Yahren Reunion
| Convention | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Yahren Reunion |
| Dates: | October 15–17, 1993, July 31-August 2, 1998 |
| Frequency: | once |
| Location: | Universal City, CA |
| Type: | fancon with celebrity guests |
| Focus: | Battlestar Galactica |
| Organization: | RainyDaze Productions |
| Founder: | DJ Driscoll (others assisting: Kandy Fong (press liaison), Marnie S. (head of operations), Denetia Arellanes (dealer's room), and Lily Fulford (orphan zines)) |
| Founding Date: | |
| URL: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Yahren Reunion was a fan run convention to celebrate Battlestar Galactica.
1993
The Battlestar Galactica 15 Yahren Reunion was held in October 15-17, 1993 to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Battlestar Galactica. The convention had several actor guests including Richard Hatch and Dirk Benedict. Other events included an art/charity show and auction, a costume contest, gaming, a dealer's room and a memorabilia display area.
Proceeds from the convention were to go directly to various charities: The Nature Conservancy and the Pediatric Aids Foundation. However, due to problems with the hotel, attendance was lower than expected. After some pressure and bad PR, the hotel agreed to fund - for free - another charity convention, Con Rad which took place in 1995.
Progress Report: 1993
The tentative schedule for the Reunion's activities is as follows: Friday. Sept 4th: Registration opens at 3 PM. The Tribute to Glen Larson Party will start at 7 PM. Saturday. Sept 5th: The Dealers Room opens at 10 AM. Question and Answer programming starts at 10 AM, as do the open Autograph and Photography Sessions, and these run until 5 PM. The Rising Stardance and Masquerade (Costume) Contest starts at 7 PM. Sunday. Sept 6th: the Charity Auction starts at 10 AM, followed by Video presentations (which may include a very big "surprise" courtesy of Richard Hatch), then more Q & A panels, Autographs and Photos until 5 PM. The Volunteers Party will start around 7 PM (sign up to help out when you come to Registration.)
The Reunion will be professionally videotaped. Icons Authentic Replicas of Burbank, California will be running prop building and modelmaking workshops throughout the convention. Old School Productions, a staple of East Coast Anime fandom, will be hosting Shaolin Showdown Special Edition at the Reunion. Included in the video game tournament will be games from all eras, genres, and nationalities. If you have a game you'd like to bring, please contact Jeff Kleist [redacted] to discuss its incorporation into the lineup. We will also be setting up a web-simulcast of some of the Reunion panels so that those of you online who cannot attend may have an opportunity to ask questions of a few of our Guests. Check our website for a listing of the times when we will be setup for these sessions.
[...]
Our Costumes and Props Display is being coordinated by Roger Sides. If you have any original pieces from the series and would like to see them property displayed and ogled at during the Reunion, please contact him at [redacted] to make arrangements. We have many wonderful items being donated for the Charity Auction. So far, these include: a Viper and a blaster made from the original molds, a stuffed (talking) daggit, several original posters, original storyboards from the series, European lobby cards, a BG-theme portable phonograph, original toys, a lunchbox/thermos set, BG cardsets, an original oil painting of comic art from Chris Scalf of Realm Press, and several other "surprises"!We are currently in the process of putting together the glossy, full-color cover Program Book, and are accepting camera-ready Advertisements at this time (black and white only, please). Rates as follows: $100 full page, $50 half page, $30 quarter page, $20 business card size. Contact us for further info, or call Fran Severn [redacted] for ads placements.
Memberships are available for $80 per person for the entire weekend, and includes admittance to all programming, workshops, tournaments, and evening entertainment. The rate goes up to $100 per person August 1st- Sept. 1st, then at the Door (if available), so please hurry! Icons Authentic Replicas is donating a Cylon Helmet (made from the original mold) and other replicas as Door Prizes for attending members only. The drawing will be held on Sept. 6th (you need not be present to win). We don't anticipate having Day Rates available at this time, but please check with us closer to the event. For those unable to attend the Reunion, we have made Supporting Memberships available. They are $25 each, and include the membership packet, event medallion and Program Book, which will all be mailed out after the event. We’ll keep the Program Books of all Supporters in the Guests' Green Room so that they can be autographed, at the Guests' convenience. We'll also have a drawing for a complimentary Reunion t-shirt from the list of Supporting Memberships.
The BG 15 Yahren Reunion (Universal City, California, 1993) VHS videotape (includes the officially sanctioned Blooper Reel from the series) is still available for $25, which includes postage and handling. We've had to make a second run of the 20 Yahren Reunion t-shirts, due to their popularity. They are available pre-convention for $25 each, which includes postage and handling. They're black, with a huge gold and purple, red-eyed Cylon on the front. We have them in adult sizes Large-3X, 100% pre-shrunk cotton Lofteez, made by Fruit of the Loom, and they are very cool. They'll be available at the Reunion for $20 each, so get yours shipped to you now to avoid having to stand in a line to get one! MasterCard and VISA is accepted; please call us with this information.
Con Report: 1993
The 15 Yahren Reunion really should have been the ultimate BG convention. Almost everyone involved with the series was invited, and, thanks to the location of the con near their homes, many of them showed up. Executive Producer Glen Larson, special effects expert John Dykstra, costume designer Jean-Pierre Dorleac, composer Stu Phillips, story editors Jim Carlson and Terry McDonnell, and producer Harker Wade highlighted the technical staff present, while Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict, Anne Lockhart, and Sarah Rush were among the actors who showed. It should have been a triumph, and Glen Larson was hoping for a big turnout that he could use to his advantage in his revival efforts.
But it turned into a catastrophe for BG. Even today the 15 Yahren Reunion is controversial among fans. While it’s impossible to know why what happened happened, what did happen is this; fans, press people, and actors alike were told by the hotel that the convention was canceled or simply did not exist, and many were discouraged and turned away (Dirk Benedict reportedly had to find his way in through a side door!). Attendance, hoped to be in the high thousands, was low, and Larson’s revival effort, which had apparently included serious interest from the Fox network, was dead. [1]
Also see the extensive Letters on the Low Turnout at the Galactica Reunion in 1993 dated March 13, 1995.
1998
.jpg)
References
- ^ from Battlestar Zone: The Lost Revivals by Susan J. Paxton