Hurricane Harlan

[puppetmaker]

Harlan Ellison is a writer who has been a writer for a very long time and he'll be glad to tell you all about it. Listening to Harlan is listening to a bit of history with an edge. I never know what he is going to say but I know I'll have some reaction to it. Harlan is a force of nature and he proved it yet again last night.

This weekend Harlan is one of the guests of honor at I-Con on Long Island. It is the first time I have seen Susan and him in about 5 years. I can time it down pretty well since Caroline was a little over 4 months last time they saw her which is the last time I saw them in person. One of Peter's first panels at the convention was entitled "An Hour with Harlan and Peter" which is always fun to hear how the two of them play off of each other.

At one point Harlan was talking about the David family and he asked how big Caroline had gotten. Peter pointed to the back of the room where we were seated and Caroline ran down to the stage. Harlan stood up and held his arms open ready for a hug and Caroline, the Master of Comic Timing, ran right by him and into her father's lap. She did, later that panel, give Harlan a big hug. She showed Harlan her precious pink blankie that Harlan and Susan had gotten her. Well worn is a kind way of describing the condition of this blanket. She and Harlan got on well with each other.

After the talk, Peter and Harlan went to sign books and other items for the fans. The set up had a nice nook for Caroline to play in while the signing was going on. She drew pictures and worked on her letters for quite a while. But the signing was pushing into its second hour and I could see the signs of Caroline starting to meltdown so I took her and a very tired Ariel home. I went back to pick up Peter and got to have some uninterrupted conversation with various adults I knew there which was nice.

Today I have my what is a Puppet demo and tomorrow I am making paper bag puppets with the kids. Caroline is looking forward to seeing her pal 'Rina who is really Ariel's bestest buddy. Peter has a couple of panels and he is driving Ariel to her bowling competition later this afternoon. I'm hoping to see some old friends this weekend too.

I am grateful for something Harlan said last night.

Comments

[kittenboo.livejournal.com]

harlan ellison sounds familiar, i'll have to look him up, i think i've read something of his

[thenodrin.livejournal.com]

Warning, somewhat long story (although I hope it is interesting):

I was a huge sci fi fan who had actually read very little of Harlan's work. But, my current wife and I were attending Dragon Con years ago and he was a guest of honor for a celebrity dinner. I bought the two of us tickets.

Turned out the celebrity dinner was a roast. It was awesomely entertaining. Afterward, we left the con to hit some book stores and get one of his short story collections, we found Angry Candy. The next day, while I was doing something for the RPGA, my wife stood in an autograph line.

There were two lines, one for Peter and one for Harlan. She got in line for Peter to get his autograph for me on a copy of Trancers IV. And, the two of them let her have Harlan's autograph for herself in the short story collection without going to the back of the other line.

When we divorced, I kept the Trancers autograph, and she kept the Angry Candy autograph. I went to a Waldenbooks to try and replace the book after I was settled in my new home. I had forgotten the title, and couldn't find anything Ellison on the shelves. I asked the girl behind the counter, "Do you have any Harlan Ellison books?"

The girl asked me, "We might. Who does him?"

I couldn't help myself: "Mrs. Ellison."

She wasn't nearly as amused as I was.

Theno

[kittenboo.livejournal.com]

thats an awesome story, thanks for sharing!

[querldox.livejournal.com]

OK, I know Harlan must have said something after Caroline went to Peter instead of him...what was it? : -)

If you get the chance, please tell Harlan and Susan I said hi.

[chris-walsh.livejournal.com]

But...but... there can't be anything positive on the Net about Harlan! /kneejerk hate

Not that Harlan needs me defending him, but I've defended him to various people online and in the flesh who had a mad-on for the guy, or at least a very distorted image of him. It helps that I'm acquainted with multiple friends of his, and see the friendly and generous side of him that a lot of people don't (or refuse to) see. Yay that you guys got to see him!

So Caroline's funny? I'm not surprised. In fact I'm happily not-surprised.

Signed,
Someone who's met Harlan in person once and seen him speak twice
(and who's using his Baron Munchausen icon because of how much Harlan raved about the film back in the day)

[readinggeek451]

Sorry I missed you. When was your puppet demo? I didn't see it in the program.

Ah, Harlan...

[lyonessnyc.livejournal.com]

Ya know, I've always liked Harlan. And he's always been nice to me. I've known too many people who've despised him, personally and professionally, and I've never seen that side of him. well, once. But never directed at me.

I'm *so* bummed to miss seeing him this year. I never saw him yesterday, and I'm not coming back to the con today. If I'd been able to come back today, I'd have brought him White Castle burgers again. [g] (He once went to his knee to thank me for bringing him White Castles...made an entire autograph line go "Buh!")

It was so nice seeing you and being able to spend some time shopping yesterday! Those Star Trek greeting cards are just so awesome. I was really impressed with the dollmaker you introduced me to, also. Gorgeous work!

[wherdafux-d-cat.livejournal.com]

The look on HE's face when Caroline ran past him must have been priceless!