Andrew Ian Porter (born March 24, 1946) is an American editor, publisher and active science fictionfan.
Background
Born Andrew Ian Silverberg on March 24, 1946, in Detroit, Michigan, he moved to New York City with his mother and brother in 1956 upon the death of his father the previous year. His name was legally changed in 1964 when his mother remarried.[1] He was a student at Milford Academy, which at the time was operating as a boys'prep school.
Fandom
Porter entered science fiction fandom in 1960. He had been calling science fiction writers in the Bronx and Manhattan telephone books to discuss science fiction, and Donald Wollheim put him in touch with local science fiction fandom in New York City. He became active in fan groups including the Lunarians, FISTFA (the Fannish Insurgent, Scientifiction Association) and the Fanoclasts, then hosted by Ted White. In 1960 he had his first news-related column on upcoming paperbacks, printed in James V. Taurasi's Science Fiction Times.[2]
He published many different fanzines, beginning with Algol, including the newszine S.F.Weekly from 1966 to 1968. He started his semiprozineScience Fiction Chronicle in 1979. He has attended hundreds of science fiction conventions and nearly 40 World Science Fiction Conventions (Worldcons) since his first in 1963. He worked on conventions in the US, Canada and overseas, and was on the central committee of the 1967 Worldcon, NYCon 3. With John Bangsund, he was responsible for Australia hosting its first Worldcon. He was Fan Guest of Honor at several conventions, most notably the 1990 Worldcon, ConFiction. He won the fanzine Hugo in 1974 for his fanzine/semiprozine Algol (later renamed Starship), and the semiprozine Hugo in 1993 and 1994 for Science Fiction Chronicle. He has a total of twenty-three additional nominations for Best Fanzine or Best Semipro Zine.[3] In 1991, he received a Special Committee Award at the Worldcon, for Distinguished Semiprozine Work; in 1992 he received a Special British Fantasy Award. He sold Science Fiction Chronicle to DNA Publications in May 2000 and was fired in 2002. In 2006, he was diagnosed with liver bile duct cancer, for which he was operated on successfully in 2007, followed by five months of chemotherapy. He is now cancer free. At the 2009 Worldcon in Montreal, Anticipation, he received the Big Heart Award.[4] In 2010, he finally realized his dream of going to an Australian WorldCon, AussieCon IV.