The Babelian Council
| Zine | |
|---|---|
| Title: | The Babelian Council |
| Publisher: | |
| Editor(s): | Shelley Allan and Amy Clarke (#1, possibly #2), then Shelley Allan and Paula Nass (#3-#6) |
| Date(s): | 1972-1975? |
| Series?: | |
| Medium: | |
| Size: | |
| Genre: | gen |
| Fandom: | Star Trek: TOS |
| Language: | English |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Babelian Council is a gen Star Trek: TOS anthology. There were to be six issues a year, but in the sixth issue, it was announced there'd be only three issues a year.
The zine was originally produced by two fans who lived in Portland, OR and Woodland, WA, as part of a "Star Trek support club." One of the original editors dropped out, and from then on, it was produced in Portland only.
A sister zine was The T-Tauri Report, a "supplement to the B.C., it will include info to keep the S.T. fan informed between issues."
About the Club and Zine
The Council's main purpose is to help keep up STAR TREK fandom, and to find other individuals who are interested in STAR TREK and who want to help return it to the air.
We are also largely involved in the letter-writing campaign and also a "publicity campaign." This means ads in other fan magazines, calling up businesses, putting up posters, etc. This fanzine is also part of our campaign. We are hoping it will be passed on to friends who will be interested enough to write to us or even another organization for information. Our zine will contain listings of other fanzines, organizations, people to contact, where to send for collector's items, etc.
Issue 1
The Babelian Council 1 is not dated but it has references that place it in 1972, possibly around August or September. While the pages are not numbered, there are about 8.
Most of the zine is handwritten.
- Introduction by the editors about the zine and its purpose
- On the Letter Writing Campaign, excerpted from the May 1972 issue of Star-Borne
- addresses of PTB to write
- address and handwritten ad for what could be Lincoln Enterprises, though the company is not named
- handwritten flyer for The Star Trek Concordance
- handwritten flyer for Fantasy Films International Convention ("Do you remember the BIG Star Trek Convention in New York? It was quite a success - registering 3000 STAR TREK fans, and letting in quite a few others free after that. And you might have been just a little unhappy because it was so far away that you couldn't attend. Well, if you have a way to get to L.A. on Thanksgiving, we have good news for you.")
- Halloween: Star Trek Sytle
from issue #1
from issue #1
from issue #1
from issue #1
from issue #1
from issue #1
Issue 2
The Babelian Council 2 is not dated, though it appears to be spring 1973. It contains 6 pages.
- cartoon by Paula Nass
- The Hostage, part one, fiction by J.C. Goins
from issue #2
from issue #2
from issue #2
Issue 3
The Babelian Council 3 is not dated (1973) and contains 4 pages.
"What's in a Name?":
Recently a new term has come into use for identifying "Star Trek" fans. This term, "Trekkie," somehow doesn't seem to fit with the image of most of the "Star Trek" fans I know. It connotes a group of screaming teenyboppers who latch on to a fad, beat it death, and abandon it to move on to the next fad. I, for one, don't happen to like having this label attached to me. "Star Trek" is not a ephemeral for me or for the other "Star Trek" fans that I know. True, "Star Trek" fans stick to their show, even through all the frustration of cancellation by N.B.C. and abuse by local stations.
The use of this term (and I don't plan to use it again) worries me. If the image it projects impresses me (as well as other people I know) in this way, I wonder what it indicates to N.B.C. and Paramount. Thinking of the "Star Trek" campaign as a passing fad, the executives at Paramount and N.B.C. may be sitting tight waiting for it all to die down. All that was gained by writing logical, intelligent letters is lost by the use of this image. Certainly there are people moving in S.T. circles who have latched onto it as a fad. But the true fan can't let these people seem to be representative of our group as a whole. It is imperative to keep the quality of our image high.
It is my personal opinion that we (S.T. FANS) should refrain from the the use of this term. Although it is completely impossible to stop its use altogether, we can cut its use among ourselves and hopefully correct others (and stop its use in printed articles.)
- Fan Questionnaire
- What's in a Name?, essay by Shelley Allan (about the use of the term "Trekkie") (reprinted in Hailing Frequency #3 in 1973)
- meta cartoon by Paula Nass reprinted in The Despatch
- wordsearch
- The Hostage, part two, fiction by J.C. Goins
from issue #3, fan questionnaire
from issue #3, cartoon by Paula Nass
Issue 4
The Babelian Council 4 is undated (published in 1973) and contains 4 pages. This is the first issue that officially states that Allan and Nass are now the editors.
- Leonard Nimoy's Portland Visit: September 30, 1972, an essay by Paula M. Nass
- a short update about the upcoming fall show: Star Trek Animated
- answers to the wordsearch in the last issue
- a short code using glyphs by Linda Martorelli
- The Hostage, part three, fiction by J.C. Goins
- a short blurb that said Ruth Berman had read the last issue and had asked for permission to print the cartoon in issue #3 in Despatch ("I'd be happy to oblige!")
from issue #4, first page of the essay about Leonard Nimoy's presentation in Portland in 1972
from issue #4, the code which fans will need in the next issue!
Issue 5
The Babelian Council 5 is not dated, but likely published in 1973. It contains 8 pages.
- a letter from Mort Werner of N.B.C. (dated August 9, 1973), and Nass' commentary about it regarding bringing a new series of "Star Trek" back to television
- some addresses for fans to write (many newspapers, a television station, and the Federal Communications Commission)
- Is William Shatner Still Alive?, essay by Paula M. Nass (commentary about the new show Star Trek Animated, how Shatner's voice doesn't sound like him)
- illo, portrait of Mark Lenard, by Paula M. Nass
- wordfind
- story in code, by Linda Martorelli
- zine info and short news
from issue #5, artist is Paula M. Nass, subject is Mark Lenard
from issue #5, letter from Mort Werner
from issue #5, you'll need the key from issue #4 to read this story!
from issue #5, article, "Is William Shatner Still Alive?"
from issue #5, cartoon by Shelley Allan
Reactions and Reviews: Issue 5
This little zine is a short collection of a copy of a letter to Mort Werner and his non-committal (form letter-type) reply; a crossword puzzle, a couple of amateurish drawings, and a coded puzzle. [1]
Issue 6
The Babelian Council 6 was published in spring 1974 and contains 6 pages.
The editors say they have to reduce the number of issues printed a year (now three a year, rather than six) due to lack of submissions, and how much work this zine is to do when combined with school work.
- zine news, chatter (1)
- SC1, poem by Avic (3)
- crossword puzzle by Noreen Foster (4)
- continued story in code by Linda Martorelli (6)
from issue #6
from issue #6
from issue #6
from issue #6
Issue 7?
The Babelian Council 7 (??) was published in 1975 and contains 15 pages.
- one story, "Spock's Banana Joy Juice", no author credit given
- couple of puzzles
- information on writing to Paramount to return ST to the air
- possibly? Variations In Green L. Stewart (also in Introduction to Star Trek Fanzines)
References
- ^ from Pentathlon #3