The Friends
of the Pascagoula Public Library decided to promote literacy in Jackson County in
a novel way and cleverly held a mini science fiction convention toward that
goal. Ghoula-Con was on 26 January 2019
(from 10 to 3) at the Pascagoula Public Library on Pascagoula Street in
Pascagoula MS. Hey, that makes it pretty
easy to remember: Pascagoula, Pascagoula, Pascagoula. It’s kind of like saying “Beetlejuice” three
times.
My CoastConFan
blog photographer, Michael W. Moses and myself saddled up to attend the
convention that morning. After a brief
run across the Pascagoula River and down to the old part of the city of Pascagoula,
which used to be called Scranton (before 1912).
Upon
arrival, we discovered a meeting room for panels, a trivia contest, a
cosplay/costume contest. Additionally in
another meeting room, there were vendors who sold comic books, ice cream and costume
items, among other items of interest to the attendees. The rest of the library was taken over by the
convention. Unrelated was the Saturday
meeting of a chess club, which seemed nonplussed with the convention.
This
convention had something extra in the ambiance, it just happened to have cases
and cases of books for decoration. It’s
a library after all. Talk about getting
back to your fannish roots. One of the
main attractions at this convention was the preponderance of costuming activity
for all ages. One of the attractions was
a panel featuring Calvin Parker. Among
UFO authorities, he is well known as part of the duo that was abducted from apier on the Pascagoula River one evening on 11 October 1973.*
We had a great time as did most of the folks that attended the convention. Oh yeah, this convention was free to attend! How often do you get that much fun for free? I’d like to thank the Friends of the Pascagoula Library and the Library Staff for putting on this mini-convention and giving the staff of CoastConFan blog unlimited access. We look forward to their next convention, although it will be hard to top this excellent beginning. Below are some photos taken at Ghoula-Con.
CoastConFan
* Charles Hickson passed away in 2011, leaving
Calvin Parker the sole survivor of the incident. Calvin made a speech to a small, intimate
group just a short way from the spot they were abducted. In his humble way he told a story about an
incoherent and inexplicable night that took him decades to partially
disentangle. It was a tale told without
embroidery, a simple story from a simple man who was still looking for part
himself nearly a half century later. Mr
Hickson has recently published a book, breaking a long silence on the
subject. He had a few he brought along
with him, which to his surprise sold out quickly at the convention.
