The Panic Button

The Panic Button was a science fiction fandom fanzine by Les Nirenberg published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Panic Button was published in the early 1960s and at least 14 issues appeared. It had originated as the fanzineQue Pasado, later Vahana. In its later issues it was evolved from a fanzine to a newsstand magazine, but with the same writers, many of whom were fanzine editors.

Contributors included Greg Benford, F.M. Busby (Cry of the Nameless), Cal Demmon, Alan Dodd, Gary Deindorfer, Jerry DeMuth, Roger Ebert, Colin Freeman (Scribble), Les Gerber, Rolf Gindorf, Jim Linwood, Len Moffatt, Ted Pauls, Richard Schultz, Harry Warner, Jr. (Horizons), Ted White (Void), and Norm Clarke and Gina Clarke Ellis (Descant, Queebshots).

Ron Bennett, in Skyrack, called it, "A way out production" and "Fandom's leading Terse Commentary Fanzine". He went on to say, "Personally I enjoyed it, particularly Les's joke about not having the time to argue with Ted Pauls and then doing so for three columns". The Panic Button was characterized by Jim Linwood as "a strange hybrid of fandom and the 1960s Toronto hipster scene".

In 1964, Nirenberg transformed his magazine into "The Panic Button Review" comedy nightclub act in Toronto.