Polaris News, update

Via the TCON NEWS 

1.  PRE-REGISTRATION FOR POLARIS 25 IS NOW CLOSED

For your convenience, at-the-door prices are available online through
the Membership Online Registration (http://www.tcon.ca/registration/)
until June 17, 2011.  Limited space is also available for our Writers’
Workshop and our Knitting Workshop.  Don’t miss out on attending one
of these great workshops.

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2.  POLARIS CONTEST WINNERS

Congratulations to our latest winners!  The Tour of the Galaxy contest
has wrapped and our winner is Ryan K. of Kitchener.  Ryan and a guest
will be receiving VIP treatment for the Ultimate Fan Adventure at
Polaris 25!  This package is made available to us by our sponsor,
Sheraton Parkway Toronto North Hotel.  Also for our
Contest-of-the-Month for May, Robert B. of London won the Terra
membership.

But the winning doesn’t stop there!

Polaris introduces the Charlaine Harris and Brandon Sanderson contests
for June!  Thanks to our wonderful sponsors, TOR Books (www.tor.com)
and Penguin Group Canada (www.penguin.ca), Polaris is pleased to offer
some lucky winners the chance to win books and Terra memberships.

Visit our Contest page (http://polaris.tcon.ca/contests/) to get all
the exciting details and how to enter!

Don’t be left out of Polaris 25!  Enter today!  Contest closes June 30, 2011.

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3.  CHARITY AUCTION - Z’AARX

Z’aarx wants to raise $10,000 for Gilda’s Club, and we need your help!
Doing some spring cleaning? Want to pass on some books, DVDs, toys,
or collectibles to someone else who’ll appreciate them? Why not do it
for a good cause and donate some items to the Charity Auction? You get
space, someone else gets your cool stuff, and Gilda’s Club Greater
Toronto gets a great donation. Everybody wins!

Contact charity@tcon.ca or drop by the viewing room in the Victoria
Square Room Friday or Saturday. We open early on Friday so come by any
time! You can also check out the cool items we have for quick sale or
auction (after all, you’ll have somewhere to put them now) and vote
for Polaris’ Greatest Guest. For more information, visit us at
http://zaarx.tcon.ca. For a preview of what’s available, check out
http://zaarx.tumblr.com.

And don’t forget our Re-tweet and Win contest. Until July 15,
following @zaarx and re-tweeting messages gets you a ballot towards a
draw for an autograph from the Polaris guest of your choice.

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4.  GO GREEN FOR POLARIS BLUE!

Did you get your copy of the Polaris 25 Progress Report?  You should
have seen it in the mail by now.

We’d like to give you the chance to help Polaris “Go Green”.  Email us
at gogreen@tcon.ca and give us your name and email address. Let us
know you would like to opt-out of a postal mailing of our Progress
Report and instead of mailing you the next Progress Report we will
update your record to email you a PDF copy.  You will receive your
e-Progress Report about a week in advance of postal mailouts, and you
will help Polaris save on printing and paper costs.

In thanks, Polaris will enter your name into a drawing for $60 of
Polaris Dollars, which may be used towards Polaris registrations, in
our Marketplace at one of our Dealers tables, or at Convention Sales.

Just another small way Polaris likes to join forces with its members
to help for a greener future for us all!

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5.  POLARIS MEMBER SURVEY

TCON Promotional Society, the people who bring you Polaris each year,
are asking the members to take a short survey to help us bring you the
best possible event. This survey is anonymous if you choose, and
should take no more than 5 minutes to complete. The survey will remain
open until just after Polaris 25, at which time the marketing team
will compile the results and report to the TCON Promotional Society
board of directors.

For a small thanks for taking this survey, you may choose to give us
your name and email address at the end. That information will be left
out of the compiled results, but will be used to select one person to
win $60 of Polaris Dollars.

The survey may be found at:
http://www.formstack.com/forms/constellations-polaris_marketing_questionnaire_general_membership

Ben Browder to join us in Toronto!

Polaris is excited to share the opportunity to meet Ben Browder this summer, the following is a press release-

The show that brought about one of the most memorable of fan responses to an untimely cancellation, Farscape fans will rejoice to meet the series lead actor, Ben Browder, at the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Polaris Convention in Toronto this July.  Browder’s character, ‘John Crichton’, was his first lead role in a TV series, and he went on to win three Saturn Awards for his portrayal of the heroic and mischievously comical character known for his pop culture references.  Browder also is well known for having taken the reins from Richard Dean Anderson to lead the Stargate: SG-1 team until the end of the series.  This has given Browder wide reaching recognition beyond some of his earlier guest roles in shows such as Murder She Wrote and CSI: Miami.

Sessions will be held for fans to pose in photographs with Browder and to receive autographs.  Given the far reaching fan popularity for Browder’s roles, advance sales are available on the Polaris website.  

Polaris’ roots began as a Star Trek convention in 1986 and it has grown to focus on a variety of sci-fi and fantasy television shows, novels and movies, as well as various related genres. 

Polaris 25 will be held July 15-17 at the Sheraton Parkway Toronto North Hotel. For more information, visit http://polaris.tcon.ca, or phone 416-410-TCON.

POLARIS PHOTO CONTEST

Polaris 25 Photo Contest: The Polaris Experience

Long time Concom member Joanne Muth recently passed away, and to honour her memory, Polaris 25 has decided to hold a photo contest!  Joanne had volumes and volumes of lovely photos from Polaris (and Toronto Trek) and we couldn’t think of a better way to honour her support of the convention over the years.

So please join us in paying tribute to our dear friend and, at the same time, celebrating the spirit of Polaris.  Send in your photos – any and all photos you believe best fits the description of “The Polaris Experience”.  Is it dinner with your costumed buddies?  Is it an in-depth impromptu discussion on some comfy couches in Ten-Forward? Is it a rockin’ room party?  A chance encounter with Darth Vader in the hallways?  Is it warbling along with your favourite tune in Klingon Karaoke?  Whatever it is, show us!  We want to know, and enjoy your special memories of Polaris (and Toronto Trek) past.

How do I get my photos into this contest?

1. Email your photos to photocontest@tcon.ca within the contest dates.
2. You can submit as many photos as you like – there’s no limit!  The only catch is they must be your photos.  There is no cost to enter.
3. Contest is open to all TCON Promotional Society members and former members.  No one is excluded. 
4. All entries must be your own photos.
5. Entries will be judged by a panel of convention committee members, who will not know who submitted which photos.  Names and contact information will be given to judges only for the purposes of alerting the winners.
6. All photos become the property of TCON Promotional Society, for the purposes of display, publishing, promotion and similar reasons, but credit to the photographer will always be given.  Photos submitted may be displayed at Polaris 25 in some manner.

What is the prize?

Prizes for winners include, but are not limited to, a Venus level membership to Polaris 26, Terra level memberships to Polaris 26, Polaris dollars and autographs.

Polaris News, and points of Interest

 This is the TCON NEWS which is an email from the TCON Promotional Society who bring us Polaris!

                     TCON-NEWS
          The official e-mail newsletter of
            the TCON Promotional Society
              Featuring information on
                    Polaris 25
                        AND
          The 2011 Constellation Awards

        Information Line: (416) 410-TCON (8266)
    E-MAIL: info@tcon.ca    WEB: http://www.tcon.ca/
                Twitter: TCONtweets

                  July 15-17, 2011
              Sheraton Parkway North
                600 Highway 7 East
                (At Highways 404 & 7)
          Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
In this issue:

1.  THIS YEAR’S CONSTELLATION AWARDS WILL BE HOSTED BY TEDDY WILSON
AND AJAY FRY (“InnerSPACE”)!
2.  A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR: MIRVISH PRODUCTIONS PRESENT: GHOST STORIES

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1. THIS YEAR’S CONSTELLATION AWARDS WILL BE HOSTED BY TEDDY WILSON AND
AJAY FRY (“InnerSPACE”)!

We are very pleased to announce that Teddy Wilson and Ajay Fry, the
hosts of SPACE’s flagship genre entertainment show “InnerSPACE”, have
signed on to host the Constellation Awards ceremonies this year!

Born in Toronto, Ajay Fry attributes his bizarre and creative sense of
humour to growing up in Ottawa. His career in television began at an
early age with roles on “Lassie”, “Are You Afraid Of The Dark”, and
“Big Wolf On Campus”. In 2003 Ajay came to Toronto to study comedy and
improv. He completed the conservatory program at The Second City and
the Humber College Comedy program where he became a nominee for the
prestigious Phil Hartman Award. After graduating, Ajay joined YTV as
host of “Crunch”, their popular Saturday morning programming block.
Ajay delighted YTV audiences for two years before joining SPACE in
2008 as host of the weekly genre entertainment show, “The Circuit”.

Growing up in Ottawa, Teddy began his career in the entertainment
industry as a child actor on the internationally syndicated series
“You Can’t Do That On Television”. After earning an Honours B.A. in
Political Science, the politically-active Wilson moved to Toronto to
work at Queens Park.  After leaving politics Wilson worked his way up
in TV production, eventually serving as talent booker on the Comedy
Network series “Popcultured With Elvira Kurt”. In 2005, Teddy joined
MTV and helped launch flagship show “MTV Live”. In 2008 Teddy left MTV
to join SPACE as on-air reporter. Teddys first assignment for SPACE
was interviewing George Lucas at Skywalker Ranch.

In the fall of 2009, Ajay Fry and Teddy Wilson joined forces to
co-host the SPACE flagship genre entertainment show, “InnerSPACE”.
Four nights a week, Ajay and Teddy navigate the ever-changing world of
genre entertainment commenting on SPACE’s signature primetime series,
genre films, videogames and more. And this year, Teddy and Ajay are
not just our hosts - they are also proud Constellation Award Nominees
themselves, nominated for “Outstanding Canadian Contribution to
Science Fiction Film or Television in 2010” for their work on
“InnerSPACE”!

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2. A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR: MIRVISH PRODUCTIONS PRESENT: GHOST STORIES

Here is a message from Mirvish Productions, proud Silver-Level Sponsor
of The Constellation Awards:

London’s most thrilling theatrical experience had its North American
premiere at Toronto’s Panasonic Theatre on April 1, 2011. The Lyric
Hammersmith, Phil McIntyre Entertainments and David Mirvish present
GHOST STORIES, written by Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman, and directed by
Jeremy Dyson, Sean Holmes and Andy Nyman.

After breaking all box-office records in its initial runs at the
Liverpool Playhouse and the London Lyric Hammersmith, GHOST STORIES
was transferred to Londons West End, where it opened at the legendary
Duke of Yorks Theatre in June 2010. Winning raves from critics and
attracting a large and diverse audience, the show has thus far been
seen by over 200,000 people. They have screamed, laughed & jumped from
their seats during GHOST STORIES’ 80 minutes of thrilling, chilling
theatre.

A heart-pounding theatrical experience, GHOST STORIES has left even
the most hardened of viewers gasping for breath and reaching for their
coats to hide behind. Not for the fainthearted or those of a nervous
disposition, but perfect for anyone who wants an exhilarating night of
entertainment, GHOST STORIES mixes the very best of theatre with the
buzz of a thrill-ride, delivering something indescribable and
unforgettable.

Nominated for two Olivier Awards, GHOST STORIES has a creative team of
some of the finest theatre artists working today. It is written by
master of the macabre Jeremy Dyson, from BAFTA-winning The League of
Gentlemen, and Andy Nyman, co-creator and director of Derren Browns
television and stage shows and star of Severance. The production is
designed by Jon Bausor, with lighting by James Farncombe, sound by
Nick Manning and special effects by Scott Penrose.

The all-Canadian cast of the North American premiere production
consists of Darrin Baker, Jason Blicker, Jack Langedijk, David Reale,
Greg Gale and Jonathan Purdon.

Panasonic Theatre, 651 Yonge St., Toronto
Performance Schedule: Tuesday to Friday at 7:30 PM;
Saturday 5 & 8:30 PM; Sunday 3 PM & 7 PM
www.ghoststoriestoronto.com
Ticket Prices: $25 to $79
www.mirvish.com orcall TicketKing at 416-872-1212 or 1-800-461-3333

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For more information on these and other TCON Promotional Society Events, please visit http://www.tcon.ca/