WorldCon: Science fiction’s biggest stage comes to San Jose

Thousands of fans and creators are gathering in San Jose this week for WorldCon 76, a global celebration of science fiction and fantasy that includes the presentation of the prestigious Hugo Awards.

“I like to describe it as the World’s Fair of fandom,” said Kevin Roche, and IBM engineer who is chairing the volunteer-driven event in San Jose. “It is fans and pros coming together socially and sharing the thing they love.”

One thing Roche and other WorldCon organizers emphasize is that it’s not like San Diego’s Comic-Con International or any of the other numerous fan-driven conventions that have sprouted as geek culture has gone mainstream. You won’t find major movie studios touting new releases with flashy exhibitions or lines of TV and movie stars posing for photos with fans who paid a premium for the privilege.

Instead, this is the convention where it’s been said that if you’re sitting in a pub next to someone who looks just like George R.R. Martin, chances are good it’s really him. And, yes, the “Game of Thrones” creator is in San Jose for the convention, where he’s scheduled Thursday to talk about “Night Flyers,” the new series based on his novella, and to sign autographs during the weekend.

“It is so much larger than the local conventions we have here in the Bay Area,” said Debbie Bretschneider, who was part of the San Jose team that won the bid for WorldCon two years ago and has been to several of the events in other cities. “I really enjoy it because it’s more international flavored than the science fiction conventions that are local. For us that have been going to WorldCons for a long time, the Comic-Cons feel like johnny come latelys. It’s a different fish.”

One of the guests of honor in San Jose is Canadian science fiction writer Spider Robinson, whose stories featured one of the genre’s most celebrated venues, Callahan’s Place, a bar where the regulars include time travelers, extraterrestrials, mythological figures and even a talking dog. He’ll be interviewed onstage Friday at 2 p.m. and fans can visit a replica of Callahan’s Place on the convention floor.

WorldCon is also paying tribute to the late Bob Wilkins, the famed host of “Creature Features” and “Captain Cosmic,” who introduced a generation of Bay Area fans to science fiction movies throughout the 1970s. A collection of movies and shorts championed by Wilkins will be showcased in a “Creature Features” celebration Friday night.

Those two topics are just the tip of tentacle, with dozens of panels and workshops going on all weekend on topics ranging from “How Gaming is Important to Fandom” and “Contemporary Crypotgraphy” to a “Geek’s Guide to Literary Theory.” There are also concerts, film festivals and a charity auction that will benefit the Alzheimer’s Association (and includes a signed set of hardcovers of Martin’s “A Song of Ce and Fire” series). And, of course, there will be costumes.

The Masquerade — with cosplayers in original creations or based on favorite characters — will take place Saturday night in the convention center’s grand ballroom. People watchers will no double be able to catch fans in costume throughout the day.

But the biggest event of the weekend will no doubt be Sunday night’s presentation of the Hugo Awards — essentially the Oscars of science fiction — which honor the year’s best work in science fiction and related genres appearing in print, movies, TV, art, podcasts and more. This year’s nominees include episodes of NBC’s “The Good Place,” movies like “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” and Jordan Peele’s “Get Out,” and Brian K. Vaughn’s highly lauded graphic novel series “Paper Girls” and “Saga.”

As an added bonus “retro” Hugo Awards are being presented for work created in 1942, as the Hugos — named for Hugo Gernsback, founder of the sci-fi magazine “Amazing Stories” — weren’t started until 1953. The nominees for retro awards in dramatic presentation include “The Ghost of Frankenstein” and “Bambi.”

For fans who want to attend, admission is granted through membership in the World Science Fiction Society, not tickets. But memberships — including single-day memberships for $50 to $80 — are available at www.worldcon76.org or at the convention center.

“It’s all the things we love mashed into one place. That’s what we’re doing here,” Roche said. “All of the fandoms are invited into the big tent.”

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