WAPPPOTED

WAPPPOTED was a 4-page, one-shot apazine published by Ken Bulmer, Pamela Bulmer and Walt Willis in September 1956 with a 1-page appended update from Archie Mercer. It was intended for OMPA mailing #9. It is perhaps notable that while the fanzine clearly self-described as being produced by both Bulmers and Willis, APAthy credits it only to the two men. In fairness, Pamela Bulmer's contribution to the fanzine was brief, not least because while Ken and Walt were writing she was helping Madeleine Willis make the dinner which was served half-way down page 3.

The title is an acronym for 'World Association of Presidents & Past Presidents of OMPA & TAFF Ex-Delegates', a group of which the three were 'founder members'. Technically, only Ken Bulmer (OMPA president 1954–5, TAFF delegate 1955) was eligible for membership. Pamela Bulmer (OMPA president 1955–6 and accompanied Ken on his TAFF trip) and Willis (OMPA president 1956–7 and the technically pre-TAFF WAW With the Crew in '52) were a bit of a fudge.

The fanzine was written while the Bulmers were visiting the Willises in Belfast at the beginning of September 1956, at the same time as Nycon II. It takes the form of a dialogue, starting with Bulmer congratulating Willis on his new role as OMPA president and asking for his thoughts on 'the trend of operations and the future of OMPA'. Willis suggests that:

OMPA, and FAPA too for that matter, might be partially responsible for the the decline in the general subzines. Or perhaps not so much a decline, as a discrepancy between the quality of of current actifandom and the quality of activity of activity in fandom in general. Many of the best fans are devoting their energy to apas and leaving fandom-at-large to neofans, most of whom are on apa waiting lists.

Willis's suggestion was to 'reduce the OMPA activity requirement to 8 pages a year' and 'that entry into apas be made more difficult. By at least requiring a proposer and seconder for each new member, and by possibly by providing blackballing, or perhaps an election from the waiting list.

Bulmer agreed on all this aside from the blackball, and further suggested that 'apa members be asked to contribute an item to the general fan field'.

Willis proposes the idea that 'An apazine should almost be to fandom what fandom is to science fiction.' He suggests that if new members were to be elected from the waiting list it should be from the top half at which point Pamela Bulmer made her brief interjection to say elections should be from the whole list, with the length of time a person has been waiting being part of the candidate's canvassing.

Willis concludes at the top of page 4 – as they're about to do the post-dinner washing up – by suggesting 'we leave this discussion for Ompans in general to take up.'

The last page is largely a stop press, reporting a letter from Joy Clarke received on September 5, saying that an initially misaddressed cable had arrived for Ken back in London on September 4. This purported to be from Arthur C. Clarke who was the guest of honour at Nycon II. The cable said that the London bid for the 1957 Worldcon needed to be withdrawn to prevent some kind of unspecified 'split' with a guarantee that it would be successful if re-presented for 1958. A reply had been sent by Clarke and Bobbie Wild to the homes of Art Saha and Dick Ellington for the attention of Clarke or Dave Kyle agreeing to withdraw.

Bulmer and Willis then discuss the issue. Bulmer at first (and as it turned out correctly) suspected a hoax but then thought it needed to be taken seriously. Willis felt the 1957 bid should go ahead in any event and that London in 1958 was 'unthinkable', not least because of the longstanding idea of South Gate in '58.

As it so happens, the misaddressing of the cable was crucial. Because it only arrived on September 4 the 1957 Worldcon Site Selection had already been decided in London's favour. The Bulmers and Willis were still unaware of this and the four-page WAPPPPOTED was sent to the OMPA OE, Archie Mercer. It arrived on September 7, While it was in transit the Bulmers and Willises received new information and they sent Mercer an express delivery letter that also reached him on September 7, confirming that:

Word just received that cable was phoney (Whether hoax or fraud we don't yet know.) London won Worldcon by 7 to 2.

Mercer added an additional page to WAPPPPOTED, headed 'It is London in '57!', quoting the express letter and confirming there was no cause for concern about the cable although 'I can well understand the anguish the Belfast and (in particular) London fen concerned must have undergone.' As a result, some fans first learned of the crisis at the same time as of its resolution.

The cable was indeed confirmed as a hoax. In Contact #1 (October 1956), Dick Ellington reported that the culprit responsible for the hoax cable was Bob Chazin of Ohio.

Note: some sources give the name as WAPPOTED (two Ps rather than three) including Willis himself in his entry in Who's Who in Science Fiction Fandom (1961) although the error there could be down to Lloyd D. Broyles. This is probably because the three consecutive Ps do seem unlikely.

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Publication

1956

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