``My Crystal Light has just burned out, And Canada's gone Dry;
My Yoohoo will not call to me, I am a loyal endorsee of Pepsi.''
From ``Drink It Up'' off of Negativland's latest dizzying collage CD of ``think about it'' pop culture that REALLY is called Dispepsi. Order it from them as Pissdepi though as they are trying to avoid another U2-like lawsuit. See some more discussion below.
Harold Zarr wins the award for being the first player to FAX orders
to me.
I'm glad it was viewed by him as being useful.
I had meant to put a letter from Doug Beyerlein into last issue,
but it got misplaced in the production process (as a few of you
delicately pointed out).
As a bonus, I have a couple of letters from Doug in this issue!
This issue should be somewhat more timely than the last one
as well, double bonus!!
The postal sub price is a flat $1.00 per issue in the US and Canada. You can double that for other foreign subbers (or $2.00 per issue sent airmail). Players in current games and standbys will continue to get the issues for free, and new game starts (except for Nuclear Yuppie Evil Empire Diplomacy, which is free) cost $15.00 ($10.00 for a life of the game subscription and $5 for the NMR Insurance). The current game opening for Colonial Diplomacy will start as soon as I get money from seven players since Nekayah has now ended. For more on this, see below. Also note that more results for the demo game are included. Remember that music comments and reviews are scattered through the game press at times.
By electronic mail, through the Internet, subs are free and can be obtained automatically by sending the message: subscribe tap
to majordomo of diplom.org and messages can be sent to the entire electronic mailing list by mailing them to tap of diplom.org which will forward your message to all of the people currently on the list. The message:
unsubscribe tap
sent to majordomo of diplom.org gets you off the list. Please make careful note of that as well since you generally can get yourself off the list a lot easier than I can, and NOBODY likes to see unsubscribe messages sent to the entire list. A big, big thank you for David Kovar for setting this all up!! Note that everything has been moved to the diplom.org site. See David's letter below. The Cal Tech ftp site is being mirrored on the diplom.org machine as well. Issues of The Abyssinian Prince #131 to the present are available via anonymous FTP from ftp.ugcs.caltech.edu in the pub/diplomacy/Zines/TAP directory in compressed postscript format. The gracious assistance of Kevin Roust is most appreciated in keeping up this site. The files begin ap131.ps.Z and go sequentially from there. Since it's UNIX based, all of those upper and lower cases are important. If anyone wants help from me on doing this, they only have to ask and I can help you determine if you have access to FTP which stands for File Transfer Protocol and can handle postscript files. The Caltech site is at:
ftp://ftp.ugcs.caltech.edu/pub/diplomacy/WWW/
or check out the connections in the Diplomatic Pouch at its brand new address with all of the information you would need to play Diplomacy on the Internet at: /DipPouch
In addition, through Jamie McQuinn's portion of the Pouch, or directly through:
/pub/diplomacy/Zines/TAP/
you can access the mirror site to Caltech and get to the szine that way.
In a relatively NEW development, the szine also is available as a PDF file, readable with Adobe Acrobat's free reader. If you already have Adobe's reader on your computer, you can E-Mail me for a copy. I am still in test mode with this.... you pretty much have to print the szine to look at it as it just won't clear up on the screen. Any of you who have NOT E-Mailed me about this test can still do so. After I test this for a bit, I will have TWO E-Mail subscription lists so you can choose PDF file, TeX source file, or both at your leisure.
Scott Hanson and his German wife originally left the hobby completely (after winding down a bit before that) when they went to live in Germany. I have reason to believe they still live there. Knowing Scott's wife's name will help you in your search, but I'm going to withhold telling you until next issue (giving those who know a brief head start). Then I have a ``dead giveaway'' clue for issue 198 that was (when all put together) what led me to find Scott. As I said, though, I did not try to contact him. I need a music letter for issue 200 from him for you to win! Get him to tell us what music he's been listening to for the last decade or so. If you fail to complete this task (and I mean this), I'm folding the szine.
This is now going to be a regular continuing feature of the szine and I will be introducing a new ``search for'' every five issues. Moreover, you can win a $25 prize for finding some previous target who went unfound in the original $50 period. That means that if Kevin Tighe or Mike Mills or Garret Schenck or Jerry Lucas is ``found'' from now on it is worth $25. Plus, Steve Emmert will throw in another ten spot for Garret Schenck if you can get Garret to write to him.
Winners will receive credit for Dip hobby activities that I will pay out as requested by the winner. Bid on PDORA items, subscribe to szines here or abroad, run your own contests, publish a szine, or whatever. Spend it all right away or use me as a bank to cover hobby activities for years. What must you do to win? Get me a letter to the editor for TAP from the person we're searching for. This is very important, just finding them doesn't do it. They have to write me a letter. For Scott Hanson you need to get him to write me a MUSIC letter. The final judge as to the winner of any contest will be the target himself and I reserve the right to investigate the winning entry. When you find someone I'm looking for, you should ask him to send me a letter for print that includes a verification of who ``found'' him.
The British representative is the editor of Mission From God, John Harrington. John may be contacted at 30 Poynter Road, Bush Hill Park, Enfield, Middlesex EN1 1DL, UK (johnh of fiendishgames.demon.co.uk). The representives in Australia (John Cain, PO Box 4317, Melbourne University 3052, AUSTRALIA) or Belgium and some other European countries (Jef Bryant, Rue Jean Pauly, 121, B-4430 ANS, BELGIUM) also will forward your subscription on to the editor in either Australian dollars or continental European currencies respectively. Please include the full name and address of the foreign publisher with your order, if possible, as well as the szine title. Make your check in US dollars out to me personally. I will conduct business for Canadians as well, if I can, but prefer to deal in US dollars with them if possible, or Canadian dollars cash. To subscribe to American szines, the system works in reverse.
Obviously, I'm not anywhere close to getting back around to doing international szine reviews, but who knows, I might pick it up again at any time. I actively am searching for more international traders. I am pleased to have added a couple of them in the last few issues.
Obscure and not-so-obscure ramblings on the state of the hobby and its publications, custodians, events, and individuals with no guarantee of relevance from the fertile keyboard of Jim-Bob, the E-Mail Dip world, and the rest of the postal hobby. My comments are in italics and ((double quotation marks)) like this. Bold face is used to set off each individual speaker. I should also make a note that I do edit for syntax and spelling on occasion.
Melinda Holley announced the 1997 Annual Hobby Award winners as follows:
Miller Award - Douglas Kent
Walker Award - Mark Fassio
Hyatt Award - Andy Lischett
Köning Award - Michael Gonsalves
The voting in each category was very close except for the Hyatt Award. In all other categories the winner was decided by 1 or 2 votes.
((Thanks to everyone who voted! And congratulations to all the deserving winners!!))
Contact: David Hood, 2905 20th Street NE, Hickory, NC 28601; David_Hood of w3link.com
Dan Mathias, 509 Bayview Drive, Lusby, Md 20657; UUME07A of prodigy.com
This three-day event draws the best players from North America and beyond for a multi-round Diplomacy tournament and other competitions. On Friday night, May 22, players congregate for the first Diplomacy round and other events. During the Saturday night round, Con participants can enter the Variant Diplomacy tournament instead, for a touch of variety. Tournaments in other games such as Titan, Miniatures, History of the World, Advanced Civilization, 1830 and RoboRally will proceed throughout the weekend also. The host convention, Dixiecon, was the site of the 1990 World Diplomacy Championships and 1994 DipCon. Features Include: Four Round Diplomacy Tournament; Plaques and Other Prizes; Wargames, Rail Games, RoboRally and Miniatures; Inexpensive Campus Housing; Experienced Convention Staff.
The Carolina Amateur Diplomats will again host World Dipcon in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, in conjunction with the regional gaming convention DixieCon. World DipCon is the World Diplomacy Championships, a tournament which rotates around the world. DixieCon was the World DipCon site in 1990, when the event drew the largest field of Diplomacy players in North America since 1983. It also hosted the North American Championships in 1994. This year's event promises to be another outstanding Diplomacy tournament as participants from around the world travel to Dixie for the chance to become the 1998 World Diplomacy Champion. Of course, World DipCon isn't just about playing Dip with the best players in the world. It's also about meeting hobbyists for the first time, seeing old friends, and partaking of the many side-events, including past DixieCon favorites such as Titan, 1830, History of the World, Miniatures, Diplomacy variants, and others, both in tournament and open-gaming formats. Below is a list of DixieCon/World DipCon/DipCon staff members, and the functions they are likely to perform. Early registrants will receive future DipCon Newsletters as they are published, with information such as tournament schedules, expected participants, scoring systems, travel aids, and other news on the upcoming event. Contact David Hood now to put your name on that mailing list.
DipCon Committee
David Hood Chairman and Tournament Director
Michael Lowrey Vice-Chairman and Assistant GM
Dan Mathias 1830 GM and Assistant Diplomacy GM
DixieCon XII Committee
Steve Nicewarner: Chairman and Non-Diplomacy Events Director
Steve Koehler: Diplomacy Variant Events GM
Hal Hood: Miniatures Events Coordinator
Dan Mathias: 1830 GM and Assistant Diplomacy GM. Publicity
Steve Cooley: Publicity/West Coast
Manus Hand: Publicity/Internet
Larry Peery: Publicity/International
Jim Burgess: Publicity/Northeast
Jamie McQuinn: Publicity/Midwest
Roland Isaksson: World DipCon Liaison and Special Assistant
Don't Miss This Exciting Event! Contact David Hood at 2905 20th Street NE, Hickory, NC, 28601 david_hood of w3link.com
Friday, May 22, 1998
10:00 to 5:00: Open Gaming (For early arrivals)
5:00 to 6:00: Registration and Check-in
6:00 to 12:00: Diplomacy Round One; Titan/1830/Acquire; Ancient and Naval Miniatures
Saturday, May 23, 1998
9:30 to 5:00: Diplomacy Round Two (Doubles as Team Tournament); History of the World
5:00 to 6:00: Catered Supper
6:00 to 12:00: Diplomacy Round Three; Variant Diplomacy Event (Colonial and Machiavelli); Magic Tournament (at Cerebral Hobbies); American Civil War Miniatures
Sunday, May 24, 1998
8:30 to 9:30: Dipcon Society / WDC Meeting
9:30 to 6:00: Diplomacy Round Four (Ends between 4:00 and 6:00); Advanced Civilization; Final Boards - Titan, Acquire, 1830 6:00 to ?: Open Gaming
Notes:
- Dip games have no set ending time except for Round Four, which ends at a time between 4:00 and 6:00 known to the GM but not the players.
- You must play at least two Dip rounds to be eligible for tournament awards. Best Country is based on a single performance. The scoring system will be outlined later.
- Titan, Acquire and 1830 events consist of unlimited qualifying rounds for final board on Sunday. Other event formats are TBA.
- Travel: Fly into Raleigh-Durham International, or take AMTRAK. We will provide free shuttles from the airport and train station. Directions for driving to Carmichael Hall, the site of the Con, will be sent to registrants.
- Fees: $15 to register for the Convention, $15 per night to stay in the dorm, to share a room ($30 if you want a room to yourself). Overseas folks will play and stay for free.
- Participants: Over the years DixieCon has had participants from 26 states and provinces, and 5 other countries. The 1990 WDC included players from France, Britain, Austria and Australia.
Stan Johnson (10/11/97)
Jim, You mentioned having a letter from Doug Beyerlein in the last issue, but I couldn't find it. ((Corrected below...)) I'd like to see Doug back in the Hobby. I think it was a little silly to leave the Hobby due to a feud he was not really a participant in. ((I think everyone would admit that it affected the entire Hobby atmosphere to such a degree that at least I can see how Doug was making sense.)) At the time, I thought the whole feud was silly and was very surprised so many people took a load of bullshit to heart.
Doug Beyerlein (Wed, 24 Sep 1997 21:28:16 -0500 (CDT))
Jim, TAP #194 arrived a week or so ago. I read Stan Johnson's note and your reply. Your reply was completely correct regarding my feeling about the feud. I am not interested in reliving any of those memories, but I thought that I should give some additional perspective on my feelings towards the Diplomacy hobby. So, if you permit me:
I grew up in the postal Diplomacy hobby: both figuratively and literally. I joined the postal hobby in September 1966 at the age of 16. I met my wife-to-be, Marie Cockrell, while playing in the Diplomacy tournament at the 1974 DipCon in Chicago. We got married less than a year later. And I have many good friends as a result of the hobby. People like Walt Buchanan and John McCallum.
I got a lot from the hobby during the 20 years (1966-1986) I spent in it. And I tried to give a lot back. I was the Boardman Number Custodian in the mid 70s and later I ran a zine, EFGIART, for orphaned games. I never charged a game or subscription fee to the players in these games. ((A policy that I also use for the orphans that I run, an idea I got from you. The last three games in the back of the szine (Columbus Chill and Covington Cross [both from Melinda Holley], and Suffren Succotash [from Garret Schenck]) are all orphans and most of those players have been getting the szine for at least two years now on that deal.))
I had a lot of hopes for the hobby. In hindsight they were unrealistic hopes, but they were hopes nonetheless. I wanted to see Diplomacy go mainstream and be as well known as Monopoly, Scrabble, and chess. The opportunity was there in 1976 when Avalon Hill bought Diplomacy from Games Research (GRI), but we didn't take advantage of it. John Moot, president of GRI, had been subsidizing Diplomacy World and the Boardman Numbers. Avalon Hill was willing to continue that arrangement if AH could deal with a single organization that would take responsibility for the DipCons, DW, and the Boardman Numbers. (AH had never made a similar offer to any other AH gamer group.) The International Diplomacy Association (IDA), founded in 1972, was in position to provide the organizational skills and respectability to work with AH to promote the game of Diplomacy and the postal hobby. But we (and I take a share of the blame) didn't get our act together. Instead, the hobby reacted in its traditional anarchistic fashion and AH walked away from the table. ((As someone who has long opposed such organizations for this hobby, I note that this particular element of that story is new to me, at least in the way you present it. I'm not sure it changes my opinion completely, but it does make it waver a bit.))
I do not believe that all would have been peaches and cream if we would have cooperated with AH (I have been a member of too many organizations and clubs to believe in fairy tales). But I believe that the postal, email, and face-to-face hobby today would be bigger and stronger and better if we would have acted to achieve a common goal. ((Quite frankly, I like the anarchic hobby style as a contrast to the high pressure, high performance world that I work in. The hobby is an immeasurable source of fun to me. Nevertheless, I admit that some of that organization might have been helpful to the hobby and still might be helpful today. On the other hand, the deep multi-level game that Diplomacy is, with its inherent time consuming pace is not in line with the perceived current societal pace. Is there interest in resurrecting any portion of this discussion. All the relevant parties are here (David Kovar, Nick Fitzpatrick, and others from the E-Mail hobby who've worked with Avalon Hill recently to get better exposure for Diplomacy through the Judge system; as well as Conrad von Metzke, Larry Peery and others who have the history in memory). Food for thought, anyway.))
The events of 1986 finally convinced me that the postal hobby would never grow up. But by 1986 I had grown up. I was no longer a wide-eyed 16 year old high school junior, but the 36 year old vice president of an engineering consulting firm. I decided it was time to move on with my life. I will always hold a tender spot in my heart for the Diplomacy hobby (which is why I am writing this letter). Unfortunately that spot will also hold the pain of what could have been.
Some relatively random ramblings from me this time.... warning to the unaware, I am indeed feeling extremely alliterative this issue and offer no apologies for it:
1) Melissa Ferrick - There is a record from her called Melissa Ferrick +1 that is on the small label Hidden Water Records, available for $8 plus $1.50 for shipping and handling US ($4 - International), plus 7.75% tax in California. Mail to Hidden Water, 1702-H Meridian Avenue, Suite #131, San Jose, CA 95125; ATTN: orders. Later this year it is supposed to come out on WAR records and be available in stores. I'm probably going to get this, one way or the other, since an old review I found on the Internet of her earlier Atlantic work compared her to Mary Karlzen and Mary's quirky songwriting is a mild strange pleasure. Wandering around the Internet, I also was reminded that Melissa made headlines around here for her ``last minute'' opening act work for Morrissey at Great Woods about five years ago that jump started her career. Morrissey is someone who has (with purpose on my part) dropped totally off my radar screen. This is interesting since early Smiths records were and still are highly favored around here. Sharp-minded readers will recall that I panned Meat is Murder with such boring excesses as ``That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore'' and ``Nowhere Fast'' which perfectly describe my reactions to everything Morrissey has done since (wink).
2) Lots of FASCINATING latter half of the year releases have me really thinking about the scattered definitions of music in the current post-rock culture. Although ``rock'' music still exists, I would assert that it is akin to a dinosaur after the comet/meteor/whatever hit the Yucatan. Things like the release of a new Rolling Stones record leave me yawning; however, in no particular order, we also see a whole slew of ska, loads of quirky women folk singer songwriters, post-punkers like Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello doing all sorts of thought provoking stuff, blues/roots stuff from a dizzying array of influences, ``sound bite'' mixers like Negativland, sound collage makers like Portishead and Delta Clutch and Stereolab, and bands like Chumbawamba (who knows how to classify them?) releasing records that have me reeling (puns intended...). On one hand, nearly all of this music appears to fit rather decisively into the fast-paced scattered world we live in, thus it ``speaks'' the language of the moment. To me, the way to tell is to try to listen to the music all by itself with nothing at all going on otherwise. Other than some of the women songwriters I am thinking of, much of this music (and especially the sound collage makers like Portishead) falls a bit flat. I need to be careful here, because I don't mean flat in the sense of boring - I cannot imagine more sinuous, slinky, pregnant music than ``Glory Box'' presents - I mean flat in the sense of being incomplete, needing another dimension (e.g. the ``fast-paced scattered world'' that surrounds us) to come to full realization. The question is whether the music speaks TO us without telling us what to do. Paul Everett (ex-Plan 9 way cool music) who is now lead singer for Delta Clutch puts it this way: ``I can't sing about what you should do, unless it's someone I know who did something to me. Because we play music that's all about feel, it's never hitting someone over the head.'' I am not being exceptionally clear here, because I'm not sure what all this means to me yet, but I'm going to work it all out for my end of the year, end of the TAP century 200th issue. Watch for it.
3) This is about time to issue the ``call'' for music contributions for Issue #200. From this point on, I reserve the right to hold letters or portions of letters for that issue. It will appear toward the end of January after a six week or so hiatus. I intend to have this set of submissions have two parts (submit your thoughts on one or both, but NOT neither!):
a) Your thoughts on what music of 1997 meant to you - possibly in the form of top (whatever number) CDs, favorite/memorable concerts, zapper singles that made you jump out of your chair, or whatever form you like! - which can be a list, or it can have lots of discussion/comments. For me this has been the most fascinating music year in some time, what about for you? Can't you at least give me ONE song that stood out to you? Sure you can.
b) Your thoughts on how music has changed/progressed/declined over the approximately 13 year history of this szine's focus on music issues (choose a relevant time window of your own if you like - that's the primary range I'll be looking at). This could be a new or revaluation of a list of your top CD/records of the decade/century or it could take a discussion format. The main point is that it be YOUR story. Your story does count (much as I realize that many of you don't seem to think I believe that). Originally, I was going to do a list (and I still may) but as the above mini-essay makes clear I am now leaning to something more verbal.
You can also combine the two questions to say something very short and simple. I even want to hear from those of you who would say something like this (for example): ``I grew up in the 70's listening to Yes, Genesis, and Renaissance and you know what? That's all I still like to listen to. Well, except, Anthony Phillips has another great album out this year.'' Then I can ask: ``Great! Where can I find it??'' Give it a ride! Now for something completely different, I asked Andy York if I could reprint his column on the Science Fiction WorldCon that he wrote for Per Westling to this audience. He graciously said yes, thanks to Per as well!
Andy York (Sat, 4 Oct 1997 19:52:50 -0400 (EDT))
Here's the WorldCon Report. It is in the format for my column in Per Westling's LEPANTO 4-EVER.
WorldCon was held at the end of August here in San Antonio. This was the first time I could attend a World Science Fiction Convention, and I must say, I hope it isn't the last. I found it met or exceeded all of my expectations; my only complaint being that there was too much to do. Many times I had to skip an interesting panel or reading to attend something else that grabbed my attention.
The venue was well chosen. The Marriott hotel chain has two hotels across the street from one another and the large Henry B Gonzales Convention Center. This is where everything happened; though some folks were housed in overflow hotels around the downtown area (all within walking distance).
The hotels responded very well to the eccentricities of the convention. They turned over freight elevators to the convention to help shuttle people between party floors, reversed escalators to ease the flow of people after major events and kept cafes open after normal hours for those seeking a late night snack (as did the nearby food court at the Rivercenter Mall).
All in all, I'm proud of the way San Antonio (where I lived) responded to this convention. The only complaint I heard the entire weekend was from some Brits (I assume from their accent). They were complaining amongst themselves about how hot it was outside as they moved between sessions compared to the air conditioning inside the buildings. Having lived here for over a decade, I'm quite used to going from 90 degree (37.8 Celsius) to 70 degree (21.1 Celsius) on a regular basis.
My WorldCon experience began when a friend, Jamie McQuinn, from Ohio called and asked if he could stay the night before with me. Of course, I had no problems with it and we met up after my class ended on Wednesday. He'd went downtown and was able to register a day early. We both looked over the program books and planned what we hoped to do the next day.
I took him for dinner to Jazz, a local Cajun restaurant. It seems when Dip friends arrive in town, we end up eating there. The food is excellent and plentiful. At least this time the ceiling didn't come down (my previous visit was during a freak, heavy, rainstorm that leaked through the roof - right on top of me and Richard Weiss!).
On Thursday morning, we both headed downtown to pick up my registration information. We arrived a bit after 9am (registration opened at 9) and found it a bit unsettled. It was obvious that they were still setting up and briefing workers on their duties. Also, the lines for preregistration and on-site registration were too close to one another and they became mixed a bit. However, it was quickly sorted out and I claimed my badge and program material. Very little was out on the ``freebies" table, so we quickly left the registration room.
As nothing was planned prior to noon, and my day's classes started at 12:30, I bid goodbye to Jamie. He was going to check into his hotel and then pick up some friends at the airport. I headed to the university and spent the time until class trying to decide what I was going to see and do for the next few days.
I was very much impressed with the programming material. The convention committee had kept every preregistrant well informed through a series of Progress Reports over the past three years. They continued this excellent service with a very complete book of information on WorldCons and the guests along with a smaller, compact, pocket program listing the events and tourist information. As I've mentioned already, there was so much going on that I had to use a triage method to pick the things I wanted to see the most. There was plenty of quality programming going on all the time!!
After my classes were done, I drove straight downtown. I arrived a bit after 4pm and decided to wander the dealer's room first. I was pleasantly surprised to find a table for the Babylon 5 Fan Club prominently placed. The two staffers were extremely friendly, talkative and just plain pleasant to talk to. They were selling t-shirts, caps and memberships to the fan club; as well as showing blooper reels on a small television. Later in the convention, they added the single episode CDs as merchandise and a display of props from the show.
The rest of the dealers room was almost overwhelming. They had people selling just about anything fantasy, science-fiction or space related you could think of. Some of the publishing houses, such as DelRey and White Wolf had tables (including autograph sessions with their authors) and the Sci-Fi Channel had a large booth. Others sold collector's items, used books, toys and even the opportunity to send your DNA (a strand of hair) into space.
A portion of the dealer's room included displays about past WorldCons (and information on future bids), a filking area, a very well designed message area and a brochures/handouts area. This included promotional material from movie studios for upcoming movies (posters, buttons, etc), sample newsletters and zines and flyers for dozens of upcoming conventions. Scattered about the area were exhibits of fan costuming and a dead ``bug" from the upcoming Starship Troopers movie.
I didn't spend much time in the art show (a hall off of the main dealer's area). However, what I did see was excellent. I wish I had the skill to create the items that they did - and I wouldn't mind the prices that they charged for some of it.
I went to my first session, titled ``Speculations: An Essential Tool for Writers" and arrived a bit late. Unfortunately, I had misunderstood the title. I had thought it would deal with using speculation for writing; when in fact it was an information session on the Speculations newsletter. I have ordered a subscription, as the abbreviated sample issue looked quite interesting. However, I think I would have enjoyed ``Recent Archeological Spectaculars" much more.
I then wandered the dealer's room for a bit and then grabbed dinner at the local Olive Garden. I wanted to make sure I made the Opening Ceremony at 7pm. The room was packed to overflowing and the start was delayed while they brought in more chairs. After a short presentation, the majority of the presentation was some ``local" talent demonstrating trick roping, gun twirling and cowboy songs. The entertainers were very good, though I had expected something more ``science fiction" related.
The Opening Ceremony was followed by a Meet the VIPs Event. It was in a crowded room; however the VIPs were quite approachable. I chatted for a few minutes with Mike Resnick before I ducked out of the area and headed for Room Parties.
I stuck my head in a half dozen room parties, including bid parties for CanCun and Chicago. One group, the NetSci-Fi, held one; but it was more of a recruitment session for their website. I spent most of my time in the ``FosFax" room party, talking with Alex Slate and Tom Feller (folks I've known for years via mail and EMail; but never met face-to-face).
Tired, I drove home for some sleep. I wanted to be back early the next morning for the first full day of the convention. One thing, though, that jumped out at me was the acceptance by everyone of the handicapped. It seemed folks went out of their way to help them out and include them in events. This is a big change from our society at large where the handicapped are often ignored or just tolerated. Quite a pleasant change.
The next morning, I arrived early and attended some sessions and again wandered the Dealer's Room. Costuming was much more evident today than on Thursday. I saw all sorts of Trek uniforms, including a very well done Klingon, Medieval style clothing and one person who was a convincing Indiana Jones - including his trademark hat and whip.
One of the morning sessions I attended was on Military Science Fiction. Some panelists expressed concern over how the graphic violence of today's computer games (``Doom", et al) would translate for future readers; as well as the lack of consequences of for those violent actions. However, others hoped that concentration on characterization would overcome this concern.
Another thread discussed what warfare was and how it should be portrayed. Distinctions were drawn between organized warfare and civil unrest. However, the general consensus was that war should not be glorified; but portrayed truthfully - and that the soldiers should be honored.
In the afternoon, I attended a session on Making Connections in the Science Fiction Community. Mostly I went to the session to meet another long time friend, Benoit Girard (of Frozen Frog fame). I didn't pick up much new from the session; but quite enjoyed the chance to chat with Benoit.
Another session was on the TechnoThriller genre. One of the panelists, Austin Bey, felt that the first technothriller was MOBY DICK. He defined the genre as a story based around current, or near future, technology and the individuals using it. The intimate knowledge shown of whaling in MOBY DICK fit the mold. ((Did he mean the one with Richard Basehart (who was great!) and Gregory Peck as Ahab (who stunk) that I remember seeing that was made in the 1950's? As I recall, Ray Bradbury had something to do with the screenwriting for this one and I suspect that was driving Bey's assertion. I'm afraid I disagree with that as a starting point.))
However, others stated Eric Ambler wrote the first one. Everyone seemed comfortable to at least say he wrote the first modern technothriller.
Kevin Anderson, another panelist and one of the folks featured in my last column, talked at some length on the topic. Most of his work, in collaboration with Doug Beason, fits well into the genre. He said the basis of technothriller is research, research, research. You must know your topic to be able to write about it.
To emphasize this point, he related an interesting story about his personal experience in writing. He has worked for many years in secret government programs and has intimate knowledge of them. He stated that as he read an unidentified novel by Tom Clancy, he was shocked at the accurate knowledge Clancy displayed. When he talked with his superiors about the passage, he was told that if he had wrote the exact same passage, he could have been charged with releasing government secrets. However, as Clancy was not privy to the secrets, what he wrote based on solid research of public information was allowed. ((I hope you aren't disagreeing with the policy because actually I agree with it. There always is uncertainty about ``the facts'' and having someone on the inside write something adds a factual certainty that is completely different from a novelist making a well informed judgment.))
Later, I went to a session on Historical Mysteries (which I quite enjoy). They talked about the difficulties of researching some aspects of history and in weaving a tale that didn't violate known historical facts. Of course, some literary license is taken with historical figures to fit the needs of the mysteries. The whole underlying principle is that it could have happened. An example of this is the historical figure meeting a character in the book - the historical figure was in the right town (historical fact); and could have met the character if they had been real (literary license).
The other main thread of the session was how to translate historical attitudes and phrases into something palatable for today's readers. For instance, a Roman would think nothing about the existence of slavery - it was an accepted and integral part of Roman life and to think of life without slaves would be inconceivable. However, to soften the reality of slavery to today's readers, the author has the character treat his slaves humanly and is vocal against the mistreatment of them by others.
The last session for the day was a reading by David Gerrold. He read an excerpt from the next book in the Chtorr series. Yes, he is writing at least four more books for it! He then followed it by a short section from the seventh book. Afterwards he autographed items, for a $1 charity donation to Pediatric AIDS. The only unfortunate incident was a person who had a cold. She sat for almost twenty minutes loudly and continually blowing her nose. Quite distracting and if I hadn't been half way across the room, I would have suggested she step out of the room.
I headed home shortly thereafter as I was tired. No room parties that night!!
On Saturday morning, I did a quick turn around the Dealer's Room and then headed to the large Grand Ballroom. J Michael Straczynski (JMS) was making a two-hour presentation on Babylon 5 at noon. When I arrived at 10:15a, already 300 or more folks were staking out chairs. I found a good seat and settled in to read while saving my spot.
At 11:00a another session started which showed movie trailers for upcoming science fiction related movies. Starship Troopers looks very good, as does Lost in Space. The new James Bond movie only looks average, as does the American Werewolf one. Ten or more other trailers were shown; but none really stood out (except for Gattica - I must see that one!).
JMS arrived to a loud and noisy ovation from the filled ballroom. The two-hour session practically flew by. He showed previews of the upcoming two television movies, a bit of the new character replacing Ivanova's position, and the season 4 blooper reel. He also answered a number of questions from the audience and retold the Jurasik/Katsulas revenge story.
I then stood in an autograph line (the first time in my life) and had JMS sign my copy of his Scriptwriting book. He was very pleasant to speak to and accepting of his fans. In fact, we were originally told he would only sign two items per person; however later he had the person come back through the line saying just ``a reasonable number of items". He also was very accommodating to those who wished a photograph or other special requests. I was very much impressed.
Later that day I attended a session with a new producer (Marc Zicree) of the Slider's television show. It had been dropped by Fox and the Sci-Fi Channel picked it up. Everyone was glad of that, and Zicree stated that they were going to make it a ``smarter" show - reversing the dumbing down that Fox did in the last season to try and bring in viewers. Also, more science- fiction elements are going to be added in.
In news, he stated Rhys-Davies has left the show completely. Also, the Wade character will be missing from the early Sci-Fi episodes. A new regular, played by Jerry O'Connell's real-life brother, will be joining the cast as Quinn's brother from an alternate non-technology time-line.
Lots of other spoilers and information was dropped, including that Jerry O'Connell will be directing four episodes this year. It is going to be filmed at Universal, with access to many of the back lots and standing sets. Zicree is also seeking suggestions and comments from the general public. He can be reached at sliderutv of aol.com
I then went to dinner with Jamie McQuinn and one of his friends. This was followed by the Hugo Awards. The winners were:
Novel: BLUE MARS by Kim Stanley Robinson Novella: Blood of the Dragon by George R R Martin Novelette: Bicycle Repairman by Bruce Sterling Short Story: The Soul Selects Her Own Society... by Connie Willis
Non-Fiction: TIME & CHANCE by L Sprague de Camp Dramatic Presentation: ``Severed Dreams" (Babylon 5) Professional Editor: Gardner Dozois Professional Artist: Bob Eggleton Semiprozine: LOCUS Fanzine: MIMOSA Fan Writer: Dave Langford Fan Artist: William Rotsler
The ceremony was well done and quite enjoyable. The only thing that bothered me was the number of folks who left after certain awards were presented. This was especially pronounced after the Dramatic Presentation was given, quite a few people walked out disturbing those who remained.
After the awards were over, I noted a CNN newscrew interviewing some of the winners. Later, they made a tour of the room parties and, from what I heard, some of the footage actually was aired (though I didn't see any of it). I hung around with a small group of people to congratulate JMS on his award.
I hit some more room parties, along with it seemed every other person who was attending the convention. Many more folks in costumes were wandering about, adding quite a bit of flavour to the scene. I left late that night, quite satisfied with the convention.
Unfortunately, I didn't feel well the next day and decided to skip the rest of the convention (there was only a partial day on Monday). Overall, I felt the convention was very well run and enjoyable to attend. I only wish I could have cloned myself to attend more sessions!!
If this peaks your interest, next year's WorldCon is in Baltimore. The following year is in Australia and in Chicago for 2000. Start saving those pennies!!!
((This next one from Dick Martin got buried for awhile, but there's no time like the present.... doing the Mark Lew thing.))
Dick Martin (Mon, 11 Aug 1997 01:06:55 -0500)
jim-bob
keep those taps coming - it's the only zeen i read cover to cover. well, so what if it's the only zeen i get! is mark larzelere on your mailing list? if not, he should be. after all, he's about as much a dinosaur as i am. i can't tell if tap is getting better lately or i've just been mentioned more often. come to think of it...is there a difference?
((Oh, probably not. I'm sending Mark a few samples to see what he thinks.))
brad wilson is right on the $$$ about tv taking tons of time. i didn't think i was a big tv watcher, but when we moved out of my mom's (and left the tv behind) i suddenly had tons more free time. now if only i could arrange to telecommute, life would be just peachy. living in suburbia kinda sux for kids though. there is *nothing* within walking distance of our house except for other houses. looks like we have years of taxi service ahead of us....
vertigo games....always a good time. hopefully i'll be able to make it, and cart the rest of the family along for the ride. i already weaseled avaloncon this year though, so maybe not. and the little guy is definitely at the dangerous stage (18 months) for a non-kid-proof house. erin would prolly have a good time though - she stomps me at candyland every time. :)
enough rambling, gotta go...
recent playlist: in the digital mood, glenn miller orchestra; boogie chillun, john lee hooker; get happy!!, elvis costello; ((You and I share a way powerful hankering for that particular underrated early Costello album!!)) complete recordings, robert johnson.
special guest press section for suffren succotash ((Since this is so late, I decided to leave it here.... Harry reads everything, though, right Harry??))
(fashion consultant - harry): if you can ``march true" in a micro kilt (without getting arrested)...you have my condolences.
Doug Beyerlein (Thu, 9 Oct 1997 19:58:23 -0500 (CDT))
Jim, Just received #195 and read Brad Wilson's letter. The comment about the Uncle Bonsai CD instantly got my attention and sent me in search of my Uncle Bonsai audio tape, Boys Want Sex in the Morning.
Marie and I have long been Uncle Bonsai fans. We saw the trio (Andrew Ratshin, Arni Adler, and Ashley Kristen) perform several times in the Seattle area in the late '80s. At one of their shows we bought Boys Want Sex in the Morning and enjoyed it immensely. The tape contains 14 of their songs and was recorded live at the Backstage in Seattle in 1986 by Freckle Records (Pioneer Square Box 4005, Seattle, WA 98104). The tape includes crowd favorites ``Fat Boys" and ``Boys Want Sex in the Morning" plus ``Cheerleaders on Drugs" and many more. ((Just so people don't get the wrong idea, Uncle Bonsai not only did hilarious songs in those beautiful trademarked soprano harmonies of theirs (I ordinarily don't find really high voices this attractive!). They also did some really poignant tearjerkers. ``Charlie and Me'' ends The Inessential Uncle Bonsai CD that I own and digging THAT out again has the loneliness and missed opportunities in that song bringing tears to these eyes. I don't know if you know that one. Also, as compared to my comment to Brad last time, I was playing the CD on my little portable while typing stuff for the szine. Taking the CD back downstairs to the main stereo helped it sound much better! I do recommend it more highly than I might have indicated.))
We lost track of Uncle Bonsai in the early (mid?) 90s (time flies way too fast). For some vague reason I thought that the trio broke up, but I really don't know their fate.
What we really liked about their songs was the total originality of the lyrics. A nice extra with the tape is the printed version of the lyrics that comes with it. It is great for Marie, who likes to sing along as we listen to the tape while driving on the freeway. ((Yes, that is helpful... now you mean she reads the lyrics (in very small print) from the tape box while driving? Help..... I'm glad I'm driving Freeways 3000 miles away. But I'm doing it on 128, one of the worst Freeways in America.))
Anyway, Brad's comments got me to dig the tape out of the closet and put it back in the car where it belongs. Thank you. ((You're welcome.))
Now are there any Igor Cowboy Jazz Band fans out there? Swamp Mama Johnson fans? Guitar Slim?
((Not me, but check out the audience. Comments? And yes, unfortunately Uncle Bonsai broke up around 1991 or 1992. Ratshin is still a full time musician, but the women are retired. Thanks for that letter too!))
Doug Beyerlein (Fri, 10 Oct 1997 11:37:16 -0500 (CDT))
Jim, After sending my message yesterday evening I did a search on Yahoo for Uncle Bonsai. The official Uncle Bonsai web page is maintained by Yellow Tail Records. They have info on the two Uncle Bonsai CDs that are available. You can also read the lyrics of the songs on their web site. Anyway, according to Yellow Tail, Uncle Bonsai disbanded in '89.
Conrad von Metzke (Thu, 16 Oct 1997 09:16:23)
Brief note - taking a break from my latest mad project (rescuing an orphan Railway Rivals 'zine in England - last published Christmas 96, with reports on 54 games!!!). So I turned on the radio and was treated to the funniest thing I've heard in a long time. (We're speaking unintentionally funny, that is.) Actually, you gotta give 'em credit, but they picked the wrong place to try their talents.... The orchestra was the Philharmonic Symphony of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Didn't catch the conductor's name, doesn't matter anyway. And they were playing, of all things, the ``William Tell" Overture. The first section wasn't all that terrible - nice 'cello tone, not much legato but at least he/she had the right idea. ((There's always that. I like the realization that ``cello'' is a shortening of violoncello, we so often forget....)) But from then on - Rossini meets Boris Godunov! The storm was the Siege of Moscow. The pastorale featured an English horn down in the bowels of some mausoleum, and ``The Volga Boatman" jumped to mind. All the lovely string work, chopped, clipped,. strident, and your choice of (a) loud or (b) louder. And then came the trumpet call - trouble city! The tone was rancid, the tonguing was barely passable, and then at the end of the fanfare where the timpani joins in, we have no idea what happened with the trumpeter because the drummer whacked him off the stage. ((Hyork, hyork, hyork...)) At which point the gallop takes off - across the steppes - with exactly one level of volume (loud), all the notes identical in timbre, every phrase abrupted because nobody has learned to ease off a note, they just pick up their bows and start something else. And then we finally get to those wonderful trombone passages toward the end, the sort of thing Rossini tossed in all kinds of places that always make a hit. Well...er...have you ever stuck a soda straw into a glass of Coke and blown into it, to listen to the gurgle? So what you apparently do in Plovdiv is, first you fill your trombone with Coke....
I mean, I know it isn't fair to make fun of the inept if they're honestly trying, but good grief! There has GOT to be other repertory, even famous repertory, that they could work with - not something like this where every little flaw stands out like a glowing neon light. They truly sound as if they're getting really good with those instruments now, so maybe it's time to learn what the word ``music" means....
Oh by the way. I'm not going to buy it. I don't know the label, or the rest of the contents, and I'm not much concerned to find out. ((I'm not surprised, it sounds like it was a ``once in a lifetime'' experience!))
But - one should hear something like this every once in a while, just to understand that, really and truly, some things ought never to happen. Ever. ((Yes, otherwise, ``relativists'' would have us abandon all hope, ye who enter here....)) Somehow I felt like sharing this....
((And I'm so glad you did! Thanks!))
Jamie McQuinn (Wed, 15 Oct 1997 13:35:17 GMT-5)
Jim, Just read through TAP#195. I always enjoy the Music Section, even if I don't comment often. However, I discovered a new group this last weekend that I wanted share with your readers.
I was at ConClave, a science fiction convention in Lansing, Michigan. Many cons have a filk music program track that I usually ignore, but I was wandering down a hallway and heard some music. My first thought was, ``Do the Barenaked Ladies have a new album out?" When I got to the room, I found a three piece band playing some great music.
Ookla the Mok is from the Buffalo area, and seem to have garnered a following among SF fans (some of their songs have SF themes). The concert was great fun. They remind me of several other bands that I have been enjoying lately; The Barenaked Ladies, Moxie Fruvus and They Might Be Giants. There is lots of energy and a sense of humor in their music. I bought two of their CDs, one to send to a friend (I was going to just tape it for him, but these guys are still ``starving artists" so I thought it better to support them).
They have a web page with song samples:
http://www.infinet.com/~scoteder/otmfan/
and their CD is available directly from the band for $12 (+$1 for S/H)
Rand Bellavia, Ookla the Mok, P.O. Box 274, North Tonawanda, NY 14120-0274
I have no financial stake in this band or their CDs. I just really enjoyed them and think they deserve some attention. ((I have heard the band's name before (you don't forget one like that), but haven't heard the music. I'll check it out too. Thanks for the tip!))
On another topic, would you, or one of your readers please educate me. I have seen several references in TAP lately about SKA music. I'm not sure I know what it is. I am sure I have heard it and enjoyed it, but never knew it by its label. I'm under the impression it has its roots in reggae or rap but that's about all I know. Who are some of the most prominent SKA groups and their songs? If I get some examples I might get a clearer picture. ((I've been talking about the most prominent ska groups pretty much right along if you've been following the szine. I don't really want to write a big long thing about ska since I'm waiting to see what Brad Wilson writes about it. Fundamentally, ska operates off of an emphasis on beats one and three of a four beat measure that makes it sound more bouncy than standard rock music which ``sits back'' with beat two and four emphasis. The legend is that the original ska bands were listening to rock on bad transistor radios and thought that the strong beats were one and three. This SHOULD make big band lovers key right in to ska since most of the big band era songs were also done with one/three beat emphasis. I've long been thinking that ska is the way to bridge the generations in all sorts of culture - from religious music to wedding dance bands - if it happens, remember that you heard it here first.)) I know you are not a big Yes fan, but I am excited by the fact that there are supposed to be two new Yes albums coming out before the end of the year. One contains material recorded before Wakeman left the band, yet again, and the other has their new lineup, with a keyboardist I haven't heard of before. ((You should not infer from the fact that I prefer certain Yes songs to others and certain line-ups to others that I am not a big Yes fan. I love the Buggles as the Buggles, not as a patch to Yes. I can't abide ``Siberian Khatru'' but swoon over ``And You And I'' and ``Close to the Edge''. Drama has none, but Fragile isn't. Rick Wakeman is a nutty strange person, but he is the only keyboardist worth listening to with Yes. Bill Bruford is an interesting drummer but Alan White is merely OK.))
There, I did my duty. It's always a good idea to send an occasional LOC just to keep on the good side of the zine publisher. ((Yeah, I don't do my part, do I.))
Pete Duxon (16 October 1997)
Jim, ta for the ((s))zine. Have I sent you a letter recently???? ((No.)) The ((s))zine is becoming to look so English, isn't it?? ((Perhaps, but if you prefer to pronounce the word szine with the hard ``y'' sound I'd be really surprised. Spell it right, or meet the consequences!)) Press for Barno, oh who or what is Barno?? ((You must be joshing! Mike Barno is merely the most famous employee of the evil corporation that has the concession for Yellowstone National Park services!!! He lives among mountains you can merely dream about.)) Well, the highest mountain in the UK is Ben Nevis in Scotland which is 1,344 metres (between 4,000 and 4,500 feet). Britain is a very small country. However, it's absolutely packed with stuff which is where its charm lays. If you want Geographical splendour you have to go elsewhere.
((I'm not sure I agree, but I haven't really seen enough of Britain to be definitive. Peaks aren't everything.))
``And now," cried Max, ``let the wild rumpus start!"
If you want to submit orders, press, or letters by E-Mail, you can find me through the Internet system at ``burgess of world.std.com''. If anyone has an interest in having an E-Mail address listed so people can negotiate with you by computer, just let me know. FAX orders to (401) 277-9904.
Standby lists: Mike Barno, John Breakwell, Dick Martin, Brad Wilson, Jack McHugh, Glenn Petroski, Steve Emmert, Mark Kinney, Vince Lutterbie, Eric Brosius, Doug Kent, Paul Rauterberg, Doug Essinger-Hileman, Stan Johnson, Harry Andruschak, Dave Partridge, Andy York, Michael Pustilnik, and John Schultz stand by for regular Diplomacy. Mike Barno and Andy York stand by for the new Colonial Diplomacy game. Let me know if you want on or off the list. Standbies get the szine for free and receive my personal thanks. I'd really appreciate it if anyone wanted to be added to the list.
It's time to at least think about another game opening. What is really attractive to me is to run Vincent Mous' Modern Diplomacy ten player variant. There are about 50 supply centers and it is set across a map slightly more expansive than the original's European map. This game is very popular on the Judges and has just been written about by Chris Warren in Diplomacy World #83. If I get more interest, I'll print the rules and officially announce a game opening. Currently, Eric Ozog, Brad Wilson, and Harry Andruschak have expressed interest. If not, I'll wait until another regular game or two ends before starting another regular Diplomacy game.
Conrad von Metzke recently finished GMing a black hole game where you can freely jump over black holes instead of having them render spaces impassible. I played in this game and like the tactics of jumping over the black holes a great deal. Now there the black holes were random, but what would happen if you could plan them? The next NYEED game will feature this rule change and will be a 7x7 tourney format unless I am convinced otherwise. I am itching to get this game started, so it will start as soon as it is filled! You get a life of game sub, and the game itself is FREE!! Sandy Kenny, John Schultz, and Harry Andruschak are signed up. Just four more and we'll get started! Otherwise Conrad is now the new editor and publisher of Pontevedria, the game openings listing, if you're interested in other game openings. Send Conrad a SASE for the latest issue to: Conrad von Metzke, 4374 Donald Avenue, San Diego, CA 92117.
THE DUE DATE FOR SPRING 1901 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
Winter 1900
BRITAIN (Johnson): has a DEL, f BOM, f ADEN, a MAD, f HK, f SIN.
CHINA (Goranson): has a PEK, a CAN, a SIK, a SHA, a MAC.
FRANCE (Sasseville): has a TON, a COC, f ANN.
HOLLAND (Desper): has a BOR, f SUM, f JAVA.
JAPAN (Dwyer): has f TOK, f KYU, f OTA, a KYO.
RUSSIA (Williams): has a MOS, a VLA, f P.ART, a OMSK, f ODE.
TURKEY (Tallman): has a ANG, f CON, f BAG.
Addresses of the Participants
BRITAIN: Jonas Johnson, 3649 SE 33rd Ave., Portland, OR 97202, (503) 238-4430 ($5)
CHINA: Rich Goranson, 10 Hertel Avenue #208, Buffalo, NY 14207-2532, (716) 876-9374 ($5)
ForlornH of aol.com
FRANCE: Roland Sasseville, Jr., 38 Bucklin Street, Pawtucket, RI 02861, (401) 722-4029 ($5)
Djrolandb of aol.com
HOLLAND: Rick Desper, 34 Woodbridge Avenue, Highland Park, NJ 08904, (908) 572-4833 (E-Mail)
desper of math.rutgers.edu
JAPAN: Luke Dwyer, 49 Middlesex Drive, Slingerlands, NY 12159, (518) 439-5796 ($5)
RUSSIA: Don Williams, 27505 Artine Drive, Saugus, CA 91350, (805) 297-3947 ($5)
dwilliams of csiway.com
TURKEY: Terry Tallman, 3805 SW Lake Flora Road, Port Orchard, WA 98367, (360) 874-0386 ($0)
ttallman of linknet.kitsap.lib.wa.us
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes:
1) I've corrected and added some phone numbers and E-Mail addresses and such above.
Press:
(RUSSIA-TURKEY): Hey, Terry, I've got a great idea. Let's try the Sev-Con Shuffle.
(RUSSIA-TURKEY): Gee, Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas any more.
(RUSSIA-BRITAIN): The Tsar extends his humble greetings to the Queen and hopes he will not be judged on past lies.... err.... lives, I meant lives.
THE DUE DATE FOR FALL 1906 AND WINTER 1907 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
THE DUE DATE FOR SPRING 1907 IS NOVEMBER 22ND, 1997
Summer 1906
AUSTRIA (J. Ellis): has f TRI, a BUD, a VIE; and nukes withheld.
ENGLAND (Schultz): has f ENG, f NWG, a WAL; and nuked NAP(3), ROM(3), VEN(3), TUN(3), ION.
FRANCE (Barno): has f MID, a PIC; and nuked GM 5 TIMES.
GERMANY (Dwyer): has f BAL, a PRU, a RUH; and nuked TUN(3), NWY(2), VEN(3), POR(2), SPA(2).
ITALY (Lancaster): has a TUS; and nuked NWY(2), EDI, SWE, SPA(2), POR(2).
RUSSIA (Andruschak): has f FIN, f RUM, a SEV, a UKR; and nuked ROM(3), NAP(3), VEN(3), TUN(3).
TURKEY (R. Ellis): has f BLA, a BUL, a ARM; and nuked BER, MUN, KIE, NAP(3), ROM(3).
Addresses of the Participants
Harry Andruschak, PO Box 5309, Torrance, CA 90510-5309
Randy Ellis, 119 S. Florence #D2, Flagstaff, AZ 86001
Jeff Ellis, 2120 Ramrod, #1517, Henderson, NV 89014, (702) 450-6361 ($2)
jeff6911 of aol.com
John Schultz, #19390, F-E88, Indiana State Prison, PO Box 41, Michigan City, IN 46361-0041.
Mike Barno, PO Box 509, Gardiner, MT 59030, (406) 848-2149
Luke Dwyer, 49 Middlesex Drive, Slingerlands, NY 12159
Stuart Lancaster, 4127 SW Webster, Seattle, WA 98136 ($4)
GM: FIVE TIMES VAPORIZED!! Was at 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327
| 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | TOTAL |
| HARRY ANDRUSCHAK | 4 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| RANDY ELLIS | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| JEFF ELLIS | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 13 |
| JOHN SCHULTZ | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 15 |
| MIKE BARNO | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| LUKE DWYER | 5 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 17 |
| STUART LANCASTER | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 16 |
| Black Holed | 15 | 15 | 8 | 14 | 18 | 12 | 82 |
| Neutral | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Total | 34 | 34 | 34 | 34 | 34 | 12 | 182 |
| Times GM Nuked | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 17 |
| Lee Kendter, Jr. | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Clinton/Dole | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Garret Schenck | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Switzerland | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Ireland | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Nukes Withheld | 4 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 18 |
Game Notes (firmly orbiting in the tropopause):
1) Thanks to Lee Kendter, Jr. for the Round #7 Miller Number 1997Jrn39. For Round #7 (our FINAL ROUND!!!) Austria is Randy Ellis, England is Jeff Ellis, France is John Schultz, Germany is Mike Barno, Italy is Luke Dwyer, Russia is Stu Lancaster, and Turkey is Harry Andruschak.
2) For the rest of the game, if Jeff doesn't submit orders, his units will hold and his nukes will go unfired.
Press:
(SKYWALKER-BOARD): I was expecting to get destroyed. You guys were actually quite kind. I fear that won't last into the last round.
(ANDRUSCHAK-GM): TAP-195 arrived Saturday, 4 October. Which just happens to be my 53rd birthday AND the 40th Anniversary of the launch of SPUTNIK ONE. ((I turned 40 only a few days before that, on the 29th of September. Yes, they waited until I was safely home out of the hospital before they launched it. Happy birthday!)) This leaves only 7 days until the deadline. Which explains why I am not putting in much press this time around... lack of time.
(SKYWALKER-ANDRUSCHAK): I don't know about Scooby-Doo, but ever since the X-Files moved to Sunday, I have not watched a single episode.
(ANDRUSCHAK-GM): In a last-ditch effort to keep Jeff Ellis in the game, I sent him a postcard, pre-addressed to you, with some neutral moves on it. All he would have had to do is sign it and drop it in a mailbox. That he could not even be bothered to do that minimal effort indicates something. ((Yes, Jeff's phone also has been disconnected. I think Jeff is worrying about more important things. I wish him well!))
(SKYWALKER-BOOB): True, you do separate the seasons, but, it is hard to conduct negotiations when you are waiting to see builds from the Winter season. Nonetheless, it is not a major problem, but rather a topic for future consideration. ((This issue will go out somewhat more speedily from my end. From where I sit, 90 percent of the time most substantial negotiation can go on without waiting for the builds or retreats. Even more obviously, this game doesn't even have that constraint. Note right up there that November 22nd is the next nuke deadline. Negotiate about it now. You know exactly the situation (well, most of it anyway....).))
(ANDRUSCHAK-GM): I have received Diplomacy World #83, and must admit that ``Modern Diplomacy'' variant looks interesting. But I am wondering about the deadlines. See, I have a three week vacation to Antarctica 7-30 November, a 2 week vacation next February to see the total solar eclipse, a 3 week vacation to Turkey in November 1998, plus whatever schools the Post Office may decide to send me to in Norman, Oklahoma. How flexible would you be about delays in seasons? Not only for me but for other players who might need them? Obviously, I am happier with a game played well than a game played fast.
(GM-EVERYONE, INCLUDING HARRY): I'm always willing to listen to the players and be flexible, as long as there is general agreement on what to do. With things like this, asking in advance is much better than something at the last minute. Your foresight is commendable. My current suspicion is that the game will not start before February. It may not even start at all if there is low interest. I would say, go ahead and sign up and we'll work something out for you if you want to play.
(ANDRUSCHAK-BRAD WILSON): One of the worst aspects of the David Helfgott hype, as far as my opinion goes, is the cutesy-wutesy phrase ``Rach's Third''. Really, the composer deserves better. If nothing else, he also wrote a Symphony #3 that needs to be played more often than it actually is. ((His Elegiac Piano Trios (written on the occasion of the death of Tchaikovsky) also are wonderful. I have a treasured recording of those by the Beaux Arts Trio. Technically, there actually is only one Trio and the other one is a ``test version'' in a different key. Still extremely sensitive music that I wouldn't want Helfgott to touch.... well, I don't care what he does, but I wouldn't want to hear it.))
(ANDRUSCHAK-WORLD): To hear Sergei Rachmaninoff's Concerto #3 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra properly done, track down any recording by Vladimir Horowitz of this work. He did one with Fritz Reiner and the RCA Victor Orchestra, and another with Eugene Ormandy and the New York Philharmonic. There may be others. This guy did it correctly.
THE DUE DATE FOR FALL 1907 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
Summer 1907
AUSTRIA (Ellis): R a gal-BOH; has f ALB, a TYO, a GRE, a BOH, a BUD, a SER, f ION.
ENGLAND (Pollard): has f TUN.
FRANCE (Dwyer): R f nth-LON; has f ENG, a BEL, f TYH, f NWG, f LON, a EDI,
f BAR, a BUR, a MAR.
GERMANY (Emmert): has f HOL, a VIE.
RUSSIA (Sherwood): has a STP, a SIL, a GAL, f BLA, a RUM, f DEN, a MUN, a UKR,
f NTH, f AEG, a KIE, f HEL, a BUL, a BER, f EAS.
Addresses of the Participants
AUSTRIA: Randy Ellis, 119 S. Florence #D2, Flagstaff, AZ 86001 ($10)
ENGLAND: Kent Pollard, Box 491, Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190, ($5)
FRANCE: Luke Dwyer, 49 Middlesex Drive, Slingerlands, NY 12159, (518) 439-5796 ($4)
GERMANY: Steve Emmert, 1752 Grey Friars Chase, Virginia Beach, VA 23456, (757) 471-1842
SEMMERT of city.virginia-beach.va.us ITALY: Mark Kinney, 3613 Coronado Drive, Louisville, KY 40241, (502) 426-8165
alberich of iglou.com
RUSSIA: Keith Sherwood, 8873 Pipestone Way, San Diego, CA 92129, (619) 484-8367 ($4)
ksher of cts.com or Keith_Sherwood of Intuit.com TURKEY: Roland Sasseville, Jr., 38 Bucklin Street, Pawtucket, RI 02861, (401) 722-4029 ($3) GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes:
1) The (Steffi) GRAF and the barking ARF draws are both rejected. The FA note draw has been proposed. Please vote with your Fall orders.
Press:
(SKYWALKER-BOARD): This has turned into a rather good game (at least for me). I spent a long time thinking about what to do. There were so many options.
THE DUE DATE FOR SUMMER 1908 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
THE DUE DATE FOR FALL 1908 IS NOVEMBER 22ND, 1997
Spring 1908
ENGLAND (Lowrey): f lvp-IRI, f BAR S a nwy-stp, f NTH h, f GOB-lvn, a nwy-STP.
FRANCE (Rauterberg): a mar-GAS, f GOL S f mid-wes, f mid-WES, a SPA h, a tus-PIE.
GERMANY (Kent): a MUN-boh, a BOH-gal, a pru-LVN, a SIL S a war, a WAR S a pru-lvn,
f DEN h, a RUH-mun.
ITALY (Billenness): f rom-TUS, f wes-gol (d r:naf,otb), a VEN S f rom-tus.
RUSSIA (Williams): a lvn-MOS, a sev-ARM, a UKR S a lvn-mos, a GAL-vie. TURKEY (Sherwood): a SMY h, a ank-arm (nsu), a bul-RUM, f BLA S a bul-rum, a rum-BUD,
f AEG h, f TYH S ITALIAN f wes (otm), a bud-VIE, f TUN S ITALIAN f wes (otm),
a TRI S a bud-vie, f ION S f tyh.
Addresses of the Participants
AUSTRIA: Terry Tallman, 3805 SW Lake Flora Road, Port Orchard, WA 98367, (360) 874-0386 ($8)
ttallman of linknet.kitsap.lib.wa.us
ENGLAND: Michael Lowrey, 6503-D Fourwinds Drive, Charlotte, NC 28212-3749, (704) 563-9226
mlowrey of charlotte.infi.net
ENGLAND EMERITUS: Tom Nash, 202 Settlers Road, St. Simons Island, GA 31522, (912) 634-1753 ($4)
75763.707 of CompuServe.COM
FRANCE: Paul Rauterberg, 3116 W. American Dr., Greenfield, WI 53221, (414) 281-2339 ($10)
prosit of execpc.com
GERMANY: Doug Kent, 10214 Black Hickory Rd., Dallas, TX 75243 (214) 234-8386 ($5)
73567.1414 of CompuServe.COM ITALY: Simon Billenness, 452 Park Drive, Apt. 7, Boston, MA 02215, (617) 423-6655 ($5)
sbillenness of frdc.com RUSSIA: Don Williams, 27505 Artine Drive, Saugus, CA 91350, (805) 297-3947
dwilliams of csiway.com
RUSSIA EMERITUS: Ken Peel, 12041 Eaglewood Court, Silver Spring, MD 20902, (301) 949-4055 ($5)
KEN_PEEL of hagel.senate.gov
TURKEY: Keith Sherwood, 8873 Pipestone Way, San Diego, CA 92129, (619) 484-8367
ksher of cts.com or Keith_Sherwood of Intuit.com
TURKEY EMERITUS: Pete Gaughan, 1236 Detroit Av. #7, Concord, CA 94520-3651, (510) 825-2165 ($4)
gaughan of ix.netcom.com
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes (back from the tropopause):
1) The game specific standby list for this game includes
Garret Schenck, Cathy Cunning Ozog, Dick Martin, and Vince Lutterbie
in reverse alphabetical order (note that Garret is presently
missing, so I am running low on standbys here...).
Someone find Mike Mills!!
Guest press from potential standbys would be a ``good thing''
if they wanted to be chosen.
2) Anyone failing to submit press for two consecutive turns will be dropped from the game! Although press in this szine is generally black, I will make the exception here that I will say who has NPRed and is ``at risk'' for being dropped. I screwed up my accounting for this last time. So this turn I start over. This season, we are missing press only from England and Italy. Michael and Simon are on the bubble for Summer.
Press:
(TURKEY-BOOB): Since I got no credit (nor, apparently, respect) for my press last time, if I don't send any this time do I get recognition? ((Very funny.... yeah, I screwed up. If you guys sent any REAL press instead of this ``place saving'' stuff, I'd get more excited. At least Doug has an excuse.... he's been sick...))
(GERMANY - ALL): Excuse my lack of press this time around - I have the flu and just finished up my latest Maniac's Paradise, so I need a long rest.
(RUSSIA-GERMANY): I may be down, but I'm not out. If you stick your hand out too far, too fast, you'll pull back a bloody stump.
(RUSSIA-TURKEY): Hello, I'm from the government and I'm here to help.
(BOOB to TURKEY): I wonder if he'll help you find your own troops while he's doing that???
(PARIS to ISTANBUL(WE DON'T RECOGNIZE CONSTANTINOPLE)): Ignorant fool: must I explain my every move? I went to Rome last Spring because there was no place else for F Tyn to go. I gambled that you would wisely for- sake supporting Italy back into Rome, and grab Naples for yourself. So I missed my bet: does that advance you a centimeter?
(RUSSIA-FRANCE): The Anglo-German juggernaut is going to be coming down on you next.
(A FROG, IN THE PRESENCE OF THE IMMENSITY [Pt.14]): I voiced my multi-farious worries about Germany to It: ``...and now I have to agonize myself over whether the Hun plans to support himself into Burgundy? How I suffer!" ``Poor baby. You can cover your dots in the Fall." ``Yeah," I whined, ``but what if EG join T vs. me? What are my chances then?"
``Who said it? Voltaire? `Dieu est toujours pours les gros battaillons.' I've met the pompous fool on numerous occasions, and reputations are backed by fact!" ``Voltaire's?" I marvelled. ``No, don't be ridiculous." It scoffed. ``I refer to the Other Guy."
``Oh, my!" I sneered. ``And how did the case of Custer and Sitting Bull serve to support your assertion?" It laughed. ``We were out bowling in this frontier cow town called Milwaukee. Even the Other Guy gets distracted once in a while."
I sneered. ``Didn't you guys ever play something like tennis? You'd have gotten more exercise, anyway!" It replied, defensively, that It's ``...game would have been truncated. Don't forget," It reminded me, ``I told the Other Guy that I would not serve. Non serviam." Now I laughed. ``You should have learned long ago: never say something that you're not willing to take back if circumstances change! It almost states that, outright, in the Diplomacy rulebook."
AUSTRIA: Josh Smith; ENGLAND: Nick Fitzpatrick; FRANCE: Jim Burgess; GERMANY: John Sloan; ITALY: Danny Loeb; RUSSIA: Rich Shipley; TURKEY: David Kovar.
GM: Mark Nelson, 1st Flr Frt Flat, 3 Kelso Road, Leeds, W. Riding LS2, UK; amt5man of amsta.leeds.ac.uk
I've begun my write-up on Ghods too, but you won't see it for a long time since it won't appear until 1997 KT ends. Then again, 1997 KT could be sailing into the Endgame pretty soon. Anyone want to take odds on whether I will finish my article before Mark finishes his on 1994 KF? I'm still waiting to discover whether my key suppositions were correct that ultimately determined the outcome of the game. Come on, Mark....
AUSTRIA: Edi Birsan (edi of mgames.com);
ENGLAND: Jamie Dreier (James_Dreier of brown.edu);
FRANCE: John Barkdull (uejon of ttacs1.ttu.edu);
GERMANY: Pitt Crandlemire (pittc of syncon.com);
ITALY: Cal White (diplomat of idirect.com);
RUSSIA: Mark Fassio (jm2365 of exmail.usma.army.mil, fazfam of juno.com);
TURKEY: Hohn Cho (hohncho of kaiwan.com).
GM: Jim Burgess (burgess of world.std.com)
USIN judge: judge of kleiman.indianapolis.in.us
((The main point of this game is to take some successful E-Mail players, some successful FTF tournament players, and some successful PBM players, put them in a game together using the Judge E-Mail technology and see what happens. I will be reprinting all orders and selected broadcast press each issue. Other comments are welcome. If you want to observe the game, in real time, check out the USIN judge.))
England: Fleet Baltic Sea SUPPORT French Army Prussia. (*void*)
England: Fleet Sweden - > Finland.
England: Fleet Norway SUPPORT German Army St Petersburg.
England: Fleet Edinburgh - > Norwegian Sea.
England: Fleet London - > North Sea.
France: Army Marseilles - > Gascony.
France: Army Piedmont - > Marseilles.
France: Fleet English Channel SUPPORT Fleet Mid-Atlantic Ocean.
France: Army Prussia - > Berlin.
France: Army Kiel SUPPORT Army Prussia - > Berlin.
France: Fleet Spain (south coast) SUPPORT Fleet Mid-Atlantic Ocean.
France: Army Munich HOLD.
France: Fleet Portugal SUPPORT Fleet Spain (south coast).
France: Army Burgundy SUPPORT Army Piedmont - > Marseilles.
France: Fleet Mid-Atlantic Ocean SUPPORT Fleet Spain (south coast).
Germany: Army St Petersburg HOLD.
Germany: Army Berlin SUPPORT French Army Prussia. (*void, dislodged*)
Italy: Fleet Ionian Sea - > Greece.
Turkey: Army Venice - > Piedmont.
Turkey: Army Vienna - > Tyrolia.
Turkey: Fleet Gulf of Lyon - > Tyrrhenian Sea.
Turkey: Fleet Naples SUPPORT Fleet Adriatic Sea - > Ionian Sea.
Turkey: Fleet Western Mediterranean - > Tunis.
Turkey: Fleet Adriatic Sea - > Ionian Sea.
Turkey: Army Bohemia - > Munich. (*bounce*)
Turkey: Army Trieste SUPPORT Army Vienna - > Tyrolia.
Turkey: Army Livonia - > Moscow.
Turkey: Army Moscow - > Ukraine.
Turkey: Army Warsaw SUPPORT Army Galicia - > Silesia.
Turkey: Army Galicia - > Silesia.
Turkey: Fleet Rome SUPPORT Fleet Gulf of Lyon - > Tyrrhenian Sea.
Turkey: Army Rumania - > Sevastopol.
Turkey: Army Constantinople - > Bulgaria.
Turkey: Fleet Smyrna - > Aegean Sea.
The following units were dislodged:
The German Army in Berlin with no valid retreats was destroyed.
England: Fleet Baltic Sea SUPPORT French Army Berlin.
England: Fleet Finland - > St Petersburg (south coast).
England: Fleet Norway SUPPORT Fleet Finland - > St Petersburg (south coast).
England: Fleet Norwegian Sea - > North Atlantic Ocean.
England: Fleet North Sea - > London.
France: Army Gascony SUPPORT Army Marseilles.
France: Army Marseilles SUPPORT Army Gascony. (*cut*)
France: Fleet English Channel HOLD.
France: Army Berlin SUPPORT Army Munich.
France: Army Kiel SUPPORT Army Munich.
France: Fleet Spain (south coast) SUPPORT Fleet Mid-Atlantic Ocean.
France: Army Munich SUPPORT Army Berlin. (*cut*)
France: Fleet Portugal SUPPORT Fleet Spain (south coast).
France: Army Burgundy SUPPORT Army Munich.
France: Fleet Mid-Atlantic Ocean SUPPORT Fleet Spain (south coast).
Germany: Army St Petersburg HOLD. (*dislodged*)
Italy: Fleet Greece HOLD. (*dislodged*)
Turkey: Army Piedmont - > Marseilles. (*bounce*)
Turkey: Army Tyrolia SUPPORT Army Silesia - > Munich.
Turkey: Fleet Tyrrhenian Sea - > Western Mediterranean.
Turkey: Fleet Naples - > Tyrrhenian Sea.
Turkey: Fleet Tunis - > North Africa.
Turkey: Fleet Ionian Sea - > Tunis.
Turkey: Army Bohemia SUPPORT Army Silesia - > Munich.
Turkey: Army Trieste - > Vienna.
Turkey: Army Moscow SUPPORT Army Warsaw - > Livonia.
Turkey: Army Ukraine - > Warsaw.
Turkey: Army Warsaw - > Livonia.
Turkey: Army Silesia - > Munich. (*bounce*)
Turkey: Fleet Rome - > Tuscany.
Turkey: Army Sevastopol - > Ukraine.
Turkey: Army Bulgaria SUPPORT Fleet Aegean Sea - > Greece.
Turkey: Fleet Aegean Sea - > Greece.
The following units were dislodged:
The German Army in St Petersburg with no valid retreats was destroyed.
The Italian Fleet in Greece can retreat to Ionian Sea or Albania.
Italy: Fleet Greece - > Albania.
Ownership of supply centers:
England: Denmark, Edinburgh, London, Norway, St Petersburg, Sweden.
France: Belgium, Berlin, Brest, Holland, Kiel, Liverpool, Marseilles, Munich, Paris, Portugal, Spain.
Turkey: Ankara, Budapest, Bulgaria, Constantinople, Greece, Moscow, Naples, Rome, Rumania, Serbia, Sevastopol, Smyrna, Trieste, Tunis, Venice, Vienna, Warsaw.
Austria: 0 Supply centers, 0 Units: Builds 0 units.
England: 6 Supply centers, 5 Units: Builds 1 unit.
France: 11 Supply centers, 10 Units: Builds 1 unit.
Germany: 0 Supply centers, 0 Units: Builds 0 units.
Italy: 0 Supply centers, 1 Unit: Removes 1 unit.
Russia: 0 Supply centers, 0 Units: Builds 0 units.
Turkey: 17 Supply centers, 16 Units: Builds 1 unit.
Turkey: Builds an army in Constantinople.
France: Builds an army in Paris.
England: Builds a fleet in Edinburgh.
Italy: Defaults, removing the fleet in Albania.
Selected Broadcast Press (1911):
(edi of mgames.com as AUSTRIA): Well it looks like there may be a three way draw here. Now the issue that I have always wondered at in the play is that was it really worth that much to go from a 4 way to a 3 way? I still hold to the old old school of either you win or there is another result. This may be also why I am a better ally in that if there is no victory I really value the alliance over some marginalization of a loss.
(GENTLE KING JAMIE to BUCKINGHAM PALACE WAITER): Bring me a large dish of vengeance.
(WAITER): I'm afraid the vengeance is rather cold, Sire.
(GKJ, HAPPILY): Bring it on with all speed, then! (and a glass of bordeaux, please, to toast those whose sharp blades slaughtered the meat....)
(desper of math.rutgers.edu as OBSERVER): So Jamie worms his way into yet another draw, just like most of the Hall9* games. Good show, Gentle King! Looks like Pitt should have let Hohn win. Rick
(hohncho of kaiwan.com as TURKEY): That's what I think too. ;)
THE DUE DATE FOR WINTER 1910 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
THE DUE DATE FOR SPRING 1911 IS NOVEMBER 22ND, 1997
Fall 1910
AUSTRIA (Johnson): a ser h (d ann).
FRANCE (Pustilnik): f eng-NTH, a BUR S ITALIAN a mun, a pie-TYO, f SKA S f nth-den, a GAL-rum,
f nwy-SWE, f bar-STP(NC), f nth-DEN, f HEL S f nth-den, a KIE S ITALIAN a mun, a RUH S a kie.
GERMANY (Alme): a ber-kie (d ann).
ITALY (Williams): a ven-TRI, a tri-SER, a MUN S FRENCH a pie-tyo, a GRE S a tri-ser,
f ADR S a ven-tri, a ALB S a tri-ser, f AEG S f bul(sc),
f BUL(SC) initiates naval bombardment of Constantinople (h). RUSSIA (Rothenheber): f den-kie (d ann), a SIL S a pru-ber, a mos-WAR, a VIE-tri,
a BUD S a rum-ser, a pru-BER, a sev-UKR, a BOH-gal, a SMY S f con, f BAL S a pru-ber,
a RUM-ser, f CON h.
Supply Center Chart
| AUSTRIA (Johnson): | none | (out) |
| FRANCE (Pustilnik): | bre,par,mar,lvp,edi,por,hol, | (has 11, bld 3) |
| lon,bel,kie,nwy,stp,swe,den |
| GERMANY (Alme): | none | (out) |
| ITALY (Williams): | rom,ven,nap,tun,tri,spa,gre,mun, | (has 8, bld 2) |
| bul,ser |
| RUSSIA (Rothenheber): | mos,war,sev,rum,ank,con,smy, | (has 11, rem 1) |
| bud,vie,ber |
| Neutral: | none | (Total=34) |
Addresses of the Participants
AUSTRIA: Jonas Johnson, 3649 SE 33rd Ave., Portland, OR 97202, (503) 238-4430 ($3) EcidLor of aol.com ENGLAND: John Schultz, #19390, F-E88, Indiana State Prison, PO Box 41, Michigan City, IN 46361-0041.
FRANCE: Michael Pustilnik, 140 Cadman Plaza West, #13J, Brooklyn, NY 11201, (718) 625-0651 ($8)
GERMANY: Hank Alme, 5157 Norma Way #217, Livermore, CA 94550, (510) 606-7265 ($3)
almehj of kristen.llnl.gov
ITALY: Don Williams, 27505 Artine Drive, Saugus, CA 91350, (805) 297-3947 ($3)
dwilliams of csiway.com
RUSSIA: Ed Rothenheber, 11757 Lone Tree Court, Columbia, MD 21044, (410) 740-7269 ($1)
Rothenheber_Ed of bah.com
TURKEY: David Partridge, 15 Elmer Drive, Nashua, NH 03062-1722, (603) 882-3523 ($4)
rebhuhn of juno.com
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes:
1) The infamous IF draw is rejected yet again. At this particular time, I do not have a request to propose the draw again.
2) Thanks to Jonas and Hank for playing the game out to the end. And now there were three....
Press:
(OFFICIAL FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE QUOTE OF THE SEASON): ``Justice is repayment and exchange on the assumption of an approximately equal power position; revenge originally belongs in the domain of justice, being an exchange. Gratitude, too. Justice naturally derives from prudent concern with self-preservation; that means, from the egoism of the consideration: `Why should I harm myself uselessly and perhaps not attain my goal anyway?'
``So much on the origin of justice. In accordance with their intellectual habits, men have forgotten the original purpose of so-called just, fair actions, and for millenia children have been taught to admire and emulate such actions. Hence it has gradually come to appear as if a just action were unegoistic; but the high esteem for it depends on this appearance, and this esteem, moreover, continues to grow all the time, like all esteem; for whatever is highly esteemed becomes the object of striving, emulation, and multiplication, coupled with many sacrifices, and grows further because the value of the effort and the zeal is added by every individual to the value of the thing he esteems.'' Part of Aphorism 92 of Human, All-Too-Human; which is a precursor to the quote I used last issue from On the Genealogy of Morals. This quote I've used here is preceded by an earlier version of precisely the same quote, so this is a follow-on of the same thought. Playing Diplomacy also is a fundamentally egoistic action in this way, I believe.
(MOSCOW to WORLD): Since Mike has no interest in a solo win and there is no point in them changing sides, since they both tell me they want a two-way. There is no reason not to end this. Nothing personal to Hank and Jonas, but I am moving to reduce the number of people who must remember to vote for the draw. I have enjoyed this game and look forward to the next.
THE DUE DATE FOR FALL 1914 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
Summer 1914
FRANCE (Rauterberg): R a tyo-PIE, f nth-NWY, a tri-NIRVANA; has f ENG, a PIC,
a BUR, a RUH, f DEN, a HOL, a PIE, a EDI, f ADR, a ALB, a VEN, f ION, f APU, f NWY, f TYH. GERMANY (Zarr): has a MUN, a SIL, a TYO, a BER, a KIE,
a VIE, a SWE, f NTH, f HEL.
TURKEY (Johnson): has a TRI, a ARM, f EAS, a BUD, a SEV, a SER, a RUM, f GRE, f AEG.
Addresses of the Participants
FRANCE: Paul Rauterberg, 3116 W. American Drive, Greenfield, WI 53221, (414) 281-2339
prosit of execpc.com
GERMANY: Harold Zarr, 215 Glen Drive, Iowa Falls, IA 50126-1957, (515) 648-2821
RUSSIA: Eric Brosius, 53 Bird Street, Needham MA 02192 ($5)
72060.1540 of CompuServe.COM
TURKEY: Stan Johnson, 1254 East Broadway Road #56, Mesa, AZ 85204, (602) 668-1105
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes:
1) Hmmm....
Press:
(GER-FRA): Sounds like sour grapes to me. I don't blame you for going for the win, but you should not blame me for helping Turkey since you decided to stab me in the back. I am sending him copies of all my orders so that we can coordinate our movements to our maximum advantage. It is not important to me if I win, but it is important that you lose!
THE DUE DATE FOR WINTER 1916 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
Fall 1916
AUSTRIA (Davis): a ser S a gal-bud (d r:alb,otb), a tri S a ser (d r:vie,otb),
a gal-BUD.
FRANCE (Zarr): a par-BUR, a GAS S a mar, f BRE S f mid, a MAR S f spa(nc),
a POR S f spa(nc), f SPA(NC) S f mid, f MID S f spa(nc), f ENG S f mid.
GERMANY (Jones): a sil-GAL, a MOS S a ukr, a BOH S a tyo, a WAR S a ukr, a LVN h,
a TYO S AUSTRIAN a tri-ven (nso), a BEL h, a MUN S a tyo, a UKR S AUSTRIAN a gal-rum (nso),
f DEN h, f swe-NWY.
TURKEY (Weiss): f aeg-GRE, f BLA S a sev, a BUL S a rum-ser, a VEN S a alb-tri, a alb-TRI,
a rum-SER, f GOL S f pie, a SEV S AUSTRIAN a gal-ukr (nso), f WES S f naf-mid,
f NAF-mid, f PIE h, f ADR S a alb-tri.
Supply Center Chart
| AUSTRIA (Davis): | bud,vie | (has 1 or 2 or 3, bld 1 or even or rem 1) |
| FRANCE (Zarr): | bre,par,por,lvp,lon,edi,spa,mar | (has 8, even) |
| GERMANY (Jones): | mun,kie,ber,den,hol,bel,swe,nwy, | (has 11, even) |
| stp,mos,war |
| TURKEY (Weiss): | ank,con,smy,bul,rum,sev,gre, | (has 12, bld 1) |
| tun,nap,rom,ven,ser,tri |
| Neutral: | none | (Total=34) |
Addresses of the Participants
AUSTRIA: Rick Davis, 2009 Bodega Avenue, Petaluma, CA 94952, (707) 773-1044
redavis914 of aol.com FRANCE: Harold Zarr, 215 Glen Drive, Iowa Falls, IA 50126-1957, (515) 648-2821
GERMANY: Charles Jones, 1722 Quail Circle, Corona, CA 91720-4155, (909) 735-8981
RUSSIA: Eric Schlegel, 314 Fords Lane, Aberdeen, MD 21001, (410) 272-3314
TURKEY: Richard Weiss, 231 Guerrero Drive, Tamuning, Guam 96911-3808, (671) 647-3478
rcw of netpci.com
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
Game Notes:
1) Uhhhh, I screwed up Richard Weiss' E-Mail address. What is up there now is correct.
Press:
(FRA-GER): Do not confuse my silence with danger. My work load at the college this semester is the equivalent of teaching eight three-credit courses. Given that a significant percentage of my work is in industry doing consulting, I have almost no homelife either! So it is not surprising that I send very few letters. I will continue to hold in place and prevent anyone from moving into the Atlantic. I have sealed up the stalemate line, and will hold forever. I still think this game is a waste of time, but hey, who am I to complain? I will move anyway you need in order to support your advance. Just let me know what you want me to do, and I will do it.
(TURKEY-GER): Try the correct e-dress next time you get connected. < rcw of netpci.com > Maybe you can figure out which side is East and which side is West, dyslexic YNAMREG. (TUR-YNAM): Send fleets over to ``help" France. Hmmm, where have I heard that before. Oh yeah, Barno told me that before he stabbed me. And oh yeah, Dip Players who don't get to pass their genes on in the Dip Board because they've been demolished by their ``friends" hear that from the progenitors (in little letters and words, that means those who are Darwinianly successful). ((Huh??))
(TUR-FRA): Hear that, he wants to help. Gee, I'd like to help you too, how about a fleet in NAO? (GERMANY >> > MIKE BARNO): Are you the Mike I used to play DIP with in college? Oh, give me a break. The closest that I have got to the east coast, was Sharpsburg, MD, for one week in 1993. If we ever do meet we'd have a good time, and be life long friends. I;m a wonderful ally and always do exactly what I say that I'll do. Everyone just loves me. I respect you (I wish that I had to say that to more girls). I had no idea that you took standby spots. I'm most concerned with having fun, and never look at the standings; I also like to play for a win by the fewest players as possible. I was just trying to figure out who was writing your press, in our game. I was beginning to wonder if Jim-Bob had made up the press himself and attached your name to it. By the way, the last 6-8 game years have been screwed up by the unusual alliance of Turkey and Austria. One of the poorest possible in this game. I just couldn't ever figure out how to shake things loose. Oh, by the way, do you still have as much faith in Richard after that beer can off the head incident that I read about in the newspaper? Richard did win the Darwin Award, so he must have something on the ball. And, to give Richard credit he didn't create the Turkey/Austria alliance, he was a standby. If you don't like my press to you, you shouldn't put press in our game. If you do, I may answer, just for the fun of it. ((I assure everyone involved that we're all in it for the fun of it. It's OK, but if we want to escalate this anywhere, I remind you of the house rule that you must abuse the GM at least as much as you abuse any other player.))
(GERMANY - > JIM): Is there a 666 Smith Street address? And, if so, how do you feel living next door? And, who lives there?
(JIM-BOB to CHARLES): We do. I've been through this one before, but now we have the 666 number on the house as well, so this is a good time to bring it up again. Our house is in a line of double/triple deckers built as mill housing in the early years of this century. Providence actually reached its population maximum around 1920 when it had nearly twice as many people as it does today. Our house is the last one in the line, probably built by the developer for himself (though I have not researched this in any way) so it has higher ceilings and some neat architectural details. Nothing really fancy, but it's why we bought the house. Anyway, the plats were all made for the standard double/triple decker allocation for this period in Providence of two numbers per building (next door is 660/662, next to that is 656/658 etc.). Thus, our plat is specified as 664/666 in the town records. Theoretically, this allows us to choose which number to use. The previous owners apparently were much more bothered by the 666 number than we were and tried to shift everything over to 664. The town property tax records and the telephone company still have us as 666. For purposes of our property liability insurance, as a result, they have demanded that we go by 666 or they won't insure us - which obviously bothers the bank who lent us the money. I'm sure all of this is quite fascinating, but anyway, a couple of weeks ago, I put a 666 on the house as well, so we won't get mail returned on us or something that will cause us more of a problem with the insurance company. As far as all of you are concerned, we will still be going by 664, so don't change the address you use to send us mail. Funny you should mention it when you did.
(TUR-YELLOWSTONE): Sorry about the tragedy.
THE DUE DATE FOR FALL 1910 IS NOVEMBER 1ST, 1997
Summer 1910
AUSTRIA (Pustilnik): has a SER, a BUD.
ENGLAND (Hoffman): has a STP, a LVN, f NAO, a MOS, f NTH, f GOB, f NWG.
FRANCE (James): has f SPA(SC), f ENG, a PIC, a VEN, f BUL(SC), f EAS,
f ADR, a TRI, a ARM, a VIE, f AEG.
GERMANY (Emmert): has f DEN, f BER, a RUH, a WAR, a UKR, a GAL, a SEV, a RUM.
RUSSIA (Schultz): has a ANK, a SMY, f CON.
Addresses of the Participants
AUSTRIA: Michael Pustilnik, 140 Cadman Plaza West, #13J, Brooklyn, NY 11201, (718) 625-0651
ENGLAND: Karl Hoffman, 395 Imperial Way #220, Daly City, CA 94015, (415) 991-2394
KarlHoffmn of aol.com
FRANCE: Drew James, 8356 Radian Path, Baldwinsville, NY 13027-9357, (315) 652-1956
dkbn of msn.com
GERMANY: Steve Emmert, 1752 Grey Friars Chase, Virginia Beach, VA 23456, (757) 471-1842
SEMMERT of city.virginia-beach.va.us ITALY: Dan Gorham, PO Box 279, Belmopan, Belize, CENTRAL AMERICA
Danielg of btl.net RUSSIA: John Schultz, #19390, F-E88, Indiana State Prison, PO Box 41, Michigan City, IN 46361-0041 TURKEY: Harry Andruschak, PO Box 5309, Torrance, CA 90510-5309, (310) 835-9202
GM: Jim-Bob Burgess, 664 Smith Street, Providence, RI 02908-4327, (401) 351-0287
GM EMERITUS: Garret Schenck, now lost, HELP!
GSchenck39 of aol.com - CANCELLED!
Game Notes:
1) The FG has been rejected, we go on.
Press:
(AUSTRIA): Better to serve two masters than three. I voted yes.
Personal Note to You: