James LeRoy "Rusty" Hevelin (February 16, 1922 – December 27, 2011) was a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

fan,

fanzine A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

publisher, collector and

huckster A huckster is anyone who sells something or serves biased interests, using pushy or showy tactics. Historically, the term meant any type of peddler or vendor, but over time it has assumed pejorative connotations. Etymology The original meanin ...

Career

Hevelin was an active member of the science fiction community from the early 1940s, publishing his own fanzines such as ''H-1661'', as well as contributing to many others. He had been Fan Guest of Honor and

Toastmaster Toastmaster is a general term, prevalent in the United States in the mid-20th century, referring to a person in charge of the proceedings of a public speaking event. The toastmaster is typically charged with organization of the event, arrangin ...

at so many

science fiction conventions Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expre ...

that everyone (including Hevelin) lost count. He was the Fan Guest of Honor at the 1981

Worldcon Worldcon, or more formally the World Science Fiction Convention, the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS), is a science fiction convention. It has been held each year since 1939 (except for the years 1942 to 1945, during ...

, Denvention Two (he had attended Denvention One in 1941). He was particularly likely to participate in panel discussions on the history of fandom and fanzines, and in panels of the form, "So: This Is Your First Convention? Here's What To Expect." Hevelin was the 1986 recipient of the Big Heart Award for service to the science fiction community. He was well known as a collector of science fiction materials, and was the recipient of

First Fandom First Fandom is an informal association of early, active and well-known science fiction fans. In 1958 a number of fans at Midwestcon realized amid table-talk that they all had been active in fandom for more than 20 years. This inspired the creati ...

's 2003 Sam Moskowitz Archive Award for excellence in science fiction collecting.

Legacy

Hevelin was one of the founders of PulpCon, an annual convention dedicated to

pulp magazines Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

. In 2012, PulpFest announced they would be renaming the Munsey Award, which has been given annually to a person who has given of himself or herself for the betterment of the pulp community. The new name for the award was to be the Rusty Hevelin Service Award. The Munsey Award survives, but the Rusty Hevelin Service Award has been introduced as a new award. His collection of pulps, fanzines, and science fiction books became part of the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

Library Special Collections and University Archives in April 2012. The library is digitizing the Hevelin Collection's approximately 10,000 fanzines, for the benefit of scholars and fans alike; and the Collection has its own frequently-updated

Tumblr Tumblr (stylized as tumblr; pronounced "tumbler") is an American microblogging and social networking website founded by David Karp in 2007 and currently owned by Automattic. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to a sho ...

page. The 2012

Liaden universe The Liaden universe ( or ) is the setting for an ongoing series of science fiction stories written by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. The series covers a considerable time period, some thousands of years in all, although since it also covers more ...

novel ''Dragon Ship'' by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller is dedicated to Hevelin (and to

Anne McCaffrey Anne Inez McCaffrey (1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011) was an American-Irish writer known for the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, ''Weyr Search'', 19 ...

). One of the

supporting character A supporting character is a character in a narrative that is not the focus of the primary storyline, but is important to the plot/protagonist, and appears or is mentioned in the story enough to be more than just a minor character or a cameo ap ...

s in the novel is a telepathic non-human creature named Havelin, described as graying (younger members of the species have rusty-colored hair), old and knowledgeable.Lee, Sharon and Steve Miller. ''Dragon Ship''

Riverdale, New York Riverdale is a residential neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the New York City borough of the Bronx. Riverdale, which had a population of 47,850 as of the 2000 United States Census, contains the city's northernmost point, at the College ...

Baen Books Baen Books () is an American publishing house for science fiction and fantasy. In science fiction, it emphasizes space opera, hard science fiction, and military science fiction. The company was established in 1983 by science fiction publisher an ...

, 2012; pp. 175 ''et seq.''

Personal life

Hevelin was a veteran of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

who served as a

Marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

in the South Pacific. After the war he attended

Antioch College Antioch College is a private liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1852 as a non-sectarian institution; politician and education reformer Horace Mann was its f ...

, where he knew

Rod Serling Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was an American screenwriter, playwright, television producer, and narrator/on-screen host, best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his anthology television series ' ...

and dated Coretta Scott (well before she met

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

). He had four grown sons, John, Scott, Bruce, and Will.

References

External links

Hevelin Fanzines transcription project
at the University of Iowa {{DEFAULTSORT:Hevelin, Rusty 1922 births 2011 deaths People from Imperial County, California Military personnel from California United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II Antioch College alumni Science fiction fans