Balticon

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Please improve this article if you can. (May 2008)
Balticon
Status Active
Genre Science fiction
Location Maryland
Country Flag of the United States United States
First held 1966
Organizer Baltimore Science Fiction Society
Official website

Balticon is the title of the Maryland Regional science fiction convention, sponsored by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society (BSFS). BSFS has held Balticon annually since 1966. Due to the venue’s popularity and success, BSFS trademarked the name, “Balticon.”

Contents

[edit] History

Prior to 1966 BSFS held an annual event for the election of BSFS Board of Directors. After several years, BSFS rented hotel space and invited an author to speak, as a guest of honor, at its election events. From this point forward, the event became an annual convention known as Balticon. Subsequently, BSFS election functions were moved to a different date.


[edit] Recent Conventions

  • Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle were the guests of honor for Balticon 41 (May 25 - 28, 2007), held at Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD
  • Connie Willis was the guest of honor for Balticon 42 (May 23 - 26, 2008), held at Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD

[1]

[edit] Activities

Balticon brings together hundreds of science fiction professionals and creative amateurs with well over one thousand SF fans for a yearly event held inside a hotel in the Baltimore area. Before 2001, Balticon was held on Easter weekend to take advantage of lower hotel costs; however, in 2001 Balticon moved to Memorial Day Weekend and expanded to a four day convention. Unlike other SF conventions on holiday weekends, Balticon uses all four days to deliver over 300 hours of program and tends to run 24 hours a day from Friday at 1:00pm till 5:00pm on Monday. BSFS presents the Compton Crook Award for best first novel in the genre during Balticon.

Besides panels by authors debating every literary and philosophical principle imaginable, Balticon features programs on:

  • anime
  • film
  • music (including filk music)
  • science discoveries
  • game show style trivia contests
  • a huge art show and Masquerade
  • poetry and prose writers' workshops
  • charity auctions
  • dances
  • live theater
  • role playing games/live action roleplaying
  • dealers room

Image:Baltcn36 06 medm.jpg

[edit] References

  1. ^ A History of Balticon: http://www.bsfs.org/bconhist.htm

[edit] External links

[edit] Early Conventions

[1]

Event Date Location Guests (listed GoH)
Balticon 1 abt. 1967 The Emerson Hotel, Baltimore MD. no guest of honor
Balticon 2 abt. 1968 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Samuel R. Delany
Balticon 3 abt. 1969 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. L. Sprague deCamp
Balticon 4 abt. 1970 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Damon Knight & Kate Wilhelm
Balticon 5 abt. 1971 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Harry Harrison
Balticon 6 Washington's Birthday Weekend, 1972 Hopkins Hilton Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Gordon R. Dickson
Balticon 7 Washington's Birthday Weekend, 1973 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Poul Anderson
Balticon 8 Washington's Birthday Weekend, 1974 Lord Baltimore Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Frederik Pohl
Balticon 9 Easter Weekend, 1975 Pikesville Hilton Hotel, Pikesville, MD. Hal Clement
Balticon 10 April 16 - 18, 1976 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Isaac Asimov
Balticon 11 1977 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Philip Jose Farmer
Balticon 12 March 24 - 26, 1978 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Anne McCaffrey
Balticon 13 April 13 - 15, 1979 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Poul Anderson
Balticon 14 April 4 - 6, 1980 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Algis Budrys & Sean Spacher
Balticon 15 Easter, 1981 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. John Varley
Balticon 16 April 9 - 11, 1982 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Samuel R. Delaney
Balticon 17 April 1 - 3, 1983 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Baltimore, MD. L. Sprague deCamp & Catherine Crook de Camp
Balticon 18 April 20 - 22, 1984 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Parke Godwin
Balticon 19 Easter Weekend April 7-9, 1985 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. R. A. MacAvoy
Balticon 20 March 28 - 30, 1986 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Nancy Springer
Balticon 21 April 17 - 19, 1987 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Roger Zelazny
Balticon 22 April 1 - 3, 1988 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Spider Robinson
Balticon 23 March 24 - 26, 1989 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. C. J. Cherryh
Balticon 24 April 13 - 15, 1990 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Robin McKinley
Balticon 25 March 29 - 31, 1991 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Nancy Kress
Balticon 26 April 17 - 19, 1992 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Donald Kingsbury, Christopher Rowley, David R. Palmer, Sheila Finch, Thomas T. Thomas (Wren), Christopher Hinz, Elizabeth Moon, Josepha Sherman and Michael F. Flynn
Balticon 27 April 9 - 11, 1993 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Allen Steele
Balticon 28 April 1 - 3, 1994 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Mercedes Lackey
Balticon 29 April 14 - 16, 1995 Lord Baltimore & Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. James P. Hogan
Balticon 30 April 5 - 7, 1996 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Robert Jordan
Balticon 31 March 28 - 30, 1997 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Glen Cook
Balticon 32 April 10 - 12, 1998 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Harry Turtledove
Balticon 33 April 2 - 4, 1999 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. David Weber
Balticon 34 April 22 - 23, 2000 Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Octavia Butler
Balticon 35 May 25 - 28, 2001 Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Hal Clement
Balticon 36 May 24 - 27, 2002 Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Mark Rogers, Phil Foglio & Kaja Foglio
Balticon 37 May 23 - 26, 2003 Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Steve Miller & Sharon Lee
Balticon 38 May 28 - 31, 2004 Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Lois McMaster Bujold
Balticon 39 May 27 - 30, 2005 Wyndham Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore, MD. Steven Barnes & Tananarive Due
Balticon 40 2006 Hunt Valley Inn, Hunt Valley, MD. Neil Gaiman