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Fantasy Fan, v. 1, issue 5, January 1934
Page 67
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January, 1934 THE FANTASY FAN 67 THE BOILING POINT After five months, the Smith-Ackerman debate is still waxing hot. We open this month's column with another rebuttal from Ackerman: "Since the pros and cons on my Boiling Point article have changed around to discussions of character, I wish to state that I do not like H.P. Lovecraft's attitude. I was interested in his closing sentence in the second issue, and also in Mr. Derleth's. They were both interesting to analyze. But I resent Mr. Lovecraft's further uncalled for remarks. If I am not qualified to judge any weird tales, he is not qualified to call names. It seems to me of late that his palsy-walsy Clark Ashton Smith has been turning out an over-abundant amount of literature--but goodness! I don't think the man egotistic and attempting to draw attention to himself! The man likes to write, and so do I. Yet Mr. Lovecraft says of me 'peculiarly ridiculous', because I make absurd comments to focus people's eyes on me; and write voluminously for the same reason, I take it. But I don't keep a scrap-book. That's not very consistent with the nature described, is it? And ask Mr. Hornig what my answer was when he proposed a 'Forrest J. Ackerman' issue of The Fantasy Fan. What a puffing up I should have gotten had I been that sort[[?]] of person. You tell 'em Charles--what I said: 'No!' Not that I see what difference it makes who writes articles and how many of them there are in one issue, as long as they're good--which I hope mine are. But people will talk. And so I am not obliging with an autobiography of myself for the "Famous Fantasy Fans' feature either. "Furthermore, Mr. Lovecraft, you seem to have forgotten something. I keep my letters from famous writers. You say I once wrote you a very childish attack on your work. But your answer to that letter was: 'I was very pleased to get your bright and candid letter this morning.' That is a different story. "I write these paragraphs in my behalf, because, being more of a weird fans' magazine, I can't expect many voices on my side from The Fantasy Fan readers. If you will see the third paragraph in the letter of C. Ferry and B. Rogers in the December Wonder Stories, however, you will find that the gentlemen are three times as vehement and acidic as I. You might call them unknowing supporters. "To Robert Nelson, who says I must be daft or an imbecile or a notoriety-seeking clown and knave (and does it in one breath), I can only answer that I thought it was a foregone conclusion that fantasy fans were 'daft' anyway, and that examination of the ratings of the members of my alma mater graduating class might prove differently about the second statement, and that I think I have cleared of the third already. "Richard E. Morse's letter has impressed me as the one that really 'says something.' His thought had not occurred to me before, and it is worthwhile considering. Weird Tales allows science fiction; why not Wonder Stories weird tales? As the science fiction fan I am always eager to see stf in Wlird Tales and any other mrgazine. I see that the process can easily be reversed. So Mr. Morse 'has' me. The argument is set-
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January, 1934 THE FANTASY FAN 67 THE BOILING POINT After five months, the Smith-Ackerman debate is still waxing hot. We open this month's column with another rebuttal from Ackerman: "Since the pros and cons on my Boiling Point article have changed around to discussions of character, I wish to state that I do not like H.P. Lovecraft's attitude. I was interested in his closing sentence in the second issue, and also in Mr. Derleth's. They were both interesting to analyze. But I resent Mr. Lovecraft's further uncalled for remarks. If I am not qualified to judge any weird tales, he is not qualified to call names. It seems to me of late that his palsy-walsy Clark Ashton Smith has been turning out an over-abundant amount of literature--but goodness! I don't think the man egotistic and attempting to draw attention to himself! The man likes to write, and so do I. Yet Mr. Lovecraft says of me 'peculiarly ridiculous', because I make absurd comments to focus people's eyes on me; and write voluminously for the same reason, I take it. But I don't keep a scrap-book. That's not very consistent with the nature described, is it? And ask Mr. Hornig what my answer was when he proposed a 'Forrest J. Ackerman' issue of The Fantasy Fan. What a puffing up I should have gotten had I been that sort[[?]] of person. You tell 'em Charles--what I said: 'No!' Not that I see what difference it makes who writes articles and how many of them there are in one issue, as long as they're good--which I hope mine are. But people will talk. And so I am not obliging with an autobiography of myself for the "Famous Fantasy Fans' feature either. "Furthermore, Mr. Lovecraft, you seem to have forgotten something. I keep my letters from famous writers. You say I once wrote you a very childish attack on your work. But your answer to that letter was: 'I was very pleased to get your bright and candid letter this morning.' That is a different story. "I write these paragraphs in my behalf, because, being more of a weird fans' magazine, I can't expect many voices on my side from The Fantasy Fan readers. If you will see the third paragraph in the letter of C. Ferry and B. Rogers in the December Wonder Stories, however, you will find that the gentlemen are three times as vehement and acidic as I. You might call them unknowing supporters. "To Robert Nelson, who says I must be daft or an imbecile or a notoriety-seeking clown and knave (and does it in one breath), I can only answer that I thought it was a foregone conclusion that fantasy fans were 'daft' anyway, and that examination of the ratings of the members of my alma mater graduating class might prove differently about the second statement, and that I think I have cleared of the third already. "Richard E. Morse's letter has impressed me as the one that really 'says something.' His thought had not occurred to me before, and it is worthwhile considering. Weird Tales allows science fiction; why not Wonder Stories weird tales? As the science fiction fan I am always eager to see stf in Wlird Tales and any other mrgazine. I see that the process can easily be reversed. So Mr. Morse 'has' me. The argument is set-
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