Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written
From: hoey@aic.nrl.navy.mil (Dan Hoey)
Date: 1995/06/13
Subject: Re: _Gauntlet_ article on Ellison (Was Re: Ellison apology to CJ)

With regard to the _Gauntlet_'s report that Ellison's appearance at
the Philadelphia Comicfest was not a lecture but a question-and-answer
session, c...@panix.com (Charles Platt) writes:

> This is untrue. It is one of many Ellisonian rewrites of reality,
> and I'm disappointed, but not surprised, that it has been presented
> as fact in Gauntlet magazine.

The relevant section of Cusick's _Gauntlet_ article is:

      The [_Journal_'s] implication that Ellison eagerly volunteered
  these stories is obvious and incorrect.  A videotape of the event
  clearly shows Ellison taking suggestions from the audience.
  During a lull in the action, between anecdotes, a member of the
  audience throws out a request:
      ``Tell the Charles Platt story!''
      ``Jesus!  God!'' groaned Ellison.  ``Tell the Charles Platt
  story!  You know the Charles Platt story?!''
      ``No!  No!''  The words rose from the crowd.
      Ellison mimicked an old Jewish man:  ``Tell the Charles Platt
  story!'' and then in a normal voice said, ``There was this guy...
  There was this guy named Charles Platt...'' [p. 111]

I didn't notice Cusick claiming to have personally listened to that
videotape, though.

> Ellison originally accused Gary Groth of PLANTING someone in the audience
> to ask questions which would "trick" Ellison into making statements that
> would get him into trouble. (Talk about conspiracy theories! The lengths
> to which Ellison will go, to make himself look like an innocent victim and
> evade responsibility for his outbursts, are really amazing.)

Well, Groth sold a lot of _Comics Journal_s on this story and its
sequelae.  It is not inconceivable that he would try to raise its
juiciness level, especially if he considers that Ellison's rudeness is
something that should be better publicized.  Though Cusick quotes
Groth's denial of having sponsored a shill.

> It so happens I have a tape of his rant at the comics convention.  There
> was some to-and-fro between Ellison and the audience, but no more than
> usual. It is *not* possible to hear anyone saying my name, other than
> Ellison himself, who says, "You've heard the Charles Platt story, haven't
> you?" And when he gets a few "no" responses, he launches in with gusto.

Could it be that there is more than one tape, and that the audience
prompt is audible on some tapes but not others?  Can you supply the
precise text of the above exchange from your tape?

> To suggest that Ellison needs to be provoked into maligning people
> is absurd....

That was not my contention.  The question is whether he needs to be
prompted to speak on subjects he has pledged to remain silent about.

> The obvious question is ... why would he ask the audience if they
> have heard "the Platt anecdote" as if it's already well-known?

The rhetorical nature of the question is plausible in the _Gauntlet_'s
version.

> Evidently because it *is* a known anecdote. Since no one else has
> been telling it, one can only conclude that Ellison himself has been
> telling it....

I don't know that no one else has been telling the story.  It may well
have been repeated by other witnesses, or anyone who heard the story
before the April, 1988 pledge.  So the conclusion does not follow
from it being a known anecdote.  It does, of course, follow from the
reports you claim to have heard of him using it ``as a staple of his
public repertoire.''

Dan Hoey
Hoey@AIC.NRL.Navy.Mil