At 11am today (and probably continuing right now), many items from Forrest J Ackerman’s storied collection of horror and sci-fi movie memorabilia are BEING AUCTIONED OFF, including the ring Bela Lugosi wore in Dracula (seen on Forry in the picture above). You can register online to the live auction and see the lots here.
Forrest J Ackerman (aka “Mr. Science Fiction,” “Forry,” “The Ackermonster,” “4e” and “4SJ”), who coined the genre term “sci-fi,” died last year at the age of 92. He is regarded as the original horror and sci-fi fanboy, amassing a huge collection of genre film memerobilia over the course of his life which, until 2002, he displayed for friends and fans in his home / museum in the Hollywood Hills, known as the “Ackermansion.”
In 1958 Forry started the Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, which helped bring together sci-fi and horror fans the world over. Many now-famous filmmakers, writers, and artists including Stephen Spielberg, Stephen King, John Landis, Roger Coreman, and Rich Baker all regard Forry and his magazine as major inspirations to them as young kids, and he is credited with nurturing the writing careers of many of his literary contemporaries including Ray Bradbury, Ray Harryhausen, Charles Beaumont, Marion Zimmer Bradley and L. Ron Hubbard.
I’m lucky to have had the pleasure of being introduced to Forrest (Forry) J Ackerman several years ago through our mutual friend, the late great Dr. Donald A. Reed, founder of “The Academy of Science Fiction Fantasy and Horror Film,” and “The Count Dracula Society,” (According to my CDS mebership card I have about 90 years remaining, but I’m certain that Forry’s membership is eternal.) Both of Dr. Reed’s groups were inspired by and organized within the pages of Forry’s Famous Monsters, and Dr. Reed and Forry maintained a lifelong friendship which, incidentally, he discusses during an interview in Dustin Lance Black’s bio-documentary about Dr. Reed, My Life with Count Dracula. The film is hard to find, but it’s worth a watch if you’re a big sci-fi, horror, or fantasy genre film fan.
Hopefully both Forry and Don Reed are gleefully undead, haunting the Ackermansion and the Magic Castle, and readying their nametags for the great sci-fi convention in the sky!
