Spirit of Light

Spirit of Light was a series of for-profit cons in the United States run by Spirit of Light Enterprises and Norman Rubenstein. 
In 1986, fans could purchase tickets through Ticketmaster, the cost was $16 per adult.
The Spirit of Light organization was used as an example of the evils of for-profit companies moving in on fan-run, not-for-profit conventions, and was a topic in the Blake's 7 Wars.
==Merch==
It appears to have sold their own merchandise, such as these posters sometimes through the dodgy company, Star Tech. 
==Some Dates==
* The Ultimate Celebration: 26-27 November 1983 was held in Chicago (Tom Baker, Jon Pertwee, Patrick Troughton (1st con), Peter Davison, Nicholas Courtney, Ian Marter, John Nathan-Turner, Anthony Ainley, John Leeson, Janet Fielding, Elisabeth Sladen, Carole Ann Ford, Mark Strickson, Sarah Sutton, Louise Jameson, Mary Tamm, Nicola Bryant, Fiona Cumming, Ian Fraser, Gary Downie, Julie Brennan, Terry Nation, Peter Moffatt, Matthew Waterhouse)
* TARDIS 21: Nov. 23-25, 1984 was held in Chicago (Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Peter Davison, Colin Baker, Anthony Ainley, Nicholas Courtney, Nicola Bryant, Janet Fielding, Elisabeth Sladen, Lalla Ward, Mark Strickson, Frazer Hines, John Nathan-Turner, Terrance Dicks, Ian Marter, John Levene, Richard Franklin)
* Spirit of Light: Aug. 31-Sept. 2, 1985 was held in Philadelphia (King of Prussia) at the Valley Forge Convention & Exhibit Center
* Spirit of Light: Oct. 18-20, 1985 was held in Philadelphia (King of Prussia) at the Valley Forge Convention & Exhibit Center (Jon Pertwee, Anthony Ainley, John Levene, Janet Fielding, Nicola Bryant, Terry Walsh, Carole Anne Ford)
* TARDIS 22: Nov. 29-Dec. 1, 1985 was held in Chicago (Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, Colin Baker, Nicola Bryant, Janet Fielding, Louise Jameson, Elisabeth Sladen, Mark Strickson, Sarah Sutton, Terry Walsh, Lalla Ward, John Nathan-Turner, John Levene, Richard Franklin, Anthony Ainley, Paul Darrow, Jacqueline Pearce)
* Whovent (with Aerosport Ltd): May 25-26, 1986 was held in New Brunswick, New Jersey at the Hyatt Regency (Colin Baker, Patrick Troughton, John Nathan-Turner, Lalla Ward, Frazer Hines, Louise Jameson, Bonnie Langford (1st con), Carole Ann Ford, Sarah Sutton, Mark Strickson) 
* Whovent 86 (Spirit of Light and WHA): May 30-June 1, 1986 held in Madison, Wisconsin (Peter Davison, Lalla Ward, Louise Jameson, Mark Strickson, Sarah Sutton, John Nathan-Turner, Bonnie Langford)
* Whovent 86: eight separate events in September 1986 held in Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Nashville, Atlanta, Milwaukee, Chicago, Boston, and New York City (Tom Baker, Colin Baker)
 
==The First One: The Ultimate Celebration==
"The Ultimate Celebration" was the first one in the series. It was held 26-27 November 1983 in Chicago.
See a television ad for this con.
See some of the programming for this con Doctor Who - Troughton vs Pertwee - The '83 Match.
==A Topic of the Blake's 7 Wars==
From Linda Terrell, a fan who was passionate about keeping conventions smaller, non-profit, and fan-run:
From Laurie Cohen was one of the fans who wanted to enter the world of for-profit, slicker conventions under her company, Decima Productions. She mentioned "Spirit of Light" as a business model she wanted to avoid: 
==Other Fan Comments==
==Meta and Further Reading==
* TARDIS draws on who's who of 'Dr. Who', 1985 article in the Chicago Sun Times
* Reviewed: Doctor Who's 20th Anniversary – At Last, The 1983 Show by Leon Hewitt (October 13, 2019)
==References==
Category:1980s Conventions
Category:Doctor Who Conventions
Category:Conventions in United States