My Own Private NecronomiCon, part 2 (Another NecronomiCon Review and Travelogue)
KAYVEN
The day began with Daniel and I pairing up whilst our womenfolk decided to
journey north to Boston. Daniel and I had bigger fish to fry. In particular,
the Providence courthouse. I won't go into too much detail since the visit was
obviously related to Daniel Harms' own researches. I think its safe to say it
was Necronomicon (the book) related and it involved going through the most
rigorous security I've seen in a public building. It worked like this: You
came into the main building lobby through a metal detector with several armed
guards around. You then proceed to the elevators which also has an armed guard
on duty there. (Though during our visit he was flirting with some women, so I
doubt he even knew we passed by.) You then go up the elevator, which is fitted
with a security camera, arrive at your floor and then come across another metal
detector with two armed guards. This time, the metal detector is much more
accurate since it forced Daniel Harms to remove his belt and I had to rid
myself of my lose change and my watch. These removed items are then placed on
a conveyor belt and x-rayed. Then you find yourself having to open a
steel-door (which will lock tight at the flick of some button somewhere) and
you find yourself in a little room with bullet proof glass between you and the
employees. I suspect it is safer to work at the Providence courthouse than it
is to be President of the United States. At one point, Daniel had to excuse
himself to use the bathroom. An arduous process of using a key, going through
a metal detector twice and leaving some form of ID behind took place that made
me decide to hold water a bit longer.
It was during this visit that another interesting incident took place.
Monika had woken up that morning to tell us all that she had had a vivid dream
where Daniel and I had to make photocopies at 20 cents each. Lo and behold,
she was right on the dot when it came time to set the manuscripts we had on the
copier and insert our dimes. 20 cents exactly. For the rest of the trip we
kept hoping that Monika would dream the numbers of the state's Super Lotto, no
such luck.
After being determined as "relatively harmless" by the courthouse security, we
then found ourselves being let loose upon the streets of Providence. If you
ever wish to kill or maim someone in Providence, wait for them to come out the
courthouse. I can guarantee you that they have nothing by which to defend
themselves by. A fact that came to me as we found ourselves suddenly being
given a lecture by an elderly gentleman about the lack of intelligence in the
city government.
We then proceeded to check out Daniel's Lovecraft tour before hand. Daniel
wanted to get an idea of where to go and what was on the route since Providence
had decided to close some roads and such. We found the fleur-de-lis house
under reconstruction and therefore almost impossible to see. A bridge just
next to the hotel was out so Daniel and I found an alternative route. So for
all you people who went on the tour and were wondering why we ended going
through an apartment complex, that is why. It was also during this time that
we checked out the John Hay Library Exhibit. It wasn't as good as the last
time, but there were still a few things of interest. The exhibit was mainly
foreign editions of Lovecraft and comic book adaptations. It was fun to try
and figure out the connections between the cover illustrations and the stories
contained within. Who knew there was a werewolf in Shadow out of Time???
Most of the attention was paid towards Jason Thompson's Dream Quest of
Unknown Kadath comics which held an honored place among the yellowed Dr.
Strange and Archie comics. (Ok, Ok, there is no Cthulhu-related Archie comic.
But I just swear that Betty has the Innsmouth look!)
Then we walked towards the Marriott for the registration process. As was
expected, the organization was flawed. Not only had there been confusion with
Daniel's registration, but they once again spelled my wife's name wrong even
after a few e-mails had been exchanged to clarify things. Luckily, I'd been
through this before and let it slide like water off a duck's back. This was
around noon and we decided to wait in the lobby for the Dealer's Room to open
at 1. It was during that wait that we came into contact (that's the only way
to describe it) with Dan Clore. He stood there amid the chaos of the Con and
glanced at the childish antics of its inhabitants with a smug feeling of
justifiable superiority. I approached him and introduced myself.
SMH: Dan Clore? Hello, I'm--
Dan: Have you bought Brian McNaughton's Throne of Bones yet?
SMH: Umm, yes, actually I have. I'm Steven M--
Dan: Buy it again. Keep buying it. It changes its text with every reading.
SMH: No it doesn't. I've got two copies from the last con and they are both
the same.
Dan: Look, I'll level with you. Throne of Bones is a magic book that if buried
in your backyard will sprout a beanstalk far into the sky.
SMH: What the hell are you talking about?
Dan: Look, are you going to buy Throne of Bones or not?
SMH: Ok, ok, I'll buy another copy when the Dealer's room opens. Sheesh.
Dan: I've got a copy right here, how about buying it now? You can take it over
to the bar and have Brian sign it.
SMH: (Looks over towards the bar) Is he really in there?
Dan: Don't look away from me!!!
But the spell had been broken and I was no longer under his influence. I
quickly walked away while Dan Clore looked around for another victim. I should
point out at this point that this was indeed the real Dan Clore and not a
double of Dan Clore as has been suggested by various people throughout the
convention. The confusion stems from the fact that Dan Clore's name tag said
he was from some town in Vermont while all Dan Clore fans know he dwells in the
cold dark wastes of Portland, Oregon. As has been pointed out numourous times
in this posting, the organization for the Con was imperfect and the assigning
of Dan Clore to the forested mountains of Vermont was an error. (Though after
rereading The Whisper in Darkness, I have to wonder....)
It was also during this time that I did indeed see Brian McNaughton depart from
the aforementioned bar area and walk his way to the Washington room for his
panel on Why I Write Mythos Fiction. Both Daniel Harms and I yelled out to the
man...
Daniel Harms: Brian McNaughton! Over here!
SMH: I'm not wearing any pants!
Unfortunately, Mr. McNaughton either didn't hear us, or wisely didn't want to
see me without any pants.
Then the Dealer's room opened. Off we all went in search of treasures. I
found Michael Shea's Shadow Out of Space and a few old Crypts of Cthulhu I was
looking for. I got sticker shock from looking at the price of The Lost
Continent. $60!! Or some such nightmare. Sorry fellows, I didn't pick a copy
up and judging from the rest of the Con, few did. But considering that I could
pick up three copies of Joshi's Lovecraft biography for the same price,
something isn't right. If John Pelan or the publishers of The Lost Continent
wish to sell me a photocopy of the book minus illustrations with no attempt at
binding or correlation for $20 give me a call.
But aside from that was the complete absence of Chaosium. I had consciously
NOT bought any Chaosium product produced since December since I knew I would
eventually have the opportunity to do so at the Convention. I had even
contemplated producing a few odds and ends of my own (Neon Elder Signs, a few
original designed t-shirts, etc) which I had thought to give to them to sell
with the profit going to them and merely the cost of the product going back to
me. (A charitable act to do my part at helping Chaosium out of their current
economic slump.) Thank goodness I never found the time to help out Chaosium
because I'd have arrived at the Con with a car load of stuff and no one to give
them to. In any case, I simply assumed at the time that Chaosium was late. At
the last NecronomiCon, Pagan hadn't been able to set up their booth until
Saturday, so I didn't worry. I just figured that the Pagan curse (i.e., Life
will get in the way of every Convention but GenCon) had infected Chaosium. And
who can say, maybe it has.
After 50 minutes of the Dealer's Room with people jostling around to pick up
Lupoff's _Lovecraft's Book_ or _The Annotated Herbert West Reanimator_, it was
time to rest in the lobby again. This time, Brian McNaughton was again in the
bar area after his first panel drinking and eating with people that seemed to
laugh behind Brian's back everytime he turned away. Nearby Robert Price ate
breakfast (or brunch) with his wife.
Eventually, Dan Clore came and sat with Daniel Harms and me and talked a while
about the Necronomicon hoaxes for a bit (I bought two copies of Throne of Bones
while Daniel bought three thanks to this informal chat) when we were suddenly
interrupted by Fred Chappel.
Fred: Excuse me gentlemen, do any of you happen to have a schedule?
A pause as Dan Clore, Daniel Harms, and myself glanced around for the
mysterious gentlemen he was referring to.
To his credit, it was Daniel that first realized what was happening.
Daniel: You are.......(gasp)
Fred: I'm Fred Chappel. Glad to meet you. And you are?
Daniel: You probably haven't heard of me, I'm Daniel Harms. I know Professor
(name withheld) and he used to talk about you all the time.
Fred: Yes, (name withheld) and I are good friends that go way back. And I have
heard of you. You're the gentleman behind the Encyclopedia. I read your
description in the back of the program. (to me) And you are?
SMH: I'm Steven Marc Harris and I know for a fact you don't know who I am. But
you can see my schedule.
Mr. Chappel thank us and went on his way after learning that his panel was in
the Washington room. Mr. Chappel still doesn't know my name, I'm sure of that.
But he will remember the young man that handed him his schedule.
I've met Brian Lumley and Fred Chappel thanks to the NecronomiCon and I find
myself describing both Guests of Honor in the same way, they have charisma.
Yet both have the quality in different ways. Lumley's charm comes from his
down to earth manner of talking. He tells you what he thinks and that's the
end of it. Chappel however has a charm of being the kind of guy who is just
genuinely happy to meet people. I guess the best way to put it is that if you
get stuck on an island with little chance of survival, you'll want Lumley
along. But if you are going to spend a few days in New Orleans, Chappel is
your man. Take that any way you want to.
After Chappel left us, I suddenly realized that it was to the very same room
that Chappel was going that I was also heading for. Eventually, Daniel Harms
and Dan Clore both left to explore the hotel or whatever they did. It was
during this time that I met up with Steven Kaye (known here locally on usenet
as box_nine). The man with whom I continue to get confused with by innocent
parties on the internet. Mr. Kaye was slyly walking around the lobby area
looking at people's name tags. Which leads me to the topic of the name tags.
The names on these name tags are small enough that the only way to read them is
to enter into another person's personal space. Its a violation of territory
that can get ugly when you suddenly realize that the fellow with whom you are
suddenly staring in the face isn't someone you know and there isn't any way to
get out of hurting their feelings. "Oh, I thought you looked like someone I
know, but now that I can see your name, I realize that I have little interest
in getting to know you." In any case, I noticed that Steven Kaye's name tag
said "Steven K...." so it was either "Kaye" or some strange coincidence.
Fearing that it WAS a strange coincidence, Steven Kaye and I performed a ballet
where I tried to get a better look at his nametag while he seemed to look at
every nametag except mine! Eventually, however, I caught a better glimpse of
the tag and was able to judge that the time had come to go in for the kill.
While Steven Kaye looked around confused by the bright lights of the lobby and
the continuous drone on the nearby TV over the newly open mall, I sundered up
to him and said, "Psst" at which point Steven Kaye jumped in the air. A
reaction I later learned was a result of having been grabbed and assaulted by a
Darrell Schweitzer "hard sell" in the dealer's room. In any case, I let him
see my name tag and awaited his shower of praise and admiration. I was
heartily disappointed. It was almost as if Mr. Kaye was awaiting for ME to
shower him with praise. After a stare down, I noticed that the panel I wanted
to attend was starting, so I asked him if he would like to attend.
The panel:
"Lovecraft as a Fictional Character"
with Peter Cannon, Fred Chappel, and Robert Price
I showed up and sat in the back of the room. It was at this moment that I
realized that the hotel had, since the last Con, included little candies in the
back along with the water. Later I would come to find out that this little
treats seemed to magically be replaced between panels. It was glorious and I
found myself feasting like a king on pineapple, cherry, and other assorted
flavors. In retrospect I can see that it was at that moment that I began to
realize that hotels were capable of being plundered. And was my first step
towards the dark side that Monika (Daniel's girlfriend who was at that moment
causing havoc in Boston) would later take my hand and force me into. I won't go
into details, since I prefer to avoid lawsuits and jail time, but suffice it to
say that the perks of the Marriott are some of the best in the business!
But to the panel. We began by having an impromptu quiz of the audience to
determine how many stories and novels we could come up with that included
Lovecraft as a character. Then the discussion began. I won't write out the
panels line by line because first of all, I'm lazy. Secondly, if all panels
were written out and placed online, there would be little to encourage people
to go. And I don't want to be blamed for that! The convention organizers do
enough discouragement without my help.
So what were the highlights? We learned that Peter Cannon wrote 99% of
Lovecraft's dialogue in his novel _Pulptime_ by lifting them straight from
Lovecraft's letters. We also learned that Fred Chappel included Lovecraft in
his story "Weird Tales" because as a teen he recalled reading a dismal story
(the title of which escapes me) that had only one saving grace, Lovecraft
showed up for a brief moment in the story. It was, he said, like meeting a
long-lost friend and was the only thing he could remember from the story. So
his "Weird Tales" was an attempt to write that feeling out. It came up that in
all the stories that Lovecraft appears in, either in name or in personality,
Lovecraft is something of a literary device. That the story seems to follow a
pattern where 1. Strange event occurs. 2. initial investigation that uncovers
more mystery. 3. Lovecraft appears and reveals the awful truth. 4. Horror
occurs and the narrator meets a horrible death.
I myself contributed the interesting observation that Long's _Horror from the
Hills_ takes a different course. There, the occult and horror are quite
evident at the start and when Lovecraft's character (under the guise of a
mystic) shows up, instead of getting worse, Lovecraft's character actually
takes the story in a Weird Science direction and the eventual saving of
mankind. I pointed out that it was fascinating to see how a story written
before Lovecraft's period of mild popularity and ultimate degeneration towards
a stereotype viewed Lovecraft more in a pulpish style than a typically horror
genre fashion.
Eventually we came to a discussion of Lovecraft appearing in dreams. (Price
brought that one up.) Chappel described a dream where he entered a room to see
a large leather chair that he somehow knew that Lovecraft had, only moments
before, been sitting on. He said that although he had never seen Lovecraft in a
dream, the sight of a chair that Lovecraft had only just vacated was enough.
Next panel:
"The Origins of the King in Yellow"
by Christophe Thill
Marvelous!! Mr. Thill, who used to post much more frequently to
alt.horror.cthulhu than these days, brought to the NecronomiCon one of the best
presented panels there. Clear, concise and interesting. Thill went over each
story from the King in Yellow collection, pointed out the geography and
historical contexts, and then wrapped it all up with the answer to the panel's
topic. What was the origin of the King in Yellow? What play exists that fits
the description of TKIY as a play that causes its readers to loose their minds?
I won't answer that one, that's for Mr.Thill to do. But I wish to thank Mr.
Thill for the exciting hour. I've already started re-reading the stories.
Next panel:
"In Memory: James Turner of Arkham House"
by Cannon, Ganley, Joshi
Nothing too spectacular about this panel. But this isn't to say it was
boring. Quite the contrary. We were given the inside scoop on how the Arkham
House editions were created. Learned about how apparently there isn't any
pictures of Derleth to be had at Arkham House. Oh they are there somewhere,
just no one knows where they went. Not even his own daughter.
It was six o'clock and the gang all got together for dinner. Monika and my
wife returned from Boston. Daniel Harms, Steven Kaye, and I waited in the
lobby for their appearance and then off we went. We stopped at Boston Market
and munched away an hour getting to know each other.
Eventually, we found our way back to the hotel and went to the mixer. For some
reason, nearly half the people at the Con decided to just skip the mixer. It
was at the mixer that Gary Libby (Crazy Yog) met us after revealing The Horror
At The Blue Fin. Seems that poor Gary had just spent $100 on a dinner for two
at the hotel's little restaurant. This revelation made me determined to never
eat at the Blue Fin and to abuse the hotel. Steven Kaye, who actually had
gotten a room at the Marriott, was our perfect unwitting accomplice. It was
time to take the hotel for everything it was worth. Monika sat us all down and
sent out instructions on what each of us could do. Apparently, if one knows
certain secrets (no doubt revealed in the Hotelnomicon), one can live life to
the fullest at a hotel without spending a cent. Free food, free clothing, free
everything! That night at the mixer was when I joined the Dark Side.
Also, I was asked to perform a little private ritual I like to call "The Grey
Rite of Azathoth." I was a bit more careful about it and proved to draw the
attention of a few individuals. It confirmed my belief that the tragedy that
occurred at the last Con when I performed this rite was due more to not having
a steady chair than anything being wrong with my back.
It was after dinner that the HIGHLIGHT of the con took place.
"Close to Home" CoC Game
by Jason Thompson (Keeper)
In the winter of '36, Lovecraft meets 5 of his friends and peers for
the 1st time: Smith, Howard, Derleth, Bloch, and Long.
From 10 pm to 3:30 am, Jason Thompson pulled out all the stops to allow Daniel
Harms (Howard P. Lovecraft), Steven Kaye (Clark A. Smith), Gary Libby (Robert
E. Howard), Robert Capelletto (Frank B. Long), Steven Harris (August W.
Derleth) and somebody whose name I have forgotten that played Robert Bloch, to
become the Lovecraft Circle and have the time of our lives. I admit to feeling
sorry for Jason every once and a while since we seemed to be having so much fun
that the sense of terror didn't catch on for a while. But I assure Jason that
it was there. Hidden under the jokes and absurdity, we were all hoping to
stick it through to the end.
The highlights? Long's bad luck with his car that seemed to continuously
become damaged, scratched and overworked. Robert Bloch's innocence as a 18
year old in New York City for the first time. And the eventual placing of Bloch
in a straight jacket because he keeps getting into trouble. Lovecraft
unexpectantly pulling out a 30 page essay on the dangerous and immorality of
heroin use from his coat pocket. August Derelth's ego going out of control to
the point of getting our heroes involved with a police corruption racket. Clark
Ashton Smith's prophetic words as he got off the train that New York was a
modern Babylon full of sin and corruption. Robert E. Howard's dark depression
suddenly expressing itself towards the end in a fist fight to the death with a
supernatural entity that SHOULD NOT BE!! And I imagine none there will ever
forget that moment when the Lovecraft Circle, as a group, decided to lift a
dead man up, stick his head out a window and move it around like a puppet. An
event that should have caused an NPC who witnessed it to make a SAN check if it
hadn't been for his already zero score.
The best part is that everyone stayed in character and did everything that
seemed reasonable at the time. Brilliant music and atmospheric pictures/maps.
Bravo Mr.Thompson! Bravo!!
For those curious. Smith & Long went insane. Howard, Derelth and Bloch died.
Lovecraft came through without a scratch and died a few years later of natural
causes.
I'm proud to say that I gave one of the many best quotes of the evening. As
Derleth finds himself thrown up against the wall by a shotgun blast his dying
words are announced loud with a shrill scream.
"I never wrote any of my works!"
It shouldn't be suprising that we went to bed soon after this.
That's it for the first three days of My Private NecrononmiCon. Tomorrow I'll
post the rest of what happened.
Oh, and just to prove that I'm not entirely off my rocker, you'll be happy to
learn that some pictures of the events described will be posted on the Internet
soon.
----- Steven Marc Harris
Steven Kaye
(KAYVEN) wrote:
> It was
> during this time that I met up with Steven Kaye (known here locally on usenet
> as box_nine). The man with whom I continue to get confused with by innocent
> parties on the internet.
I'd hardly consider Donovan "innocent." That benevolent Arizonan exterior
masks the essence of pure evil. And geographical obsession. But mostly
evil.
> Mr. Kaye was slyly walking around the lobby area
> looking at people's name tags.
I should explain at this point that the proper method of eyeing someone's
name tag is to make a distant orbit and look at the tag out of the corner
of one's eye while pretending to not notice the person whose name tag
you're trying to read. It takes a few passes, but isn't preserving the
social proprieties worth a little effort?
> While Steven Kaye looked around confused by the bright lights of the lobby and
> the continuous drone on the nearby TV over the newly open mall, I sundered up
> to him and said, "Psst" at which point Steven Kaye jumped in the air.
A damnable lie!
>A reaction I later learned was a result of having been grabbed and
assaulted by >a Darrell Schweitzer "hard sell" in the dealer's room.
I approached a harmless-seeming man at the back of the dealer's room. The
last thing I remember was him saying something about the publisher having
gone out of business. The next thing I knew I was lying in my bathtub with
a sharp pain in my side, an empty wallet, and the words "This check better
not bounce!" scrawled in lipstick on the mirror.
> This revelation made me determined to never
> eat at the Blue Fin and to abuse the hotel. Steven Kaye, who actually had
> gotten a room at the Marriott, was our perfect unwitting accomplice. It was
> time to take the hotel for everything it was worth. Monika sat us all
down >and
> sent out instructions on what each of us could do. Apparently, if one knows
> certain secrets (no doubt revealed in the Hotelnomicon), one can live life to
> the fullest at a hotel without spending a cent. Free food, free
clothing, free
> everything! That night at the mixer was when I joined the Dark Side.
Oh sure, it seemed like harmless fun. Show Harms, Monika, Kayven, and Mrs.
Kayven my room which could house a small cult. The staff got tired of me
crying "My litter, Bithynians!" but it was going well. We even somehow
acquired Mr. Clore - I can only assume that, dazed, he was caught up in
our wake like a dolphin in a tuna net. Then it started. The mooching of
towels. Endless phone calls - "they're local," she said. The complimentary
manicure, pedicure, and nose-hair trimmings.
> It was after dinner that the HIGHLIGHT of the con took place.
Agreed.
> The highlights? Long's bad luck with his car that seemed to continuously
> become damaged, scratched and overworked. Robert Bloch's innocence as a 18
> year old in New York City for the first time.
The larcenous, heroin-shooting, floozy-chasing early years of Bloch
somehow never made it into the standard biographical reminiscences.
> And I imagine none there will ever
> forget that moment when the Lovecraft Circle, as a group, decided to lift a
> dead man up, stick his head out a window and move it around like a puppet. An
> event that should have caused an NPC who witnessed it to make a SAN
check if > it hadn't been for his already zero score.
That NEVER happened. Do you hear me, Harris! It NEVER happened.
> Oh, and just to prove that I'm not entirely off my rocker, you'll be happy to
> learn that some pictures of the events described will be posted on the
Internet
> soon.
Oh hell. Look, Monika, if you're reading this - I have money. Lots of it.
Anything you want!
Steven
--
Steven Kaye
box_...@ix.NOSPAM.netcom.com
vonj...@hotmail.com
keep him honest.
First, Mr. Harris only touched briefly on what was definitely
the highlight of the trip: the opening of the Providence Place
Mall on Friday. Sure, it made traffic hell, but what would you
rather do - listen to a bunch of guys like Chappell, McNaughton,
Joshi, and Price, or check out a place with FOUR different
incarnations of the Gap? It was comic, actually, to see the
local media giving endless interviews with "hard-to-please" yet
impressed shoppers and go ga-ga over a mall which doesn't even have
a food court yet. Steven and I did not go there, but left that to
our female contingent, who reported dissatisfaction.
In article <19990826182228...@ngol05.aol.com>,
kay...@aol.com (KAYVEN) wrote:
> Friday, August 20th, 1999
> But aside from that was the complete absence of Chaosium.
It was quite disappointing. Not only was Chaosium gone from
the dealing room, I didn't see a single Chaosium writer there (unless
you count Joe Pulver and myself). Given that last time, I met no less
than four Chaosium authors, I was somewhat disappointed.
> Daniel: You are.......(gasp)
> Fred: I'm Fred Chappel. Glad to meet you. And you are?
Sadly, due to scheduling conflicts, I didn't get to see a single
Fred Chappell panel. I thought I would have the opportunity to do so,
and if I could do one thing different at the Con (well, one of two -
see below), I would have gone to one or two. Hats off to you, Fred!
> "The Origins of the King in Yellow"
> by Christophe Thill
> Marvelous!! Mr. Thill, who used to post much more frequently to
> alt.horror.cthulhu than these days, brought to the NecronomiCon one
> of the best presented panels there. Clear, concise and interesting.
> Thill went over each story from the King in Yellow collection,
> pointed out the geography and historical contexts, and then wrapped
> it all up with the answer to the panel's topic. What was the origin
> of the King in Yellow? What play exists that fits the description of
> TKIY as a play that causes its readers to loose their minds?
> I won't answer that one, that's for Mr.Thill to do. But I wish to
>thank Mr. Thill for the exciting hour. I've already started re-
>reading the stories.
Truly excellent. If you're a Chambers fan, you should have been
there.
>"In Memory: James Turner of Arkham House"
>by Cannon, Ganley, Joshi
I cornered Joshi after this panel, and blabbered to him about
new HPL letters (photocopies being sold in the dealer's room for
only $20!) and Lovecraft correspondent William Lumley as a proper
lunatic should. He took it all in good stride.
> It was after dinner that the HIGHLIGHT of the con took place.
> "Close to Home" CoC Game
> by Jason Thompson (Keeper)
Dammit, Steven! Don't you remember me telling everyone,
"This never happened!"
> In the winter of '36, Lovecraft meets 5 of his friends and peers for
> the 1st time: Smith, Howard, Derleth, Bloch, and Long.
> From 10 pm to 3:30 am, Jason Thompson pulled out all the stops to
>allow Daniel Harms (Howard P. Lovecraft),
Just for the record, I had first choice of the characters,
and I picked up Robert E. Howard. I had my eye on HPL, but only
picked him up when it became clear that everyone else was leery of
playing him and that I was the only one with the ego to think he
could do it. Sadly, this ensured that many were stuck with characters
who they weren't really familiar with (prompting one player's
statement that "I have a case of amnesia" (turns character over) "but
I have just been given something to read about myself").
I had a really good time. Lovecraft was constantly talking
his way out of (and sometimes into) bad situations, pulling odd little
essays out of his coat, and generally having a good time. My attempt
to talk down a psychopathic vengeful madman with a discussion of
cosmic indifference didn't work well, but I had fun.
> For those curious. Smith & Long went insane. Howard, Derelth and
>Bloch died. Lovecraft came through without a scratch and died a few
>years later of natural causes.
Actually, for accuracy's sake, Long died and Howard went insane.
I walked out of the subway with hideous gunk all over me, vowing never
to return to NYC.
Favorite quote: When confronted by Lucky Luciano, Lovecraft
agreed with him that ghosts could exist. After the gangsters left,
he turned to Derleth and stated, "And don't you think I've compromised
my principles, you self-blinded little earth-gazer!"
An excellent time was had by all.
(BTW, Steven has yet to mention anything about kicking cakes.
Watch for it in future installments.)
--
Yrs.,
Daniel Harms
http://www.necfiles.com/
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
CrazyYog
>Eventually, we found our way back to the hotel and went to the mixer. For
some
>reason, nearly half the people at the Con decided to just skip the mixer.
It
>was at the mixer that Gary Libby (Crazy Yog) met us after revealing The
Horror
>At The Blue Fin. Seems that poor Gary had just spent $100 on a dinner for
two
>at the hotel's little restaurant.
Well I had to feed my make believe wife something? Besides page 66 of my
eight copy of Throne of Bones told me to eat there.
>From 10 pm to 3:30 am, Jason Thompson pulled out all the stops to allow
Daniel
>Harms (Howard P. Lovecraft), Steven Kaye (Clark A. Smith), Gary Libby
(Robert
>E. Howard), Robert Capelletto (Frank B. Long), Steven Harris (August W.
>Derleth) and somebody whose name I have forgotten that played Robert Bloch,
to
I would like to refer to him as "some guy named Ben"
Just for the record, Howard did not die, he merely ended up in the asylum.
here is the actually play by play of some of the highlights.
[The Scene]
Robert E. Howard, dazed and confused from a black eye, a viscious razor
blade slash to the back of the neck, and a near fatal shotgun blast, found
himslef running through the sewers (maybe alleys, I was a bit dazed from
lack of sleep) with the rest of the survivors of the Lovecraft Circle being
chased by an axe wielding, gas mask wearing maniac. The creator of mighty
Conan decided to turn and fight. After a brief fist fight with crazed
fellow, Howard managed to get the fiend's shotgun and put two loads of shot
into his belly. This dropped the bastard to the ground, but didn't finish
him off. Howard scooped the axe and preceeded to hack maniac to bits. He
then removed the assailants gas mask and revealed... Well it is too horrible
to describe. Needless to say it drove poor Howard over the edge.
Meanwhile, the rest of the circle was battling the true nemesis of the story
and things were going badly. Robert Bloch was possessed and soon had Frank
Long was in the same situation, Clark Ashton Smith was tied to a chair and
HPL was hiding under a table. Well maybe, it was the other way around.
Anyway who cares, the real hero of the tale, Howard soon made his
reappearance. Wielding his axe, the spirit of Conan filling him, Robert E.
Howard advanced on Bob Bloch. With his eyes glazed over and a thin line of
drool dripping down his chin, Howard/Conan bellowed "BY KROM!" and leapt at
Bloch. With a pair of nimble swipes he cleaved the young writer in two and
went on the finish of Long, who was cowering the in the corner.
Soon afterwards, Howard regain consciousness and realized that it was all a
dream. There he was lying in bed, with his ruby slippers, his cute little
dog, and all his friends around him. The was HPL (The Wizard), Clark Ashton
(The Scarecrow), Auggie (The Cowardly Lion), Frank Long (The Tin Man), and
Bob Block (Aunt B). Wow playing late at night is worth it!
Ok, then he woke up yet again and realized it wasn't the Conan ending or the
Oz ending, but the Scooby-Doo ending. Howard got into that fight with Bloch
missed a bunch of times and got knock out by the little bugger. He
eventually woke up in a daze, wandered the streets for a while, and ended up
getting committed. THE END.
"If it wasn't for those blasted writers (and regional writers) I would have
gotten away with it!"
Luv,
Two Gun Bob
Christophe Thill
> kay...@aol.com (KAYVEN) wrote:
>> "The Origins of the King in Yellow"
>> by Christophe Thill
>> Marvelous!! Mr. Thill, who used to post much more frequently to
>> alt.horror.cthulhu than these days, brought to the NecronomiCon one
>> of the best presented panels there. Clear, concise and interesting.
> Truly excellent. If you're a Chambers fan, you should have been
>there.
Whew, folks, that is nice! Well, if you fell that the guy from the
other side of the water has given you enough for your bucks, then I'm
perfectly happy! I'm glad it was clear: "well-prepared" wasn't
certainly the right word, as the whole thing was mostly jotted down
the night before. But after all, for the original version, it had been
"one year and a half in the making"!
To this, I wish to add a special comment concerning a lot of people,
among which Fred Chappell, Brian McNaughton, Robert and Carol Price,
Mike Cisco, Joan Stanley, ST Joshi, the guys from "Lore", Dan Clore,
Daniel Harms and (of course!) Joe Pulver. And sorry if I forgot a few
ones. To all, I'd like to say: it's been wonderful to be among you for
a few (too few, alas) days and talk with you, and you've all been
wonderfully nice and charming. We Europeans sometimes tend to see the
inhabitants of the States as mean, selfish and arrogant. I already
knew a few examples tending to prove this wrong, but this time I've
had a tremendous number of those.
So, thanks for listening to my somewhat exotic accent and to my
sometimes intricate sentences and weird choice of words (don't worry,
my French isn't much better). I hope to see everybody again in 2001 ;
and if I have a suggestion to give, it will be to make the convention
a bit longer. So many panels, so little time. How can you take a walk
on College Hill AND browse the dealers room before every item of
interest has been bought AND go to Swan Point AND listen to all these
extremely interesting talks AND hang around with the pals in a mere
two and a half days? If the whole thing was just a little longer,
perhaps the hotel rates could be yet a little lower. But I don't
know... perhaps a more accurate programming would have been
sufficient. But I know that we'll have it next time... and that Frank
Hummel already did a good job this time.
Seeya', friends !
Christophe Thill - Paris, France (c_t...@worldnet.fr)
ArKa/D/ia! Homepage: http://www.worldnet.fr/~c_thill/
HP Lovecraft page: http://www.worldnet.fr/~c_thill/hpl/
"The King in Yellow": http://www.worldnet.fr/~c_thill/chambers/
DAIKAIJU! Les monstres japonais: http://www.worldnet.fr/~c_thill/kaiju/