John Bangsund (21 April 1939 – 22 August 2020)[1] was an Australian science fiction fan in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. He was a major force, with Andrew I. Porter, behind Australia winning the right to host the 1975 Aussiecon, and he was Toastmaster at the Hugo Award ceremony at that convention.
Bangsund was an influential and founding member of ANZAPA – the Australian and New Zealand Amateur Press Association; and long-time editor of the newsletter for the Victorian Society of Editors in Australia (of which he was an honorary life member[2]). His fanzine, Australian Science Fiction Review (ASFR), did much to help revive science fiction fandom in Australia during the 1960s.[3]
He was co-chair of the 9th Australian S.F. Convention (1970), and Fan Guest of Honor at Ozcon (1974 Australian National SF Convention).[4]
Bangsund was the instigator of the term Muphry's law,[5] which states that "if you write anything criticizing editing or proofreading, there will be a fault of some kind in what you have written".[6]
Bangsund was married to Sally Yeoland, who announced on his Facebook page that on 22 August 2020, he had died from COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.