Fan Testimonials
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| See also: | Personal Account, Fans on Sets |
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Fan Testimonials is a personal account that can take on several forms.
One is fans writing essays and descriptions describing their fannish journeys. This can include reasons for their devotion to certain fandoms and actors, writers, and other honoraries.
Another is descriptions of their real life interactions with celebrities, actors, and other people involved in producing their favorite media and fandom.
One form of testimonials are fans telling other fans about their fannish journeys to and within fandom: how they became fans, what fandom means to them. In that sense, these public statements operate a bit like open letters, but without the widespread visibility or goal of changing someone's mind.
They can also be in the form of descriptions about why they admire certain celebrities, actors, singers, writers, and other honoraries.
Sometimes these testimonials can take on the feel of a religious conversion, of stating one's intent to follow a celebrity and to be a good fan.
Some of these visits are Fans on Sets, but many others are fan interactions with their honoraries at production studios, on personal visits, and at conventions.
The testimonial aspect of these visits are the many descriptions and accounts fans told to each other in letters, over the phone, in person, and written accounts in fanzines.
Describing their interactions to other fans had many motives.
One was, of course, to brag about their experience, and perhaps about their social standing in fandom.
Another was to share their good fortune with other fans, and give them a peek into what the "real" person was like.
Another was to provide content for fanzines, mainly club zines. These zines often had a regular section devoted to these testimonials, and encouraged other fans to provide content. Because of this, these testimonials were almost always very positive, both by their very nature, and because many of of these club zines were sent and supported by the celebrities for which they lauded. In fact, an added bonus for many fans was the very thought that the actor may actually read their essay, something that bridged a gap between them. It wasn't unusual for there to be statements included in the essay that addressed the celebrity directly; one example is at the end of the 1980 essay, A Private Conversation, a testimonial lauding George Takei:
George, wherever you are, whatever you are doing, the fact that you played Sulu on a television show may have brought me over to say hello that first time.... God bless you and keep you.
Examples
- A Private Conversation, an essay by Janice K. Hrubes (lauds George Takei) (1980)