Pros-y history...
So, was chatting with inamac over at ci5hq about Pros and Pros fandom history (just a wee bit... *g*) and for various reasons I wandered over to the OTP's Fanlore page for Pros, and was reminded yet again of why I try to avoid it... I'm not sure how many people have contributed to it (two at least, I can see that) but... it's so American-based! And so innaccurate in places (Palelyloitering is not a list!! I wouldn't mind, but I know that one of the wiki editors knows this!) and blurry/fudgy in others (a "chippy" is a fish and chip shop anywhere, not just in central London)! And so difficult to do anything about, because you have to sign up and figure out and become an "editor" and blah blah blah... and I know, if I'm going to complain then I should do something about it, but... I've not had time to work it all out, and...
Anyway - unless I'm missing something, the very first mention of Pros fandom goes straight into American fandom with mention of the American paper circuit library. The rest of the paragraph is more general, but because it all follows that first statement about American Pros fandom, the implication (intended or not) is very definitely that that's where Pros fandom is based. There is a single sentence in a new paragraph mentioning that the UK-based paper circuit was still active in 2008...
In the Discussion pages, there seems to be a defence of using Close Quarters as an example of a Pros-specific convention too - the argument being that Nattercon (which is the UK-based Pros con that celebrated its 20th anniversary this year) isn't Pros-specific. Which also caused me to blink. It's been a Pros-specific con ever since I've been - yes, there are people there who are into other fandoms now (because you know, presumably when approaching 20 years in a fandom you might glance elsewhere) but it's always been based very specifically around Pros, as far as I know... (I suspect the statement was made in response to the slight controversy caused when other fandoms were introduced two years ago to the Saturday Night Pros Trivia Quiz...)
I might be mistaken about this, but I've definitely not had the impression that Pros started off as an American-based fandom - and it doesn't seem very likely, since it was barely aired over there... Of course, there's not alot of information around (online) about the start of Pros fandom, so perhaps it's not surprising that there's such a headdesk-y entry...
So... I was wondering, what do people know about the start of Pros fandom? In the UK? In America? Australia (somehow completely left out too, and yet look at Jane, major part of Pros fandom, like her or not!)? There are French Pros zines too, and presumably a big German contingent still, and I think there's at least one German-based "group" where fanfic is written - what about that? How much is being missed from the OTP's wiki pages, that purport to be about all of us?
Anyone got any info/snippets they'd care to share here? For the sake of more accurately recording history?! *g*
ETA - I think perhaps I'll start editing this to include information that people have (or that I can glean accurately from t'interweb, like when the_safehouse was founded, for example... *g* Each piece of info sourced so it can be traced back... Let me know what I'm missing, especially the non-lj stuff! (Working on it right now, so a little messy - sorry! Will tidy up, I promise!)
Pros Fandom History So Far Known
1977
30th December 1977 - 17th March 1978 - Series One first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1978
7th October - 9th December 1978 - Series Two first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1979
27th October - 15th December 1979 - Series Three first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1980
7th September - 27th December 1980 - Series Four first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1982
7th December 1982 - 6th February 1983 - Series Five first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1988
Oblique Publishing founded (1988-2003) (source: Oblique Publishing - About page)
1991
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "Tracy (can't remember her last name, sorry) was the first one to start typing in circuit stories and sharing with a circle of her friends. This was about 1991-92. Late 1992, her circle was up to about 20, myself included. She was wanting to concentrate more on her writing, so asked me if I'd like to takeover effort of taking the hardcopy circuit stories and typing/scanning them and sharing them. So I did! Tracy and I talked and decided to start calling it The Professionals Library or Proslib, as it was no longer just a circle of friends, but fans from all over". (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
1992
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "As more and more fans got email, more heard about it and wanted to join. By 1993, the circle had grown to about 80. I emailed out a story every other day or so (it was growing that fast) and I would mail out diskettes (remember those 8-) to new members who joined." (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
1993
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "During 1993, I enlisted [Meri] to help me get people to help type, to talk to authors who were shy of having their stories in e-format. Seems funny now, but back then, this was all new. Lots of people were suspicious of the new medium. It opened up all kinds of questions about who controlled stories.
Meri thought it would be a good idea to store proslib on this new thing called The World Wide Web and created a web site called the Pros Online Circuit Archive to reach even more fans. Meanwhile, I bought up boxes of the hardcopy circuit from Karen Brandl and sent them to fans in the US, England, Germany and Australia to type up for Proslib. It was a fun, active time. Everything was so new and there was so much energy.
By the time I was up to 32 diskettes, thankfully burnable cds were in vogue and so was yahoo. I chose yahoo as the easiest way to send out weekly stories to the over 200 who were in Proslib. Up to that time, I just had an addressee list I maintained in my email." (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
"Fans started to make electronic copies of Pros fanfic for email, floppy-disk and ultimately the ProsLib CD distribution" (source: Circuit Archive - About page and msmoat, in comment below)
1995
Original CI5 listserv founded on the internet by Lorelei (source: msmoat, in comment below)
1996
Online Circuit Archive founded by Meri (archivist) (source: Circuit Archive - About page)
Dave Matthew's Official Professionals Website founded on 24th June 1996 (source: Dave Matthew's Official Professionals Website homepage)
The Hatstand online archive founded sometime around now? (source: my own "knowledge", that Hatstand begun in hiatus of Circuit Archive, before it was taken over in 2004?
2000
ProsLib Yahoo Group founded 1st March 2000 (source: ProsLib Yahoo Group front page)
2001
Pros-Lit Yahoo Group founded 19th August 2001 (source: Pros-Lit Yahoo Group front page.
From hagsrus (Frances), of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "I started actively helping with Proslib a year or so later [c2001] when I acquired a scanner and essentially took over as other demands on Debbie's time and energy became prohibitive. She was one of the very first people to whom I was introduced in the fandom by my original "pimp" and wonderfully generous in lending me stacks of zines as well as offering encouragement to write". (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
2002
Lewis Collins Yahoo Group founded on 3rd March 2002 (source: Lewis Collins Yahoo Group front page)
Martin's Place Yahoo Group founded on 18th August 2002 (source: Martin's Place Yahoo Group front page)
2003
AngelFishFanFic Yahoo Group founded 25th August 2003 (source: AngelFishFanFic Yahoo Group front page)
2004
the_safehouse founded 7th March 2004 (source the_safehouse user info page) by phantomas (source: my own knowledge from lj and other conversations)
Online Circuit Archive taken over by justacat (archivist) (source: Circuit Archive - About page)
Alijot's Professionals Recs website begun sometime around now? Need accurate info! (source: because it's been there longer than I've been around! *g*)
Pros Language Yahoo Group founded on 23rd November 2004 (source: Pros Language Yahoo Group front page)
2005
ProsSlash Yahoo Group founded 24th June 2005 (source: ProsSlash Yahoo Group front page)
santa_pros founded 13th August 2005 by queenbamfie (user name since changed several times) for one-off Christmas fic exchange (source: santa_pros and own knowledge)
summer_of_78 founded on 11th December 2005 by queenbamfie (user name since changed several times) for one-off Christmas fic exchange (source: summer_of_78 and own knowledge)
2006
ci5hq founded 23rd April by empty_mirrors and przed (source: ci5hq user info page)
Nattercon 2006 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2006, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
discoveredinalj founded 13th July 2006 by empty_mirrors and byslantedlight (source: discoveredinalj user info page)
TV Lounge Forum founded some time around July 2006? Does anyone know more precisely? (source: TV Lounge Forum first introductions post)
2007
pros_newsletter founded on 3rd May 2007 by paris7am (source: pros_newsletter user info page, and first pros_newsletter entry)
Nattercon 2007 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2007, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
prosfinder founded 18th June 2007 by probodie (source: prosfinder user info page)
First Close Quarters 2007 - USA-based Pros convention, July (?) 2007, Washington DC, USA. (source: own knowledge)
2007 CI5mas/Scarsdale Bash at The Scarsdale pub (used in Fall Girl), London, December 2007 (source: own attendance!)
2008
Nattercon 2008 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2008, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
The Automatic Hatstand archive founded August 2008 for Pros writers to submit and control their own story archives.
pros_icontest founded 28th September 2008 by rochvelleth (source: pros_icontest user info)
CI5mas/Scarsdale Bash at The Scarsdale pub (used in Fall Girl), London, December 2008 (source: own attendance!)
2009
loiteringpalely 18th March 2009 founded by byslantedlight as a place to source Pros zines and Pros zine information (source: loiteringpalely user info, archive and own knowledge!)
Nattercon 2009 - 20th Anniversary of UK-based Pros convention, May 2009, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
Close Quarters 2009 - USA-based Pros convention, July 2009, Washington DC, USA. (source: own knowledge)
Pros Writing Holiday 2009: Week/end in the Country - Derbyshire, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance)
Anyway - unless I'm missing something, the very first mention of Pros fandom goes straight into American fandom with mention of the American paper circuit library. The rest of the paragraph is more general, but because it all follows that first statement about American Pros fandom, the implication (intended or not) is very definitely that that's where Pros fandom is based. There is a single sentence in a new paragraph mentioning that the UK-based paper circuit was still active in 2008...
In the Discussion pages, there seems to be a defence of using Close Quarters as an example of a Pros-specific convention too - the argument being that Nattercon (which is the UK-based Pros con that celebrated its 20th anniversary this year) isn't Pros-specific. Which also caused me to blink. It's been a Pros-specific con ever since I've been - yes, there are people there who are into other fandoms now (because you know, presumably when approaching 20 years in a fandom you might glance elsewhere) but it's always been based very specifically around Pros, as far as I know... (I suspect the statement was made in response to the slight controversy caused when other fandoms were introduced two years ago to the Saturday Night Pros Trivia Quiz...)
I might be mistaken about this, but I've definitely not had the impression that Pros started off as an American-based fandom - and it doesn't seem very likely, since it was barely aired over there... Of course, there's not alot of information around (online) about the start of Pros fandom, so perhaps it's not surprising that there's such a headdesk-y entry...
So... I was wondering, what do people know about the start of Pros fandom? In the UK? In America? Australia (somehow completely left out too, and yet look at Jane, major part of Pros fandom, like her or not!)? There are French Pros zines too, and presumably a big German contingent still, and I think there's at least one German-based "group" where fanfic is written - what about that? How much is being missed from the OTP's wiki pages, that purport to be about all of us?
Anyone got any info/snippets they'd care to share here? For the sake of more accurately recording history?! *g*
ETA - I think perhaps I'll start editing this to include information that people have (or that I can glean accurately from t'interweb, like when the_safehouse was founded, for example... *g* Each piece of info sourced so it can be traced back... Let me know what I'm missing, especially the non-lj stuff! (Working on it right now, so a little messy - sorry! Will tidy up, I promise!)
Pros Fandom History So Far Known
1977
30th December 1977 - 17th March 1978 - Series One first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1978
7th October - 9th December 1978 - Series Two first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1979
27th October - 15th December 1979 - Series Three first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1980
7th September - 27th December 1980 - Series Four first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1982
7th December 1982 - 6th February 1983 - Series Five first aired in UK (source: Dave Matthew's Official Pros Website)
1988
Oblique Publishing founded (1988-2003) (source: Oblique Publishing - About page)
1991
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "Tracy (can't remember her last name, sorry) was the first one to start typing in circuit stories and sharing with a circle of her friends. This was about 1991-92. Late 1992, her circle was up to about 20, myself included. She was wanting to concentrate more on her writing, so asked me if I'd like to takeover effort of taking the hardcopy circuit stories and typing/scanning them and sharing them. So I did! Tracy and I talked and decided to start calling it The Professionals Library or Proslib, as it was no longer just a circle of friends, but fans from all over". (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
1992
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "As more and more fans got email, more heard about it and wanted to join. By 1993, the circle had grown to about 80. I emailed out a story every other day or so (it was growing that fast) and I would mail out diskettes (remember those 8-) to new members who joined." (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
1993
From Debbie Ramsey, of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "During 1993, I enlisted [Meri] to help me get people to help type, to talk to authors who were shy of having their stories in e-format. Seems funny now, but back then, this was all new. Lots of people were suspicious of the new medium. It opened up all kinds of questions about who controlled stories.
Meri thought it would be a good idea to store proslib on this new thing called The World Wide Web and created a web site called the Pros Online Circuit Archive to reach even more fans. Meanwhile, I bought up boxes of the hardcopy circuit from Karen Brandl and sent them to fans in the US, England, Germany and Australia to type up for Proslib. It was a fun, active time. Everything was so new and there was so much energy.
By the time I was up to 32 diskettes, thankfully burnable cds were in vogue and so was yahoo. I chose yahoo as the easiest way to send out weekly stories to the over 200 who were in Proslib. Up to that time, I just had an addressee list I maintained in my email." (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
"Fans started to make electronic copies of Pros fanfic for email, floppy-disk and ultimately the ProsLib CD distribution" (source: Circuit Archive - About page and msmoat, in comment below)
1995
Original CI5 listserv founded on the internet by Lorelei (source: msmoat, in comment below)
1996
Online Circuit Archive founded by Meri (archivist) (source: Circuit Archive - About page)
Dave Matthew's Official Professionals Website founded on 24th June 1996 (source: Dave Matthew's Official Professionals Website homepage)
The Hatstand online archive founded sometime around now? (source: my own "knowledge", that Hatstand begun in hiatus of Circuit Archive, before it was taken over in 2004?
2000
ProsLib Yahoo Group founded 1st March 2000 (source: ProsLib Yahoo Group front page)
2001
Pros-Lit Yahoo Group founded 19th August 2001 (source: Pros-Lit Yahoo Group front page.
From hagsrus (Frances), of ProsLib, on the origins of ProsLib in the USA: "I started actively helping with Proslib a year or so later [c2001] when I acquired a scanner and essentially took over as other demands on Debbie's time and energy became prohibitive. She was one of the very first people to whom I was introduced in the fandom by my original "pimp" and wonderfully generous in lending me stacks of zines as well as offering encouragement to write". (source: hagsrus in this comment below)
2002
Lewis Collins Yahoo Group founded on 3rd March 2002 (source: Lewis Collins Yahoo Group front page)
Martin's Place Yahoo Group founded on 18th August 2002 (source: Martin's Place Yahoo Group front page)
2003
AngelFishFanFic Yahoo Group founded 25th August 2003 (source: AngelFishFanFic Yahoo Group front page)
2004
the_safehouse founded 7th March 2004 (source the_safehouse user info page) by phantomas (source: my own knowledge from lj and other conversations)
Online Circuit Archive taken over by justacat (archivist) (source: Circuit Archive - About page)
Alijot's Professionals Recs website begun sometime around now? Need accurate info! (source: because it's been there longer than I've been around! *g*)
Pros Language Yahoo Group founded on 23rd November 2004 (source: Pros Language Yahoo Group front page)
2005
ProsSlash Yahoo Group founded 24th June 2005 (source: ProsSlash Yahoo Group front page)
santa_pros founded 13th August 2005 by queenbamfie (user name since changed several times) for one-off Christmas fic exchange (source: santa_pros and own knowledge)
summer_of_78 founded on 11th December 2005 by queenbamfie (user name since changed several times) for one-off Christmas fic exchange (source: summer_of_78 and own knowledge)
2006
ci5hq founded 23rd April by empty_mirrors and przed (source: ci5hq user info page)
Nattercon 2006 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2006, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
discoveredinalj founded 13th July 2006 by empty_mirrors and byslantedlight (source: discoveredinalj user info page)
TV Lounge Forum founded some time around July 2006? Does anyone know more precisely? (source: TV Lounge Forum first introductions post)
2007
pros_newsletter founded on 3rd May 2007 by paris7am (source: pros_newsletter user info page, and first pros_newsletter entry)
Nattercon 2007 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2007, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
prosfinder founded 18th June 2007 by probodie (source: prosfinder user info page)
First Close Quarters 2007 - USA-based Pros convention, July (?) 2007, Washington DC, USA. (source: own knowledge)
2007 CI5mas/Scarsdale Bash at The Scarsdale pub (used in Fall Girl), London, December 2007 (source: own attendance!)
2008
Nattercon 2008 - UK-based Pros convention, May 2008, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
The Automatic Hatstand archive founded August 2008 for Pros writers to submit and control their own story archives.
pros_icontest founded 28th September 2008 by rochvelleth (source: pros_icontest user info)
CI5mas/Scarsdale Bash at The Scarsdale pub (used in Fall Girl), London, December 2008 (source: own attendance!)
2009
loiteringpalely 18th March 2009 founded by byslantedlight as a place to source Pros zines and Pros zine information (source: loiteringpalely user info, archive and own knowledge!)
Nattercon 2009 - 20th Anniversary of UK-based Pros convention, May 2009, Milton Keynes, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance!)
Close Quarters 2009 - USA-based Pros convention, July 2009, Washington DC, USA. (source: own knowledge)
Pros Writing Holiday 2009: Week/end in the Country - Derbyshire, UK. (source: own knowledge/attendance)