The Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society
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Blog: The Fannish Pen
Tony Benoun remembered by Gallifrey One
January 25, 2024
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Throughout the year 1988, following the Doctor Who Traveling Exhibition’s visit to Los Angeles the prior October, scarcely a month went by at the meetings of our local Doctor Who club, the Time Meddlers of Los Angeles, without someone giving
The Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, founded Oct. 27, 1934, is the world’s oldest continuously active science-fiction and fantasy club. Comprised of both old and young fans alike, it has grown from its humble beginnings as a tiny literary discussion club into a lively social group of science fiction and fantasy fandom readers, writers, cosplayers and in some instances, professionals in the literary, movie and television industries.
Many of our members both run and volunteer at our annual West Coast Science Fantasy Conference (Westercon) and Loscon – the Los Angeles Regional Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention. These two long-running conventions are looked forward to every year, providing a place to hold science fiction, fantasy and genre art shows, charity fundraisers, blood drives and the renewing of fannish friendships of all types.
Over its long lifetime, the LASFS has weathered the storms of World War II, fannish politics, the 1992 L.A. Riots, the 1994 Northridge Earthquake and the 2020-ongoing Covid Pandemic. While the names and faces of its members may change, the bonds of friendship through our mutual love of science fiction, fantasy and the popular arts have allowed us to endure in an ever-changing world and will hopefully continue on into the far future.
(for a more detailed history of the LASFS, click here [coming soon])
Message from the chair
Welcome to the website of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, Inc.!
The LASFS, as we are familiarly known, has been around nearly 90 years, having been formed in 1934 as the Los Angeles Chapter of the Science Fiction League. Over the ensuing years, we survived the breakup of the League, began meeting every Thursday (doing so without exception ever since), added “Fantasy” to the club’s name, and incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. We were the first speculative literature club with our own Clubhouse.
Thanks to a suggestion by one of our distinguished members, writer Steven Barnes, we were able to transition smoothly from in-person meetings to virtual ones via Zoom when the Pandemic hit in early 2020. We are hoping to get back to in-person meetings, in rented quarters, until we can move full-time into a new Clubhouse.
LASFS members do not just come from Los Angeles, or even Southern California. We have members all over Planet Earth! Perhaps someday we’ll have members staying on the International Space Station, or even residing in colonies on the Moon or even Mars. We are a forward-thinking society!
Our members have participated in science fictional and fannish events all over the world.
Some of us have served on committees running conventions and conferences all over North America, Europe, Australia, and China. Our membership comes from a wide variety of backgrounds and occupations, including published authors, research scientists, physicians, lawyers, librarians, entertainment industry professionals — you name it.
I hope you will enjoy perusing our website. Our webmistress is constantly adding new content, so please return frequently!
Best wishes,
Matthew B. Tepper
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, Inc.
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