Futurian War Digest
The Futurian War Digest (FWD, affectionately called FIDO) was a fanzine published by J. Michael Rosenblum during World War II from October, 1940 to March, 1945. It gained an extraordinary amount of notice by being regularly published for 39 issues under the most trying of times and with major paper and supply shortages. Many other fanzines were bound and mailed with FIDO giving it some of the properties of an APA. They were mostly single sheet zines that other fen published with whatever resources they could muster. Some were done on one side only – the other side possibly on printed second sheets sent by US fans or forms and flyers that were acquired by whatever means.
Its first issue carried a statement of purpose:
We have a twofold duty; (a) to give news of and to fandom, (b) to keep burning those bright mental constellations possessed by all fans. Both of these will be done to the best of our ability.
Rob Hansen writing in Then said of its 39-issue run:
This would be an impressive publishing record for a fanzine in any era but in the conditions existing during the war it was nothing short of phenomenal and its example inspired other British fans to continue with some semblance of fanzine production. Looking back on that period from our vantage point in the present its almost impossible to appreciate the magnitude of Rosenblum's achievement under conditions of immense personal and national hardship.
Included fanzines:
- Bibliophan – R. G. Medhurst
- British Fantasy Society Bulletin – D. R. Smith for the British Fantasy Society
- Cosmic Cuts – Gordon Holbrow
- Cosmos – J. Edward Rennison
- Dawn Shadows – James Parkhill Rathbone
- Delirium Tremens – Dennis Tucker
- Fan Dance – Sam Youd
- Galaxy – Terry Overton
- The Gentlest Art – Douglas Webster
- He Said – Ron Holmes
- Hellzapoppin – Douglas Webster (a letter supplement for The Gentlest Art)
- Interplanetary News – Dennis Tucker
- Lamppost – E. Frank Parker
- Mighty Atom – R. Rowland Johnson
- Moonshine – John F. Burke
- Review Section – Ron Holmes
- Sands of Time – Ted Carnell
- Star Parade Supplement – Ken Bulmer
- Tin Tacks – Donald J. Doughty
- Trivia – J. Edward Rennison
- Zenith – Harry Turner and Marion Eadie
| Issue | Date | Pages | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 V1.1 | October 1940 | 4 | |
| #2 V1.2 | November 1940 | 6 | |
| #3 V1.3 | December 1940 | 4 | |
| #4 V1.4 | January 1941 | 7 | |
| #5 V1.5 | February 1941 | 5 | |
| #6 V1.6 | March 1941 | 5 | |
| #7 V1.7 | April 1941 | 6 | |
| #8 V1.8 | May 1941 | 6 | |
| #9 V1.9 | June 1941 | 9 | |
| #10 V1.10 | July 1941 | 8 | |
| #11 V1.11 | August 1941 | 10 | |
| #12 V1.12 | September 1941 | 7 | |
| #13 V2.1 | October 1941 | 8 | V2.1 (Volume numbering begins here, but is sometimes mis-numbered) |
| #14 V2.2 | November 1941 | 6 | |
| #15 V2.3 | December 1941 | 6 | |
| #16 V2.4 | January 1942 | 8 | |
| #17 V2.5 | February 1942 | 8 | |
| #18 V2.6 | March 1942 | 8 | |
| #19 V2.7 | April 1942 | 8 | |
| #20 V2.8 | May 1942 | 6 | |
| #21 V2.9 | July 1942 | 10 | |
| #22 | August 1942 | 7 | |
| #23 V3.1 | October 1942 | 8 | |
| #24 V3.2 | November 1942 | 6 | |
| #25 V3.3 | January 1943 | 6 | |
| #26 V3.4 | February 1943 | 9 | |
| #27 V3.5 | April 1943 | 8 | |
| #28 | May 1943 | 6 | |
| #29 | July 1943 | 10 | |
| #30 | August 1943 | 10 | |
| #31 | October 1943 | 11 | |
| #32 V3.9 | December 1943 | 12 | |
| #33 | February 1944 | 12 | |
| #34 | April 1944 | 10 | |
| #35 V4.5 | June 1944 | 12 | |
| #36 V4.6 | August 1944 | 14 | |
| #37 V5.1 | October 1944 | 18 | |
| #38 V5.1 | December 1944 | 20 | |
| #39 V5.2 | March 1945 | 18 | Final issue |
- Futurian War Digest online at fanac.org.
- Online at Rob Hansen's website.
- A review of Futurian War Digest by Harry Warner.
| Publication | 1940—1945 |
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