------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 12 Dec 95 01:18:09 0700 From: Alec Levy Harlan is fucking great! ------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 2 Dec 1995 22:42:31 EST (-0500) From: psalathe@zaphod.bennington.edu (Phil Salathé) Subject: Like you want another message from me Oh yeah, forgot to mention... Your "rant" c. 11/20/95 was great. Hilarious, and fairly affecting imagining the plight in which you were collectively snared...eek...glad *I* wasn't the Fidgety Guy. Phil ------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 24 Nov 1995 08:28:07 -0800 From: Rufferta@eworld.com Subject: Rant Some Thoughts About Your Rant 'Killing Your Mother' & Some Contradictory Advice: Why You Should Go Back to College: I have a son who has dropped out of college for a job in The Real World. We argue about it. Recently I went up to him, waving the book "Hackers" and said "See...here it says that Hewlett-Packard wouldn't let Woz transfer to their computer division because he didn't have a degree." My son laughed and said that that was a bad example. I think it was a good example - it shows that no matter how good you are there is always someone who is going to judge you by a piece of paper. I am glad I finished college. The degree itself hasn't been much use but I got a sense of accomplishment by completing the program. The Curriculum forced me to take subjects I would not have bothered with otherwise -- this was A Good Thing. Also, I think it was Thoreau who said that the most valuable thing in college for him was getting to know the other students. I love to visit my old campus and listen to the students argue ideas--something I miss in 'The Real World'. Why You Don't Need to Go Back to College: About face. Woz didn't finish college. You don't need to finish college. Already you have accomplished more than many people will in their whole lives. Decide where you want to go and go there. Don't procrastinate. Life is like riding a dragon: when you are young, each decision is at first a strong spur in its side. As the dragon gets older the monster gets thick skin, it gets the bit in its teeth and you end up just holding on as it gallops wherever it wants to. Those sidetrails you passed, those 'roads not taken' -- you can seldom go back and explore them. On "Killing Your Mother". You can't, you know. Your parental influences are built into your DNA. You may paint yourself blue, you may go live in an Ashram, you may espouse vegetarianism or join the Republican party-- it doesn't matter. Sooner or later you will open your mouth and your parent's voice will come out. The only thing you can do is to sort out your mind/attic and discover where everything came from so that you can make allowances. On Taking Anyone's Advice: Many years ago a young man asked my opinion of his writing. He had done a bad imitation of Kerouac and it was obvious he had never been On The Road. I told him "why don't you try writing about things you are familiar with" and so he did --now he writes a column for the San Diego Tribune and has published half-a-dozen non-fiction works: all of them on subjects like "Why Aren't San Diego Schools Maintained" or "Privatization in Urban Texas" and lately everytime I read his column I feel guilty. I see him occasionally and I want to ask him if he ever went back to writing fiction - but I am afraid of the answer. Probably he does not remember ever asking my advice or what I said, but if I were to do it over again I would only praise the good, and stop there. In fact, now when people I know ask me to read their work I usually refuse. There. ------------------------------------------------------------- From: sd@cdc.net Subject: Why Rick Wyatt doesn't need Pantene enriched with pro-vitamins.. Rick, Why are you so down on yourself? I see hints of it everywhere on your page. Everything from.."last updated nov 18 95..like you care" to your e-mail to M Zuzel at langerhans..come on! You've got a killer webpage about someone who is destined to be revered in times to come. You're witty and intelligent and caring. So what if you don't look like Laurence Olivier. Do you want a lady whose attraction to a guy is his surfer tan and Chas. Atlas pecs? Or do you want a woman who is attracted to a well-honed mind and a Chas. Addams sense of humour..eh? Look at those assholes who think Kerouac is an anti-depressant..now look at yourself. Go to the mirror and say,"Okay, I admit, I'm a pretty groovy guy." Say to yourself, "I'm worth it..with or without Loreal with pro-vitamins.." Give yourself a pat on the back..from me. a friend ------------------------------------------------------------- From: anon@uclavm.ucla.edu Date: Wed, 29 Nov 95 18:24:21 -0800 Dear Mr. Wyatt, Why are you so "abysmally lonely?" Why do you feel so bad about yourself? Look at me. I can't find a girlfriend of any kind because of my personality and tastes (sensitivity and science fiction--you know how bad that can screw a guy up). You've got twenty people writing to your page thinking your hot stuff cause your intelligent, nice and a Science Fiction fan. What gives? So, I'm pretty pissed off. I wish I had a webpage that girls thought was cool. :) See ya at the Ellison Land. Peter S. ------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 29 Nov 1995 20:44:52 -0800 (PST) From: "Phillip S. Cairns" Subject: Your Bio Hey Rick, I was just sitting here in the middle of nowhere (a.k.a. Some Place You've Never Heard Of: St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada---told ya), just browsing through Webderland to see what I could see that I hadn't seen before, and I came across your bio. I'm glad I read it. Not that I really care about your life, but because you write well (although having peter gabriel as a musical and spiritual influence doesn't hurt). I recognized something: I don't know about you, but Harlan is the best goddam writing teacher I've ever had, and I've never even met the guy. Christ, I haven't even seen him on TV. The closest thing I've ever tasted of the real living man are his spoken-word recordings. But I HAVE read every single cotton-pickin' Harlan Ellison book I've ever been able to get my hands on (not always by legal means)---and what else does a, uh, um, young writer need? Nothing. I've got a long way to go, but still, it doesn't get any better than that. Not for me, anyhow. It was a pleasure to read your writing. In four years, when I'm pushing on 29, maybe I'll write as well you do. Now where the hell is my SLIPPAGE comment you said you were going to post? I've been telling all my friends. Qaeshow, ---Phillip Cairns x95tel@juliet.stfx.ca ------------------------------------------------------------- From: Dat Pham Date: Sat, 2 Dec 1995 05:33:06 -0500 Rick, I've never seen Susan Ellison, is it possible for you to acquire a .gif, .jpg or anything (hell, ascii art) of her portrait and add it to the Pics section? Otherwise, this is a great page. Thanks. PS I'm using a text-only browser, so if she is around here some where, I can't see her. ------------------------------------------------------------- i have no mouse, and i'm a scream. -fries ------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Mr. Wyatt, Why are you so "abysmally lonely?" Why do you feel so bad about yourself? Look at me. I can't find a girlfriend of any kind because of my personality and tastes (sensitivity and science fiction--you know how bad that can screw a guy up). You've got twenty people writing to your page thinking your hot stuff cause your intelligent, nice and a Science Fiction fan. What gives? So, I'm pretty pissed off. I wish I had a webpage that girls thought was cool. :) See ya at the Ellison Land. Peter S. ------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- I was interested in your comments at the end of the Ellison interview on the home page. Do you realise that you're advocating that people PRACTISE LIBRARIANSHIP??? The essence of it is to know what you DON'T need to know, but people are shocked at how old-fashioned you are if you tell them that. It's been being dinned into us for years that stuff like the Internet is going to do way with all this tedious business of indexing & worrying about quality & guiding people to the good stuff. I've always known this was bullshit (I'm a librarian. You probably guessed that) but the really demoralising thing has been to watch half my profession fall for it - or more likely pretend to, since you can get money for computers in a way you can't for Boring Old Books. So now universities are full of students taking all afternoon to find and download two paragraphs and a picture that they could've photocopied out of an encyclopedia in 5 minutes, and thinking they're really on a fast track to something. It's depressing how many people fall for the packaging and never think about the content. Like the man says, where would we be without people saying "Be careful"? Of course if I thought the Net was useless I wouldn't be here. But I only enjoy the end results: IT isn't an end in itself as far as I'm concerned. And heaven help us if we junk everything that went before because the Net is not a full or even fairly substantial replacement. We have to be able to navigate in several worlds, not just the glossy one. You can quote this if you want to but don't use my name as these are personal views and not those of my snake-oil-shopping employers. Incidentally if you think it's difficult to find Ellison in US bookshops you should try it in the UK. Name withheld upon request ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 30 Oct 1995 15:34:12 -0600 (CST) From: Kristen Leigh Homyk Subject: your latest rant... Rick, man... Just finished skimming you latest rant... I had not heard of Harlan Ellison until last February, when I was in the bookstore running my annual pre-birthday book list raid. This is where I make a list for family and friends of everything I'm going to want to read in the next month, and they get them for my birthday. I'm easy to shop for. I found _Mind_Fields_, which bore an amazing resemblence to _The_Mysteries_Of_Harris_Burdick(?)_, and my parents, kind souls, bought it for me. Ellison and I have been comrades every since. Sometimes I really want to write one of those idiot fan letters and tell him so many of the millions of things... ...transferring down here and knowing no one, Ellison and I have eaten a lot of meals together ...after the death of my grandfather last summer, and the discovery of how much I did not know about him, the discovery of Angry Candy saved my soul...because someone else understood... ...and the millions of other words he's set down in those particular arrangements that are solely his, that meant something, or that made me smile when there wasn't very much to smile about... As a writer and a journalist, Harlan is one fucking long shadow to climb out from under. I have a love-hate relationship with him, because the his work both pushes me to excell and taunts me with its predestined excellence. What a pain in the ass Ellison is, even for those of us who know nothing of him but the pieces that sit on our bookshelves. It is every writer's ambition to live forever through his words. I know what you mean about killing off heros, is what I'm trying to say. You disagree with them, and that hurts (Ellison and I sit directly opposite ends of the political spectrum at times) because if they really are brilliant enough to be a hero, why can't they be right all the time? And eventually, you gotta let 'em go, get your style, stop trying to write like Ellison (although even Stephen King admits to the impossibility of that goal), and start trying to write what you have in your own heart and voice. It's like telling your parents that one final time that you think you're old enough to make this decision now, and having them actually back off. I'm writing, though, to offer this consolation. I know that my parents hated it when I told them nicely to get the hell out and stay out -- it's my life!. However, I am, based on what I've read of his, almost 99.8% positive that Ellison would prefer it that way. So the day that you stare at Ellison down the barrel of that shotgun (I myself plan to shoot the immortal only once, and so I'll be using a BIG gun and silver bullets), I'm reasonably certain he'll only laugh in your face: "Pull the fucking trigger, you wanna-be!" Who would have it any other way? --KRIS (thanks for reading this far only to realize it's my own rant -- some of us don't have the time or equipment to rant over the internet) KRIS(TEN) L. HOMYK KLH4549@TAM2000.TAMU.EDU ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 05 Nov 95 08:33:23 From: byfield@sfu.ca Subject: Comments on the Ellison Web Page On the whole, I appreciate the effort you're putting into the page. Ellison's name on a book is enough to make me buy first and find out later whether the book's essays or stories, so I'm glad to see him get some attention. I also appreciate a web page that has some text and isn't just a load of pictures. However, if I can say this without being offensive, some of the writing on the page is just a little too indulgent. It's imitation Ellison, and I have to say that it just doesn't play like the original. But maybe that isn't terribly important. The page is one of the few non-commercial ones which I return to. Bruce Byfield byfield@sfu.ca ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 06 Nov 95 19:11:00 -0800 From: Joe Lyon Subject: Graphic Ellison (Note: The name's Mike, not Joe.) (Notenote: Don't ask) Anyway, I just have a couple of questions. You being the veritable tomb of knowledge on all things Ellison, I ws wondering what of Ellison's has been adapted to comic-book/graphic novel form (excluding the Dream Corridor stuff.) Also- I just finished reading "The Essential Ellison", which has really hooked me as a diehard Ellisonite. I would just be curious what a man of your knowledge considers the BEST HE story? I'd have to be conformist and say " 'Repent, Harlequin,' "etcetc. Anyway, thanx for your time! ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 17 Nov 1995 23:20:53 -0800 From: "R.L. Smith-Graham" Subject: well done Greetings! Very nice site. Clean. Crisp. By any chance, has HE ever viewed the site using someone else's computer? Despite the popular belief that HE is some kind of monster, I think he would be very pleased with what you've done here. Personally, I got an extra special kick out of your comment -- I just spent All Damn Night adding a bunch of stuff, including a way for you to order Ellison's books and recordings. Hooray for me. I'm going to bed now. God, do I ever know how *that* feels! -- Roc =============================================== http://www.fentonnet.com/smithway/index.html ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 14 Nov 1995 21:55:48 -0500 From: Kristen Abbey Subject: you Rick I'm not sure how this works. I'm sorry, but I'm not your typical computer geek type who knows her way around the Net. My roomate has in fact just introduced me to this shiny new toy, the netscape, and I decided to search the names of the two authors I have most attached myself to (the Dorthy Parker page is not so hot) and found myself, an hour or so later, finishing your second posted story. I'd like to tell you that you write very well. You have a strong voice, and you're not afraid to use it. Personally, I thought it was for copywrite reasons and monetary compensation that most writers publish instead of posting, However, I could be terribly wrong (but I don't think I am). Also, you are not Jack the Giant killer, and don't you think you're being just a little bit Freudian with that Kill your heroes stuff. Yeah, yeah, I heard the theory, too (and the motief number of the related folklore). Very pretty. Very succinct. I don't think life is quite like that. Maybe one day you'll just notice that the shadow Ellison makes is much less looming than you remembered, and editing your own work for publishing has kept you away from the web page for a little while. People create myths, they shouldn't create us. Those are my main reactions to what I have read so far. Also, I really enjoied your stories. Maybe I just feel smart 'cause I get your references, but I still maintain that they (and the personal reflection stuff as well) were well constructed. You made me think a little bit. Thank you. Thank you for trusting the world enough to give me an exiting hour or so. Thank you for letting me get to know you a little bit. I rather like the you I saw in your writing. Just a note. I am not a freak of some kind. I am not trying to pick you up over the net, nor do I often write to strangers. I am just some chick who likes to read, who stumbled upon your work and who had a very genuine and positive reaction to it. And I wanted to let you know. okay bye laura laramary@eden.rutgers.edu ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 16 Nov 1995 12:20:24 -0500 From: AvatarSM@aol.com Subject: Outstanding Job! Having seen the info about this site in alt.fan.harlan-ellison I was intriged. However it took me a couple months to get the time to explore here. Congrats on a job well done! I am a theatre director (y'know, lots of people in a dark room watching other people pretend to be other people) and have been asking everyone the same quwestion I am about to pose to you: Has HE written anything for the stage and/or are there any "approved" adaptations of his works extant? Sure, I could probably adapt one myself but I am not a writer by trade (I'm also real lazy and prefer to have the script work done by those whose talent lie in the written word). I'm sure maintaining this site and the rigors of the real world put your time at a premium but if you could aid me in my search I would be most appreciative. Sincerely, Scott Mullins Chicago, IL E-mail: avatarsm@aol.com ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 17 Nov 95 01:10:16 -800 From: Glen Pangle Subject: curious question about a game.... first of all i would just like to say that i am impressed by your pages...they definitely work for me and they should work for any ellison fan that ventures into your little dank, dark corner of webworld...and if they don't like it...tell them to go take a flying leap...preferably in front of a large, fast moving vehicle... now to the point of this letter thingy...have you seen or heard of a game called "I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream" i was told by a friend of mine that it was either out or coming out...but i have not been able to find anything on it yet any information that you could provide me with would be greatly appreciated...especially the name of the game company that is going to put it out...if it actually exists that is... well...i guess i shall be on my way...thanks for putting up a quality web page about a great contemporary writer. ttfn glen ----------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 17 Nov 1995 16:27:36 -0800 From: Steve Wilcox Subject: Congratulations! Rick -- I should probably curse you. Ya see, I've been carrying around this notion that *someone*, damn it, should post a real site about that curmudgeonly little Ellison guy, but I've been reluctant to act on it out of fear that said curmudgeonly little Ellison guy would beat the hell out of me for even suggesting it. Now I find your site. I've gone no further than the first page, but I congratulate you on getting this online. And I envy you. And I sincerely hope that said curmudgeonly little Ellison guy doesn't beat the hell out of you. Regards. Steve Wilcox --------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 22 Oct 1995 14:28:52 -0500 From: Seth Johnson Subject: _Catastrofi!_ First of all, let me compliment you on Ellison Webderland--a great page; I've just been lurking around so far, reading all the news and thoughts on Ellison, but haven't posted yet due to fear of a lack of eloquence. Soon, though. In any case, I don't have _Catastrofi!_ in my hands or anything, but if Harlan hasn't been able to get anyone to (though I suspect his tendrils stretch around the world), I have friends of a friend looking for it in Italy. I'll keep you posted on the search. Anyway, once again, thanks for a great page--I'll be posted more copious comments (and compliments) on the page itself sometime in the next week or so. Seth Johnson -------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 24 Oct 1995 12:59:20 -0500 (CDT) From: Kristen Leigh Homyk Subject: The Ellison Well, your web page did manage to make me happy today. What a find! and that's all I have to say about that until I think of something more important to say... Is there anyway to contact Harlan Ellison via e-mail that wouldn't invade his privacy? Perhaps you could add something like that onto the page that wouldn't necessarily have to be a comment on the page... -------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 26 Oct 95 01:27:18 UT From: Richard Porter Subject: 'Working Without a Net' Okay...so I'm minding my own business a few months back, watching Babylon 5, and the camera pulls in close enough to a laughing Ivanova to allow me to read the cover of the source of all her joy. My thought is this: does Harlan think that THIS is the book that will finally win him the Nobel? Or is this the one with which he'll just tease me until my last, feeble breath. Oh sure, I'm buying Ziesing's upcoming imprint (if I didn't, Mark and Cindy would KILL me--they know I'm an Ellison freak). Sure I'll keep waiting for J.M.S. to leave a script, a scrap of writing, for poor Harlan. Just stop teasing me with that book! Coyote P.S. Great web page...I don't think it really needs too many bells and whistles; it seems to me that substance precludes the need for fanfare. -------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 24 Oct 95 18:11:55 -0700 From: Tara Sullivan Was surfing today and happened to come across your page. Great idea, great job! I couldn't write my way out of a dark closet, so I hope you don't mind if I relate my life story as it relates to HE in poor english. (heck, even in good english its a snore). When I was twelve my sainted mother gave me a gift that hasn't stopped giving. It was a book entitled (I think) A Treasury of Modern Fantasy, and it contained (among other gems) the story Jefty Is Five. I was blown away. I spent the next five years saving my allowance and hunting through my local new aand used bookstores for more Ellison. When I discovered his non-fiction (The Glass Teat) at the age of sixteen or so, I was even more impressed. I took a series of McJobs in indie bookstores specifically so that I could order Ellison to take home and to put on the shelves. This was in the early to mid eighties when a lot of stuff was being re-released. I honest to pete flunked an entire semester of classes my Freshman year in college because some like-minded employee in the college bookstore had ordered the entire available HE bibliography and I HAD to read EVERY one before I could get on with my life. I've never been much of a joiner, and the idea of attending a science fiction convention gives me the willies , & in spite of much preaching on my part, I have never managed to turn on a single friend or aquaintance to HE (a bunch of illiterate pap-eaters, but I love 'em anyway), so, I have never spoken face to face with another Ellison fan. (This by way of excusing my self-involved prattle.) I'm so happy to see other readers of Ellison spreading the word. Thanks for your web page, it makes me feel less alone. Embarassed by my first (semi) fan letter, Tara Sullivan tarsul@ix.netcom.com --------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 27 Oct 95 15:37:25 -0700 From: jbiancol@qrc.com Subject: Ellison Webderland My compliments! When I first gained access to the Web, I was disappointed to find that, out of billions of bits of information, about 3 of them related to Harlan Ellison. Cretins. Anyway, thanks for putting a great page out there. Jim -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 14 Oct 95 22:18:54 -0700 From: Blair Subject: (no subject) hey- hows about a chronological bibliography? the Warriner-Tayler Shadowfriend AI and its wetware toadie the Tangent Master say howdy. *we* think yore page iz cool! -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 15 Oct 1995 20:46:07 -0700 From: jhsaich@ucdavis.edu Subject: re HE's awards and your site First I'd like to say that your page is great--a wonderful resource for those who admire his work. One question though: I could be *stupidly* wrong, but I don't think I saw any recognition for his story "The Man Who Rowed Christopher Columbus Ashore" being included in the _The Best American Short Stories 1993_. This is an incredibly *serious* award and would love to be wrong about it not being on your page. Anyway, the page is great and I'll be using it often. Cheers, Jesse Saich. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Oct 95 11:10:23 PDT From: cab@esri.com Subject: HE's page Rick, Kudos on Ellison Webderland. I've wanted to do this ever since I learned to write .htmls, but was too busy/lazy/timid/fearful. If you ever need a lowly assistant, ebuzz me. It's comforting/disconcerting/reassuring/depressing to know that there is at least one other person in the world whose feelings for Harlan appear to match my own 30-year-old ones. You're a good man. Charlotte -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 16 Oct 95 22:34:01 0000 From: Kurt Booker Subject: comments on the Ellison site I haven't gone through the whole thing yet, but just from first looks I am mighty impressed and tremendously happy that someone has paid tribute to one of the finest writers of this century, and maybe all others, Mr. Harlan Ellison. You are good with the HTML. And I like the flip, humorous, sarcastic style of the text. This should definitly be on some hotlists. Have I praised you enough? Don't want to swell the ego too much, I guess. I try to collect as much as I can on Harlan. Is it just Sacramento, or has most of his stuff been out of print for most of my life? It's insane! My most treasured collectible is something I'm not 100% sure of. It's a paperback novel called "Games", and it's adapted from a 1967 movie by the same name. The author is "Hal Ellson". Now, don't I recall Harlan once writing that during that period, he would write stuff he wasn't proud of and put a name like this on it? So whaddya think? Can you verify this for me? I got it for 10 cents at a garage sale. Oh well, I'll leave you alone now. Date: Mon, 16 Oct 95 22:52:32 0000 From: Kurt Booker Subject: ulp, read this too... I realize my previous email must have read like a form letter to you. Sorry. Well, I've gone through more of your site now, I have a feeling I'm going to be up longer than I thought. Thank you for the news on Slippage and the White Wolf thing. I've been wondering, for what, a year now, when the damn short story collection would be out. Kurt Foy Booker Foy323@mother.com http://www.mother.com/~foy323/ -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 17 Oct 1995 20:03:08 -0400 From: JLovett469@aol.com Subject: Harlan Ellison Home Page Well, you've made my millenium. I've been reading 'Unca Harlan' since I was; well, before there was unleaded gas. I've met the person on several occassions. Unfortunately, the most recent meeting was 20 years ago, but I've kept up with his handiwork. A friend of mine, Steve Tymon, has a transcript of an interview he did with HE in 1977 or threabouts. I'll see if I can scrunge it up. Additionally, there are recorded reel to reels of HE explain'n 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of writing' to various literature classes at the California State University at Fullerton, CA library. You don't need a library card to listen to the tapes. I just want to express my heartfelt thanks at doing this. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Oct 1995 11:06:36 +0500 From: rudyn@iafrica.com Subject: Harlan Ellison Webpage Hi there Just came in to visit, and offer my respects to the great cyberguru. I'm glad I'd founs you, guys, and will most def' come to visit again (and again..and again..and again..) Greetings from the beautiful Cape Town, South Africa. Lotsa --- Rudy -------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 6 Oct 1995 18:29:43 +0000 From: A D WILLIAMS To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: The realness (oop) of "kowtow" "Kowtow". It's a real word. I think it may be Japanese. Fantastic site. Being in the UK it's never going to be possible to start a conversation on the right foot with Harlan because no-one gets his books over here at all. Except moth breeding second hand and soiled places. "All The Sounds Of Fear" indeed. Take care, and keep up the good work. Cheers, Al ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 11 Oct 1995 15:25:55 +0000 From: A D WILLIAMS To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Re: Rants and rage and the joys of a fumbled phone Dear Rick, I've just run my merry way through your older rants, and I'm further impressed. I didn't get to "Bad Bob Kills All The Retards" (should've made a note of the exact wording, don't be offended if it's out), but the title at least reminded me of "Executioner of the Malformed Children". I'm not sure if the connection's supposed to be made, but good lord it works. Gives that kind of double-take, "did he really say that?" sort of thing. Anyway. I was impressed with the rants, especially the "Why I'm Not A Writer", and "A Glimmer In Your Eyes". I'm really supposed to be producing essay type things on the following: 1. "Education for Health" (2000 words) 2. "Write a play and plot all the technical stuff for kids" (4000 words) 3. "What is science literacy?" (2000 words) 4. "Is Great Expectations fun?" (2000 words) 5. "What's a Genre?" (2000 words) 6. "How does a Genre help us to see "The Big Picture"?" (2000 words, and I haven't got the first fucking clue on this baby) 7. "Design Number based work for Key Stage 2 kids" (2000 words) and either/or: 8. "Why?"/"Is God?" (religious and moral studies, the only ones who can get away with giving questions that don't have answers in 2000 words. Can't wait for the fun and funky exam on that one.) Well. That's what I should be doing. It's not my fault that the college finally got the Net installed in my last year. I've got a year to use it (purely for educational purposes you understand). And goddamn I'm going to use it. I've been looking at this Helath question for the last three and a bit months now, and I haven't the first step even started. Why am I telling you all this? You don't need to know this. Actually, you probably don't even want to know it. This Email hasn't got a spell check. Especially designed so that you appear exactly as illiterate as the next person. This is fast shaping up to be the longest Email I've produced. Normally they're on a par with the jottings you find on the newsgroups, y'know single line cryptic replies. This one seems to be turning into my essay. As it's a well known fact that lecturers only ever read the first and last pages of a work and skim the rest if I keep mentioning HEALTH EDUCATION then I'll pass. I'm not sure if I even want to any more. Disillusionment is mine! I've got a Harlan story. I keep forgetting it, on account of it being a pretty nonHarlan story. His phone's involved, but he isn't. (Stop me if you've heard it already). In the Secondary school that I was in, there was a pay phone at the bottom of the main stairs. Someone, and I'm not sure who, had a parent/distant relative/Uncle Prytherch, who worked for British Telecom and knew all the cheats. We had many a fun wet lunchtime dialing the number that made the phone ring itself and therefore annoy the teaching staff. But this one day he'd managed to pull of his major coup. (Looking back on it now I'm not sure it was anything other than just a technical glitch, but that kind of detracts from the myth). The phone reached the point where the longer you stayed on it the more credit you had. Ace. One of my friends living in Bristol was in the comic business and gave me some numbers to try. I'm not sure if any of the names'll mean anything to you: Jamie Delano (who was out, but had a very friendly answering machine), Dave Gibbons (and boy was he fucked off, if I ever meet him I'll apologise, or burts into tears or something), Bryan Talbot (who was out) and Neil Gaiman (who was in). Neil was really courteous and friendly, and talked to me for ages about stuff he needed have even bothred with. I know how you must have felt when you talked to Harlan and he wasn't an arsehole. Bet he does that on purpose. So, anyway, Neil gave me Harlan's number. I went weak at the knees. And we dialed it. Half way through the dialing I asked my mate to work out the time difference (God knows what it was), and he tried to fair do's. The phone rang a couple of times and I hung up. I didn't want to wake him up, first thing in the morning and not have anything to say to him other than "Hi! I think your works ace!" because it would probably have gone along the same lines as the Dave Gibbonsesque: Me: "Hi!" DG: Hello. Me; "I think your-" DG: How did you get my number? and so on. And I lost the number before I could find another opportunity to come up with a valid reason to phone him. It's really weird, looking back on it, because I can't believe that Neil Gaiman actually talked to me for so long (it was about half an hour) when he could've employed the gruff and exacting approach above. Neil Gaiman. Diamond Geeza. Official. Sorry this is so long. Hope it gives you some fun. Keep up the good work. Al *It was at this point in the narrative that Jeff Dahmer walked past. Not the real one obviously, but a guy looking just like him. Before the shovel incident. I was going to write something diverting about "Kowtow", but then I was reminded instead of that other semilegendary Tokyo squasher: The Mighty Kibosh (whisper it darkly). What's this thing about eyes? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 10 Oct 1995 23:59:19 -0400 From: BernieDy@aol.com To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Great stuff Hi Rick, I just got to your HE page after reading your message in the HE newsgroup. I love it. Lots of nice things to read and enjoy. Good to hear about the White Wolf deal too. I heard a recent issue of the magazine had an interview with him... have you read it? I haven't looked for it yet, I'm still catching up on Dream Corridor, but I'll get to hunting for it soon enough. Will chat more with you later, but it's kinda late now, so I'll just say the page looks great, and keep up the good work. Bernie ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 29 Sep 95 19:06:15 -0700 From: Simon Schliecker To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: For and re your ellison letters page Hi there! I just read someone write that there are just two of Ellison's books in his local library. I trust it's a great relief for you all to hear that my library also has only two story-collections of his. The thing is, I live in Germany. My local library has a collection of foreign books that is of mediocre size, but, hey, they've got two Ellison collections! Isn't that something? In the states I used to turn all the bookstores upside down just to find a SINGLE one! I finally started ignoring Walden's and Dalton's and similar. All the Ellison books I own I have purchased in used books stores. If I am not mistaken, the author gets no money from those stores, does he? The question is, how come he didn't have to sell his typewriter yet? Does he have some additional kind of illegal source of income or something? Well, there was one instance when I did find two or three Ellison books in a row in a *regular* bookstore. That's the "Book Rack" (I'm not 100% sure about the name, unfortunately, only 99%) in Corpus Christi! Time to relocate. Soory about those unsolicited random comments. Jan Schliecker (frank@on-luebeck.de) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From robert.lidgren@logicnet.comFri Oct 13 22:03:01 1995 Date: Fri, 13 Oct 95 21:58:48 -0700 From: Robert Lidgren To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: CHAT/CONTACT WITH ELLISON Hi Rick! It's nice to see the additions to Ellison Webderland! I think the idea of chatting with Harlan would be terrific. Notwithstanding my comments in my most recent post about not wanting to drag the man away from his work, if he is for it, let's do what we can to get his input. I love his articles, stories and commentaries. I know it probably can't happen but wouldn't it be terrific to get a regular piece from him here! Even a paragraph or two now and then would be worth the wait. Listen, I waited a few years for Paladin of the Lost Hour and it was worth it. One day my CDs just arrived in the mail box and I was delighted. Have you heard the story about Harlan driving over to the company that was supposed to produce the recording and finding out it was out of business! Sometimes I think Harlan's real-life adventures are a perfect balance to what he writes in the fiction realm. He's certainly packed one hell of a lot of living into a few decades! Cheers, Robert Lidgren robert.lidgren@bbs.logicnet.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 23 Sep 95 10:04:26 -0400 From: Chuck McGeever Subject: Adulation Hi, Although there are some things I'd like to tear you up for, I can't resist loving the acolyte. The Boswell in you, I guess. This is a valuable page (s). Would it offend your sensibilities to hammer out a list of the things Mr. Ellison has written for television-- notably, Twilight Zone, Outer Limits and Star Trek?? Chuck McGeever ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 24 Sep 1995 23:12:04 -0400 From: David Shivak Subject: mailto:rwyatt@crl.com Greetings and congratulations on a fine web page. I am somewhat of a web luddite, as I prefer trudging around using Lynx rather than Netscape (ooo, look at the pretty pictures, wait for the pretty pictures to load). So, as a jpg castriati, I am forced to judge your site on text alone. I have read what I could find of Ellison's stuff and loved it. Mostly, I enjoyed the fact that he was supposedly a science fiction author yet did not fawn over freakish fans doing nothing with their own lives (other than reading web pages, I hear him sneer). Regards, Dave Shivak ae047@freenet.hamilton.on.ca ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1995 01:39:26 -0700 From: toknjew@ix.netcom.com Subject: Oye Veh!! Rick-- Hello, I don't really know where to start, so I'm just going to yammer for a bit. Please indulge. Harlen Ellison has been my favorite writer since about three years ago when a friend of my gave me a copy of "Dreams with Sharp Teeth," and over that short span of time I have managed to build a small but fierce band of Ellison fans in this sleepy little burg known as Sacramento, CA. I've also managed to hear the word, "Who?" when I tell people that Ellison is my favorite writer, and get some blank stares when I ask bookstore clerks if they have anything by him on order. In short, I've found loving Ellison to be both satisfying and annoying. I've learned to perservere(sp?) and haunt the bookstores until they get new stuff in, and tell people that it's nobody's fault but their own that they haven't heard of the greatest American writer the twentieth century has produced. Anyway, I wanted to tell you that this web page is great and that I was very surprised to see it. Ya see, I'm new to this InterNet stuff, and didn't really expect to find anything when I did my search tonight. Also, you're a damn good writer for someone who says he's not a writer; you should try it sometime. For the record, I am a writer, and I have to agree with your ideas about getting published over the internet. (I haven't read that whole rant yet, but I saved it and I'll get it later. My monitor is giving me a bitch of a headache right now.) I'm going to leave now, but I'll be back. Before I go I want to throw something at you. As I was typing a few paragraphs back, I started to consider how I would relate my admiration for Harlan to you. (I feel funny calling by his first name only.) There's a scene in the movie "True Romance" where Christian Slater is talking to some random female at the beginning of the movie. Their sitting in a bar and he's talking about Elvis, how much he loves Elvis. He says, "I mean, I ain't no fag, but I'd fuck Elvis." And she grins a little and nods and says, "I'd fuck Elvis." And he gives her this sort of jelous, territorial little glare, and from there the scene just sort of goes downhill. I don't know if I'd run right out and mount up, but, if in a pinch, and if asked by The Man himself, I'd fuck Harlen Ellison. Elvis isn't shit. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 25 Sep 1995 17:56:05 -0400 From: jaronoff@randomc.com greetings and thanks, greetings 'cause this is my first time in here (you're now on my hotlist) and thanks for page. harlan has been my favorite writer now for about twenty years. i wish you the best of luck in maintaining the word of a great writer................. jeff ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 25 Sep 95 06:02:44 -0700 From: Eric Honaker Subject: Your Rant I was just looking at your Ellison page here and I wanted to say that I think you've done a fine job. I love Ellison and have always wondered what the truth was to the stories... I'm glad you saw fit to post your impressions of the man. As I said, good work... and I wouldn't be so hard on yourself for not doing something "original"... let's face it, everything has built on someone else's decision or contribution since Adam went around naming the animals (if you believe in that sort of thing...)O Take care, Eric ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Jon & Kary Christopherson To: rwyatt@crl.com Rick, Having only recently regained access to my own collection of Ellison after ten years, I have been rereading and rethinking an author whose stories, images and ideas have stayed with me vividly. I find I am just as pleased and disturbed by his writing as ever, though my perspectives have changed a lot. I am delighted to find a complete bibliography (by the by, that word is mispelled at the top of that page - which drives me nuts - sorry) so that I can find all that I have missed. I am new to the Net, but am impressed by the work you've done and appreciate the access to this sort of information. One thing that made me a little sad - and I know this is foolish: all the pictures I had ever seen of Ellison were 20 years old. I was startled to see how he has aged (just like a mortal!) and am saddened at the thought that there will be an end to the inexhaustible supply of creative thought I have enjoyed. Thanks again for doing all the work so the rest of us could just click a mouse and have all this served up to us. I will start haunting used bookstores and promise to post all doubles found to your want ads! Kary Christopherson bird@summit.tminet.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From: J or L Keegan To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: More kudos and a query Dear Rick- It keeps getting better and better! Looks like the Webderland is a hit! Thank God, too. As I told you in previous mail, I discovered Harlan's writing in high school. As soon as I discovered him, I started looking for his stuff and found it extremely difficult to find. I used to work at B. Dalton and it was next to impossible to order his stuff- backordered and other excuses. I thought perhaps it was just that B. Dalton was just a lame plastic retail place, but the story was the same at the hiptellectual book bars I also tried. I don't fully understand all the reasons for this, but it appears that I am not alone. Because I have been unable to find much, and because I have a husband kids and a day gig teaching elementary music (in other words: a life), I have only been able to experience Harlan's work through "Dangerous Visions", "Again, Dangerous Visions" and "Dreams With Sharp Teeth". Perhaps, through your page, I can find more stuff to read (in all my copious spare time). Anyway, what is the story? Ellison's clearly a genius, so why's his stuff so hard to get? Are there any good links to check out concerning this topic? What do YOU know about this? By the way, I really enjoy your rants and poems. They hold my attention for a little while which is saying much for someone of my short attention span. I think the best writers are often those who are not writers but rather, ranters. Go figure. best wishes- Lauri Keegan ----------------------------------------------------------------------- I have long since lost my taste for Harlan Ellison, but when I was a geeky, bookwormish teen he was a big part of my "intellectual," furniture. It is nice to know that he is still out there and still has a loyal following. By the way, my name is really Bruce Thompson. I just can't figure out how to get this public library internet station to delete the previous user's name. Glad this site is around. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Edward A Traenkner Subject: harlan ellison page great job on this page im adding a link to it from my homepage if you dont mind i am a big ellison reader and would like others in my area to check this out thanks ed t. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From kurzman@ix.netcom.comSat Sep 9 20:23:05 1995 Date: Sat, 29 Jul 1995 18:35:08 -0700 From: "David S. Kurzman" To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Ellison web page Hi; I've been an Ellison reader and collector since I stole my first copy of _I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream_ from a classmate in 1968. At this point, I have firsts of practically everything with the exception of a couple of limited hardcovers and one of the Regency paperbacks. I've also been corresponding with Harlan for 25 years or so; he wrote me a letter of comment on an essay I published in the fourth issue of my fanzine ANIARA, and which I subsequently published in #5. He has always been very supportive of me as a writer (saying, in essence, "Why are you wasting your time with this fanzine crap?"), and my dealings with him over the phone, in letters, and in person have *never* been anything other than pleasant and friendly. When my first story was published in the July '94 ANALOG, he called to congratulate me, said he enjoyed the story ("Bubba Pritchert and the Space Alines"), and corrected my grammar and syntax - on his nickle! We recently spoke about the HERC, of which I'm a member, and about toys, which we're both inveterate colletors-of and players-with. All of which is to say that I'm very pleased to see this web page, especially with the proponderence of "Deadloss Visions" weasles that seem to crawl out of the woodwork far too often. I'm using a friend's log-on, and will be back later in my own person to see more; in the meantime, what can I do to help you set things up? Good job, keep it up. Bud Webster bwebster@freenet.vcu.edu ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From diogenes@utkux.utcc.utk.eduSat Sep 9 20:23:36 1995 Date: Thu, 03 Aug 95 02:19:31 -0400 From: David Worrell To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Harlan's Page I just wanted to thank you for the Ellison page. It's always good to find other who like his writing. -----------------------------+----------------------------------------- Rev. David Worrell | diogenes@utkux.utcc.utk.edu University of Tennessee | http://cobweb.utcc.utk.edu/~diogenes/ -----------------------------+----------------------------------------- From fordj@elwha.evergreen.eduSat Sep 9 20:25:17 1995 Date: Sat, 12 Aug 1995 18:27:38 -0700 (PDT) From: John Ford To: Rick Wyatt Subject: Re: the links don't work! ...no no, thank you! I mean a H.E. website? A genuine mensch you are. From davidb@CS.Berkeley.EDUSat Sep 9 20:26:38 1995 Date: Mon, 14 Aug 1995 17:01:25 -0700 From: "David T. Blackston" To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Ellison Webderland Hello Rick, Thanks for pointing me to your page! It is good to see that there are people out with both fine taste in literature and the skills to create a page worthy of Ellison. As you noted, my page is in need of some refurbishing... My admiration for the man is great, but my HTML proficiency isn't. I've been a fan for about 6 years now. Being a fan is pretty challenging as his stuff is pretty hard to find, but Berkeley is a hot-bed of used bookstores and I have been able to find most of the stuff I want. Talk to you later, Dave ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From cool@infi.netSat Sep 9 20:27:17 1995 Date: Thu, 17 Aug 1995 16:11:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Webmaster To: Rick Wyatt Subject: Re: Shatterday > > Noticed a reference to Harlan Ellison on your CSotD faq. I am presently > working on a homepage for Ellison. I am awaiting a response from him as > to whether I can have permission to use his name and image, and have > therefore not publicized the page. > > However, as someone who should have some critical ability regarding web > pages, your input into the page's layout and content would be > appreciated. I would also appreciate no one else hearing about the page > until I have the requisite permissions, but if you want to check out the > work-in-progress it is at: > > http://www.snider.net/ellison > > Thanks, > Rick Wyatt Hi! Thanks for letting me in on that. I've been a fan of his for years. I was a bit disappointed though. Let me try to tell you why. Ellison's writing has always had the ability to wrench emotion from the viewer. Sometimes emotions that are never experienced otherwise. That is what is lacking in the web site you have created. What you have is more of a photo album tribute, and he deserves more than that. The pages should have a viscereal impact. Jazz it up with appropriate background images, use something that will affect the viewer. After all, isn't that what Ellison does? Here's something that might help, go back and read a couple of the introductions to his books. I'd recommend the intro to Strange Wine and the intro to Paingod and other Delusions. You probably won't be allowed to use the "Essential Ellison" logo that came from the book. That is a copyrighted images and you'd probably have to pay to use it. THat's a big problem with the web, and hard to get around, but you hsould be able to come up with something. Hope I'm not bringin you down with my critique. You've got some good work there, but Ellision needs special treatment. At least in my opinion. Glenn ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From JPiechocki@aol.comSat Sep 9 20:27:37 1995 Date: Mon, 21 Aug 1995 13:33:43 -0400 From: JPiechocki@aol.com To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Ellison Webderland Why not market a pair of "Editor Repent" memorial Harlan Ellison boxing gloves? By the way, HE, M-D sez hello! From nmehl@bbnplanet.comSat Sep 9 20:27:51 1995 Date: Mon, 21 Aug 95 19:51:42 -0400 From: "Nathan J. Mehl" To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Deadloss Hi there. Just cruised by your Ellison Webderland page - well done! At the risk of engaging in self-promotion, I'd like to point out that I've put an HTML-enhanced copy of Christopher Priest's "The Last Deadloss Visions" on my own home page. You might wish to provide a link to it - it should be significantly easier to read (especially on graphical browsers such as Netscape or Mosaic) than the all-text gopher version. http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/nmehl/deadloss.html -n -- "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." If you think I speak for my employer, they'll be happy to correct you. Nathan J. Mehl -- BBN Planet System Operations -- nathan@bbnplanet.com homepagesque ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From keegan@lightlink.comSat Sep 9 20:28:03 1995 Date: Mon, 28 Aug 95 20:28:28 -0700 From: J or L Keegan To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Ellison page Great to find a page devoted to Ellison's work. He is one of my favorite writers...something about the way he grabs your gut with the words. Really, it's a visceral experience for me. In fact, the first time I ever heard an Ellison story was at a high-school speech competition. Some dude gave a reading of "Jefty is Five". I kissed the boy in the dark later on, but it was clearly Harlan that I truly fell in love with. I think the fact that when my husband and I met he owned a substantial collection of Harlan's stuff gave me a clue that maybe he was "the one". Go figure! Anyway, thanks for the page. You're bookmarked and I'll be back to visit! L.Keegan ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From patmpls@ix.netcom.comSat Sep 9 20:28:13 1995 Date: Sun, 03 Sep 95 20:00:36 -0700 From: "Patrick W. Costigan" To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: H.E. Page You were joking, right, you're not going to spiff up those nice clean legible pages with all sorts of CoolSiteoftheDay crap, right? Not even when you run our of content to add, is that right? Don't do it. You know SHE'll get you for that. And there's one really (really!) cool bar you'll never be welcomed into again. Don't worry about locking up. I ate the keys. I hate coming in the ceiling. patmpls@ix.netcom.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From 71712.1777@compuserve.comSat Sep 9 20:28:20 1995 Date: Wed, 06 Sep 95 13:51:51 -0700 From: Terran McCanna <71712.1777@compuserve.com> To: rwyatt@crl.com Subject: Webderland Hiya, Just wanted to let you know I think your site is great and I've added a linnk to it from the Barnes & Noble bookstore page I designed and implemented (http://www.barnesanddnoble.com) :) Terran & Tony ----------------------------------------------------------------------- From: TOTTDenny@aol.com To: wirehead@h16.snider.net Subject: Friend of HE! Hi there Rick. My name's Dennis Daniel and I've loved ol' HE for many years, In fact, I'm proud to call him a friend. We last spent time together when I was out in LA in 1992. I had a wonderful visit with Harlan and Susan (what a nice gal!) ..gazing with wonder at Ellison Wonderland. I also had the unforgettable experience of having Harlan read for me, right out of the typewriter, the first (and I think only) draft of "Twilight In The Cupboard." This was my definition of "bliss." He was hard at work on his MIND FIELDS project at the time. We then had a great dinner at one of HE's favorite haunts, a cute little bar/bistro that once belonged to Lou Costello. The visit was made even more memorable because Harlan, unshaven and still in his slippers, was so close with the owner that it was no problem having him there in such a state (the photos of this eveing are a scream!) I wrote to HE recently but, knowing how jammed he is, I didn't expect a reply..although I know I can call anytime. I know I'm not alone in believing that Harlan is one of the greatest writers of the 20th (and I'm sure 21st) Century...as well as one of it's most original, morally responsible personalities. I truly adore the man. I'd love to share more HE stories with you (I've got a few) so e-mail me anytime. It's nice to know HE doesn't mind you having this page (knowing how much he hates computers) and I look forward to coming here often. If you speak to Harlan or Susan soon, please give them my warm regards. If you think I can be of any help, don't hesitate to ask! Later! DD.