John Bangsund (1939-2020)

Australian editor and fan John Bangsund, 81, died August 22, 2020 of complications from COVID-19. He lived in Preston, Victoria, Australia.

Born 1939 in Melbourne, Bangsund was active in Australian fandom beginning in 1963, and was a driving force in the scene through the 1980s. He was crucial in organizing the 1975 Worldcon in Melbourne, and served as toastmaster there. He was a charter member of the Nova Mob, a member of the Melbourne Science Fiction Club and a founding member of the Australian and New Zealand Amateur Publishing Association. He co-chaired the Australian Natcon in 1970, and was fan guest of honor at the 1974 Natcon.

Bangsund edited numerous fanzines and apazines, including Australian Science Fiction Review (a Hugo Award finalist in 1967 and ’68, later renamed Scythrop), Philosphical Gas, Parergon Papers, and John W. Campbell — An Australian Tribute (with Ronald E. Graham), among others. He was newsletter editor for the Victorian Society of Editors.

In 1975, Bangsund was a finalist for the best Fan Writer Hugo Award, and was a Ditmar Award finalist four times (Australian SF Review won in 1969). He won an A. Bertram Chandler Award in 2001, and a FAAN Award for Lifetimes Achievement in 2016.

Bangsund was diagnosed with COVID-19 in mid-August, and his health rapidly deteriorated. He is survived by wife Sally Yeoland.