someone who is extremely prominent within a particular fandom
[< Big Name Fan]
As soon as the bomb fell, big name fan leaped to his feet…and made for the door. As he stepped out he slung over his shoulder Survival Kit BNF model 48, (his own design).
COMING NEXT ISH: A department devoted to the BNF of tomorrow. ’Twill be the neofan of today who is the Tucker or Laney of tomorrow.
You asked us to cut our letters short, so I'll cut, but before I leave, I'd like to ask why nobody ever writes to me any more. Not just me—all BNFs have that trouble. When I was new to fandom, for every letter printed in a magazine, I would receive twenty or thirty letters from other fans. Now that I've become one of the ‘Old Guard’ by dint of six years of diligent fanning, nobody ever writes me—nobody except old friends, that is.
Think of the fun, the glamour, the excitement! Think of rubbing elbows with the BNFs!
Also present were such BNFs as Joe Kennedy, Art Rapp, Lee Hoffman, Lee Riddle, [etc.].
Monk Malone? He’s a BNF. I thought everybody had heard.
antedating 1948
Charles Burbee, in Masque
We now have enough cites for this word (unless an antedating is found) from SF fandom. We would be interested to see any citations from "mainstream" sources, or non-SF fan publications.
Last modified 2021-02-17 15:50:45
In the compilation of some
entries, HDSF has drawn extensively on corresponding entries
in OED.