HMGS News

Courier Dispatch

by Dick Bryant

HMGS EAST has appointed a new editor for the newsletter, Bruce Milligan will replace Pat Condray with the issue after Historicon. Pat has been editing the newsletter about from its inception. Bruce has a professional editing background, having edited a sports gaming magazine. Readers of The Courier will remember Bruce's contributions to these pages. HMGS is the founding organization of HMGS. To join write to Dick Sossi, c/o The Ship & Soldier Shop, 58 Mryland Ave., Annapolis MD 21401.

Pat Condray took umbrage at my thumbnail sketch of the beginnings of HMGS in the last issue. Though a little artisitic liscence was taken, I didn't beleive I was that far off the mark, You be the judge:

    I note with alarm that you seem to have done away with Dick Bryant and continued to use his name for cover. In issue number 57 on page 62 under HMGS NEWS, the imposter makes some claims about HMGS which Dick, if he were alive, would know to be false.

    HMGS was in fact formed in 1981 to further the historical miniature gaming hobby. Historical miniature gamers were in fact getting short shrift from the frippers and tidily-wink pushers at the major conventions. The rest of your statement is more or less fantasy, as the real Dick Bryant would have known.

    The major thrust of HMGS was to improve the showing of historical miniature gaming at the major conventions of what was termed THE GREATER WORLD OF ADVENTURE GAMING, or TWAG for short. The first such effort involved Walter Simon, for HMGS negotiating with Bob Coggins, representing ATILANTICON to support ORIGINS 82 by organizing and promoting historical miniatures involvement.

    The first HMGS miniatures only convention was approved at the membership meeting at ORIGINS 82. The purpose was to hold a small off season convention, designated the Historical Miniatures Mini Convention, or HMMC. We wanted to have fun and make money with a small off season affair (since we got very little out of our support for TGWAG). HMMC #1 was held the last weekend of FEB 83. We had fun and made money, and have been doing it ever since.

    Our primary effort, of course, was to play a big role in TGWAG, showing the flag for historical miniature gaming. To that end, Walter Simon negotiated with the only mid-Atlantic coast TGWAG convention organizer in the summer of 1983, one Dr. Alan Barwick, who was holding something called EASTCON. Dr. Barwick declined to provide suitable facilities or expenses, so he was allowed to hold his own convention without our interference. Dave Waxtel and company filled in with a predominately historical convention, NYCON 83, that summer.

In 1984 another historical miniatures only convention was held - HMMC #2 which increased from just under 300 to nearly 500 attenders of all types, from 9-11 March, outgrowing the facility in Alexandria VA. The plan at that Ume, ardently supported by the REAL Dick Bryant, was to have HMGS support historical miniatures gaming at ATILANTICON 84 in preparation for support of ATLANTICON's ORIGINS 85 at the University of Maryland Baltimore Campus (UMBC). Unfortunately, in spite of Dick Bryant's best efforts, the ATILANTICON management proved intractable. Their representative even claimed to have told Dr. Barwick that HMGS wasn't worth the expenses. HISTORICON 84 was an afterthought, arising from the realization that HMGS could obviously hold great conventions (each better than the last) but was losing the prime summer months due entirely to the intransigence of TGWAG. It was held from 27-29 JUL 84.

HISTORICON 84, held in "The Bunker", an underground parking garage turned into a convention center by the Sheraton of New Carollton, was a great success, drawing nearly 900 people. This was the first HMGS HISTORICON (I'm told that the YANKEE DOODLE Hobby Shop in Kansas City held one earlier). However, HMGS remained committed to collaboration with TGWAG. Bob Coggins was elected to our Board of Directors to work with ATLANTICON to support historical miniature gaming at ORIGINS 85. In deference to ORIGINS 85, there was no HISTORICON 85, showing the lingering emphasis on collaboration in the HMGS convention program. Collaboration with ORIGINS 85 was successful but has not been repeated by HMGS East.

HISTORICON 86 returned successfully to The Bunker in 1986, drawing nearly 1,000 people, However, problems with that facility as well as an attractive offer from Joe Pfadt , a gamer who was also an officer of the PENN HARRIS INN at Harrisburg, PA led us to move HISTORICON 87 to that location. I had run the conventions up to then but Bob Coggins agreed to take over when they moved north. HMMC #5 (1987) and #6 (1988) remained on the Beltway at the Ramada Inn across the beltway from The Bunker, but nearly 900 people attended the 1988 affair. In desperation, Mike Montemarano took charge and sought quarters with more space. What would have been the 7th HMMC moved to the Turf Valley Inn near Baltimore. Mike renamed the thing COLDWARS in honor of the season and the fact that none our conventions remained "mini". After Mike moved things to the PENN HARRIS both conventions continued to grow until it became necessary to move to larger facilities (The Lancaster Host in Lancaster, PA).

HMGS did not start off to hold historical miniatures only conventions, nor was HISTORICON the first such or COLD WARS the second. All of these facts would have been well known to the real Dick Bryant. If you impostors do not satisfactorily account for the whereabouts of Dick Bryant this disappearance and your subsequent impersonation will be reported to the FBI for criminal investigation. - Pat Condray, HMGS Director, Convention Honcho, and Editor (Ret.) W.K.P.P.

HMGS MID-SOUTH Had a succesful con - Nashcon 92 - in which they recruited 70 new members to up their membership to 375. A 20% increase in one convention! They elected a new board of directors: Maj. Bill Harting, Bob Duncan, Gerald Swick and Buddy McPeak. This one of the more active HMGS groups with a lively monthly newsletter that contains gaming articles as well as news ofthe organization. If interested in joining write to 101 Taylor Rd. Estill Springs, TN 37330.

HEART OF AMERICA HMGS They also provide a newsletter with gaming articles. They had Don Featherstone at their Call To Arms Convention earlier this year' Having lost money at their last convention due to an increase in hall rental fees, they increased their con fees slightly this year. To join write to 10721 N. Walnut, Kansas City, MO 64155

Courier Dispatch News About the Hobby.

Back to Table of Contents -- Courier #58
To Courier List of Issues
To MagWeb Master Magazine List
© Copyright 1992 by The Courier Publishing Company.
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com