Science Fiction & Fantasy Costume Contestants Posing At The 24th World Science Fiction Convention In Cleveland, 1966

The 24th World Science Fiction Convention, also known as Tricon, was held 1-5 September 1966 at the Sheraton-Cleveland in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. Officially, the convention was hosted by three cities in the region: Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Detroit, – hence the name “Tricon”.

h/t: vintag.es

The three co-chairmen of that Worldcon each represented their city’s fandom; they were Ben Jason of Cleveland, Howard DeVore of Detroit, and Lou Tabakow of Cincinnati. The guest of honor was L. Sprague de Camp and the toastmaster was Isaac Asimov. Of special note: Gene Roddenberry premiered the pilot episode for his TV series Star Trek at Tricon.

This collection is primarily comprised of photographs taken by Jay Kay Klein has he documented Science Fiction & Fantasy fandom at the 24th World Science Fiction Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. The majority of images were taken by Klein while attending Science Fiction & Fantasy conventions and events.

Jay Kay Klein (1931–2012) began reading Science Fiction at a young age and joined the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society at the age of 14. During his lifetime he was an avid photographer and amassed an extensive photograph collection of Science Fiction & Fantasy conventions and events.

He was a writer, editor, and photographer for international corporate magazines and wrote missile acquisition radar systems and ICBM launch facilities manuals for the United States Air Force. He was also a member and contributor to First Fandom, Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), and Analog. Throughout his life Klein lectured on Science Fiction as literature, social commentary, and as a window into the future.