The saga of the Doctor Who conventions of North America began in a place one would least expect: Los Angeles, California, in fact, circa 1979. The first two Doctor Who conventions came to the L.A. area, first with Terrance Dicks, Graham Williams and a very rare and last-minute appearance by Tom Baker, then the year later with Elisabeth Sladen and the late Ian Marter. They had been organized by Lucy Chase-Williams and Amy Krell and people associated with many groups including NADWAS (the North American Doctor Who Appreciation Society, run by Barbara Elder) and the Chancellory Guard, a local Los Angeles fan organization that flourished in the early 1980's -- early signs of life in a Doctor Who community that would spread throughout North America. But fandom here was small, and it failed to find much of a foothold in Los Angeles.

What might have been a capitol of Doctor Who civilization quickly died, and all eyes shifted to Chicago and points eastward.

Doctor Who fandom in America was in its infancy. KCET Channel 28, the powerhouse public television station of the Southland, had shown some of the Jon Pertwee stories in the late 1970's -- including the color airings of "The Mind of Evil," where that infamous Tom Lundy 5-minute clip originates, the only surviving evidence -- but failed to pick up the series for the Tom Baker run. KBSC-52, another local station, would eventually pick up the Tom Baker shows and would air them episodically on weeknights, a gamble that proved short lived when it converted to the broadcast channel for original pay broadcaster ON-TV and then permanently adopted a Spanish language format. It wasn't until 1983, with the American broadcast of "The Five Doctors," that KCET chose to start airing the series again, though they stuck primarily to the Tom Baker seasons. Years later, they would eventually pick up the Jon Pertwee serials; then, in 1987, the Peter Davison and Colin Baker stories, and in 1990, Sylvester McCoy. Sadly, when KCET chose to end its broadcast of Doctor Who in December 1993, they had shown but one William Hartnell story ("The Edge of Destruction"), using it to gain support for a pick-up of the Hartnell & Patrick Troughton years, and never broadcast the other early serials.

But while Doctor Who had enjoyed a long life during the 1980's and the first half of the 1990's, and the mid-1980's had seen the rise of the largest Doctor Who conventions ever -- the Spirit of Light conventions in Chicago with many cast members the most influential -- Doctor Who fandom had spent much of the mid 80's in Los Angeles in darkness. Northern California, on the other hand, was seeing a renaissance of its own, as in 1984 a little convention called TimeCon sprung up in San Jose and ran through to 1990, with appearances such as Tom Baker and many of the other Doctors and companions.

But in L.A., nothing. That all changed in June 1986, when several Doctor Who fans, including some of those who had survived the purge of the Chancellory Guard and the Who conventions of '79 and '80, met at KCET's studios to form an organization that would eventually come to be called the Time Meddlers of Los Angeles. Though sometimes highly politicized and controversial, the Time Meddlers have survived to this day as a leading force in American Doctor Who fandom. Throughout its first few years as a club, there was constant discussion about bringing a Doctor Who convention back to Los Angeles. Many fans were advocates of such an event, though the main focus of debate was whether or not a proposed convention should be a part of the Time Meddlers or a separate entity altogether. (As history would note, such deliberations were in hindsight extremely valid and ultimately led to the financial survival of the organization when the convention went through its initial struggles.)

The first prospect of an organized Doctor Who event in the late 1980's, however, was inspired by the coming of the Doctor Who Travelling Exhibition in October 1987. A promotional tour by the BBC managed by organizer Brian Sloman, the two-day exhibition at Plummer Park in West Hollywood had brought out hundreds of fans to see the new Doctor, Sylvester McCoy, whose first episodes had just started transmission in the UK, and companion Janet Fielding (Tegan), whose final episode of Doctor Who, "Resurrection of the Daleks," was coincidentally airing that afternoon for the first time in Los Angeles. The Time Meddlers had been asked to be the organized volunteers to help run the event, and the group had moved out the TARDIS constructed by member Alan Hale and his friends to be used at the show. The event was a smashing success for all involved, and gave the Time Meddlers a huge influx of new members who had never met them before. Discussions about a Meddlers-run convention entered high gear for the next year, though no definite plans were made.

In late 1988, the Time Meddlers' initial group of guiding hands were mired in the process of handing off the reigns to a new group, a situation that like any power shift has the potential to become volatile. This new group saw the prospects of a convention to be even brighter than the previous cadre had, and more debate was put into a proposed Doctor Who convention in Los Angeles. Sentiment had been strong in the club that the assembly lacked experience, not to mention the financial stability, to do the job.

It was a sentiment rejected by Robbie Cantor (now Bourget). One of the convention's biggest advocates, Robbie was a transplanted Canadian who had come to Los Angeles in the early 1980's from Ottawa and subsequently had become involved in mainstream Los Angeles science fiction fandom, as an officer of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society (LASFS), the world's oldest SF organization, and the Southern California Institute for Fan Interests (SCIFI), an L.A. non-profit philanthropic group which had spawned from the organization of the 1984 World Science Fiction Convention in Los Angeles. A life-long Doctor Who fan, Robbie had previously been involved in her native Quebec in a proposed convention there; though the convention ultimately did not happen due to a variety of factors, it was always in the back of her mind. The Time Meddlers, at that moment, were a willing group, needing only a guiding hand to go forward.

In January 1989, the longtime debate bore fruit. After an untimely resignation of two Time Meddlers council members who had been part of the first wave of new leadership in the club, the remaining three, Shaun Lyon, Deanna Bayless and Jim Terry, were joined by the replacement election of Robbie and Allie Bennett (now Johnson). Almost immediately, they decided that their first act in this new group would be to look at a convention possibility. The five met that January in a closed meeting, discussing liabilities, staffing and guest prospects. While many members of the Time Meddlers had had the will, Robbie at last provided the way: expertise in convention organizing and a certified link to a group of people willing to assist. The other four were all advocates of such an event, and at that meeting, the Council discussed proposing to the organization a "Convention Advisory Committee". Two other major decisions were made that evening: that the convention would bear the name of Robbie's aborted Canadian convention, and that the first guest would likely be a man that Robbie had been in contact with for many years, Jon Pertwee.

Gallifrey One was born.

At the next month's meeting, February 1989, the Time Meddlers gathered at El Dorado State Park in Long Beach, the site of their usual picnic in late autumn. Though rain had kept some people away, many of the members who attended were informed by the Council about the formation of the advisory committee. At that meeting, the name of the convention was approved by a general consensus, and Robbie was given the title of co-chairman. Not seeking to be in charge of the entire convention herself, Robbie, together with the Council, made a proposition to two members who had been responsible for much of the early setup of the Time Meddlers; one accepted the job as co-chairman and the other the position of convention treasurer. All four other members of the Council were given positions on the committee.

It was an easy setup that would prove short lived. In early 1989, corresponding with the formation of the Gallifrey One convention, the Time Meddlers would unfortunately fall to its most political division since its founding. At first the problems involved a rift between the appointed co-chairman and another member of the club with whom he refused to work. The appointed co-chair, meanwhile, was unhappy with the directions the club had taken, and began protesting loudly the increasing involvement of the convention in club affairs. Both sides, indeed, had understandable viewpoints, but in April, the situation came to a head as three other members of the committee -- David Keller, Kory Doyle and convention co-founder Shaun Lyon -- insisted that should the appointed co-chair continue, they would resign in protest over the mistreatment and other problems facing them. The situation forced some drastic action if the convention would get off the ground. Since the Time Meddlers had approved the convention advisory committee as a whole, not as individuals, the standing committee was dissolved, then reinstated without the couple. The committee then regrouped to put on its convention.

Political discussions in the Time Meddlers, meanwhile, had also determined the course of its future as well. Through several debates, it had been determined that Gallifrey should not be a part of the club itself, that it should be a separate organization. Tony Benoun led the charge that the Time Meddlers' bylaws precluded the organization from existing as a sub-unit, and indeed during the earlier altercation, Robbie had come to realize that it was for the best. When the Time Meddlers voted to spin Gallifrey off as a separate entity, Robbie felt the club would regret the decision, but abided by its wishes, understanding that the decision by the Meddlers would ensure that a successful convention would not financially benefit the club in any way. In retrospect, it was perhaps the most crucial and beneficial decision in the subsequently lengthy history of both organizations, for reasons that would be seen over a year later.

Meanwhile, Robbie hunted for a new chairman. She found one in Christian McGuire, a member of the Time Meddlers who had been around since its early days. Though gun-shy and having never run a major event, Christian had been involved in manning conventions for quite some time; he and his roommate, Nicholas Cravotta, had been involved in several gaming conventions. Christian volunteered after the feud with the former co-chair and at the May meeting officially joined Robbie as her co-chairman, and Nick also came along for the ride. Robbie then asked Elayne Pelz to join the convention committee as its treasurer; Elayne, one of the principal members of the LASFS & SCIFI governing groups who had been involved with the 1984 Worldcon, accepted. Finally, Robbie invoked the services of Craig Miller, who had co-chaired the Worldcon, to help negotiate a suitable hotel contract. The first and only choice for a hotel by the assembled members of the committee had been the Los Angeles Airport Hilton & Towers, which for years had been the Los Angeles home of Creation Conventions' Star Trek events.

To be a success, the committee determined, they would have to rely on an unknown factor: KCET. While it was the station showing Doctor Who locally, KCET also reaches the second-largest PBS viewing audience in America, shown all the way into central California. An Emmy- and Peabody-Award winning station for its documentaries and specials such as the widely touted "The Africans" and series such as "NOVA," KCET's support for Doctor Who in the early days had nevertheless been unquestioned. The Time Meddlers had been featured many times on its airwaves during pledge specials, both when it ran on Saturday afternoons as well as its later move to early Saturday mornings. Through Dottie Kemps, the volunteer coordinator at KCET, the Meddlers established a fine relationship with the station; they answered phone calls and, during one pledge drive, original Time Meddlers council member Kathleen Premo served as an on-air personality.

However, KCET had seen a recent decline in pledges, and was therefore reticent to help. Despite the overwhelming support it had given to the BBC's Traveling Exhibition in 1987, the Gallifrey committee was told in no uncertain terms that KCET's current policy was to avoid any and all advertising of private events... in essence, that they were not interested, despite the fact that Doctor Who was still being shown on its airwaves (and indeed, it had entered into discussions with Lionheart, the Doctor Who syndicator in the U.S., to acquire the Sylvester McCoy serials and possibly the early Hartnell & Troughton package too). Tony Benoun suggested that Robbie contact Steve Woodard, the marketing director of KCET whom he had interviewed before and who had maintained a short dialogue with the club. Robbie, Christian and Shaun (who had taken a more active role in publicizing the convention as well as acting as its PR liaison), met with Woodard in October. The meeting proved fruitful, as Woodard's position was while KCET was not interested in commercializing the convention, the station could help with an on-air promotion as a public service announcement. Such a promotion would take place before the convention, in April and early May.

Meanwhile, in late June, Jon Pertwee had said yes, to everyone's delight, confirming within a week of the upcoming 1989 Westercon convention taking place in nearby Orange County, so his name was hastily added to the flyer. The announcement was made in August 1989, confirming also the dates (Memorial Day weekend, late May 1990) and the location (the LAX Hilton & Towers, which had been very interested.) With the KCET handshake agreement later in the year, the stage was set for a successful event. And for those months of preparation, success was very much on everyone's mind.

Then the problems began.

KCET's handshake agreement with Gallifrey One fizzled and ultimately failed. As the Sylvester McCoy package unfolded in March 1990, not a sign of the advertisement had been seen. Despite their assurances to the contrary, Saturday morning after Saturday morning the committee watched and waited for the ad. Nothing. Meanwhile, on the East Coast, trouble brewed with Pertwee's US fan group. The head of the American Fans of Jon Pertwee got her signals crossed where the convention was concerned, and got word to her club that as far as she knew, Jon Pertwee wasn't coming.

It had never occurred to the committee that they would experience competition from other avenues, but sadly that would be the case. Baycon, the largest fan-run science fiction literary convention in California, was to take place on the same weekend as Gallifrey (interestingly enough, Baycon was chaired that year by Diana Dougherty, who would later move to Los Angeles and would eventually succeed Christian McGuire as the Gallifrey chairman!) So would a gaming convention, right down the street at the LAX Hyatt Hotel, and a collectibles show in Pasadena.

And while the early response to the Gallifrey event was promising, the convention had not broken 300 pre-registered members. The committee had become convinced that interest was high, based on a report from a member of the Council during October 1987's arrival of the Travelling Exhibition that nearly 1500 people had come through the event; alas, the number was far inflated, as later investigations proved that the attending members at the exhibition was not even half that number. With the incorrectly inflated predictions, Craig and Robbie had gotten themselves signed for a contract with the LAX Hilton that required 600 room nights (one room occupied one night being one "room night"), based on an attendance of 1500 people. Most conventions that the committee had experience with never seemed to get more than half of its members at the door. There were concerns that the convention was in trouble -- and comments from the naysayers -- right through to May.

There were also a few rays of sunshine to give the committee hope for the future. It began with the acceptance of an invitation to producer John Nathan-Turner, who was delighted to come to the convention. Similarly, Robbie received a phone call from actor John Levene, who had starred as Benton in the series; unbeknownst to the rest of the committee, John was actually living in the Los Angeles area now. Both men were officially announced in early April's final progress report mailing as new guests of the convention, and the nickname "John-Con" (or, rather, "Jo(h)n-Con" due to the fact that Pertwee's first name was spelled differently) stuck.

Finally, on the weekend before the convention, after the broadcast of "The Curse of Fenric," the long-promised KCET ad hit, announcing the date of the convention and a telephone number for more information. While, sadly, there was no word of the convention's location on the ad, the phone number -- Christian's answering machine -- provided many people some much needed information. The single showing the ad deluged his machine, and the message tape filled up shortly thereafter. Nevertheless, it was a badly needed publicity push during a time that had seen many publicity avenues go seriously astray.

Gallifrey One took place on Memorial Day weekend, May 25-28, 1990. Its membership total was 660, less than half of what had originally been expected. The hotel room night count of 600 was barely met by a third, just over 200; the LAX Hilton, by contract, was entitled to compensation nearly $15,000. Through all the problems and pressures, though, the committee banded together to pull off a very well-received event, with Jon Pertwee, John Nathan-Turner and John Levene serving as guests of honor, and Eric Hoffman as toastmaster. Also well received was a Canadian find in Larry Stewart, an artist and impersonator who had been known to Robbie, and who had delighted many Canadian conventions and now made his first visit to L.A.

But the aftermath was grim. With $15,000 in expected bills to pay -- and several thousands more in credit card bills she didn't hope to collect -- Robbie turned to the Board of Directors of the Southern California Institute for Fan Interests (SCIFI), a local philanthropic convention group and the parent organization of the Los Angeles 1984 Worldcon. Joined by Christian, the two faced the SCIFI board for a loan request, which after determined debate was approved. SCIFI loaned Gallifrey $12,500; the loan would be an interest-bearing thorn in the side of the convention for years to come. In addition, the Time Meddlers gave the convention $500. Gallifrey and Time Meddlers member Ruth Nataroff Rigel was the only other person who purchased a Gallifrey bond at $50. Both the Rigel bond and the Time Meddlers loan were repaid the following year, and the proceeds from all further Gallifrey conventions have since paid both interest and principal on the loan; in 1999, SCIFI was still owed approximately $3,000, but because of the outstanding record of the Gallifrey payments, it voted to redraw the interest rate to a fixed prime rate, allowing the loan to be paid off quicker. Indeed, the most vocal critics of Gallifrey taking the loan in the first place, including SCIFI director Genny Dazzo, later became the convention's most vociferous supporters in redrawing the loan terms because of the good faith shown by the Gallifrey committee over the years. The debt was finally paid off, in its entirety, in 2001, though continues its close and positive relationship with SCIFI to this day.

To meet its SCIFI obligations and as a public face, the Gallifrey Conventions' Board of Directors was formed, with Robbie serving as President, Christian McGuire as Vice President, and Shaun Lyon as Board Secretary. Directors approved included Nicholas Cravotta and Matthew Mitchell (later to be replaced by David Proctor, then Alan Hale in 1993). This initial Gallifrey Board would function merely as an advisory group and liaison to SCIFI, and was dissolved when the convention paid off its outstanding debt in full in 2001. It was then replaced with a new structure, as the group came under the auspices of Nicholas Cravotta's Sparrow Creek not-for-profit organization, with Christian, Robbie and Shaun staying on as members of the Board and joined by new chairman Diana Dougherty, vice treasurer Sherri Benoun, and Cravotta.

With $15,000 in bills to pay, Gallifrey One had not been the financial success it had been hoped it would be. The naysayers in the Time Meddlers who had argued against an organizational link between the two would be proven right in hindsight; without that link, the Time Meddlers, a wholly separate unit from Gallifrey, was financially secure and experienced no shortfall.

Yet despite the financial troubles, Gallifrey One was a resounding success. The convention was extremely well received by its attendees, and plans began in earnest for Gallifrey One: The Sequel, initially scheduled for the following February. The conention would gradually become a major international player in Who fandom, becoming a launch pad for Philip Segal's 1996 Doctor Who TV Movie; a major center of fandom for fans of the Virgin & BBC Doctor Who novels, Big Finish Productions and Bill Baggs' BBV; bringing to America some of the faces who might not otherwise have been seen such as audio producers, novelists and actors; and perhaps most surprisingly, being a destination for local science fiction media actors and producers from shows varied from "Babylon 5" and "Battlestar Galactica" to "Farscape" and "Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda"... some of whom have even made Gallifrey a yearly event.

After much planning and debate, and a few pitfalls along the way, Doctor Who fandom in Los Angeles was back in force. Allied with its sister convention, the annual Visions event in Chicago, through a close relationship with founder Bob McLaughlin, the two conventions charged through the 1990's. As Visions came to an untimely end in 1998, the heart of American Doctor Who fandom moved westward... and Gallifrey One soon became the most enduring and influential Doctor Who convention in North America, which continues today, into the twenty-first century.

Please note: we have kept certain names off this document, such as the former co-chair and his wife at the beginning of the convention. They are no less important to the history of the event than any others; however, due to their nonexistent relationship with our group, for the reasons specified herein, we have chosen to omit their names, deferring to privacy.