A long time ago… when coin-operated Xerox copiers were the highest of high tech in an otherwise drearily lo-tech world, and versatile home computers were still a wet dream…fans of science fiction brandished colored paper, scissors, glue sticks, staplers, ring binders, pens and ink—to boldly go where no man (or woman) had gone before: the late-70’s / early-80’s science fiction fanzine. With both feet planted firmly within their own earnest interpretations of graphic styles of the present (particularly romance novel cover paintings and, to a larger extent, high school yearbook page layouts), these thrifty fans nevertheless weren’t afraid to look forward at what other people in the present thought the future might look like one day. And they drew, cut and pasted everything they saw. The homespun tomes would lay prostrate, arranged according to genre (each wrapped in glistening shrinkwrap, and hope…and maybe a little bit of The Force), usually splayed across unfolded card tables at science fiction fantasy conventions, hawked quietly by costumed fans planet-wide. These self-published nuggets might have disappeared down a black hole if it hadn’t been for the archive-ally inclined internet, which simultaneously revolutionized science fiction fandom while obliterating many of its older styles…forever. Click (more…) below for a kaleidoscopic cover gallery of pure past paper magic—with web links guiding you to names, dates, auctions, sales and the occasional full-disclosure. [WARNING: about 150 small images will load]

Early fanzines based on Logan’s Run (info on these titles can be found at Vikki’s City of Domes):

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Early fanzines based on Star Trek (info on these titles can be found at Ankh Press, New Eye Studio and one here):

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Early fanzines based on Star Wars (info on all these titles can be found at SandCrawler.com):

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Early fanzines based on Dark Shadows (more info on these titles can be found at Inside The Old House):

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Early fanzines based on Dr. Who (more info about these titles can be found at DrGaz’s Stuff and The Time/Space Visualiser Archive):

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Early fanzines based on Quantum Leap (info on these titles can be found at Outpost Mavarin):

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