SFScope friend Andrew Porter sends word that Dick Spelman is gravely ill. He gathers several reports here:
Pat Sims writes: “Dick Spelman was put in our local Hospice after about ten days in the hospital… Although, the cancer has not spread, they seeemed unable to knock it out and the radiation had caused damage so that he had great difficulty eating, lost more weight and became frailer and frailer. He was admited to the hospital last week after collapsing and they discovered pneumonia. He was on a ventilator for three days, but were able to disconnect it without distress. He was transported this evening to the Hospice Center—West Volusia Care Center, 1625 Veterans Memorial Pkwy, Orange City, FL 32763—which is just down the street from us and so [we] can visit easily.”
Judith Bemis adds, “Dick is hanging on, but probably for not too long. Many of you will remember him from his book selling business at SF cons, which he sold to Larry Smith and Sally Kobee several years ago.”
Fancyclopedia 3 writes: “Dick Spelman is a legendary book dealer (he hates the term ‘huckster’) who was active at SF conventions from the late 1970s through the early 1990s. His brother, Henry Spelman was a member of the Stranger Club. Dick attended Chicon II in 1952 but did not do much in fandom until many years later. He chaired Windycon IX in 1982, was a member of the board of directors of Chicon IV and ran the dealers’ room at many Worldcons. In 1991 he sold his book business to Larry Smith and retired to Orlando, where he has been active in local fannish circles.”
The photo (above) is from Stromata, showing “Retired huckster Dick Spelman pushes t-shirts at Oasis in Orlando. Dick always preferred to be called a ‘dealer’ rather than a ‘huckster’, but one doesn’t want to give the local authorities the wrong idea about his merchandise.”
Updated March 7, 2012: Dick Spelman passed away about 6PM on March 6th.