Interlac (APA)

Interlac is a bimonthly amateur press association devoted to the DC Comics science fiction superhero team the Legion of Super-Heroes. It was the first APA devoted to the Legion and, despite the decline of APAs due to Internet forums, continues to operate to this day. June 2016 marked the 40th anniversary.

Interlac’s name comes from the designated communication language of the 30th-century United Planets confederation (the milieu in which the Legion of Super-Heroes operates).

Rich Morrissey founded the APA in June 1976, calling it LEAPA (the LEgion Amateur Press Association); it changed its name to Interlac three mailings later. There were 15 founding members, and the first mailing was 26 pages.

At the time, there were few general-interest comics APAs, CAPA-alpha and APA-5 being the exceptions. But never before in comic book fandom had the fans of a single comic book come together in a single APA. So while Interlac’s form came from CAPA-alpha, its membership came from the Legion Fan Club (started by 13-year-old Mike Flynn in 1972) and The Legion Outpost (a fanzine started in 1972).

In 1976, the Legion of Super-Heroes’ comic was finally on a solid footing, with the rich Legion mythos giving members plenty to discuss. As the roster grew—soon reaching its 50-member limit—it became clear that the APA had become a true community. Members met each other at comic book conventions and became real-life friends; members Tom Bierbaum and Mary Gilmore met through the APA, began a romance, and eventually married. The Bierbaums later graduated from Interlac to working as scripters of the Legion comic itself.

The roster, with the exception of a few stalwarts, has turned over repeatedly, breathing fresh life and bringing new points of view into the forum. All the same, in 2000, eight of the 15 founders were still on the roster, waiting list, or honorary membership list, and four of the original 15 had remained on the roster continuously.

At one point, a spinoff APA devoted to music was formed, dubbed Quarternotes by its founders.

...
Wikipedia