| OSN
1970 Once upon a time, an O Scaler by the name of Dan B. Henon lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Dan was neither a model railroad manufacturer nor a professional publisher. He was an 'Avid O Scaler' (capital
letters required) who rejoiced in the founding of the O Scale National Convention way back in 1968 and wanted to
share information about those meetings, other shows, and news about the hobby with fellow O Scalers who were unable
to take time from their busy schedules to attend. For a while, Dan wrote short articles for Vane Jone's magazine
O SCALE RAILROADING, but after awhile he wanted more space devoted to 2-Rail O Scale, narrow gauge, British O and
he sought to write his own, regular column and barring that... his own publication. |
| Or rather, that is how many retold the story in later years. In real life, OSN #1 was simply
his notes, thoughts and ideas on 1/4" scale modeling edited into a magazine-style newsletter format after
an NMRA Tri-Regional Convention in October, 1970. Dan's views were flavored lightly with other references. He sent
a copy to all of the O Scalers present at that meeting, and then he sent more copies out to others by request —
all for free. That first issue (available only in copy form from the NMRA Library in Memphis, Tennessee, today)
was crude by newsletter standards — typewritten and mimeographed — but even then more and more O Scalers continued
to hear about Dan's newsletter and request copies. |
| Dan's first newsletter also contained a plea for people to subscrible to Vane Jone's magazine
"O Scale Railroading" (now OGR), as Dan knew how his friend was struggling for readers. As more O Scalers
requested copies of his newsletter though, Dan offered to maintain a mailing list for any O Scaler who would send
postage and O SCALE NEWS was born. Soon Dan was accepting small subscription fees to improve what had become a
small magazine and as he told it to "avoid the hassle of keeping the stamps and envelopes sorted;" then
he added ads (some for a small fee, and other ads that just appealed to him enough to clip out of another magazine),
more pictures, and started to treat his newsletter as a magazine. His first covers read O SCALE NEWS "The
O Man's Journal" and Dan B. Henon was the "O Man;" on the masthead, the publication was identified
as "O Scale News, 48/ft." with "Forty Eight to the Foot" spelled out. |
| "The O Man's
Journal" Over the years Dan's journal grew. By the mid-1970's, OSN began to resemble
a model railroad magazine though it was still black & white and paper quality varied by issue from newsprint
to coated stock. Most of the old issues, prior to OSN 97, are available only through the NMRA library or
in tattered copies at swap meets, but if you read one you can appreciate the smiles of the O Scale modeler's and
the tons of pictures. There was a little inconsistency in page length on those early magazines, most issues were
as long as Dan decided they needed to be. |
| But by the mid-1980's, and the print quality varied, As time went by, Dan had added some
spots of color to the OSN covers, and he recruited a crew of fellow O Scale modelers to help him fill the pages
(J.W. "Woody" Mathews has now written reviews for OSN under all three owners, several of Dan's other
helpers also continue to grace our pages). Dan managed to find time each issue to share his own O Scale enthusiasm
as well as photographs of impromptu visits to manufacturers and small tidbits of model or prototype trivia he uncovered
during other business travel. |
| By the late 1980's, Dan looked forward to devoting more of his time to his hobby and his
magazine. He planned to improve OSN again adding more pages and color pictures on his features and covers. Before he could carry out this vision though, Dan
suffered the first of several strokes, a massive seizure that almost ended his life. He was forced to rethink his
future and what he would be able devote his energy to. As Dan struggled through production of his last issues,
he began to search for a way for OSN and his dream of it to continue. He did not want to merely sell or shut down
OSN after he became ill, instead Dan B. Henon wanted "O Scale News" to outlive him, and, hopefully, to
be run and operated by a modeler as true and as critical to the hobby as he was himself. Only those who ever "argued"
about models or other subjects with Dan can ever truly understand this. After leaving the business, Dan continued
with his model railroad hobby, writing and arguing with all his might. He attended meets and conventions on the
East Coast through 1990, where he was greeted as the grand old man of O Scale —'The O Man." Love him or hate
him, Dan B. Henon in life was a force unto himself. |
| The Dream Continues
So in 1987, Larry Kotula of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, travelled to Philadelphia
with his long-time friend Greg Heier to discuss the possible purchase of O SCALE NEWS 48/ft. Both were enthusiastic
2-Rail O Scalers and model (world) builders. Larry had a background in sales and shared Dan's dream of expanding
OSN. Greg, a professional photographer with experience in publishing dating back to the 1960's, was Larry's choice
for Editor should he decide to acquire the magazine. Dan invited them into his home and shared with them his views
of 2-Rail O Scale, his historic collection, and his dream for OSN. Both Larry and Greg were soon caught up in Dan's
vision for OSN, and in early 1988 Larry bought "O Scale News." Joy Forsberg, another model railroader
with some publishing experience and computer experience, joined the new growing crew in Illinois. |
| By the Summer of 1988, the new "48/ft., O Scale News" with some new & old
writers premiered at the 20th O Scale National Convention held in San Antonio, Texas. The "O Man," Dan
Henon, was now a columnist sharing his views, ideas, and knowledge of 2-Rail O Scale history in "Dan's Column."
He did not attend his beloved O Scale National Convention in 1997, but OSN continued and he told us he "liked
the look" of the new issue -- OSN 97. Other than the sub-title of the magazine being changed to "The
Journal for 1/4" Scale Modelers" since the "O Man" no longer owned it, OSN continued on to
extol new ideas and products for O Scale modelers in only a slightly modified format with a bunch more color. |
| 48/ft., O Scale
News For the next year, Larry published OSN on a quarterly schedule. Beginning
in early 1989, OSN became one of the first magazines in the world to convert its publication to an all-electronic
format utilizing PC computers from the start. Greg and Joy, both computer enthusiasts since the 1970's, were intrigued
by the early Quark (MAC) and PageMaker (PC/MAC) tries to compete for use in the publishing world. They experimented
with a number of options before designing a custom-assembled PC which would operate with PageMaker, CorelDraw,
PhotoShop, and a few other lesser-known programs. It wasn't as simple back then as it is today, but Greg had a
vision and with Joy was the house guru who commanded the electronic genies and forced all the programs to work happily
together. OSN went on to become the first, all-electronic magazine distributed worldwide which was not published
by a computer company selling their wares. |
| By 1989, the magazine had converted all of its operations to the new format. Now OSN could
afford more color and had more control over its "look." Unfortunately, in mid-1989, Larry had to move,
and learned that he would be unable to continue producing the magazine. He talked to Dan and others about his dilemna. |
| Gate VI Publishing
One of the modelers Larry had talked to, Tom Nixon, had founded Gate VI Publishing
in early 1989. As a CN&W track engineer (design and maintenance, not locomotive operation), Tom had performed
his job with the real railroad so well that he was faced with forced promotion to a desk job or
forced retirement with honors. Tom Nixon had long been known amongst Midwestern modelers for his near 'perfect'
train slides and prints, and was planning to start a small magazine of his own... After talking with both Larry
Kotula and Dan Henon, Tom put aside his dream for his own "OS Midwest" magazine and bought "48/ft.,
O Scale News" in November, 1989. Dan continued to work with Tom, Greg, Joy, and OSN producing a regular column
until his death in 1994. |
| Publisher Tom Nixon has a much quieter personality than either Dan Henon or Larry Kotula and this is reflected in OSN. OSN will
never "flame" or run an entirely bad review. Tom feels that there is no point in this and would rather devote the space to a
product which is more suitable for our readers. Tom rarely inserts his own views in OSN (and OSN does not run editorials),
instead he sees OSN as a forum for ideas of the average O Scale modeler and he will make sure that Greg is always
available to help a modeler put his dream into words. |
| Each issue of OSN continues to feature a new or revised O Scale layout, sometimes it is
fun to see how a pike changes over 30 years. Tom encourages Joy in Internet ventures including this web site, but
does not plan for an entire issue of OSN to be available online in the near future. He is a quiet 1/4" scale
modeler and a perfectionist. Under Tom's guidance, OSN is published on a bi-monthly basis, roughly: February, April,
June, August, October, and December. So far, we have followed the OSN formula— issues are timely, but published
late if you go by the cover date, as a rule the ads, both display and classified, are affordable for new O Scale
businesses. New retail outlets and new advertisers are always welcome. E-mail if you have any questions. Columns
include scratchbuilding: BUILDER'S CORNER, HOW I DID IT; UNDER THE SINGING WIRE (traction); HI-RAIL NEWS (as submitted,
open for new contributing editor); narrow gauge; and anything else that may be of interest to SCALE 1/4" model
railroad enthusiasts. Of course, some would depend on OSN just for the COMPANY MAIL (industry news) and BEST OF
EVERYTHING (reviews)... but there is always a need for more short how-to articles. |
| Millenium OSN
OSN's main thrust continues to be O Scale and the products, skills, and pictures of interest to these 1/4"
modelers BUT we will also continue to include short articles for O Scale trolley/traction
lovers, On3, Proto:48, and even an occasional mention of the world of 3-Rail O Scale (not tinplate or toy trains — SCALE 3-Rail, or as close as
a three-railer can approach prototype) just as Dan B. Henon did since Day 1. Most of our articles feature 2-Rail
O Scale with US prototype equipment. We welcome articles from 0 gauge enthusiasts and have featured in the past
equipment and layouts from the UK, Belgium, Germany, Australia and Japan. We explain the difference between SCALE
and GAUGE, we do not fight battles over it. OSN will note "gauge" often as it is important to note every
so often that not every modeler understands the difference between P:48, O, O-27, 7mm, Q. code 90/100/110/125/148
or 172 rail? We note other tracks and while we will not include a chart in each issue… we will note which track
a model operates on and prefer the prototypical appearance of well laid or well made two-rail track in an appropriately
weighted rail. |
| We
frequently publish photographs of 2-Rail O Scale models which have won honors at various shows to inspire other
modelers (some to build, others just to show off the beauty that they create in their home workshop), and occasionally
we even get a builder to reveal how he constructs his creations. Most construction articles are geared for those
with beginning or intermediate skills (let's face it, the more advanced modelers do not read modeling magazines
for HOW TO articles). 48/ft, O Scale News is written for men and women who want to collect and build their own
vision of a model railroad in 1/4" scale. People who enjoy their hobby and have been bitten by the love model
railroading and model building in 1/4" scale! Some of our readers may convert 3-rail models to 2-rail or vice
versa and others may mix both scales and metaphors on their pikes. |
| We
are all interested in different details, but this only adds to our individuality and our enjoyment of our hobby.
In this new millenium, we are working to a) getting the magazine into more readers hands; b) keeping up with the
many products available to 1/4" modelers; c) keeping this web site simple, fast to access, and as USABLE as our readers require (though Joy insists on adding all of her own links to the scratchbuilding
section); d) providing back issues on interactive CD-Rom disks, a process which may make it easier for O Scale
modelers to reference older building articles and make a lot of the 'lost' older issues of OSN available again
(this is a long-term project, don't stop building until disk is ready); e) promote the hobby which has gotten us
all here through many a dark night; and f) the most important goal — Keeping O Scale modeling fun! |
| Founder
Dan B. Henon would approve... he'd approve even more if ya'll argue about it a bit... Enjoy yourselves, enjoy your
lives, enjoy your families, and enjoy your hobby. That is the legacy that Dan B. Henon hoped would follow OSN.
jfh |
