Duckon
From WikiFur, the furry encyclopedia.
Duckon is an annual science fiction convention held every June in the Chicago area. The name is a reflection of the convention organizer's suburban roots, a shortening of DUpage County KONvention (DuPage County being located just west of Chicago).
Duckon is also notable because it is a fundraiser for Super-Con-Duck-Tivity, an organization that is known worldwide for its Golden Duck Awards for excellence in children's science fiction literature.
[edit] History
The first Duckon was held in 1991. The first three Duckons were chaired by Candis King, wife of Robert King. Duckon 3 was the first year that the convention had a furry track of programming; that furry track grew over the years and eventually split off in 2000 to become its own convention: Midwest FurFest. Since 2003, various people including Chouette, Barbarian, and Robert King have put together a small slate of of furry-related panels at Duckon each year.
- The 16th Duckon, themed "The Duck Side of the Force", was held on June 8-10, 2007. The guests of honor included author Alan Dean Foster and Laura MacLeod of World Bird Sanctuary.
- The 17th Duckon, themed "The Maltese Duckon", was held on June 13-15, 2008. The guests of honor were author Elizabeth Bear, musicians Jeff & Maya Bohnhoff, and "mad scientist" GoH Dr. Samuel "Uncle Kage" Conway.
- The 18th Duckon, themed "A Duck Oddity", was held on June 12-14, 2009. The guests of honor were author Jim Butcher, Loren Damewood, Michael Harrington, writer and musician Seanan McGuire, Sue Blom and Diana Fox.
- The 19th Duckon, theme to be determined, will be held June 18-20, 2010. The guests of honor are Scott Raun, husband and wife authors Steve Miller and Sharon Lee; and Filk musician Talis Kimberley.