1971 Winkie Convention
So popular were the Winkie Conventions by 1970 the group agreed that it had outgrown the confines of private homes and one-day events and planned to emulate the Midwestern Oz Conventions, which had always been whole weekend affairs. Langley Brookes Brandt scouted along the Pacific Coast and found a delightful venue half-way between Los Angeles and San Francisco. By 1970, it had become clear that the largest numbers of those attending Winkie Conventions lived in those two cities or their environs, and Cambria, California, proved to be well situated to be convenient to conventioneers in both areas (less than a half-day-drive away). So in 1971, with some trepidation, the Winkies descended on Cambria Pines Lodge, and a new, more elaborate format for the Winkie Conventions had begun.
From Winkie Newsletter #9, written by Peter Hanff
In 1970, after seven one-day Winkie Conventions in Southern California, the enthusiastic West Coasters decided to expand the format to encompass an entire weekend. Of course the Ozmopolitan Conventions had been weekend-long events from the outset, but the distances in California are considerable, and it wasn't certain that the group could sustain the commitment to hold a three-day gathering. Langley Brookes Brandt of Los Angeles, scouted for the group and identified a small, simple inn in Cambria, California, that might provide the right venue. So flyers invited all who wished to spend an Ozian weekend on the Pacific Coast to do just that.
Cambria Pines Lodge, California, midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, provided excellent weather and simple, but appropriate, accommodates for the Oz Club's first weekend convention on the West Coast. Fred Otto, of San Francisco, assisted by Joan and Wally Adams, of Los Angeles, chaired the ambitious program, and the talent of many hands helped decorate the meeting/dining room to create a very Ozzy environment. On hand were illustrations of Ozian magic workers, decorating the walls, complemented by Oz drawings by Rob MacVeigh of Seattle. Lois Newman displayed an elaborate three-dimensional model of the Emerald City, and a marvelous map of Oz drawn and painted by Wally and Joan Adams completed the decor. Tables of Oz and other Oz books available for sale throughout the weekend reminded the crowd of its passion for collecting.
Ozian erudition was demonstrated by those who entered several contests available during the weekend. One of these contests required the identification of Ozian Magic workers depicted in the room decorations. The winner was young Abbie Bernstein. The other, which ran until Sunday morning, called the Oz Zoo Game, involved contestants finding the names of Oz animals hidden in a maze of letters. Even though this was only the eighth Winkie Convention, history of the West Coast conventions was well documented through a slide presentation on Friday evening. Then, on Saturday morning, another challenging contest took place in the form of Fred Otto's Oz Quiz.
Saturday afternoon, the group bid competitively in the Winkie Auction with Wally Adams serving as auctioneer, ably assisted by Joan Adams and Peter Hanff. And the artisans of Oz were well represented by special pillows skillfully sewn to resemble familiar Oz-character faces such as Jack Pumpkinhead, Tik-Tok, Scraps, and the Scarecrow. These had been made by Ruth Keep Ainge, who also proffered ceramic tiles painted with several other Oz characters. The auction included Oz puppets, Ozian linen, and some very fine Oz books.
Saturday's banquet (the beginning of the tradition of a somewhat dressy banquet tradition for the Winkies) was a steak dinner in the meeting room. Langley Brookes Brandt, who had discovered the Cambria Pines Lodge, was introduced as the Chairman of the 1972 Winkie Convention. The program followed with Sonya Brown discussing themes used by Richard Wagner in his fabulous operas, and a speculation as to whether German folk-tale themes might be reflected in Baum’s writings. Claude Cain introduced his plan to index the feats of individual Oz characters through the entire Oz series. The final event of the evening was a viewing of the 1914 Oz Film Manufacturing Company's movie, The Magic Cloak of Oz. This was a filmed version of Queen Zixi of Ix made by Baum's own film company, and had been thought lost until identified by Peter Hanff at The Library of Congress’s Motion Picture Section about a year earlier. The film stimulated intense discussion that lasted well into the night.
On Sunday morning, a weekend-long contest that had started on Friday, called the Oz Zoo contest, was concluded. Two groups were declared the winners: the Hollister family from Santa Barbara, and the team of Clover Hughes, Michael Urban, and Michael Bosworth. With significant driving distances ahead of them, the Winkies had departed by lunchtime on Sunday, but had committed themselves to returning to Cambria Pines Lodge in August 1972.
From Winkie Newsletter #11, written by Peter Hanff
