Lan was the editor and publisher of Lan's Lantern, the Hugo winning fanzine known for it's special tribute issues in which the entire magazine was dedicated to the achievements of a single great author. Lan enjoyed a strong reputation in professional circles and displayed a consistent ability to attract contributions for his zine from well known authors. They regularly made themselves available to him for interviews.

Lan was a teacher in the mundane world and had remarried only a couple of years ago. He is survived by his wife and two step children.

Lan was the kind of fan we all should be. He was intelligent, easy to talk with and a good friend. He could be found regularly chatting in the halls of Context or Marcon or life guarding at the midnight swim at Chambanacon. He was a past Fan Guest of Honor at both Rivercon and InConJunciton. He was one of a kind.

Linda J. Dunn

The Shadow of Ararat" - by Thomas Harlan
A historical fantasy in which magic is a weapon of war. Rome needs a strategist in a war with Persia and Julius Caesar is merely dead. Why should that be an obstacle?

Lord Prestimion" - by Robert Silverberg
Majipoor a thousand years before Valentine.

Non-fiction:

"Journey Beyond Selene" - by Jeffrey Kluger
Satellites of other planets in our solar system are strange places full of beauty and danger. "Journey Beyond Selene" describes other moons and our efforts to explore them.

"Full Moon" - by Michael Light
Michael Light electronically scanned master negatives from several NASA missions to create these stark, clear images. This is a gorgeous book--a must-have for space fanatics.

"Becoming Human: Evolution and Human Uniqueness" - by Ian Tattersall
Explorations of our development into present day humanity.

From the attic came an unearthly howl. The whole scene had an eerie, surreal quality, like when you're on vacation in another city and "Jeopardy" comes on at 7 pm instead of 7:30.

The little boat gently drifted across the pond exactly the way a bowling ball wouldn't.

McBride fell 12 stories, hitting the pavement like a Hefty Bag filled with vegetable soup.

Her eyes were like two brown circles with big black dots in the center.

Her vocabulary was as bad as, like, whatever.

He was as tall as a six-foot-three-inch tree.

Long separated by cruel fate, the star-crossed lovers raced across the grassy field toward each other like two freight trains, one having left Cleveland at 6:36 pm traveling at 55 mph, the other from Topeka at 4:19 pm at a speed of 35 mph.

The politician was gone but unnoticed, like the period after the Dr. on a Dr Pepper can.

John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.

The red brick wall was the color of a brick-red Crayola crayon.

• Bicentennial Man
  Robin Williams, Sam Neill
  Based on the Isaac Asimov story of a robot determined to become human.
  Release: Dec. 25, 1999 or July 4, 2000

• Breakfast of Champions
  Bruce Willis, Albert Finney, Nick Nolte, Barbara Hershey.
  Based on the Kurt Vonegut novel about an SF writer and his one and only fan.
  Release: Unknown in the US but was scheduled for April 21 this year in France.

• Final Fantasy: The Movie
  Based on the game
  Summer 2001

• The Full Bounty
  Rumored to be a short comedy film, this could be a great feature for a con. The Star Wars bounty hunters, Boba Fett and others are out of work so they become strippers.

• Heavy Metal 2: F.A.K.K.
  Fall 1999

• Space Cowboys
  Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones.
  There's this malfunctioning 1960s satilite that could re-enter and cause a disaster. So they call up the only man who knows the old technology to fix it. One condition: his buddies who were passed over for astronaught training thirty years ago get to go too.

• Mothman
  Based on the east coast legend of a flying creature.

• The Crow: Salvation
  Spring 2000

• Ender's Game
  Presently in script stage this might star Jake Lloyd from Phantom Menace. Orson Scott Card is doing the script.

• New Rose Hotel
  Christopher Walken, William Defoe
  Based on a story by William Gibson. this one has been filmed but release date isn't known.

• Rendevous with Rama
  Morgon Freeman
  Still scheduled for Dec. 31, 1999

• Supernova
  James Spader
  Release: Oct, 8, 1999

• Universal Soldier: the Return
  Van Damm, again
  Aug. 27, 1999

• Titan A. E.
  Release: Sometime in 2000

• The X-Men
  Patrick Stewart as Professor Xaviar
  Planned for summer of 2000, this is still supposed to be in development but Corona already has a movie poster.

 1. How did you find out about your Deity?

     ___  Newspaper

     ___  Bible

     ___  Torah

     ___  Book of Mormon

     ___  Koran

     ___  Divine inspiration

     ___  Dead Sea Scrolls

     ___  My mama done tol' me

     ___  Near-death experience

     ___  Near-life experience

     ___  National Public Radio

     ___  Tabloid

     ___  Burning shrubbery

     ___  Other (specify): _____________

 

 2. Which model Deity did you acquire?

     ___  Yahweh

     ___  Father, Son & Holy Ghost [Trinity Pak]

     ___  Jehovah

     ___  Jesus

     ___  Krishna

     ___  Zeus and entourage [Olympus Pak]

     ___  Odin and entourage [Valhalla Pak]

     ___  Allah

     ___  Satan

     ___  Gaia/Mother Earth/Mother Nature

     ___  God 1.0a (hairy thunderer)

     ___  God 1.0b (cosmic muffin)

     ___  None of the above; I was taken in by a false god

 

 3. Did your God come to you undamaged, with all parts in good working order

    and with no obvious breakage or missing attributes?

     ___ Yes

     ___ No

 

    If no, please describe the problems you initially encountered here. Please

    indicate all that apply:

     ___  Not eternal

     ___  Finite in space/Does not occupy or inhabit the entire universe

     ___  Not omniscient

     ___  Not omnipotent

     ___  Not infinitely plastic (incapable of being all things to all creations)

     ___  Permits sex outside of marriage

     ___  Permits bad things to happen to good people

     ___  When beseeched, doesn't stay beseeched

     ___  Requires burnt offerings

     ___  Requires virgin sacrifices

     ___  Plays dice with the universe

 

 4. What factors were relevant in your decision to acquire a Deity?

    Please check all that apply.

     ___  Indoctrinated by parents

     ___  Needed a reason to live

     ___  Indoctrinated by society

     ___  Needed focus in whom to despise

     ___  Imaginary friend grew up

     ___  Graduated from the tooth fairy

     ___  Hate to think for myself

     ___  Wanted to meet girls/boys

     ___  Fear of death

     ___  Wanted to piss off parents

     ___  Needed a day away from work

     ___  Desperate need for certainty

     ___  Like organ music

     ___  Need to feel morally superior

     ___  Thought Jerry Falwell was cool

     ___  My shrubbery caught fire and told me to do it

 

 5. Have you ever worshipped a Deity before? If so, which false god were you

    fooled by?  Please check all that apply.

     ___  Mick Jagger

     ___  Rajanish

     ___  Baal

     ___  The almighty dollar

     ___  Bill Gates

     ___  Left-wing liberalism

     ___  The radical right

     ___  Ra

     ___  Beelzebub

     ___  Barney T. B. P. D.

     ___  The Great Spirit

     ___  The Great Pumpkin

     ___  The sun

     ___  Elvis

     ___  Cindy Crawford

     ___  The moon

     ___  TV news

     ___  Other: ________________

 

 6. Are you currently using any other source of inspiration in addition to God?

    Please check all that apply.

     ___  Tarot

     ___  Lottery

     ___  Astrology

     ___  Television

     ___  Fortune cookies

     ___  Ann Landers

     ___  Psychic Friends Network

     ___  Dianetics

     ___  Palmistry

     ___  Playboy and/or Playgirl

     ___  Self-help books

     ___  Sex, drugs, rock and roll

     ___  Biorhythms

     ___  Alcohol

     ___  Bill Clinton

     ___  Tea leaves

     ___  EST

     ___  CompuServe

     ___  Mantras

     ___  Jimmy Swaggert

     ___  Crystals

     ___  Crystal Gayle

     ___  Human sacrifice

     ___  Pyramids

     ___  Wandering in a desert

     ___  Barney Fife

     ___  Other:___________

 

 7. God employs a limited degree of divine intervention to preserve the balanced

    level of felt presence and blind faith. Which would you prefer (circle one)?

    a. More divine intervention

    b. Less divine intervention

    c. Current level of divine intervention is just right

    d. Don't know...what's divine intervention?

 

 8. God also attempts to maintain a balanced level of disasters and miracles.

    Please rate on a scale of 1 - 5 his handling of the following

    (1=unsatisfactory, 5=excellent):

 

    Disasters:

     1 2 3 4 5   flood

     1 2 3 4 5   famine

     1 2 3 4 5   earthquake

     1 2 3 4 5   war

     1 2 3 4 5   pestilence

     1 2 3 4 5   plague

     1 2 3 4 5   spam

     1 2 3 4 5   AOL

 

    Miracles:

     1 2 3 4 5   rescues

     1 2 3 4 5   spontaneous remissions

     1 2 3 4 5   stars hovering over jerkwater towns

     1 2 3 4 5   crying statues

     1 2 3 4 5   water changing to wine

     1 2 3 4 5   walking on water

     1 2 3 4 5   VCRs that set their own clocks

     1 2 3 4 5   Saddam Hussein still alive

     1 2 3 4 5   getting any sex whatsoever

 

 

 9. Do you have any additional comments or suggestions for improving the quality

    of God's services? (Attach an additional sheet if necessary.)