Besides convention directors, the most underappreciated job in the wargame world has to be editor/publisher. Late with an issue? Grab the farm implements and torches! Only one article on your favourite period? Sharpen up the pointy sticks! No articles on your favourite period? Put the pokers in the fire! So it is nothing short of amazing that someone can consistently publish a magazine every other month for 100 issues. And the current issues, at 192 pages, cannot help but thrill the subscribers because they contain multiple articles of interest from a variety of viewpoints and interpretations of military history, scenarios, gaming, and products. Furthermore, not only does this magazine function as a sort of crossroads of ideas and news, it serves as a friendly forum for those wishing to share their analysis and opinion. MWAN, at issue 100, continues to inspire. From its earliest days as a mimeograph quality newsletter to its current incarnation, Hal Thinglum deserves enormous credit for pulling together a cornucopia of information issue after issue. To get to issue 100 of any publication is itself an accomplishment, but to increase the page count and frequency along the way is a testament to fortitude. So, I'm dedicating this installment of Wargame Magazine Review to Hal and MWAN. I'm sure Hal will talk about beginnings and goings on over the last 17 years, and I look forward to hearing about it--especially the early days of #1-#16, as I only have from issue #17 onward. Although my timeline can't do full justice to the effort expended in publishing MWAN, it'll show you what you can "do" if you are always "doing." Here's the text of a news item printed in the Courier (Vol IV #2: Sept-Oct 1982): Midwest Tactical Wargamers Association Newsletter (Published quarterly) $3 for 4 issues. A completely new venture this first issue also appears to be good value for money. There is an article on beginning historical gaming, and interview with a minatures gamer, review and news and a long article describing an American war of Independence miniatures campaign. All interesting stuff. #17 Sept-Oct 1985: A format change brings MWAN to 32 offset pages, increase frequency to six times per year, and raises the subscription price to $7 per year. As Hal notes in his editorial, "The task of mimeographing became so time consuming that it required nearly 40 hours, not including typing time." #20 March-April 1986: First real cover appears on a "special" issue dedicated to "Innovations in Wargaming." Size is 74 pages. #21 May-June 1986: First "color" cover--a yellow tint. Size is 52 pages. Subscription rate goes to $10 per year. #23 Sept-Oct 1986: 60 pages. #29 Sept-Oct 1987: Switch to slightly larger text. Better, but still a lot of blurring in the letters. Subscription rate goes to $15 per year. #33 May-June 1988: First time over 100 pages with a 132-page special "terrain" issue. Next issue back down to 112 pages. #42 Nov-Dec 1989: Another format change with more pages, back to the 132-page size, and a "professional" cover. Subscription rate goes to $20 per year. #45 May-June 1990: Now at 144 pages per issue. Stays at this format quite some time. #46 July-August 1990: Experiment with mailing covers ends in disaster. Compared to envelopes, is more expensive, takes "twice as long and is 10 times more frustrating" to prepare. #70 July-August 1994: Russ Lockwood's first Wargame Magazine Review column. Steve Dake was the previous columnist. #74 March-April 1995: Hal decides to cease publishing MWAN with #78. Raises subscription rates to $6 per issue through #78. #77 Sept-Oct 1995: Hal decides to continue publishing MWAN. First glossy color cover. Text becomes quite readable inside. #79 January-February 1996: Raises subscription rates to $35 per year. #81 May-June 1996: Pages increase to 192 pages per issue. Stable price and pages through current issue. I should note that in the earlier issues, the page count varied up and down a bit, so I picked out some of the highlights. Now, in case you're counting, that represents OVER 10,000 pages from issue 17-100 (inclusive, and including advertisements). Those pages are filled with inspiration, wisdom, encouragement, the occasional mania, and some downright genius. If some of the articles and letters were less than polished, it didn't matter, for in our hobby, Hal always made room for for all to express their ideas--a pleasant forum of tips, tricks, and techniques. Among his pages, you'll find articles from notable professional authors mixed in with the enthusiasm of amateur writers, letters covering thousands of topics, and just about every period covered. Along the way, MWAN picked up a couple of Charles Roberts awards as Best Amateur Gaming Magazine back in 1986 and 1991. So here's to Hal, who has done a remarkable and downright amazing job in publishing MWAN all these years. Let's give him three cheers for his 100th issue... Hip, Hip... Hip, Hip... Hip, Hip... I guess for his 200th issue, we'll have to give him six cheers... Back to MWAN #100 Table of Contents Back to MWAN List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 1999 Hal Thinglum This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com