venue[edit]

The George Hotel in Kettering was an old coaching inn dating back to 1639. It would host all four Cytricon Eastercons from 1955 to 1958 and the Kettering Minicon of 1960, as well as Cytricon V, a fiftieth anniversary gathering in 2008. It was later renamed the Naseby Hotel but sadly it closed permanently in 2016 and has been turned into flats.

Attendees[edit]

There are 112 members of the registered members listed in the combozine. Some of these didn't attend and in a few cases presumably never had any intention of doing so. There are about 70 known attendees based on mentions in convention reports or appearances in photos.

In the table below names marked (A) are known attendees, names marked (AN) are known attendees who are not on the membership list, and names marked (N) are members who are known to have not been present. The remainder may have attended. In many cases that's the limit of our knowledge about them and where this is the case there won't be a page for them until and unless we find out some more. Names to which this applies are in italics. Additionally names marked * are family members of attendees who likely weren't fans per se.

  1. Don Allen (A)
  2. John Ashcroft (A)
  3. Mal Ashworth (A)
  4. Joe Ayres
  5. M. Beardsley
  6. Ron Bennett (A)
  7. Eric Bentcliffe (A)
  8. Irene Boothroyd (A)
  9. Syd Bounds (A)
  10. Nevil Brock
  11. John Brunner (A)
  12. Daphne Buckmaster (A)
  13. Ron Buckmaster (A)
  14. Ken Bulmer (A)
  15. Pam Bulmer (AN)
  16. Brian Burgess (A)
  17. Alan Burns (A)
  18. Joan Burns[2]
  19. Bert Campbell (AN)
  20. J. W. Campbell
  21. Peter Campbell
  22. Ted Carnell
  23. Joan Carr (N)
  24. Jim Cawthorn
  25. Meredith Chatterton (A)
  26. Harry Clements (AN)
  27. Vin¢ Clarke (A)
  28. Gerry Clarke
  29. Dave Cohen (A)
  30. Tony Cooper (A)
  31. J. Coozens
  32. Denny Cowen (A)
  33. Kathryn M. Cowen *
  34. Alfred Dean
  35. Charles Duncombe
  36. Peter Emery
  37. Cyril Evans (AN)
  38. Frances Evans (A)
  39. Pat Everest[3] (A)
  40. John Russell Fearn
  41. Reg Fieldhouse
  42. Pete Fox
  43. George Gibson
  44. Tony Glynn
  45. Joy Goodwin (A)
  46. John B. Hall (A)
  47. Peter Hamilton (A)
  48. Paul Hammett (A)
  49. Chuck Harris (A)
  50. Bill Harrison (A)
  51. B. Hill
  52. Arthur F. Hillman
  53. E. R. James
  54. Jan Jansen
  55. Terry Jeeves (A)
  56. Eric Jones (AN)
  57. Tony Klein (AN)
  58. Al Lee
  59. Brian Lewis
  60. Ethel Lindsay (A)
  61. Nigel Lindsay
  62. George Lye
  63. Don MacKay
  64. Lil MacKay
  65. Renee MacKay
  66. Connie Mackenzie
  67. Stuart Mackenzie
  68. Michael Mansfield (A)
  69. Shirley Marriott (A)
  70. Jim Marshall
  71. Jim McArthur
  72. Ken McIntyre
  73. Archie Mercer (A)
  74. Frank Milnes (A)
  75. Jim Mooney
  76. Peter Moor
  77. Dan Morgan
  78. Orville W. Mosher[4].
  79. Eric Needham (A)
  80. Dave Newman (A)
  81. Stan Nuttall (A)
  82. Sheila O'Donnell (A)
  83. Nic Oosterbaan (AN)
  84. R. Ogier
  85. John Owen (A)
  86. David Page (AN)
  87. Bill Panter (A)
  88. Derek Pickles
  89. Brian Poole
  90. Ken Potter (A)
  91. Dorothy Ratigan (AN)
  92. Jim Ratigan (AN)
  93. Peter Reaney (A)
  94. Peter Rigby
  95. John Roles (A)
  96. Pete Royle (AN)
  97. Sandy Sanderson (A)
  98. Ina Shorrock (A)
  99. Norman Shorrock (A)
  100. Frank Simpson (A)
  101. Ken Skelton
  102. Ken Slater (A)
  103. Ken Smith[5]
  104. Margo Statten[6]
  105. Pete Taylor (A)
  106. Mike Tealby
  107. Arthur Thomson (AN)
  108. Tony Thorne
  109. E. C. Tubb (A)
  110. Con Turner
  111. Harry Turner
  112. Brian Varley (A)
  113. Mike Wallace (A)
  114. Norman Wansborough (A)
  115. Norman Weedall (A)
  116. Cyril Whitaker
  117. Betty White
  118. Eddie White (AN)
  119. Tom White
  120. Taffy Williams
  121. Madeleine Willis (A)
  122. Walt Willis (A)
  123. Jack Wilson
  124. Geoff Wingrove
  125. Dave Wood (AN)
  126. Cathie Youden (A)

The membership list includes the six known or likely members of the Kettering Astronautics Society but only Denny Cowen and Bill Panter are explicitly mentioned as being in attendance. There is also a significant contingent of known or likely members of the North East Science Fiction Society although in most cases we don't know if they were present.

Notable first-time convention attendees include Arthur Thomson.

The convention[edit]

Many fans arrived on the Friday night. The rooms in The George were all booked out and some fans such as Chuck Harris had to be found rooms in the overflow. Many fans wore propeller beanies in the bar. Willis felt that 'As with Conventions themselves, British fandom is acting out what US fandom only dreams'[7]. Fan also met 'Boris', the night porter, who became something of a hero for delivering drinks at all hours.

On Saturday the hotel attempted to serve lunch for 8/6, too much for most fans' taste who opted instead for cheap cafes. On Sunday they tried again with a 'Fans' Special' at 6/-. The convention formally started at 2pm with speeches from Ted Carnell and Bert Campbell. There were a number of presentations: to Carnell as 'The Year's Most Popular Author', Ken Slater receiving the 1953 #1 Fan Personality Hugo that was officially given to Forrest J Ackerman but which Ackerman passed on to Slater, and to Vin¢ Clarke on behalf of Eye for the Fanzine of the Year. Chuck Harris later receive the 'Fan Of The Year (1866)' from 'The Bradford Society For The Care And Feeding Of Elderly Sex-Fiends' in the form of Sheila O'Donnell[8].

The Liverpool Group presented their tapera The March of Slime followed later by a screening of War of the Worlds. Some fans decided to fire zap-guns at the screen, upsetting the hotel manager. Vince Clarke and Walt Willis took up a collection to pay for damage, collecting more than enough so the balance went to TAFF and staff gratuities[9].

The Saturday evening parties saw many Liverpool Group fans in fancy dress, 'where costuming first truly started at British cons' according to Rob Hansen.

Publications[edit]

The Cytricon Combozine was produced for the convention. It lists 113 members and includes special issues of Alpha, Brennschluss, Fission, Femizine, Hyphen and Satellite as well as trail for the forthcoming Nadir which seemingly never happened.

Future conventions[edit]

Links

____

  1. ↑ Only two years earlier, Manchester fans were openly revolting against the constant siting of the Convention in London.
  2. ↑ Joan Burns is listed separately in Ron Bennett's directory for 1955 at the same address as Alan Burns. She also contributed to Femizine. However Don Allen said in a letter to Relapse #17 (Spring 2010) 'Joan Burns was Alan Burns, doing a Sandy Sanderson (making up a female persona).
  3. ↑ The membership list includes 'R. P. Everett' and there was a known attendee called 'Pat Everest'. Both were from Leicester so the assumption is that the former is a typo for the latter.
  4. ↑ Mosher was the founder of Project Fan Club and Denny Cowen of the Kettering group was its UK representative so Mosher's membership was likely an act of solidarity.
  5. ↑ This could be K. E. Smith. He was from Liverpool and Ken Smith is from Manchester and they're relatively close. However, Smith is a very common name.
  6. ↑ The assumption here is that this is a joke allusion to Vargo Statten. Archie Mercer also quotes 'Margo' in Archive #13 (Autumn 1957), presumably in a similar vein. The address was given as Huddersfield. The only person with a Huddersfield address in Ron Bennett's Directory of Science Fiction Fandom for 1955 is Irene Boothroyd who is listed here separately.
  7. ↑ Hyphen #14 (June 1955).
  8. ↑ Ibid Hyphen.
  9. ↑ Strikingly similar to the St. Louiscon Movie Screen Affair of 1969.
first Cytricon Cytricon II
Supermancon Eastercon Cytricon II
1955
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