Postby FinderDoug » Tue Aug 31, 2010 11:32 am
I can't compete with the Summit, so I'm not posting this over yonder until probably after the weekend. But the i’s are dotted and t’s crossed and so, now, a story with a purpose; it’ll be familiar to some, but indulge me:
THE STORY: In April 1995, coinciding with the release of Dream Corridor #1 and the Special issue, Dark Horse had a little contest with their distributors, my understanding of it thus: the area distributor that pre-ordered the highest number of the books would get in-store appearances by Harlan Ellison. The Northern VA area won, and Harlan came to VA to do three or four signings over two days (I believe it was four, two on each weekend day). I found out about a month ahead of the appearance (thank you, Washington Post), called my partner in crime Bernie (that’s Xanadu to youse old-timers), and we decided this was a good time to finally stand in the man’s autograph line. We'd both been reading his work for years at that point.
This was not so far removed from the first publication of “Xenogenesis”(August 1990) that the essay didn’t still resonate. Bernie expressed a want to do something nice for Harlan, a token, a little sumfin’ to illustrate there were fans in the 95% to whom the essay DIDN’T apply that ‘got it’. And the back cover of the Special had blurbed the classic “where do you get your ideas?” bit; and Bernie was working in his father’s jewelry/clock/engraving business at the time, and they had a wonderful computerized laser engraver. And I had a light-bulb moment and asked Bernie whether the engraver could, hypothetically, be used to etch something onto a can…
We were off, as they say, to the races.
Six silver aluminum cans received a high gloss black finish; and into this finish was engraved the logo, government warning, and UPC code of "the Original Idea" - fine product of the Original Idea Company of Schenectady, NY. (Five of them, anyway; the sixth was a variant, the Original Rotten Idea, "because everybody has to have one once in a while"). These were slipped back into their plastic ring holder, made their way to Virginia, and were presented to Harlan in the signing line on King Street in Alexandria, VA. The table was in front of the Italian restaurant next to the comic store, both of which are still there.
Harlan ADORED them. The exact quote, repeated several times, was “This is fucking great!" Poses were struck, pictures were taken, kindnesses exchanged. We probably held up the line for fifteen minutes. I believe Barney may have been responsible for shipping them back to Ellison Wonderland, or at least offered to take care of that, but the memory is hazy and I defer to Barney to color in that blank. In addition to Harlan, I believe this was the first time I met both Barney and Tim.
(The “Doomsmen In Chains” came after that, but that’s another pop-art Ellison story for another time…)
The sharp-eyed viewer can see Harlan's six-pack in Dreams With Sharp Teeth during the initial trip through Harlan’s office, on the left, on a shelf below some of his Hugo awards, next to the 3D tableau of the Guardian of Forever.
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And now, THE PURPOSE OF THIS STORY:
Everything is currently on track for delivery, so I feel confident now announcing:
Bernie has gone back into the archives and resurrected the design to craft a one-off second edition version of the Original Idea can, which will be offered at the MadCon auction.
This is a single can, created in the same fashion and by the original artisan (and on the same laser engraver, actually) as Harlan's 1995 gift six-pack. It is identified as a second edition in the labeling, but is also distinguishable because the 1995 set was created from 12 oz. cans, whereas this one is a 16 oz. (the nineties were a less thirsty time, apparently).
It is the only one being offered for public sale - a single proof-of-concept will be generated and placed into our creative archive, so to call this “one-of-a-kind” would be misleading, but it's effectively the only one to be had. This is also the final time we're dusting off the logo and graphics, strictly as a one-off for Madcon 2010 and what Harlan claims is his last fandom rodeo. I will endeavor to provide a picture (of the first edition, at least) so you can see what it looks like. COA included.
And that's our contribution to the MadCon auction. It's a neat homage to Harlan and his creativity, and at the end of the day it's a really nifty bauble for the bookshelf. To the benefit of the charities involved, we'd love to see it go to a good home.