Visions was an annual

science fiction convention 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 expres ...

held from 1990 to 1998 in

Rosemont, Illinois Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located immediately northwest of Chicago, as of the 2010 census it had a population of 4,202. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that. Whi ...

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden and ...

weekend. The convention was held at the

Hyatt Regency Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels, resorts, and vacat ...

O'Hare except for the 1992 event which was held at the

Ramada Ramada is a large American multinational hotel chain owned by Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. As of December 31, 2018, it operates 811 hotels with 114,614 rooms across 63 countries under the Ramada brand. Name The ''Ramada'' name derives from t ...

O'Hare. The convention was originally called Visions but was renamed HME Visions in 1998. It was also known as "A British TV Celebration" before its first event. The convention was founded by retired fireman, electrical contractor, and long-time Doctor Who fan Robert H. McLaughlin III of

Hoffman Estates, Illinois Hoffman Estates is a village in Illinois, United States. The village is located primarily in Cook County, with a small section in Kane County. It is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 52,530. The village now serves a ...

. He organized the 1990 ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' convention to raise money for

Lambs Farm Lambs Farm is a non-profit organization near Libertyville, Illinois, that provides vocational and residential services for over 250 adults with developmental disabilities. Located on a campus, Lambs Farm includes several family attractions, such as ...

. The convention was run by McLaughlin with a committee of about twenty plus fan volunteers (''gophers'') recruited at each event.Various program booklets. Over time the convention expanded from a ''Doctor Who'' convention into a celebration of British TV shows. While the main focus of each convention was ''Doctor Who'', ''Visions'' often invited actors from ''

Blake's 7 ''Blake's 7'' (sometimes styled ''Blakes7'') is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. Four 13-episode series were broadcast on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. It was created by Terry Nation, who also wrote the first ...

'', ''

Red Dwarf ''Red Dwarf'' is a British science fiction comedy franchise created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, which primarily consists of a television sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999, and on Dave since 2009, gaining a cult following. T ...

'' and ''

Robin of Sherwood ''Robin of Sherwood'' is a British television series, based on the legend of Robin Hood. Created by Richard Carpenter, it was produced by HTV in association with Goldcrest, and ran from 28 April 1984 to 28 June 1986 on the ITV network. In the ...

''. ''Visions '93'' celebrated the 30th anniversary of

and the 15th anniversary of ''Blake's 7''.''Visions '93'' program booklet.

Convention events

Panels

The main attraction of each convention was the hour-long question and answer sessions with the celebrities. There were also smaller gatherings run by fans called fan panels.

Variety show

The cabaret (renamed "variety show" in 1992) was 90-120 minute show featuring celebrity guests performing a variety of acts. A separate admission fee was charged for this event.

Dealers' room

Video rooms

Video rooms (one in 1990, two thereafter) ran television shows and movies, concentrating on programs that attending celebrities appeared in. A third room featuring fan-made videos was added in 1996.

Autographs and photographs

Each fan was given the opportunity to meet the celebrities and receive and autograph and a photograph.

Costume contest/masquerade ball

Art show

Auction

Each year fans participated in an auction of science fiction memorabilia. Proceeds went to

and the

Make-A-Wish Foundation The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages of and 18 years old. Make-A-Wish was founded in 1980 and headqua ...

Gaming

Publications

Program book

A program book was given to each attending fan. The book included biographies of the guests, a map of the hotel, a schedule of the weekend's events and general convention rules.

''ReVisions'' was published 4-6 times a year and contained news about the past and/or upcoming convention.

Rookie guide

''The Visions Rookie Guide'' was written for first-time attendees of ''Visions''.

Websites

The original website was at http://www.xnet.com/~tardis. A second
http://hme-visions.com
was added in northern autumn 1998.

Merchandise

T-shirts

T-shirts featuring that year's logo were available for purchase by mail or at the convention.

Videos

Video tapes of selected panels and variety shows were available for purchase by mail.

Special events

* Attendees of ''Visions '92'' were given the chance to help in the development of the Doctor Who pinball machine. At least one machine was available for play during the convention. * To celebrate the 30th anniversary of

the BBC broadcast a specially-made episode called

Dimensions in Time ''Dimensions in Time'' is a charity special crossover between the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' and the soap opera ''EastEnders'' that ran in two parts on 26 and 27 November 1993. It was filmed on location at Greenwich ...

. Producer

John Nathan-Turner John Nathan-Turner (''né'' Turner; 12 August 1947 – 1 May 2002) was an English television producer. He was the ninth producer of the long-running BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. He was also the final producer of the series' first ...

brought a copy to ''Visions '93'' and showed it Friday and Saturday nights. As the episode was made in 3-D, special glasses were sold for the viewings with the proceeds going to Children in Need. * The 1996 convention saw the premiere performance of Mysterious Theatre 337 (MT337). An homage to

Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. ...

, MT337 performed to

episodes instead of

B movie A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

s. Additional performances occurred in 1997 and 1998 and continue at

Chicago TARDIS Chicago TARDIS is an annual North American science fiction convention focusing on the British television series ''Doctor Who'' and related programs, held the weekend after Thanksgiving in Chicago. This event has been rated among the top five conv ...

and

Gallifrey One Gallifrey One is an annual North American science fiction convention focusing primarily on the British television series '' Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs, ''Torchwood'', '' K-9'' and ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'', with an additional emphasis on ...

Other conventions

''Visions'' followed earlier conventions held in the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

area around Thanksgiving. ''Brit TV'' was held in 1988 (in

Lincolnwood, Illinois Lincolnwood (formerly Tessville) is a village in Niles Township, Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 13,463. An inner suburb of Chicago, it shares its southern, eastern, and a small section of its west ...

) and 1989 (in Rosemont, Illinois). Spirit of Light Enterprises ran Doctor Who conventions in the mid-1980s. Following the demise of ''Visions''

took over the Thanksgiving slot beginning in 2000.

Notes and references

External links

Mysterious Theatre 337Chicago TARDISGallifrey One
{{DEFAULTSORT:Visions (Convention) Defunct science fiction conventions in the United States Conventions in Illinois Recurring events established in 1990 Recurring events disestablished in 1998 Doctor Who fandom 1990 establishments in Illinois 1998 disestablishments in Illinois