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Phanny, v. 3, issue 4, Spring 1945
Page 4
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4 PHANNY 4 "By Their Works Ye Shall Know Them" Art came up with a very satisfactory arrangement of the "tabular review;" I'm adopting it here on the assumption that there are others like myself, who are curious about the ratings dished out, but not sufficiently so to resort to the previous F A. Items rated B+ or better are reviewed this time in the order of preference; for the rest, the order has no significance. Widest variation is to be found in the B- group, which varies from good to fair. The December and February Mailings are reviewed separately, but Laureate picks (to be found at the end of this department) are based on the combined Mailings. December Mailing Ratings: A, none; B+, Fan-Dango, Fantasy Commentator, Milty's Mag, Browsings; B-, FAPA Variety, Tag-Line Musings?, Phantagraph (May and Oct.), Twi-Light Echoes, Starbound, These Amazing Amendments; Dr. & Mr. L. C, Zizzle-Pop, E, Adulux Beskan. Unrated, "McSnoyd's Bulletin." FAN-DANGO. I don't know exactly why I pick this as the best of the "illegal" mailing( and right here, I want to say that I think Laney right in protesting the inclusion of F-D here; Milty, Farsaci, Searles, Fortier, and Rosenblum also appear to have a justifiable "beef" coming.). I disagree with Laney on so many points that it is hard to say just where the attraction lies; add this to the fact that I often find the somewhat immoderate style annoying, and the choice becomes even more puzzling; but anyhow, it is still tops in this group. Youd's account of the Apes of Gibralter sounds like the product of some long-forgotten, pre-war barracks bull-session; but whatever the origin, it is interesting enough. -- Nope Laney, I don't think you are a heel, but you do go to great lengths, sometimes, to convince everybody to the contrary. -- Personally, I doubt very much if the "decadent" life which you profess to admire so much is actually a mark of "cultured and intellectual circles" generally, or even to any important extent; rather, I think, it is the mark of a large group of hangers-on; a sort of "lunatic fringe." By that I mean that such groups as you describe consist of a very small neucleus of genuine artists with Bohemian leanings, plus a very large number of followers who are unable to imitate their models in any way save this, and so delude themselves into feeling that they, too, are "cultured and intellectual." -- I dunno why fans should carry out major activities primarily because they are NFFF projects; in fact, I'm often quite unable to see why they should be carried out at all. However, assuming that some project of considerable size is to be undertaken, then it seems to me that the NFFF can be very useful as a sort of clearing house, aiding in such matters as financing, contacting potential collaborators, providing publicity, and expediting the job generally. -- The F-D review section as a whole is pungent and interesting. I hope you don't ever get real mad at me though; I'm a-gittin' old, and immoderate laughter is liable to damage my heart, besides hurting my sides. FANTASY COMMENTATOR It isn't so hard to explain F C's high rating. The contents are solid contributions to the field of fantasy, and the presentation is excellent. Moreover, the material is usually of a timeless nature, losing nothing with the passage of the years. On the negative side is a tendency toward dullness and pedantry. Add this to my own lack of interest in bibliographic material generally, and you have the reason why F C doesn't rate "A". -- Top item in this issue is "A Congressman Rediscovers Atlantis." Langley errs grievously in assuming that this reader knows Donnelly well; of course, that remark was directed a bibliophiles rather than at fans generally, so I'll excuse him this time. I do like Holbrook's style, at any rate, and think I would like to read his "Unconventional History...." -- The One Page Reviews succeed
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4 PHANNY 4 "By Their Works Ye Shall Know Them" Art came up with a very satisfactory arrangement of the "tabular review;" I'm adopting it here on the assumption that there are others like myself, who are curious about the ratings dished out, but not sufficiently so to resort to the previous F A. Items rated B+ or better are reviewed this time in the order of preference; for the rest, the order has no significance. Widest variation is to be found in the B- group, which varies from good to fair. The December and February Mailings are reviewed separately, but Laureate picks (to be found at the end of this department) are based on the combined Mailings. December Mailing Ratings: A, none; B+, Fan-Dango, Fantasy Commentator, Milty's Mag, Browsings; B-, FAPA Variety, Tag-Line Musings?, Phantagraph (May and Oct.), Twi-Light Echoes, Starbound, These Amazing Amendments; Dr. & Mr. L. C, Zizzle-Pop, E, Adulux Beskan. Unrated, "McSnoyd's Bulletin." FAN-DANGO. I don't know exactly why I pick this as the best of the "illegal" mailing( and right here, I want to say that I think Laney right in protesting the inclusion of F-D here; Milty, Farsaci, Searles, Fortier, and Rosenblum also appear to have a justifiable "beef" coming.). I disagree with Laney on so many points that it is hard to say just where the attraction lies; add this to the fact that I often find the somewhat immoderate style annoying, and the choice becomes even more puzzling; but anyhow, it is still tops in this group. Youd's account of the Apes of Gibralter sounds like the product of some long-forgotten, pre-war barracks bull-session; but whatever the origin, it is interesting enough. -- Nope Laney, I don't think you are a heel, but you do go to great lengths, sometimes, to convince everybody to the contrary. -- Personally, I doubt very much if the "decadent" life which you profess to admire so much is actually a mark of "cultured and intellectual circles" generally, or even to any important extent; rather, I think, it is the mark of a large group of hangers-on; a sort of "lunatic fringe." By that I mean that such groups as you describe consist of a very small neucleus of genuine artists with Bohemian leanings, plus a very large number of followers who are unable to imitate their models in any way save this, and so delude themselves into feeling that they, too, are "cultured and intellectual." -- I dunno why fans should carry out major activities primarily because they are NFFF projects; in fact, I'm often quite unable to see why they should be carried out at all. However, assuming that some project of considerable size is to be undertaken, then it seems to me that the NFFF can be very useful as a sort of clearing house, aiding in such matters as financing, contacting potential collaborators, providing publicity, and expediting the job generally. -- The F-D review section as a whole is pungent and interesting. I hope you don't ever get real mad at me though; I'm a-gittin' old, and immoderate laughter is liable to damage my heart, besides hurting my sides. FANTASY COMMENTATOR It isn't so hard to explain F C's high rating. The contents are solid contributions to the field of fantasy, and the presentation is excellent. Moreover, the material is usually of a timeless nature, losing nothing with the passage of the years. On the negative side is a tendency toward dullness and pedantry. Add this to my own lack of interest in bibliographic material generally, and you have the reason why F C doesn't rate "A". -- Top item in this issue is "A Congressman Rediscovers Atlantis." Langley errs grievously in assuming that this reader knows Donnelly well; of course, that remark was directed a bibliophiles rather than at fans generally, so I'll excuse him this time. I do like Holbrook's style, at any rate, and think I would like to read his "Unconventional History...." -- The One Page Reviews succeed
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