DragonCon 2001

a review by Terry Weide

"gods and angels and devils smile"

Labor Day weekend-Friday, August 31st-Monday, September. 3rd.

In a perpetual party that ran from 10 a.m. to nearly 3 a.m. each day, the lobby of the Atlanta Hyatt was crowded with Klingons, Hobbits, elves, swordsmen, Trekies, Goths and Punkers, Storm Troopers, Batmen and Catwomen, Blue Meanies, Scots and Ghostbusters, Dawn look-alikes, and just plain fans. The crowd across the street at the Marriott was only slightly smaller as events were held at both hotels. Indeed, the total attendence was estimated at over 20,000.

The masses had assembled for three-and-a half days of panels and parties, gaming and movies, art shows and workshops, concerts and contests-not to mention Championship fantasy wrestling known as DragonCon. There were stories of wild sex in hotel rooms-many of which were true, and of book deals being inked in the Hyatt bar. The dealers's rooms were also packed, both with tons of fans and comics, T-shirts, books, swords and knives, leather gear, videos, art work, and of course, dragon memorabilia-mugs, sculptures, etc.

Among the host of sci-fi notables present were James "Scotty" Doohan, Elvira "Mistress of the Dark" Cassandra Peterson, writers Tim Powers, Robert Asprin, Harlan Ellison, and Laurell K. Hamilton; comics personnel Julius Schwartz, Greg Horn, Adam Hughes, and Joseph Michael Linser; and artists Don Bluth and Larry Elmore. Actors Erin Gray, Richard Hatch, and Dirk Benedict were also in attendance.

Music was provided by a variety of bands-THE CRUXSHADOWS, Godhead, The Changelings, Emerald Rose, and D.C. Moon among them.

While there were too many simultaneous events for one person to attend all of them, and not enough time to meet all the gathered celebrities, some of the fun moments were as follows:

James Doohan, who appeared for an hour on Friday morning at the TrekTrak, set the tone for the convention. Although not in great physical condition, he drove into the Hyatt's Regency VI ballroom on a motorized scooter and walked slowly to an easy chair on stage, Doohan kept the audience entertained.

He began by reminiscing about his experiences in WWII-he took eight machine gun bullets on D-Day, and after recovery and a transfer from the infantry to the air corps, earned the title "craziest pilot in the Canadian Air Force" for flying in a slalom-like manner in and out of telephone poles in the European countryside. Doohan also related his best moment as an actor may have been as a barrister in a play about Whistler. "James Doohan was superb," he quoted one reviewer as saying. In regards to "Scotty", he remarked that when auditioning for the role he said, "Well, if he's going to be a chief engineer, he'd better be a Scotsman," and proceeded to produce the appropriate accent.
Doohan concluded by saying, "Love is an important thing. I can safely say one of the main reasons I got anywhere is because I love you all." And for the most part, a feeling of good will permeated the con.

That is, except for the infamous Championship fantasy wrestling bouts that also took place in the Regency VI at 7:30 Friday evening. Here, professional wrestlers from the ECW, WWF, and WCW engaged in action that ranged from phony slaps and punches that missed by two feet, to brutal body slams and groin blows that didn't miss at all.

Another highlight later Friday night was the Elvira screening in the Hyatt's Centennial I room. There to plug her new movie, Haunted Hills, about a fun romp through the Carpathians, the Mistress of the Dark took questions from the audience before showing the film. One fan asked her, "What are your measurements and can I have a hug?" Her reply? "More than a handful, and no."

Other silliness occurred Sunday morning at an event dubbed "Iron Artist." Modeled on the TV show Iron Chef, the event was hosted by Harlan Ellison and Peter David. Don Bluth, well known for his work at Disney and Filmation, played the Iron Artist, and Larry Elmore, best known for his covers on the Dragonlance novels, was the challenger. Both artists were given a blank canvas and an hour in which to produce an original drawing. The subject for the drawing, as decreed by Harlan Ellison, was to be "cubism of the early Norman Rockwell era." Ellison produced a large black cube from beneath a gray robe he was wearing to illustrate his point.

While the contestants strove mightily to complete their works, Ellison and David provided comic relief by conversing in hokey Japanese accents and by heckling both the artists and a panel of four judges drawn from the audience.

At the end of a grueling hour of competition, Bluth was declared the winner. Elmore's
drawing was a more abstract rendition of an elf standing before a yellow American flag,
whereas Bluth had produced a truly cubist drawing of someone eating ice cream. Once again, the Iron Artist had triumphed.

Other interesting moments occurred Saturday evening on the X-Files Trak in which panel
participants shared "real life" ghost stories, and at the Klingon beauty contest held
Sunday afternoon. At this event, contestants were judged on beauty, talent, and personality. The talent portion ranged from Klingon opera to fighting and storytelling.
A more poignant instance occurred when one contestant related how being a Klingon had enriched her life and had given her a greater sense of honor and of being a part of a family. Unfortunately, as this reviewer is not versed in Klingonese, he cannot pronounce or spell the name of the winner, but her victory was glorious.

On the music scene, THE CRUXSHADOWS were an unquestioned hit. Performing at 11:59 p.m. Saturday in the Regency VI, the Florida-based Goth band had the audience rocking with pulsating rhythms. Lead singer's "Rogue's" voice was both edgy and challenging, and the violin work of Rachel McDonnell was a combination of the sublime and haunting. Stacey Campbell on guitar and back-up vocals and Chris Brantley on keyboards also performed extremely well.

The vocal and instrumental talents of the band members was reinforced with well written lyrics on songs like Tomorrow, "I'm not asking for favors/not tonight/I look up in the sky.../all the rockets fall down...fall down/too many promises/too many lies/too many faces for me to know" and Heaven's Gaze, "gods and angels and devils smile/stare into our crying eyes/fire in anger and hate beguile/but look into your heart tonight." These songs are available on the cd The Mystery of the Whisper.

Finally, for would be-writers, yes, the writers's track was also well attended. Here are some pertinent remarks by participants from various panels:

Robert Asprin: "I'm not here to boogey down." To Asprin, conventions are a professional opportunity to market both his books and himself to editors and fans.

"Horror can be defined by the amount of emotion it evokes in readers," Ginjer Buchanan, Believable Dark Fantasy panel.

Also on horror: "Fear is a renewable resource.", and "True horror is stuff that's meant to frighten-stuff that makes you shiver, that lingers days, weeks, after you read it. It's something that fills you full of dread." Laurell K. Hamilton, The Really Big Horror Panel (RBHP).

And: "The closer you get to the burning core, that cell in the basement (of yourself) that you won't go near and then look in, that's when you do horror." Harlan Ellison, RBHP.

Thomas E. Fuller: "I write for young adults because there's this weird idea that young adults have the attention span of a turnip. That's not true. There's no fans you can have like young adult fans. If they like your work, they'll quote from it. You can't find a more appreciative audience in this world if you write for them like they have half a brain in their head. If you want to write for (them) throw your mind back to when you were a kid and ask yourself what you liked to read." From the Harry Potter panel.

Tim Powers on surviving as a writer: "Research, research, research, and don't quit your
day job."

Gary Kim Hughes on plotting: "Plot is the fragility of the increasing rise and fall of
tension caused by character interaction." Plotting for Fantastic Fiction panel.

Rob Stone: "Villains obey a set of dictates that make consistent sense to them.", and "The best villains live in a symbiotic relationship with the hero." Bad to the Bone panel.

"I don't create characters, I get to know them," Jan Siegel, Bad to the Bone. She also remarked, "Villains often make the choices we don't for reasons we understand."

Other mentions: The Swordplay Alliance of Eddie W. Floyd deserves a nod. There for panel discussions and to give a performance with his students Monday morning, Floyd teaches fencing as a martial art, not a sport, and possesses superb martial arts footwork.

And an unknown band that performed late evenings near the Hyatt's Learning Center, drew a large crowd with songs like Used to be Cool, and Everyone I Know is Dead.

Despite all the fun and events, there was some grumbling from around the edges at D.C.

At the independent film showings, which were poorly attended, an opinion was expressed that independent film makers had gotten screwed at DragonCon because the screenings were placed in a back room at the Marriott. The feeling was that if the films had been placed in a central location, attendance could have been higher. However, one fan later remarked that the independent films never draw huge crowds. And this reviewer must admit that most of the works had limited, not mass, appeal, and that some, not all, quickly became boring. Still, it's easy to wonder if the films would have been better attended if they'd been closer to the main concourse in either the Marriott or Hyatt, or if their makers had tried to reach broader audiences.

Case in point: One of the most magical films shown at the con was the animated Castle in the Sky. Filled with improbable yet ingenious flying machines, sneering villains, a giant killer robot, and possessing a love story to boot, Castle is a creative masterpiece.
If more independent films strove for such originality and imagination, they would doubtless be better attended.

Another criticism concerned bootleg videos available in the dealers's room. At least one panelist on the writers's track expressed the opinion that convention organizers should ban dealers who sell such material.

There was also a rumor that the Friday midnight showing of The Rocky Horror Picture
Show turned into a cluster flop as fans from different areas of the country shouted conflicting phrases at the screen, and doubtless, at each other.

Minor complaints also included the fact that this year, fans carrying swords were not
required to bind their weapons with peace ties, and that convention staff, who religiously checked fans for badges as they entered main event rooms, were often unable to direct con goers to rooms where other events were held, even if these rooms were next door to theirs. A word to the staffers: familiarity with hotel maps is helpful.

Despite these criticisms, however, DragonCon was a success. To coordinate something of that size with all the simultaneous events and personnel present, was more than a small undertaking. That it came off as well as it did, and for the most part either met or exceeded expectations, and the fact that the vast majority of attendees had a good time, is a credit to the organizers-they also did many things right. Overall, then, the gods, angels, and devils were indeed smiling at DragonCon.

copyright c)2001 Terry Weide