The Federation Enquirer (Star Trek zine 1)
| Zine | |
|---|---|
| Title: | The Federation Enquirer |
| Publisher: | associated with Starbase Houston |
| Editor(s): | Pete Jamison ("Grand Wizard") and James Doyle (contributing editor) |
| Date(s): | June 1982 |
| Series?: | |
| Medium: | |
| Genre: | gen |
| Fandom: | star Trek: TOS |
| Language: | English |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Federation Enquirer is a 23-page Star Trek: TOS parody zine. It contains material about cons, poetry, and a "certain newspaper."
Origin
This project was originally concieved [sic] as away for Star Base Houston to make a little extra cash at HoustonCon. All we'd have to do was print are-tread "special edition" of all the stuff we'd done for the SBH newsletter, right? HA! Just a simple reprint run, right? YOUR MAMA! It evolved into an expensive and time-consuming mini-zine we wound up financing ourselves, thus becoming the first official endeavor of the infamous Doyle and Jamison financial empire.
Summary
Tired of good taste in fanzines? Looking for crass new concepts in the Trek parody? Got two bucks to blow? Search no further! The Federation Enquirer is a low-life compendium of reprinted submissions from the Star Base Houston Log. This rude and tacky volume chronicles the damage done to fandom thus far perpetuated by Pete Jamison and James Doyle. Features include phony zine ads, bogus convention reports, a take-off on Trek poetry that's long overdue, and Klingon Stoppers, the action-packed adventures of the Vulcan Dick Tracy! These fools even include a review of their OWN ZINE. Order now for the High Holy Days. [1]
Contents
- Preface (2)
- Feature Pages ("Chapel's Son Revealed!", "Spock Tells All!", "Your Hortascope", raising sea tribbles, more) (3)
- Klingon Stoppers Collected (8)
- MuddCon Coverage (flyer and con report for this satire of a con) (12)
- Obligatory Zine Review (a satirical review of this zine) (15)
- Technical Column Parody (16)
- Poetry Corner (includes "Spock's Release by Sandra Marshgrass and Myrtle Coldcut") (18)
- Sing Along with Trek, filks (20)
- The Official Trekker's Boozing Anthem, to the tune of "Oh Susannah"
- The Old Enterprise, to the tune of "The Old Rugged Cross"
- Dark Star Mission, as recorded by Jerry Jeff Skywalker
- Advertisement (22)
Sample Interior
Reactions and Reviews
This publication, which came out in late spring of '82, is a collection of Trek-oriented humor, the large percentage of which originally appeared in The StarBase Houston newsletter, The LOG. Let’s just say that this is possibly the BEST Trek-related writing of the past fifteen years, bar none. Feel free to burn you Blish novels, all of your Sahaj originals and your sneak autographed copy of the "Wrath of Khan" script. Certainly no other editor or editors have even come close to the superlative achievement amassed between these covers. James Doyle’s Klingon Stoppers, for example, a stunning piece of sophisticated irony, makes the collected works of Neal Adams, Oscar Wilde, Woody Allen and Winston Churchill pale by comparison. Pete Jamison's SING ALONG WITH TREK elevates filksong writing to artistic levels previously unattained. Judging from the selections chosen, the editors' cultivated taste in poetry is also evident.
We could hardly recommend a more entertaining comedy zine for the money. If you miss this one, don’t show your face around the Pulitzer committee again. We give it a TEN, it has a good beat and you can dance to it. [2]
If you enjoy spoofs, you'll enjoy this zine. The poetry corner offers such selections as 'Spock's Release' by Sandra Marshgass and Myrtle Coldcut, and 'Oh, Jim' by Mary Sue St. Vincent Millay. The poetry and take-offs on a con report (Muddcon) [3] and zine ad 'Spock's Brain' are hysterical. There's also your 'Hortaszope.' a comic strip 'Dick T'Racy,' a filksong selection, and various other cartoons and ads, all very funny. I loved this zine, and the humor doesn't fade after may readings. It's great if you need a laugh. I heartily recommend it. It's well-worth the two bucks. [4]