Palm Beach Con * 1/ Trekon Int'l 1975

On August 30 - September 1 1975, Star Trek Federation of Fans held a three day convention at the Colonnades Beach Hotel in Palm Beach Shores, Florida.   The con was to cover Star Trek, SF, and Comics with many activies going on.

Con Committee

Co-Chairmen --------------- John Ellis and Rick Coy

Secretary-------------------- Ruth White

Finances---------------------- Guy McIntyre

Art Show--------------------Carlene Gardner

Audio Visual--------------Howard Goldberg

Registration--------------Elaine Clipper

Con Staff Members

Ken Mitchroney             Bob Haupt                     Marcus Wielage                 Della Hawks

Caroline Moorer            Joyce Huser                 Bonnie Gardner                  Diane Farnsworth

Mary Raiman                 Marc Graham            Mary Polyniak                     Anne Malcolm

Miriam Martinez          Sara Sherman            Jeannie Tompkins                 Cathy Tortorici

Steve Torotoici              Dale Snodgrass

Special thanks was given to James Van Hise of the S.F.C.A. for help in preparing the program book.

The Cover was a painting called "Today and Tomorrow" © 1975 by C.C. Beck, the  back cover was "Night Before The Launch" © 1975 by Frank Kelly Freas.

Guests

George Takei - Lt. Sulu of Star Trek (at this time classic trek was all there was)

Noel Neill - Lois Lane to two Supermen - George Reeves on TV and Kirk Allan in the serials.

F. Kelly Freas - Hugo award wining SF Artist

Joe Green - SF writer and affiliated with NASA

Keith Laumer - SF writer best known for his Retief and Bolo series.

C.C.Beck - Creator of Captain Marvel (Shazam)

Jim Mooney - Artist of Batman, Spiderman, Tommy Tomorrow, Superman, Supergirl, Submariner and more.

Sondra Marshak -Editor of "Star Trek Lives"

Myrna Culbreath - co-editor of "Star Trek Lives"

Art Stark - Producer of the "Tonight Show" for over five years

T. Casey Brennan - writer for many comic books companies including Warren, Skywald, Red Circle and Charleton.

FILMS

Forbidden Planet                  It Came From Outer Space               Silent Running            Satan's Satellites

THEM!                                 How To Steal the World                    The Day the Earth Stood Still

The Wizard of Oz                RocketShip                                          The Spiders Web         Phantom of the Opera

Jason and the Argonauts               20 Million Miles From Earth          Mysterious Island

It Came From Beneath the Sea           7th Voyage of Sinbad                 Earth VS the Flying Saucers

A Serial Sampler with chapters from: Capt. Marvel, BlackHawk, Perils of Nyoka and others

A TV Sampler Including: Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Superman, Time Tunnel, Green Hornet and more

A Cartoon Sampler Including: Bugs Bunny, Roadrunner, Tom and Jerry, Donald Duck, Mighty Mouse and more

The Con as told by one of the CO-Chairmen over 25 years after the fact - so please forgive any mistakes.

We got to the hotel around seven on the 28th.  The con suite was to be ready for us that night so we could set up the next morning with no trouble.    The people at the desk acted as though they never heard of us and the person in charge of conventions had left for the day.  The room wouldn't be ready till the next day - about this time the owner of the hotel happened to come in and he knew one of the con committee members and came over to see what was up.  Once he learned   what had happened he got us another room.  We get everything to the room which included three 16mm projectors, a ton of 16mm films, program books, awards, badges, and so on.  We all decide were going to watch the Wizard of OZ - we had a NEW print of it for the con and we knew none of us would have a chance of seeing it when it was screened.

7AM we get our stuff and get ready to setup and we find out that there is another convention in the hotel and they have some of our space.  We need to be ready for registration by five PM and people would be getting in all day and we had to reallocate the rooms.  Only two rooms were effected - but one was our dealers room - which ment moving the dealers room to a smaller room with two other smaller rooms. (Luckily two dealers from New York wanted one of the smaller rooms to split between them and it made the other room work out just right)  We lucked out that George Taki and Noel Neil were on the same plane - so we had only one trip to the Air port.  Most of the other guest lived in Florida.  By then end of the night all our guest are in and a most of the dealers and we are starting to get in people who are staying at the hotel and want to make sure they are there  bright and early for the opening of the con.   The elevator to the con suite acts like it may die at any time.

7AM Saturday Morning - we are at go - We open registration at 9am and the crowd began.  By 10 we have the official opening.  Then the day gets crazy - it seems no one on the con committee get any free time - problem solving becomes an art.  We had our committee meeting at around 1am, so that we would be ready for the next day (HA)

The rest of the con was a whiz of things happening - Noel Neill almost getting hit by the movie screen in the grand ball room when it fell - George being fed by another guest at the con expense when we needed him for a TV appearance- a newspaper report that was done by a reporter who only saw a painting of a topless mermaid in the art show.

When all was done - we broke even - I think all who were at the con had fun and we were tired....

Anyone who was at the con, drop me a line at floridafandom@yahoo.com . Share some of your memories of this wild and weird con held over 25 years ago in South Florida...