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| − | '''Joan W. Carr''' (aka '''JoCa''' and '''[[JWC]]''') was a popular [[UK]] [[femmefan]] in the early 1950s, who turned out to be a [[hoax]] created by a male UK fan, [[H. P. "Sandy" Sanderson]], and [[Frances Evans]]. A sergeant in the British Army stationed in North Africa, Sanderson reported meeting a WRAC (British WAC) who‘d expressed an interest in [[fandom]]. This was at a time when there were not a lot of females in [[fandom]].
| + | #REDIRECT [[Sandy Sanderson#Joan W. Carr]] [[Category:redirect]] |
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| − | "She" was soon writing to various [[fans]] back in England, and was eventually asked (and agreed) to edit ''[[Femizine]]'', which became a very popular focal point for female unity in the [[UK]]. At the height of its popularity under Joan's editorship, it had a respectable circulation over 200 and generated reader response of roughly 50% – which was unheard of, before or since. When the [[hoax]] was finally revealed early in 1956, it shook up many of the [[fans]], and particularly the [[femmefans]] who had responded so positively.
| + | {{fanhistory | start=1954|end=1956}} |
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| − | But it was not as if this sort of gender bending had not taken place before. In the US, when [[Lee Hoffman]] first started publishing ''[[Quandry]]'', the fact that there were two other fans named Lee who were prominent [[BNFs]] – [[(Charles) Lee Riddle]] and [[Lee Jacobs]] – led everyone to simply assume that [[LeeH]] was a he rather than a she. But the distinction, perhaps, is that Shirley Hoffman had not intended to [[hoax]] anyone when she used her childhood nickname on her [[fanzine]]. When her attempts to hint otherwise – e.g., writing about sitting cross-legged on the bed while typing or sending columnist [[Walt Willis]] a Valentine's Day card – failed to alert anyone, she became amused and continued it, just telling it to a few friends, until she could unmask at the [[Nolacon]], the 1951 [[Worldcon]]. See [[Lee Hoffman Hoax]].
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| − | *''[[Femizine]]''
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| − | One of the more popular [[hoaxes]] in [[fannish history]], which boasts a good many. She was a [[femmefan]], first born in the mind of [[H. P. Sanderson|HP (Sandy) Sanderson]] back in October 1952. When he was posted to the Middle East, Sandy [a sergeant in the British army] concocted with [[Frances Evans]] a plot against the male members of the [[Northwest Science Fantasy Club]] (of [[Manchester]], his home town). Soon after arriving in North Africa he told them of meeting a WRAC [British WAC] who took an interest in [[fandom]]. Later "she" wrote letters to various Manchester fans, using a [[typer]] (Sandy never did) and signing "her" signature in green with a special pen. Later, she came into contact with [[fans]] outside of the original Northern group, and by May 1954 was well-known in [[Anglofandom]]. It was generally assumed that she and Sandy would be married at the end of their overseas tour. (One British [[femmefan]] worried a bit about their future, remarking that Joan sounded like one of those ultra-masculine sergeants the WRACs develop and would probably not make anybody a good wife.)
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| − | Meanwhile, back in [[England]], [[Frances Evans|Frances]] (who had been studying the reaction among [[Anglofen]] while Sandy animated his creation in Egypt) had been in touch with [[Ethel Lindsay]], and had put forward the idea of uniting all the female [[fans]] thru a magazine of their own. Joan "volunteered" to edit it, and so [[FEMIZINE]] came into being. It was more popular than expected. Suddenly [[femmefandom]] turned up plenty of talent that had previously been hidden. In short order [[FEZ]] had a circulation of 200, with up to 50% letter returns -- an amazing reader response. By March 1955 [[Ethel Lindsay]] had been brought into the plot, Joan was known thruout [[fandom]], and time was running short. JoCa had grown out of all consideration of the original idea, and began to go [[gafia]]. [[FEZ]] was turned over to [[Pamela Bulmer]] (who produced issues 8&9) in July 1955, and presently Joan had reduced her activity to [[OMPA]] only and was slowing down there.
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| − | When the hoax was revealed it dealt British female fandom a jolt from which it has yet to recover (1959). The fear of this had led Frances and [[Ethel Lindsay|Ethel]] to decide that Joan should go gafia; Sandy started to take over Joan's activities in his own name, spreading talk of a quarrel between himself and Joan. Unfortunately, in May '56 somebody blew the gaff; [[Ron Bennett]] was intending to create a mythical wife, also named "Joan", and someone in the secret told him it had already been done. Hints and suggestions were flying around the [[Cytricon II|'56 Kettering]] [[convention]], and it was decided to break the story in [[FEZ]] 9.
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| − | Joan's name in the first place was taken from a box of Carr's biscuits and from Carrs Mills, where a non-fan cousin of Sandy's (who later posed for photos of "Joan") lived. It was chosen without any thought of the various meanings that could be read into it and its contractions JoCa and JWC. It says something for the differences between [[US|Yanks]] and Britons that many of Sandy's [[Army]] acquaintances knew of his hoax yet didn't think there was anything odd about it, even picking up "her" mail and holding it while Sandy was on leave.
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| − | }}
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| − | For more, see Chapters [https://fanac.org/Fan_Histories/Then/Then_22.html Four] and [https://fanac.org/Fan_Histories/Then/Then_23.html Five] of ''[[Then]]'' by [[Rob Hansen]].
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| − | {{fanhistory | year=1950s}}
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| | {{person}} | | {{person}} |
| | [[Category:fan]] | | [[Category:fan]] |
