Illini Fantasy Fictioneers

Fan Club
Name:	Illini Fantasy Fictioneers
Dates:	1939-1940
Founder(s):	Mark Reinsberg
Leadership:
Country based in:	USA
Focus:	Planning Chicon I with a minimum of drama
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The Illini Fantasy Fictioneers was a small group of Illinois fans put together for the sole purpose of planning the first Chicon. The aim was to prevent any of the New Fandom drama that had plagued the first Worldcon. Despite their efforts, there were at least three outbreaks: the convention booklet nearly didn't get printed because of an instance of antisemitism from William L. Hamling; Sam Moskowitz and William S. Sykora accused the IFF of refusing any financial help from New Fandom; and after the convention Sykora accused the IFF of pocketing the con profits to widespread disapproval. Bob Tucker hotly denied the charges of widespread disapproval, but later admitted that an IFF officer had "nudged" the other members to vote for the officers to be given the profits.

The officers of the IFF were Mark Reinsberg, Bob Tucker, Erle Korshak, Richard Meyer and William L. Hamling, with Sully Roberds enlisted to edit the Fantasy Fictioneer with help from Tucker. Its membership joined the Mid-West Fantasy Fan Federation after Chicon.

The first World Convention in New York last year wasn't exactly a success because of a number of nasty things that happened and the generally high-handed attitude of the chaps who were running the shebang. This year that angle is being taken care of by the organization of a democratic outfit whose sole and only purpose to put over this convention and then automatically disband, having no high and mighty ideas of remolding or reshaping fandome in its own image, the sponsoring organization is not likely to try any dirty work. It can't anyway for instead of being a closed and secretive conspiracy as was New Fandom, it's open and above-board.

Unknown author: Convention in Chicago; The Science Fiction Fan #46, pp. 3-4. May 1940.

For better or worse, we were awarded the convention and the headaches began -- or intensified.

Reinsberg drew up a flowery, long-winded constitution for the IFF which practically pledged us to honor the flag, mother, the Bill of Rights, and the government's foreign policy. In an effort to please all feuding factions, we probably satisfied none. His next act was to secure for himself the position of Executive Officer in charge of just about everything; entirely without malice, but with some amusement, I can say that he was determined to be the convention, Korshak, his longtime friend, was to be the Number Two Boy, with other friends Meyer and Lawrence Hamling trailing close behind. Again without malice, let me state that I was used merely as window dressing; in 1939-40 I had a BNF reputation, and Reinsberg wanted that reputation to ensure the success of his convention, I was made Director of the IFF, and given an impressive but harmless place on the program opening day.

Bob Tucker: The First Chicon, pg. 4. Tau Ceti Reprints no. 2, May 1965.

I'd like to report here that I was dumbfounded when the membership voted to give the funds to us --the committeemen-- in recognition of the hard work the preceding ten or twelve months, but that would be cheating. Oh, they voted the profits to us well enough (something rare in convention annals) but they did so only after one of the officers cried on their collective shoulders, nudging them in the desired direction. His powers of persuasion were mighty, and they gave us the loot -- I think my cut was about twenty dollars.

Tucker: The First Chicon, pg. 5. Tau Ceti Reprints no. 2, May 1965.

Sully Roberds, who had edited the group's promotional zine Fantasy Fictioneer, was so fed up by the infighting that he stopped working on the Fantasy Fictioneer and refused to attend the Chicon at all.

The IFF, and the Fictioneer rocked along their perilous ways as the convention approached. One or more Chicago members made several hitch-hiking trips to Bloomington to consult on this or that, or to lay on the smooth butter, or to gather private support as the Chicago faction split down the middle. A sorry case of anti-Semitism divided their ranks and for awhile threatened to deprive the convention of its program booklet, but in the end matters were patched to an extent that all parties agreed to work together for the con -- and after that, the devil could take the hindermost. (A repercussion of that old problem arose again about 20 years later, at a Chicago party attended by most of the Chicon officers. One faction heatedly denied the problem ever existed; the opposing faction was willing to let dead dogs lie. Peace was finally restored by an officer of Chicon 2 -- brave girl.) Meanwhile, Sully Roberds found himself full to the ears with the bickering and quit, with the fourth and final issue of the Fictioneer. He refused to attend the convention, and washed his hands of the lot of us.

Tucker: The First Chicon, pg. 5. Tau Ceti Reprints no. 2, May 1965.