Now that's just sad. I'm a fan of Mr. Harlan and his work, but I do believe it's time for him to call it a day as far as personal appearances go. If he can't even muster a facade of courtesy and patience anymore, then a con of any size is no place for him. Especially if he actually does have genuine health issues.

Mr. Ellison has been like this from day one. Don't give him the excuse of senility/ill health.

My personal sole experience of Harlan came ten years ago at AggieCon 40- when he was brought back after, apparently, being a GoH or something forty years prior. (I confess I wasn't much paying attention- I was much more interested in Terry Pratchett, also a GoH that year.) They gave him an award out of respect for being one of their earliest GoHs...

... and his acceptance speech was a profane (though tame, I'm told, by his standards) denunciation of the AggieCon organizers for being so stupid as to give him an award.

Yeah.

I can believe it.

I remember the run in he had with the Penny-Arcade guys.

My house mates are big fans of his. to me the bastard cant die soon enough

may i suggest a .50 caliber enema?

How about a straight jacket for him, a padded wagon and a rubber room.

Gezz... was he really THAT full of bile?

Wow... what a jerk....

ew such a queen

His last con? That's too bad. I saw him at DragonCon about fifteen years ago - where he was behaving badly as usual, even at one point jumping down from the stage and trying to start a fistfight with some poor kid in the audience. Ever since then I've wanted to see him in person again.

...So I could stand in the back of the room (ready for a quick escape) and loudly ask "Excuse me Mr. Ellison - I've downloaded a full collection of your work from he internet, but I'm still missing some of the cover art. Do you know where I could download that too?"

I...don't think I've ever heard of this guy before, but if this is how he's really like, I don't think I'd want to buy his books either O.o;; Holy crap =P

Harlan Ellison is also known for writing the first version of a Star Trek episode script called City on the Edge of Forever, where someone Kirk fell in love with had to die or else Hitler would've won the war. He also wrote I think two episodes of the black and white version of the Outer Limits series. One episode was Demon with a Glass Hand, which won various awards. He also wrote another Outer Limits episode that he felt the first Terminator movie was derivative of (he won and "Acknowledgement to the works of Harlan Ellison" appeared in the credits when I watched the movie on television). A friend of mine kept recommending I watch the anime series Evangelion so I finally did and then the last episode was called The Beast That Shouted Love at the Heart of the World, which surprised me since that is also a Harlan Ellison short story and I learned the anime title was an homage.

Yep... Demon with the Glass Hand is a classic.

But, if you ever watch the original Star Trek, the episode called "City on the Edge of Forever" was based on one of his short stories (and he adapted it for the show).

Only good think I remember him saying in an interview was encouragement to SciFi readers to pay more attention to foreign science fiction writers (stating some good authors are there, and get little attention).

My only encounter with him was when I was asked to video tape his panels at a tiny con in Bellevue, WA. I made a four DVD set of the 9 hours I had edited the con down to, but he never got back to me until years later and then refused to pay me a $5 a dvd copy fee. At least he paid me back for my tape stock but the hours of taping and editing are lost. And yes, it was the con where Mike and Jerry and him had words. I never signed anything regarding the videotaping so I wonder who really owns the footage...

I'd end up cutting him...

I'll let Harlan defend himself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj5IV23g-fE

I agree with his points here, but a person doesn't have to be an explosive and abusive ass-hole (at conventions) to get that point across. His words get dismissed as violent rants before anyone actually listens to them.

Remind me who this guy is again? I swear I've heard his name before somewhere...

I said that to him once at a con, the man damn near flipped out.

*grins* i'd do that just to see the reaction.

That doesn't tell me much I don't already know. =P Screw it, I'll go Google him.

...wait.

*checks*

Oh hell. No wonder the name was familiar! He did "I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream"! And I only know this from watching a Let's Play of a computer game based on that short story (loosely, anyway; he kinda rewrote the plot for the game).

Huh. I had heard the guy was an SoB, which is why he did such a phenomenal job as the voice of AM, the sociopathic supercomputer. Didn't know just how bad he was.

He wrote some pretty good science fiction stories back in the 60s, some claim they were bround-breaking visions in the field. He wrote a nifty episode of Babylon 5. The only other memorable things about him is his bad behavior at cons and his cultivation of personal grudges against just about anyone he has ever met.

If you want to wind him up, ask him when the Last Dangerous Visions book will be published.

...who the hell is Harlan Ellison?

Yep, Harlan's curmudgeonly, all right. Though, the one time I've seen him speak at a sci fi con, he told a few cool stories about his own life.

This guy is really full of shit. Honestly. I write and everything else and if/when I get famous I am going to look at all the shit that he did..

And do 100% the fucking opposite.

Y'know I don't care if this idiot curses, that's fine.. cursing in front of children? Hitting on female cashiers? No. Someone like that deserves to get a bat taken to their nuts and hit 'em so hard they'd be in his fucking throat.

And if this asshole snatched my celphone and broke it? I'd hit him with so many damned lawsuits that his children would be feeling it.

And just for spite: http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/473.....e__The_-_Vol_1
http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/537.....29%5Bdvdrip%5D

There you go. If you wanted to read more of his shit and not pay for it.. there ya go. Have fun.

Good to be self important...

Never heard of him. Rabbi, you would whoop his ass lol.

Also why didnt someone call the cops. If someone broke my phone, cops. For real.

If he smashed my phone they'd need cops and an ambulance. He wouldn't be going with the cops.

Hmm.. sounds like an over egoed asshole.

Oscar Wilde, more than a hundred years ago, defined this man perfectly.

Some people cause happiness wherever they go. Others WHENever they go.

See - in Australia, someone would actially punch himin the head for that sort of behaviour...


I have to say I oly ever brushed up with him profesionally once, and was disgusted by his egotism.
- So were the other film people in the area - which is why he's never been asked back into film work...

Amazing! How come this kind of stuff never happens when I go to cons?

Cause you aren't an asshole douchebag like Harlan.

No, I meant as a spectator! I've never had the courage to work a table...

Just being anywhere in the same con as the man can be entertaining. I've met him a few times, remained polite and avoided having him ever go off on me. But watching him rage can be entertaining to watch. Like a train wreck at a clown college.

Yeah, everyone I've ever heard speak of meeting Ellison has described him as a grade-A assclown. It's a shame, really.

Isn't Niven in the same boat? I heard he was a bit of an ass as well in person. If that is the case what is it about Science Fiction authors that makes them think they can get around with this stuff?

I think that most of them are decent sorts, but some folks will always let even a little fame go straight to their heads.

oh that is probably true, I mean it even happens here in the furry fandom (though I don't anyone specifically who does it)

About all I've heard of Niven, regarding cons, is he tends to drink a bit too much. Likely to get over having a hard time with being in large crowds.

That "Manic" appearance you visually describe in top middle panel... That... is close to what I saw on the TV interview I mentioned in the prior comment.

I think you truly captured..., "HARLAN."

Anyone who thinks that you have to pay to take a picture of them is, frankly, an asshole. Nuff said.

To be fair, there is good reason for it if you want to limit the sheer number of people asking to take picture/have picture taken with you. Price is deterrent, and thus you keep open the option for fans who REALLY want it anyway while still finding time to do other things at a public appearance, i. e. breathing.

But it passes all comprehension for me to think that there's actually enough demand for a photo of Harlan to justify paying for snapshots.

(Unless they're all for dartboards. I could understand that.)

You cannot copyright your likeness. Period. Harland Ellison is just outright wrong. Even stars know this.

Ah, good ole Harlan.

if he did that to me im certan i would have smacked him especily if he distoyed my propaty

Yep, that's Harlan all over.

Why on earth did this con make him guest of honor knowing what kind of douche bag he is? I'm surprised he wasn't assaulted for his bad attitude.

I have run into his type. The woman who played Daisy Duke from the TV series was bitching at people for taking her picture at Comicon inside the dealers hall less than 10 years ago without paying her first. It's like lady, you aren't a beauty queen any more. You are old get over yourself!

Had Lou Farigno pull that on me at Dragon*con, and Mister T at SDCC....Assholes are assholes, some excel at the talent.

Thing is Harlan, even though he's a notorious asshole, is a magnet and will bring in people to the con, especially at news this is his last con ever. The con committee usually turns a blind eye and nods.

When did you go to DC? ?_?

my last time was in 97.

Which is about the last time I can recall seeing you in person. You need to come back, at least for a one-day visit, and see how its grown.

There are more habitrails now, so its possible to move between four of the five hotels, plus food court, without ever going outside. And the food courts now stay open 'till midnight while the con is running.

P.S. Bigger is not necessarily better, but its not necessarily worse either - but it certainly is different.

Thing is, its a 1000 miles from me and Atlanta, so a one day visit is out of the question.

I can understand this guy wanting to be paid for PRODUCING something, sure... but for photographing him? SCREW that! Your photons are ALREADY in my eyes and taking up space; you should be paying ME for that storage!

...what a freekin' ingrate.

... wow. Don't think I've read any of this guy's stuff, and after this, I doubt I ever will.

Harlan is a class act of assholery!

Taral "  Saara " Wayne recently posted a reflection on his own relationship (Such as it is) with Harlan. Y'might find it interesting (Assuming you haven't already seen it)...

that would tear into a volunteer who was gathering stuff for the con charity. A volunteer that was not doing any pressure just asking a simple yes and no because he heard of other dealer complaining no one came to their table last year.

Sometimes people just fly off the handle like that.

Shoulda snapped off a picture anyway, then run away shouting "I stole his soul! I stole his soul!"

I did get a shot of him heiling the Jewish guy.

I'm an author and very practical about the job. Yes, successful writing takes a certain gift, but I never thought I was hot stuff for it. There's a lot of work and sacrifice that goes into making a piece, and you've got to keep a real perspective about it if you're going to survive. I knew Ellison was a jerk when I learned that his royal self righteousness claimed he could write a best seller in an hour, and if one could not meet that lofty bar, then one did not deserve to be an author. Just so we're clear: If you can't write banal TV scripts, preachy sci-fi horror tomes that see more use as lining for hamster cages, and self-serving treatise on how SFWA screwed you over because it didn't jump in the ring to earn you copyrights that were never yours, in an hour, you aren't deserving of the opportunity to make a living with your words in Harlan's universe.

I'm sorry you guys had to be exposed to that.

I dunno... If a person were to act that way, I don't CARE how famous or celebrated his craft is, I'm sure he'd be politely asked to leave the con. Then again, I get the impression the Con was kind of a "Sleeper" to begin with. In the long run, lack of recognition and appreciation would probably tell anyone that they'd better cool it with the hostility toward the guests and fans. (Perhaps Mr. Ellison wanted to be someplace else than there.)

What a coincidence, Jim!
I never met the man in person but I did mail him the original to this: http://www.mistythemouse.com/Misty20040315.html
He ended up calling my home phone one day trying to thank me in person. With that said here's the mp3 Farx recorded when I put the phone up to my answering machine: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1830756/

One man's asshole is another man's rimming jar...

do you think anyone would get upset if someone at a con tossed this guy into a trashcan?

He must have a field day with security cameras....with them "stealing" from him and all....

Oh, Harlan. It's odd that I've never seen him actually go berserk since I've seen him so often. Then again, when I was 11 he told me he might be my father. Mom actually has a signed picture of her holding his Hugo while he talked to someone. People are negative now, but there was a time when they lined up to be abused. Decline isn't the reason he's obnoxious, it's just that he isn't popular enough to get away with it anymore. On the other hand, the main reason why I'm sad to see him go is because I never got a chance to tell him that I'm a big fan but hadn't gotten around to reading his books yet, but once I was done with Modesitt I'd get right on it.

If ever someone needed backhanded and shoved into a burning car, it's Ellison.