Fandom: Confidential ~ by Ron Frantz. Cover art by Pete Morisi. Midguard Publishing Co., 2000. Signed and numbered first edition. Limited to 750 copies. Cover price $14.95. Trade paperback, 212 pages, illustrated. This copy is brand new but very slightly musty from long term storage.

Not to be mistaken for "FANDOM CONFIDENTIAL," a fumetti-strip by Jim Engle and Chuck Fiala that used to run in The Comics Reader. Actually, there was apparently some friction between Jim Engle and Ron Frantz about the name but how anyone could claim to "own" something so obviously borrowed from Jack Lait and Lee Mortimer is beyond me.

FANDOM: Confidential is a historical documentary of fandom. Spanning over a century of activity, it presents a fascinating study of the genre, dealing with the factual, psychological, and sociological implications involved. Based on a personal knowledge of many of the people and situations, the book is written in an informal, authoritative style that moves the text along at a good clip. Over twenty years of research and preparation have gone into the writing and production of the book.

The author is a former Administrator of the now defunct WSA Program (1970-1984), a highly respected trade association with 1500 members scattered about North America and various parts of the world. WSA represented a wide variety of collecting interests: comic books, pulp magazines, science fiction, Star Trek, etc. Such prestigious members as Bob Overstreet, Bud Plant, Harry Hopkins, Alan Light, Meade Frierson, Jerry Bails, Stuart David Schiff, Bruce Hamilton, Richard Minter, Claude Held, Robert Bell, Bill Cole, Buddy Saunders, Jim Ivey, Nils Hardin and Forrest J. Ackerman achieved almost legendary status in their respective fields. Some are still active today. You can see my WSA seal at the bottom of this item description.

In his Introduction to FANDOM: Confidential, Robert Sampson writes:

"What follows is Ron's story--and this book. Here is his story of life behind the scenes at the WE-works. He was Administrator of the WSA, meaning that he straddled that prickly hedge of people and problems. He plunged into battles that shocked through collecting. He had daily portions of the wild men and wilder adventures in that hazy world where hobby collides head-on with business."

Some of the highlights include:

• Hugo Gernsback adds a letter department to Amazing Stories magazine in 1927. With Gernsback's encouragement, readers organize fan clubs...beginning what became science fiction fandom.
• Dr. Fredric Wertham writes a book entitled Seduction Of the Innocent. It begins a storm of public fury, culminating in a formal senate investigation of the comic book industry. These events lead to the formation of The Comics Code Authority.
• March 1961, Roy Thomas and Jerry Bails publish the first issue of Alter Ego, the first true comics fanzine.
• 1964. Steve Ditko appears at the first New York comic convention. He is the only professional who accepts the fan's invitation to attend. Ditko is so disenchanted by the experience that he has yet to attend another convention.
• Howard Rogofsky, well-known comic book mail order dealer, is chased from a New York convention by a dissatisfied customer brandishing a knife. It is said to be Rogofsky's last public appearance.
• 1970. Bob Overstreet publishes the first edition of The Official Comic Book Price Guide. As a result of artificial manipulation, comic book values inflate to astronomical proportions over the next several decades.
• A complete collection of Golden Age Captain America comics is stolen from Charles Rice at a 1970 convention in Oklahoma City.
• Stanley R. Blair publishes the first issue of fandom's first weekly advertising journal. Stan's Weekly Express, in 1969. Later known as WE, it is a major step in the evolution of an organized comics fandom. Noted subscribers included Bjo Trimble, Russell Myers, Walter Koenig, and Forrest J. Ackerman.
• The inside story about fandom's first major case of mail fraud...the infamous "Dryden Affair." It leads to the formation of the WE Reporting Bureau (WRB), an entity dedicated to the investigation and prosecution of mail fraud in fandom; and the WE Seal of Approval (WSA), which promoted fair play in the hobby and suggested professional methods of doing business by mail.
• As a result of complaints from various readers, Blair prohibits the advertising or sale of Underground comics in WE. It began a heated controversy that spread to the pages of other publications. Some fans complained that Blair violated the Constitutional rights of sellers and advertisers by his decision.
• Blair ends publication of WE in 1973. He begins operation of the National Central Bureau. WE's place in the market is assumed by The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom, published by 19-year-old Alan Light.
• Blair becomes embroiled in a bitter feud with the publishers of The Nostalgia Journal, an advertising journal later bought by Gary Groth and renamed The Comics Journal.
• Blair retires, appointing a new Board of Directors to manage WSA in the summer of 1974. Ron Frantz becomes Administrator.
• 1975. A teenaged comic book collector is robbed at gun point by a well-known dealer in a Dallas hotel room.
• Three national dealers engage in a public squabble over the sale of plastic bags used by collectors to store collectibles. It soon threatens to blow itself out of proportion to its real importance, inviting an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission.
• Frantz investigates multiple mail-fraud complaints against Carlos Johnson, of Bronx, New York. A lack of interest by the Postal Inspection Service leads to action by an Oklahoma Congressman, resulting in an investigation by The Federal Bureau of Investigation and a transfer of the case to the United States Justice Department.
• Frantz receives a "death threat" as a result of an article published in All About Star Trek Fan Clubs magazine, and a WSA investigation of several prominent Star Trek fan clubs and dealers.
• Jim Steranko causes a heated controversy in the pulp collecting field by publishing an article written by Terry Stroud, listing inflated values. Steranko ignores Richard Minter and other veteran pulp collectors asking for an opportunity to express an opposing viewpoint in Steranko's periodical, Mediascene.
• The WSA Program holds its first Board of Directors meeting at the 1976 Creationcon in New York. Fandom is shocked by an official WSA "endorsement" of Gary Groth and The Comics Journal.
• Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov becomes subject to a hoax orchestrated by a deranged man hoping to seduce a young female Star Trek fan. A national Star Trek fan association attempts to suppress a WSA investigation, fearing adverse publicity. Threats of lawsuit follow.
• Frantz resigns as WSA Administrator on December 31, 1977. He is succeeded by Harry Hopkins. Later, Hopkins engages in a heated imbroglio with Stanley Blair over the publication of The Fandom Directory. Before reaching its conclusion, a number of casual witnesses are dragged through a quagmire of governmental scrutiny, involving charges of conspiracy and an investigation of the principals involved by the FBI.
• Alan Light, publisher of The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom, feuds with various competitors. The most significant was Gary Groth and The Comics Journal. Events lead to a million dollar slander suit, filed by Light in 1984.
• And...MUCH more!

FANDOM: Confidential is a deluxe, softcover trade paperback, 5 1/2 x 8 1/2", squarebound with a slick glossy cover. It contains 200 pages of text, photographs, and rare or previously unpublished art by Alex Toth, Frank Hamilton, Don Newton, Russell Myers, Matt Feazell, Dan De Carlo, Richard Corben, and many others.

FANDOM: Confidential is a Limited First Edition of 750. Each copy is individually numbered and signed by the Author.

Introduction by Robert Sampson

Sampson's many articles about pulp magazines qualified him as a world-class expert. These articles appeared in such noteworthy publications as Xenophile, WE, Duende History of The Shadow Magazine, Pulp, Mystery Readers' Newsletter, Armchair Detective, and Marvel Comics b/w Doc Savage magazine. Other credits include fiction for Planet Stories, circa 1952. Sampson authored several books about the history of pulp magazines, including The Night Master for Pulp Press, and a series for Bowling Green University Popular Press, entitled Yesterday's Faces. These books are considered by many to be the definitive work on the subject. Sampson received the prestigious 1986 "Edgar" award for his short mystery "Rain in Pinton County." Sampson's Introduction is published posthumously.

Cover illustration by Peter Morisi

Morisi's comic book career spanned four decades, beginning at Fox Comics in 1948. His most prolific work was published by Charlton Comics from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. Other credits include comic book work for Marvel, DC, Gilberton, Comic Media, Harvey, Gleason, Quality, Fiction House, and Pines. Morisi is the creator of Johnny Dynamite and Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt. At the time of this writing, the Walt Disney Studio has signed an option to produce a Johnny Dynamite feature film.

Edited by Michael Ambrose

Mike Ambrose is a professional editor and writer, SF enthusiast, and comic book and pulp magazine collector. Under his Argo Press imprint he published the SF fanzine Argonaut from 1972 to 1995. He now publishes an occasional limited-edition SF trade paperback, most recently -Noctet: Tales of Madonna-Moloch- by Albert J. Manachino.

About The Author

Ron Frantz was born in Oklahoma City in 1953. He graduated high school in Bethany, Oklahoma, and attended Oklahoma City Southwestern Junior College. He served as Administrator of the WSA Program from 1975-77 before entering a career in retail management.

A lifelong collector of nostalgia, Frantz has been active in various kind of avocational activities, including the promotion of nostalgia conventions. He has appeared on numerous television and radio talk shows and has lectured about nostalgia at libraries and universities. Frantz has been a columnist for The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom (1975-77) and The Comics Journal (1977), and has published articles in The Fandom Directory, Compass, The Journal, the IFICC Newsletter, and numerous other fan publications. Other writing credits include newspaper advertising copy, television commercials, and gag material for a newspaper comic strip. A recent article about artist Steve Ditko appears at Blake Bell's "Ditko Looked Up" web site.

Frantz was Editor and Publisher of WE, Official Organ of the WSA Program (1975-77). Later, he was Editor and Publisher of ACE Comics (1986-87), producing such comics as What is the FACE, Return of the Skyman, The Adventures of Spencer Spook, Robin Red and the Lutins, and The Cosmic Book, with art by Steve Ditko, Pat Boyette, Alex Toth, Joe Gill, Frank McLaughlin, and many others.

Currently, Frantz resides in the scenic Ouachita Mountains area, near Mena, Arkansas.

• Paperback: 212 pages
• Publisher: Midguard Publishing Co.; 1st edition (February 15, 2000)
• ISBN: 0967827302
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Out-of-Print