Renovation Report
Renovation Report
Once upon a time it seemed like every trip to a worldcon somehow involved a ride on Amtrak’s California Zephyr. Through the ‘80s and ‘90s, the train was my most frequent mode of transportation to and from a variety of North American worldcon sites. In more recent years, my life circumstances have changed such that even when the Zephyr would have been a reasonable option, I got to the convention in some other way.
This year was my long overdue return to the Zephyr, at least for getting to Reno, if not back home again. Early on Tuesday morning, I walked with my luggage to the St. David of Wales rectory and rode with John Blaker to the Richmond Amtrak station. I retrieved my already-paid-for ticket from the automatic ticket dispenser and we waited on the platform for the train to arrive. It was a little late, which is usual for the Zephyr further down the line, but Richmond is only the second stop after leaving Emeryville and it seemed odd even to me that it would start out significantly late.
Soon after we settled into our seats, we fired up my laptop and worked on the service for Sunday morning. The Catholic Church is making some minor changes to its liturgy, but as they won’t take effect until December, John said that what I already had on my computer was still okay. While we worked, I called Mary Jo Mykytka to see if she would be at the con and could do music as she had in the past. She said that she wouldn’t be there, but she gave me the number of her sister, Kathleen Sloan, a filker who has helped us before. Kathleen was more than willing to help.
There were a fair number of other fans on the train and I was able to have a particularly geeky lunch in the dining car with España Sheriff. I also talked with Andy Porter for quite a while as he nearly continuously snapped pictures of mountains, streams, and trees as we wound our way through the Sierras.
I had originally thought that I would simply take the city bus from the Reno Amtrak station to the hotel, but John had made arrangements for us to be picked up by Pierre and Sandy Pettinger. Alas, they were having problems with checking into the hotel and it looked like it might be a while before they would be able to get away. As we were pondering what to do next, Andy Porter made the general announcement to any fans within earshot that he would like to share a cab with someone to the Peppermill. John and I took him up on the offer.
The Peppermill turned out to be a hotel built on the idea of excess. There was plenty of kitschy faux Roman statuary, including a reproduction of Michelangelo’s David, complete with an added fig leaf covering part of the anatomy. There was plenty of gold paint and design elements that served no purpose other than to look over-the-top fancy. Both the hallway where our room was located, as well as the room itself, was appointed with large “paintings” of people in togas , typically with a man looking lustfully at a woman while the woman averted her eyes toward some other direction. It was no surprise that the room included a tray of snacks and a refrigerator full of drink, all on electronic sensors that would automatically bill the room if any item were removed, even temporarily, from its resting place. Truly, this was a hotel built on the idea of Temptation.
When I was checking in the desk clerk asked me how many keys I needed. I explained that we would eventually need three, but that my wife and daughter would not be arriving until Thursday evening, and I wasn’t sure whether it was best to get their keys now or later.
“
Yes, I understand, sir,” he said, “But how many keys do you need before then?”
It took be a beat to realize what he was getting at before I replied, “I just need one.”
Ah, yes. Temptation.
After settling into my room I walked to the convention center to pick up my badge. It wasn’t a bad walk, but given the heat, I was glad that the shuttle buses would be starting on Wednesday. I also decided that it wasn’t a walk that I wanted to make alone at night.
From the moment I reached the parking lot, I began seeing old friends, many of whom I only see once a year at the worldcon. I also noticed a phenomenon that that is probably somewhat common at these types of gatherings, especially on the first day or two, but I hadn’t been aware of it before. When three or more of us were standing in a group talking, at some point one of us would point to the others and say, “So, do you know each other?”
I either heard or asked this question several times, but the most amusing instance of it was when someone asked it of Ben Yalow and myself.
“Oh, only for several decades,” Ben said.
“Has it really been that long,” I wondered silently.
I picked up my badge and found my way to Program Ops. I had promised Janice Gelb that I would help her out as much as possible during the convention. I signed up for several shifts for Wednesday and Thursday because those were my days that were freest of other responsibilities. While I was there, I picked up my Program Participant’s packet and began attaching ribbons and my stick-on schedule to my badge.
Ben Yalow recommended a Mediterranean restaurant across the street from the Peppermill. John Day, Stephen Boucher, Mike Pins, Ben, and I had dinner together there. Ben had eaten there before and had gotten to know the owner/manager who treated us like honored guests. The food was excellent and the prices were reasonable. The conversation started out with the usual smoffing, but soon turned to talk of books. It was one of the most stimulating conversations I had during the con. Good food, good friends, and good conversation. That’s why I attend conventions!
The only open party that evening was hosted by the Brits running the London In 2014 bid. I met briefly with John Maizels to touch base on some Hugo ceremony arrangements and had good conversations with Lisa Hayes, Ruth Sachter, and John Lorentz. All of these conversations took place in the hallway by the elevator as the party room itself was waaaay overcrowded and loud. John and Ruth gave me a ride back to the Peppermill where I crashed for the night.
I made use of the Peppermill’s gym (oh, excuse me . . . “fitness center”) early in the morning and have never felt so pampered at any similar facility in any other hotel. There was staff present. Yes, staff. They also had plenty of bottled water and numerous towels in various sizes. All of the equipment I needed was there and there was enough space that it didn’t feel overly crowded. I decided that I could get used to it pretty easily.
My biggest surprise of the convention came while I was having breakfast at a diner down the street from the hotel. I got a call from Pierre Pettinger who said that he and Sandy needed an extra person for their masquerade presentation. I momentarily considered turning them down because I knew that it would create some havoc with my schedule and since I was hosting my own birthday party on the night of the masquerade I wasn’t sure it was wise. Then, it occurred to me that in thirty or more years of congoing I had never been in a masquerade. Despite all of the potential scheduling issues and hassles, I decided that this was not an opportunity I wanted to pass up. I said yes.
I spent most of the rest of Wednesday working Program Ops. I sat in the hall for a couple of hours handing out Program Participant packets and then worked at the front table in the Program Ops room until mid-afternoon. My duties mostly consisted of helping program participants sort through issues around program item scheduling and making referrals to proper departments/divisions for some questions that had nothing at all to do with programming. I also worked out a system for the runners who were giving the 5-minute warning and “stop now” signs to the moderators. There would often be long stretches of nothing to do followed by a few minutes with three or four people asking questions at once. The coolest moment was getting to be present when George R. R. Martin presented Connie Willis with her official invitation to the Reaffirmation of Wedding Vows that he and Parris were having off-site during the convention.
I spent the late afternoon in the fanzine lounge, the exhibits, and making my “looking run” through the dealer’s room. I was delighted to discover that there were quite a few book dealers at the con and that several of them selling old and out-of-print items, including comics, pulps and used paperbacks. There was much to ponder before doing my “buying run” on Thursday.
Before going back to the Peppermill, I stopped by Program Ops one last time, only to discover that Deb Geisler, who had relieved me at the Program Participant Packet table at noon, was still there and had not had a break all afternoon. I told Janice I would take over and finish out the day and then went out to the table and practically had to order Deb to leave. She had worked alone at the table for about five hours straight. We were supposed to close the table at six o’clock, but there was a rush right around that time as a number of program participants were arriving late in the day and had just picked up their badges. I closed up and took the remaining packets to Program Ops around 6:30.
I had dinner at the seafood restaurant in the Peppermill with John Day, Kevin Roche, Andy Trembley, and Mike Van Pelt. The company was great and it was by far the best hotel restaurant food I had during the convention. The Pettingers were sitting at a nearby table and after dinner I went with them to their room to try on costumes and practice with the prop I would be handling during the masquerade.
Program Ops was much busier on Thursday morning than it had been on Wednesday afternoon. Programming was in full swing and most of the participants had arrived and were bringing their issues to us. Most of the inquiries on Thursday had to do with people wanting to be added to panels. My supervisors mostly told them “no.” This was a good thing.
At 12:30 I voted in Site Selection. I had actually included this on my personal worldcon schedule. There have been years when I have been so busy doing other things that I have forgotten to vote.
I then saw the art show and did my “buying run” through the dealer’s room. Despite being a bit pressed for time, I made sure that I spent a few minutes talking with some of my dealer friends as this might be the only time during the con that I would get to see them. I had intentionally brought a small want-list so that I wouldn’t be tempted to buy more than I could afford. I came away with some vintage paperbacks, a couple of Silver Age comics, and some really cool pulps from the 1930s.
We had a Hugo ceremony staff meeting at the Tuscany Ballroom in the Peppermill later that afternoon. The stage was still being set up so we weren’t able to do a walk-through of the space, but we were able to talk through the plan for Saturday and the details of the ceremony pretty thoroughly. Best of all, the meeting lasted less than two hours, which was much shorter than in some other years.
It wasn’t until that evening that I learned which room would be used for the evening Fanzine Lounge and my birthday party on Friday night. Once I had the information I set up an event page on Facebook and sent invitations to all those among my Facebook friends whom I thought might be at the worldcon. Alas, given that it was only 24 hours notice and there was a con going on, some people didn’t get the invite until after the party. Since, it was an open party, I was hoping most of my friends would stumble across it, anyway.
I also panicked just a bit when I realized that the evening Fanzine Lounge was to be the first party room nearest the elevators and right across the hall from the Texas party. I had visions of overcrowding and quickly diminishing party supplies. As it would turn out, my panicking was for naught. The Texas party had a bigger room and a lot of folks never made it across the hall.
Tupou and Elizabeth arrived later on Thursday evening. They got settled into the room and went to check out the pool. I headed to the Atlantis for the parties. I spent much of the evening standing in one spot in the hall talking with people as they came by.
Friday was Masquerade Day.
I attended Ron and Tara Oakes’ Christian Fandom Breakfast Party at the Atlantis, then headed back to the Peppermill for the masquerade participants’ meeting. I was particularly interested in this, not only because it was required of everyone in the masquerade, but because it gave me a look into the whole masquerade process. Kevin and Andy explained the rules for arrival and safety, then took us on a tour of the spaces we would be using-green room, photo areas, etc. While I had already seen the same spaces with the Hugo ceremony in mind, they seem quite different when viewed from the perspective of the masquerade.
Pierre, Sandy, and I spent a few minutes practicing the blocking for our presentation. Then, we waited for our group to be called up for the tech rehearsal. I was impressed with how the tech crew and the masquerade staff made the extra effort to try to show each costume to best effect, particularly in terms of lighting and sound. One size definitely did not fit all for this set of costumes.
That afternoon I had two panels at the Convention Center. I was the moderator for “Scientific Romances of the Victorian Era.” My fellow panelists were Jacob Weisman of Tachyon Press and Francesca Myman of Locus. I’m not sure how we ended up with an all-Bay Area panel. It was well-attended, and many of the questions from the audience had to do with the similarities and differences between speculative fiction written in the 19th Century and contemporary steampunk. I thought the panel went reasonably well.
In the hall after the panel was over I overheard a conversation in which someone, in a moderately excited tone of voice, said, “I just went to a panel on Scientific Romances of the Victorian Era, and it was really interesting!”
Mission accomplished.
My second panel was “Sports and Science Fiction.” My fellow panelists were Brad Lyau, Gary Westfahl, and Robert Reed, with Rick Wilbur as moderator. Despite sparse attendance, we had a good time talking about the ways in which sports have been used in Science Fiction, why some sports (like baseball) show up a lot, while others (like auto racing) are very rare, and how the experience of being either participants or observers in a particular sport affects both the reading and the writing of sports-related stories. The panel turned out to be more fun than I had expected, but I had to rush off as soon as it was over as I had less than an hour to get back to the Peppermill for the masquerade.
When I arrived at the shuttle bus stop outside the convention center, I found the line to be inordinately long. There was not enough time to walk, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to bother with talking my way to the front of the line. A cab came by dropping some people off and four of us climbed in and split the fare back to the Peppermill. The cab driver said he’d been making that run all day and he was very happy with the amount of income he was making.
I went straight to my room and grabbed my alb, which would serve as the base of my costume. It would do double duty this weekend-the masquerade and the Sunday service. I got to the backstage of the ballroom with just a little time to spare before the 7p.m. deadline when the doors would close.
Kevin Roche had repeatedly emphasized at the morning meeting that we should get something to eat before coming backstage. He said that the food in the green room would be light snacks and nothing that could be used for a meal. Thankfully, for me, this turned out to not be the case. The green room food included bread, meat, and cheese for making sandwiches, and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables to fill out the meal. I did not have to worry about going hungry.
I put on my alb and Pierre and Sandy outfitted me with the rest of my costume. It required a minor repair at the repair table and then we were called for the official photos and the workmanship judging. The workmanship judges spoke only to the Pettingers and pretty much ignored me. They knew that I had had nothing to do with designing or making the costumes. I had been making the joke with folks all day that I was simply a “human prop.”
There were video monitors back stage, but as I had already taken off my glasses and stashed them in Pierre’s bag, I was unable to see the presentations in any detail. I appreciated being able to hear both what was going on out front as well as in the green room. Even though the masquerade is a competition, costumers genuinely want each other to do well and this was obvious from the camaraderie that existed backstage.
When it was time for us to go on, we lined up behind the three or so presentations ahead of us. There were catchers to make sure we got safely up the backstage ramp. I mentioned to them that I couldn’t see, and they took that into account when helping me to find my place back stage, and later on stage.
Pierre and Sandy had created a presentation based on a piece of music that used Kepler’s equations for the planets as its basis. I was placed in the center of the stage during blackout, holding a sphere beneath a black drape. Pierre and Sandy came onto stage, circled around each other, and pushed the lights on their costumes that represented each of the planets (including Pluto, excluding Earth). Finally, they moved past me and removed the drape, revealing a lighted sphere representing the Earth. I then caused the sphere to expand to oohs and aahs from the audience. It was a simple and effective presentation and I am looking forward to seeing the video.
After we had finished with fan photos I changed out of my costume, dropped my alb back to the room and headed straight to the Atlantis. My “Randy’s Turning 50” party was already in full swing when I arrived. Chris Garcia had helped Tupou and Elizabeth to set up. Elizabeth had made a large card on foam core with the words “Randy Smith 50th Birthday” and photos of me, most of which had been taken at previous conventions.
They had kept the door half-closed until I got there, so when I arrived we opened it so that we were more clearly an “open party.” Everybody sang “Happy Birthday” and I blew out the candles on the cake. Tupou gave me a paper crown to wear so that people would know that I was the birthday boy.
Locus had held their party in the same room earlier in the day. We inherited their leftovers which included beer and wine, which we had not planned on having. The beer disappeared pretty quickly and the wine was running low by the end of the evening. Tupou served as bartender.
Art Widner was at the party when I arrived. He told me that at the age of ninety-four he is now the World’s Oldest Living Fan. This means that he is older than Dave Kyle, Fred Pohl, and Erle Korshak. The number of First Fans are dwindling quickly. I hope that Art gets to keep his title for a long time to come.
Throughout the party, Tupou took pictures of me with just about everybody who came, including people I didn’t know. Some people I had never met before even signed the card. I guess I know them now!
We started to shut the party down about 1:00a.m. The crowd was starting to dwindle. I was starting to feel really tired. I also knew that I was going to have a big day the next day. We cleaned up the room, left a bunch of food and drink for the Fanzine Lounge to use on Saturday and Sunday, and took a few things back to the room. Apparently, some folks did try to come by after we closed and I spent the rest of the con talking with people who apologized for missing it. Hey, it was a con. There was too much to do to get to everything.
Saturday was Hugo Day.
Staff call was at 9:00a.m. I was a few minutes late due to having hosted a party the night before and needing to stand in a longish line to pick up my tea and roll for breakfast. One of the reasons we chose to stay at the Peppermill was so that getting to the ballroom would be simple. I was particularly thankful for that choice when I learned that the day would start early.
My role this year was to be the “rehearsal manager.” I was responsible for making sure that all nominees and presenters knew when and where to walk onto the stage, how to get back to their seats, and how to find both the pre-ceremony reception and the after-Hugos party. I also showed them how to hold the Hugo and explained other bits of information they might need to know about navigating the ceremony. I worked closely with ceremony manager Sharon Sbarsky, stage manager Mike Ratzloff, and video director John Maizels, all of whom were great to work with. The whole staff was good. Zoe Wells brought a lot of youthful energy and I told her mother later in the convention that she would probably be chairing a worldcon someday. Apparently, Zoe has already been vigorously denying this as a possibility.
Nominees and presenters had already started to arrive before I got there. There was no break in my duties all morning, and I started training some of the other staff to do the job because there were too many nominees for me to handle alone and I would have to spend an hour at the Atlantis. My tea and roll, for which I had spent the extra time standing line, went ignored until it was time for me to board the shuttle bus.
My responsibility at the Atlantis was the Christian Fandom meeting. Ron Oakes had already started the discussion, and several people asked about where I had been. All I could say was “Hugo rehearsal,” and everyone understood. There were a few new people, as there usually are, and it was good to get together to share about being Christian in fandom and about being fannish in church. I’m afraid I don’t remember too many specifics of the conversation as my mind was still mostly on the Hugos.
Back at the Peppermill, the rehearsal was going well. The folks I had trained in the morning had things well in hand and I was able to take care of other Hugo-related odds and ends as needed or as delegated to me by Sharon and Mike. By mid-afternoon most of the personnel who needed to rehearse had done so and the tech crew was making their final adjustments. Even so, I didn’t get away from the ballroom until about 5:30.
I went up to the room to change into my tux and touched base with the rest of my family. Tupou had spent most of the day at the Peppermill spa and Elizabeth had spent the day doing whatever it is that 16-year-olds do at conventions. Both of them seemed to have had a good day.
The first person I saw the pre-ceremony reception was Paul Cornell. He introduced me to his wife, Caroline Symcox, who had been ordained six weeks previously in the Church of England and was serving in her first appointment to a congregation. Paul left us so that we could talk shop.
I was very impressed with the large ice sculpture of a Hugo rocket that stood in the center of the main reception room. This was first in the history of Hugo ceremonies. It’s too bad that the rest of the convention never got to see it.
Somehow, I became the person in front of the microphone making announcements during the reception. I introduced Vince Docherty for the official unveiling of this year’s Hugo base and gave instructions for the nominees/acceptors in the various categories to get their group pictures taken at the photo area. Sharon gave me several other items to announce, most of which I forgot. If I had known ahead of time that I would be doing this, I would have made a list. Even so, mea culpa.
The ceremony itself went very well. I was stationed in back to help the various nominees, acceptors and presenters up and down the ramp to the stage. As with many previous Hugo ceremonies, I saw the video feed in reverse from behind one of the large screens. I was particularly touched, as many people were, by Chris Garcia’s wellspring of emotion when The Drink Tank won for Best Fanzine. I gave him a hug when he came offstage. For those who were wondering if his reaction was genuine I have two observations: 1) there is nothing not genuine about Chris; and 2) the reaction you saw on stage continued for quite a while after he was backstage.
After the ceremony, Tupou and I bought some supper for Elizabeth and then went to the after-Hugo party, aka “The Hugo Losers Party.” We hadn’t intended to stay very long, but we ended up in a wonderful conversation with Sheila Williams who was still in the glow of having won her first long-deserved Hugo. Sheila was not someone I had met personally before, so I enjoyed getting to know her as more than just a name on a masthead. She is not only a good editor, but a person of depth and heart.
My only program item on Sunday was the Christian Worship Service which I conducted with John Blaker. Caroline Symcox attended, as did Darnell Coleman, a Missionary Baptist pastor from southern California. I invited both of them to sit up front with us, and asked them to read scripture and help to serve communion to the Protestants. This was the most clergy we’ve ever had in one place at any convention. I’m hoping that we can find ways of keeping in touch. It also gives us a larger pool to draw upon for conducting services.
Following the service, Tupou and Elizabeth made a detour to the Dealer’s Room while I waited in the consuite. We met at the car and headed back to the Peppermill to load up and check out. I never use the “express check-out service” that most of the larger hotels seem to use these days, opting instead to check out in person at the front desk. This time it was a good thing I did because I found an error on the bill. After the hotel concluded that it was their mistake and made the correction it saved us about a hundred dollars.
The drive back to Richmond was uneventful. We stopped in Auburn for a mid-afternoon meal. Tupou was driving and Elizabeth and I were sleeping. We had heard news reports about forest fires along the route, but there was nothing to slow us down.
A couple of final thoughts:
Being in the masquerade and hosting my own party at a worldcon were the best birthday presents ever.
I hope we never have a convention in a casino hotel ever again. The tobacco smoke, the intentionally confusing layout, the tobacco smoke, the lack of windows to the outside on the main floor, and the tobacco smoke were all incredibly annoying. For the most part, the fans weren’t gambling We were there for a con.
Next year in Chicago!
Once upon a time it seemed like every trip to a worldcon somehow involved a ride on Amtrak’s California Zephyr. Through the ‘80s and ‘90s, the train was my most frequent mode of transportation to and from a variety of North American worldcon sites. In more recent years, my life circumstances have changed such that even when the Zephyr would have been a reasonable option, I got to the convention in some other way.
This year was my long overdue return to the Zephyr, at least for getting to Reno, if not back home again. Early on Tuesday morning, I walked with my luggage to the St. David of Wales rectory and rode with John Blaker to the Richmond Amtrak station. I retrieved my already-paid-for ticket from the automatic ticket dispenser and we waited on the platform for the train to arrive. It was a little late, which is usual for the Zephyr further down the line, but Richmond is only the second stop after leaving Emeryville and it seemed odd even to me that it would start out significantly late.
Soon after we settled into our seats, we fired up my laptop and worked on the service for Sunday morning. The Catholic Church is making some minor changes to its liturgy, but as they won’t take effect until December, John said that what I already had on my computer was still okay. While we worked, I called Mary Jo Mykytka to see if she would be at the con and could do music as she had in the past. She said that she wouldn’t be there, but she gave me the number of her sister, Kathleen Sloan, a filker who has helped us before. Kathleen was more than willing to help.
There were a fair number of other fans on the train and I was able to have a particularly geeky lunch in the dining car with España Sheriff. I also talked with Andy Porter for quite a while as he nearly continuously snapped pictures of mountains, streams, and trees as we wound our way through the Sierras.
I had originally thought that I would simply take the city bus from the Reno Amtrak station to the hotel, but John had made arrangements for us to be picked up by Pierre and Sandy Pettinger. Alas, they were having problems with checking into the hotel and it looked like it might be a while before they would be able to get away. As we were pondering what to do next, Andy Porter made the general announcement to any fans within earshot that he would like to share a cab with someone to the Peppermill. John and I took him up on the offer.
The Peppermill turned out to be a hotel built on the idea of excess. There was plenty of kitschy faux Roman statuary, including a reproduction of Michelangelo’s David, complete with an added fig leaf covering part of the anatomy. There was plenty of gold paint and design elements that served no purpose other than to look over-the-top fancy. Both the hallway where our room was located, as well as the room itself, was appointed with large “paintings” of people in togas , typically with a man looking lustfully at a woman while the woman averted her eyes toward some other direction. It was no surprise that the room included a tray of snacks and a refrigerator full of drink, all on electronic sensors that would automatically bill the room if any item were removed, even temporarily, from its resting place. Truly, this was a hotel built on the idea of Temptation.
When I was checking in the desk clerk asked me how many keys I needed. I explained that we would eventually need three, but that my wife and daughter would not be arriving until Thursday evening, and I wasn’t sure whether it was best to get their keys now or later.
“
Yes, I understand, sir,” he said, “But how many keys do you need before then?”
It took be a beat to realize what he was getting at before I replied, “I just need one.”
Ah, yes. Temptation.
After settling into my room I walked to the convention center to pick up my badge. It wasn’t a bad walk, but given the heat, I was glad that the shuttle buses would be starting on Wednesday. I also decided that it wasn’t a walk that I wanted to make alone at night.
From the moment I reached the parking lot, I began seeing old friends, many of whom I only see once a year at the worldcon. I also noticed a phenomenon that that is probably somewhat common at these types of gatherings, especially on the first day or two, but I hadn’t been aware of it before. When three or more of us were standing in a group talking, at some point one of us would point to the others and say, “So, do you know each other?”
I either heard or asked this question several times, but the most amusing instance of it was when someone asked it of Ben Yalow and myself.
“Oh, only for several decades,” Ben said.
“Has it really been that long,” I wondered silently.
I picked up my badge and found my way to Program Ops. I had promised Janice Gelb that I would help her out as much as possible during the convention. I signed up for several shifts for Wednesday and Thursday because those were my days that were freest of other responsibilities. While I was there, I picked up my Program Participant’s packet and began attaching ribbons and my stick-on schedule to my badge.
Ben Yalow recommended a Mediterranean restaurant across the street from the Peppermill. John Day, Stephen Boucher, Mike Pins, Ben, and I had dinner together there. Ben had eaten there before and had gotten to know the owner/manager who treated us like honored guests. The food was excellent and the prices were reasonable. The conversation started out with the usual smoffing, but soon turned to talk of books. It was one of the most stimulating conversations I had during the con. Good food, good friends, and good conversation. That’s why I attend conventions!
The only open party that evening was hosted by the Brits running the London In 2014 bid. I met briefly with John Maizels to touch base on some Hugo ceremony arrangements and had good conversations with Lisa Hayes, Ruth Sachter, and John Lorentz. All of these conversations took place in the hallway by the elevator as the party room itself was waaaay overcrowded and loud. John and Ruth gave me a ride back to the Peppermill where I crashed for the night.
I made use of the Peppermill’s gym (oh, excuse me . . . “fitness center”) early in the morning and have never felt so pampered at any similar facility in any other hotel. There was staff present. Yes, staff. They also had plenty of bottled water and numerous towels in various sizes. All of the equipment I needed was there and there was enough space that it didn’t feel overly crowded. I decided that I could get used to it pretty easily.
My biggest surprise of the convention came while I was having breakfast at a diner down the street from the hotel. I got a call from Pierre Pettinger who said that he and Sandy needed an extra person for their masquerade presentation. I momentarily considered turning them down because I knew that it would create some havoc with my schedule and since I was hosting my own birthday party on the night of the masquerade I wasn’t sure it was wise. Then, it occurred to me that in thirty or more years of congoing I had never been in a masquerade. Despite all of the potential scheduling issues and hassles, I decided that this was not an opportunity I wanted to pass up. I said yes.
I spent most of the rest of Wednesday working Program Ops. I sat in the hall for a couple of hours handing out Program Participant packets and then worked at the front table in the Program Ops room until mid-afternoon. My duties mostly consisted of helping program participants sort through issues around program item scheduling and making referrals to proper departments/divisions for some questions that had nothing at all to do with programming. I also worked out a system for the runners who were giving the 5-minute warning and “stop now” signs to the moderators. There would often be long stretches of nothing to do followed by a few minutes with three or four people asking questions at once. The coolest moment was getting to be present when George R. R. Martin presented Connie Willis with her official invitation to the Reaffirmation of Wedding Vows that he and Parris were having off-site during the convention.
I spent the late afternoon in the fanzine lounge, the exhibits, and making my “looking run” through the dealer’s room. I was delighted to discover that there were quite a few book dealers at the con and that several of them selling old and out-of-print items, including comics, pulps and used paperbacks. There was much to ponder before doing my “buying run” on Thursday.
Before going back to the Peppermill, I stopped by Program Ops one last time, only to discover that Deb Geisler, who had relieved me at the Program Participant Packet table at noon, was still there and had not had a break all afternoon. I told Janice I would take over and finish out the day and then went out to the table and practically had to order Deb to leave. She had worked alone at the table for about five hours straight. We were supposed to close the table at six o’clock, but there was a rush right around that time as a number of program participants were arriving late in the day and had just picked up their badges. I closed up and took the remaining packets to Program Ops around 6:30.
I had dinner at the seafood restaurant in the Peppermill with John Day, Kevin Roche, Andy Trembley, and Mike Van Pelt. The company was great and it was by far the best hotel restaurant food I had during the convention. The Pettingers were sitting at a nearby table and after dinner I went with them to their room to try on costumes and practice with the prop I would be handling during the masquerade.
Program Ops was much busier on Thursday morning than it had been on Wednesday afternoon. Programming was in full swing and most of the participants had arrived and were bringing their issues to us. Most of the inquiries on Thursday had to do with people wanting to be added to panels. My supervisors mostly told them “no.” This was a good thing.
At 12:30 I voted in Site Selection. I had actually included this on my personal worldcon schedule. There have been years when I have been so busy doing other things that I have forgotten to vote.
I then saw the art show and did my “buying run” through the dealer’s room. Despite being a bit pressed for time, I made sure that I spent a few minutes talking with some of my dealer friends as this might be the only time during the con that I would get to see them. I had intentionally brought a small want-list so that I wouldn’t be tempted to buy more than I could afford. I came away with some vintage paperbacks, a couple of Silver Age comics, and some really cool pulps from the 1930s.
We had a Hugo ceremony staff meeting at the Tuscany Ballroom in the Peppermill later that afternoon. The stage was still being set up so we weren’t able to do a walk-through of the space, but we were able to talk through the plan for Saturday and the details of the ceremony pretty thoroughly. Best of all, the meeting lasted less than two hours, which was much shorter than in some other years.
It wasn’t until that evening that I learned which room would be used for the evening Fanzine Lounge and my birthday party on Friday night. Once I had the information I set up an event page on Facebook and sent invitations to all those among my Facebook friends whom I thought might be at the worldcon. Alas, given that it was only 24 hours notice and there was a con going on, some people didn’t get the invite until after the party. Since, it was an open party, I was hoping most of my friends would stumble across it, anyway.
I also panicked just a bit when I realized that the evening Fanzine Lounge was to be the first party room nearest the elevators and right across the hall from the Texas party. I had visions of overcrowding and quickly diminishing party supplies. As it would turn out, my panicking was for naught. The Texas party had a bigger room and a lot of folks never made it across the hall.
Tupou and Elizabeth arrived later on Thursday evening. They got settled into the room and went to check out the pool. I headed to the Atlantis for the parties. I spent much of the evening standing in one spot in the hall talking with people as they came by.
Friday was Masquerade Day.
I attended Ron and Tara Oakes’ Christian Fandom Breakfast Party at the Atlantis, then headed back to the Peppermill for the masquerade participants’ meeting. I was particularly interested in this, not only because it was required of everyone in the masquerade, but because it gave me a look into the whole masquerade process. Kevin and Andy explained the rules for arrival and safety, then took us on a tour of the spaces we would be using-green room, photo areas, etc. While I had already seen the same spaces with the Hugo ceremony in mind, they seem quite different when viewed from the perspective of the masquerade.
Pierre, Sandy, and I spent a few minutes practicing the blocking for our presentation. Then, we waited for our group to be called up for the tech rehearsal. I was impressed with how the tech crew and the masquerade staff made the extra effort to try to show each costume to best effect, particularly in terms of lighting and sound. One size definitely did not fit all for this set of costumes.
That afternoon I had two panels at the Convention Center. I was the moderator for “Scientific Romances of the Victorian Era.” My fellow panelists were Jacob Weisman of Tachyon Press and Francesca Myman of Locus. I’m not sure how we ended up with an all-Bay Area panel. It was well-attended, and many of the questions from the audience had to do with the similarities and differences between speculative fiction written in the 19th Century and contemporary steampunk. I thought the panel went reasonably well.
In the hall after the panel was over I overheard a conversation in which someone, in a moderately excited tone of voice, said, “I just went to a panel on Scientific Romances of the Victorian Era, and it was really interesting!”
Mission accomplished.
My second panel was “Sports and Science Fiction.” My fellow panelists were Brad Lyau, Gary Westfahl, and Robert Reed, with Rick Wilbur as moderator. Despite sparse attendance, we had a good time talking about the ways in which sports have been used in Science Fiction, why some sports (like baseball) show up a lot, while others (like auto racing) are very rare, and how the experience of being either participants or observers in a particular sport affects both the reading and the writing of sports-related stories. The panel turned out to be more fun than I had expected, but I had to rush off as soon as it was over as I had less than an hour to get back to the Peppermill for the masquerade.
When I arrived at the shuttle bus stop outside the convention center, I found the line to be inordinately long. There was not enough time to walk, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to bother with talking my way to the front of the line. A cab came by dropping some people off and four of us climbed in and split the fare back to the Peppermill. The cab driver said he’d been making that run all day and he was very happy with the amount of income he was making.
I went straight to my room and grabbed my alb, which would serve as the base of my costume. It would do double duty this weekend-the masquerade and the Sunday service. I got to the backstage of the ballroom with just a little time to spare before the 7p.m. deadline when the doors would close.
Kevin Roche had repeatedly emphasized at the morning meeting that we should get something to eat before coming backstage. He said that the food in the green room would be light snacks and nothing that could be used for a meal. Thankfully, for me, this turned out to not be the case. The green room food included bread, meat, and cheese for making sandwiches, and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables to fill out the meal. I did not have to worry about going hungry.
I put on my alb and Pierre and Sandy outfitted me with the rest of my costume. It required a minor repair at the repair table and then we were called for the official photos and the workmanship judging. The workmanship judges spoke only to the Pettingers and pretty much ignored me. They knew that I had had nothing to do with designing or making the costumes. I had been making the joke with folks all day that I was simply a “human prop.”
There were video monitors back stage, but as I had already taken off my glasses and stashed them in Pierre’s bag, I was unable to see the presentations in any detail. I appreciated being able to hear both what was going on out front as well as in the green room. Even though the masquerade is a competition, costumers genuinely want each other to do well and this was obvious from the camaraderie that existed backstage.
When it was time for us to go on, we lined up behind the three or so presentations ahead of us. There were catchers to make sure we got safely up the backstage ramp. I mentioned to them that I couldn’t see, and they took that into account when helping me to find my place back stage, and later on stage.
Pierre and Sandy had created a presentation based on a piece of music that used Kepler’s equations for the planets as its basis. I was placed in the center of the stage during blackout, holding a sphere beneath a black drape. Pierre and Sandy came onto stage, circled around each other, and pushed the lights on their costumes that represented each of the planets (including Pluto, excluding Earth). Finally, they moved past me and removed the drape, revealing a lighted sphere representing the Earth. I then caused the sphere to expand to oohs and aahs from the audience. It was a simple and effective presentation and I am looking forward to seeing the video.
After we had finished with fan photos I changed out of my costume, dropped my alb back to the room and headed straight to the Atlantis. My “Randy’s Turning 50” party was already in full swing when I arrived. Chris Garcia had helped Tupou and Elizabeth to set up. Elizabeth had made a large card on foam core with the words “Randy Smith 50th Birthday” and photos of me, most of which had been taken at previous conventions.
They had kept the door half-closed until I got there, so when I arrived we opened it so that we were more clearly an “open party.” Everybody sang “Happy Birthday” and I blew out the candles on the cake. Tupou gave me a paper crown to wear so that people would know that I was the birthday boy.
Locus had held their party in the same room earlier in the day. We inherited their leftovers which included beer and wine, which we had not planned on having. The beer disappeared pretty quickly and the wine was running low by the end of the evening. Tupou served as bartender.
Art Widner was at the party when I arrived. He told me that at the age of ninety-four he is now the World’s Oldest Living Fan. This means that he is older than Dave Kyle, Fred Pohl, and Erle Korshak. The number of First Fans are dwindling quickly. I hope that Art gets to keep his title for a long time to come.
Throughout the party, Tupou took pictures of me with just about everybody who came, including people I didn’t know. Some people I had never met before even signed the card. I guess I know them now!
We started to shut the party down about 1:00a.m. The crowd was starting to dwindle. I was starting to feel really tired. I also knew that I was going to have a big day the next day. We cleaned up the room, left a bunch of food and drink for the Fanzine Lounge to use on Saturday and Sunday, and took a few things back to the room. Apparently, some folks did try to come by after we closed and I spent the rest of the con talking with people who apologized for missing it. Hey, it was a con. There was too much to do to get to everything.
Saturday was Hugo Day.
Staff call was at 9:00a.m. I was a few minutes late due to having hosted a party the night before and needing to stand in a longish line to pick up my tea and roll for breakfast. One of the reasons we chose to stay at the Peppermill was so that getting to the ballroom would be simple. I was particularly thankful for that choice when I learned that the day would start early.
My role this year was to be the “rehearsal manager.” I was responsible for making sure that all nominees and presenters knew when and where to walk onto the stage, how to get back to their seats, and how to find both the pre-ceremony reception and the after-Hugos party. I also showed them how to hold the Hugo and explained other bits of information they might need to know about navigating the ceremony. I worked closely with ceremony manager Sharon Sbarsky, stage manager Mike Ratzloff, and video director John Maizels, all of whom were great to work with. The whole staff was good. Zoe Wells brought a lot of youthful energy and I told her mother later in the convention that she would probably be chairing a worldcon someday. Apparently, Zoe has already been vigorously denying this as a possibility.
Nominees and presenters had already started to arrive before I got there. There was no break in my duties all morning, and I started training some of the other staff to do the job because there were too many nominees for me to handle alone and I would have to spend an hour at the Atlantis. My tea and roll, for which I had spent the extra time standing line, went ignored until it was time for me to board the shuttle bus.
My responsibility at the Atlantis was the Christian Fandom meeting. Ron Oakes had already started the discussion, and several people asked about where I had been. All I could say was “Hugo rehearsal,” and everyone understood. There were a few new people, as there usually are, and it was good to get together to share about being Christian in fandom and about being fannish in church. I’m afraid I don’t remember too many specifics of the conversation as my mind was still mostly on the Hugos.
Back at the Peppermill, the rehearsal was going well. The folks I had trained in the morning had things well in hand and I was able to take care of other Hugo-related odds and ends as needed or as delegated to me by Sharon and Mike. By mid-afternoon most of the personnel who needed to rehearse had done so and the tech crew was making their final adjustments. Even so, I didn’t get away from the ballroom until about 5:30.
I went up to the room to change into my tux and touched base with the rest of my family. Tupou had spent most of the day at the Peppermill spa and Elizabeth had spent the day doing whatever it is that 16-year-olds do at conventions. Both of them seemed to have had a good day.
The first person I saw the pre-ceremony reception was Paul Cornell. He introduced me to his wife, Caroline Symcox, who had been ordained six weeks previously in the Church of England and was serving in her first appointment to a congregation. Paul left us so that we could talk shop.
I was very impressed with the large ice sculpture of a Hugo rocket that stood in the center of the main reception room. This was first in the history of Hugo ceremonies. It’s too bad that the rest of the convention never got to see it.
Somehow, I became the person in front of the microphone making announcements during the reception. I introduced Vince Docherty for the official unveiling of this year’s Hugo base and gave instructions for the nominees/acceptors in the various categories to get their group pictures taken at the photo area. Sharon gave me several other items to announce, most of which I forgot. If I had known ahead of time that I would be doing this, I would have made a list. Even so, mea culpa.
The ceremony itself went very well. I was stationed in back to help the various nominees, acceptors and presenters up and down the ramp to the stage. As with many previous Hugo ceremonies, I saw the video feed in reverse from behind one of the large screens. I was particularly touched, as many people were, by Chris Garcia’s wellspring of emotion when The Drink Tank won for Best Fanzine. I gave him a hug when he came offstage. For those who were wondering if his reaction was genuine I have two observations: 1) there is nothing not genuine about Chris; and 2) the reaction you saw on stage continued for quite a while after he was backstage.
After the ceremony, Tupou and I bought some supper for Elizabeth and then went to the after-Hugo party, aka “The Hugo Losers Party.” We hadn’t intended to stay very long, but we ended up in a wonderful conversation with Sheila Williams who was still in the glow of having won her first long-deserved Hugo. Sheila was not someone I had met personally before, so I enjoyed getting to know her as more than just a name on a masthead. She is not only a good editor, but a person of depth and heart.
My only program item on Sunday was the Christian Worship Service which I conducted with John Blaker. Caroline Symcox attended, as did Darnell Coleman, a Missionary Baptist pastor from southern California. I invited both of them to sit up front with us, and asked them to read scripture and help to serve communion to the Protestants. This was the most clergy we’ve ever had in one place at any convention. I’m hoping that we can find ways of keeping in touch. It also gives us a larger pool to draw upon for conducting services.
Following the service, Tupou and Elizabeth made a detour to the Dealer’s Room while I waited in the consuite. We met at the car and headed back to the Peppermill to load up and check out. I never use the “express check-out service” that most of the larger hotels seem to use these days, opting instead to check out in person at the front desk. This time it was a good thing I did because I found an error on the bill. After the hotel concluded that it was their mistake and made the correction it saved us about a hundred dollars.
The drive back to Richmond was uneventful. We stopped in Auburn for a mid-afternoon meal. Tupou was driving and Elizabeth and I were sleeping. We had heard news reports about forest fires along the route, but there was nothing to slow us down.
A couple of final thoughts:
Being in the masquerade and hosting my own party at a worldcon were the best birthday presents ever.
I hope we never have a convention in a casino hotel ever again. The tobacco smoke, the intentionally confusing layout, the tobacco smoke, the lack of windows to the outside on the main floor, and the tobacco smoke were all incredibly annoying. For the most part, the fans weren’t gambling We were there for a con.
Next year in Chicago!