Terry Carr

(February 19, 1937 – April 7, 1987)

Terry Carr was a fan, sf writer, and editor. He discovered fandom in 1949, and became an enthusiastic publisher of fanzines. Despite a long career as a science fiction professional, he continued to participate as a fan until his death from congestive heart failure. He won the 1959 Best Fanzine Hugo, the 1973 Best Fan Writer Hugo, the 1985 Best Professional Editor Hugo and the 1987 Best Professional Editor Hugo.

Fan

During the 1950s and ’60s, he remained one of the most prominent fans in the world. In 1986, he was Fan GoH at ConFederation, the Altanta Worldcon.

He ran for TAFF in 1959, losing to Don Ford. He ran again in 1965 and won. During his term as TAFF administrator, he published TAFF Progress Report.

He was a member of NAPA, Golden Gate Futurians, the Little Men, FAPA, OMPA, SAPS, The Cult, and the Fanoclasts. He was one of the Berkeley Bhoys, and the ACC, helped conceive the beer can Tower to the Moon, and was one of the people behind Carl Brandon. (And was one of the people credited with publishing Dolor along with Dave Rike, Carl Brandon, and Ron Ellik.) He wrote "Egoboo for Algernon".

Some of his fan writing was collected in The Incompleat Terry Carr, in Fandom Harvest and in Fandom Harvest II (Ansible Editions, 2019).

In an infamous event at Noreascon Two in 1980, a drunken Susan Wood threw a bottle at him in the SFWA Suite; Carr required stitches, but Wood did not remember the event the next day.

Pro

As a pro writer, he published both short SF and novels. In the early 1960s, Carr concentrated professionally on editing. He first worked at Ace Books, establishing the Ace Science Fiction Specials series which published, among other novels, The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin and Rite of Passage by Alexei Panshin.

After conflicts with Ace head Donald A. Wollheim, he worked as a freelancer. He edited an original story anthology series called Universe, and a popular series of Year's Best anthologies that ran from 1972 until his death in 1987. He taught at Clarion, and published some novels and short fiction.

• Entry in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

Personal Life

He was married to Miriam Dyches in the 1950s. In 1961, he married Carol Stuart.

His papers and his large collection of fanzines have become part of the Eaton Collection of Science Fiction at the University of California, Riverside.

• File 770 66, p. 2 (Obituary by Bill Rotsler)
• Westercon XXXX PB, p91 (Obituary by David Bratman)

Fanzines and Apazines:

• A L'Abandon
• Atomica (for FAPA)
• Blast
• Blood, Sweat and Bheers (with friends)
• BNF of Iz - an exegesis [1965]
• Clarion Fannish [1986]
• Dark Star (for OMPA)
• Defenstration [1961] (for OMPA, with Miriam Carr)
• Diaspar (for FAPA)
• Dolor (with Dave Rike, Carl Brandon, and Ron Ellik)
• Entropy (for FAPA, OMPA and SAPS)
• Fanac (with Ron Ellik; Hugo winner)
• Gilgamesh
• Incompleat Burbee
• Innuendo (one of the best fanzines of the 60s)
• Lighthouse
• Nonsense [1952-53] (with Keith Joseph)
• Ragnarok (with Miriam Carr for SAPS)
• S--- [1959-60] (with Miriam Carr for SAPS)
• Stormy Petrel
• Troll Chowder
• Void (some later issues)
• Vulcan (with Pete Graham)

Awards, Honors and GoHships:

• 1965 -- TAFF
• 1969 -- Marcon IV
• 1971 -- Disclave 15
• 1976 -- V-Con 5
• 1980 -- LepreCon 6
• 1981 -- Capricon 1
• 1982 -- WisCon 6, Past president of the FWA
• 1983 -- Toastmaster at OryCon V
• 1984 -- Lunacon 27
• 1986 -- TusCon 13, Toastmaster at Corflu 3
• 1989 -- Past president of the FWA
• Hugo Awards: 1959 Best Fanzine Hugo, 1973 Best Fan Writer Hugo, 1985 Best Professional Editor Hugo and 1987 Best Professional Editor Hugo
• Nominations: 1960 Best Fanzine Hugo, 1961 Best Fanzine Hugo, 1967 Best Fanzine Hugo, 1968 Best Fanzine Hugo, 1969 Best Short Story Hugo, 1971 Best Fan Writer Hugo, 1972 Best Fan Writer Hugo and thirteen times (1973-1975, 1977-1979, 1981-1987) for Best Professional Editor

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Person

1937—1987

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