TROPICON XIV

From the hotel's second floor balcony it was easy to see that the convention's members were enjoying themselves. Most of our guests were there to meet their fans, sign autographs, and generally make themselves known. There was an open bar for those who felt the need and, judging by the level of the sound that reached the balcony, the conversations were flowing freely.

The Friday night VIP Party also featured alien gambling games with alien cashola. The participant's mission, and many chose to accept it, was to win as much alien cashola as they could, so that they could outbid their friends for those collectibles and unique items that were auctioned off at the end of the evening.

At the gaming table in the Velvet Comet are (L-R) Priscilla Olson (placing a bet) with John Fast and Tony Parker looking on. Dan Siclari is the croupier on the right.

Eerie strains of guitar music keeping you awake at night? Rhythms of unforgettable poetry obsessing your waking moments? Alien limericks exploding from your soul? Tropicon's filk may have had nothing to do with these, but then again perhaps it did. Our Special Filk Guest Joe Haldeman and his charming wife Gay led the rest of us in the circle; it was lots of fun to listen and even more to participate.

After a dinner of Dolphin Jardinierre or Chicken Key West accompanied by a salad, rice pilaf, garden vegetables, dessert, and a beverage, Tropicon's members and guests were treated to a series of entertaining presentations led off by our Toastmaster, Mike Resnick, after an introduction by SFSFS' Chairperson, Joe Siclari. Mike was followed by our Guest of Honor, James P. Hogan (Shown here with an unidentified fan at the Velvet Comet), who continued the evening with some lively remarks that covered portions of his career and his current home in Ireland.

One of the surprise happenings of the evening occurred when Pete Rawlik popped the question to Shirlene Ananayo, on bended knee yet! As you could guess by their expressions, she said "Yes".

Mike Resnick, Roger Sims, Jack Haldeman II and Joe Green on Odd Cons and Fannish Gatherings, one of our Saturday evening panels.

Charlie Brown, Saturn rockets, student riots, SWAT teams, bomb threats and 17 Japanese non-fans stuck in an elevator with MZB. These are some of the true stories of strange fannish gatherings. If you want the rest of the rest of the story, you should have been there to listen to our trepid reporters.

Princess Frannie passed the Official (?) Tropicon Hat to George Peterson who will be the Chairperson of TROPICON XV that will be held November 8-10, 1996.

Sarah Clemens , a talented and versatile local artist, at the Closing Ceremonies.