Forry Ackerman and FAMOUS MONSTERS Magazine

Many people who grew up in the 50's, 60's and 70's remember "Famous Monsters of Filmland" Magazine, which was published by James Warren and edited by Forrest J Ackerman. It's a great mag that has remained consistently collectible over the years, and the older it gets, the more fondly people tend to remember it.

Forrest Ackerman, now 91, has apparently let it be known that he feels his time is short. He is in many ways the man who legitimized fandom, and through his magazine he championed the cause of science fiction and fantasy as wholesome and stimulating entertainment. He grew up with special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen and acclaimed writer Ray Bradbury, and the three remain fond friends to this day. His reputation as a kind and generous representative of the science fiction/fantasy/horror fandom community is known far and wide.

It's a good time to take a moment to consider the sizable cultural contributions of this great human being.

--Rodd M

I met Forrey many years ago at a comic con. We had a fun discussion about Lon Chaney Sr. and he is a very engaging man. When I showed him my tattoo of Lon in London After Midnight he smiled and said "You know I have that hat". I got a picture with him (along with the tattoo). I love all that he has done for the little monster in all of us. Great post. It definitely got me reflecting.
Here's the photo.

Fangs for the memories!
Cheers.

Forrest Ackerman (4e) use to open his Los Angeles house (the Auckermansion) to the public on weekends a few years back and I was fortunate to see it. The house was filled with Sci-Fi and horror movie props including the cape worn by Bela Legosi in Dracula and and monster models used by Ray Harryhausen. And 4e was very friendly and had tons of stories to tell.

Tour of Auckermansion

There use to be an official Auckerman webpage but can't find it now.

[ Edited by: King Bushwich the 33rd 2008-11-09 16:22 ]

Good of you to give "The Ackermonster" a shout-out, Rodd.

Cheers to a great human being -- Forrey Ackerman will always be a legend in his own time, and beyond. Seldom has the world seen anyone so generous, hospitable, warm-hearted, relentlessly witty, and completely far-out.

As a kid, I devoured every issue of Famous Monsters of Filmland that came out (still have a lot of 'em, too), and was privileged to have visited the original Ackermansion twice. Around the turn of this century, I was once again privileged to visit the then-Ackermansion in the Los Feliz hills, where Forrey proudly showed-off the nugget of Lon Chaney's greasepaint he preserved in the original Lugosi Dracula ring he almost always wore. In his hale years, he welcomed everyone to his home(s), where lore and laughter were both in much abundance, and where through the decades he sheltered and shared his ever-growing collection of historic film props and stop-motion animation relics, priceless original artwork, and his vast sci-fi/fantasy library. He has justly won the affection of thousands of fans and admirers through the years and around the world, and I'm proud to say I'm one of them too.

His original website appears to be down, but he's got a MySpace page here --

http://www.myspace.com/forrestjackerman

It has been a better world for his presence in it, and I sincerely hope that the light of whimsy, good humor, bad puns, and limitless wonder he has inspired will never go out. Nor will it, so long as those that Forrey has inspired continue to value and pass along those qualities he so kindly and readily bestowed upon all his guests and readers, so many of whom can gladly say, "Fangs for the memories, Forrey..."

SOK

I had heard of his health concerns as well. He is a hero of mine, ans i too was fortunate to get to the Ackermuseum in the 1990's. His sort of passion for the subject matter should always be applauded, and FM was the greatest of horror magazines.
I have had an autographed lithograph of Forry as the Ackermonster in my collection of things to get framed, will have to move that ahead of the pile. I hope he is enjoying his time right now knowing the positive effect he has had on so many.

My Uncle Denny - considered the 'strange' one of the family (in a good way, and I'm often compared to him! And, thinking about it, looks-wise just picture Bamboo Ben with a few extra pounds added. Uncle Denny, not me, that is) gave me several boxes of his stuff he'd grown tired of when I was about 10-12 years old. Completed Aurora Monster model kit figures were part of the treasure (originals from 1961, which, unfortunately - since they were already built - I loved to break apart and rebuild over & over until they were in pretty bad shape. But I still have them in a box somewhere, along with "Madame Tussaud's Guillotine" model which I took to school for show and tell and consequently freaked out the teacher with).
In another box was a small stack of Famous Monsters, issues 23 thru 45, which quickly became my favorite reading material - even with mom giving me the "You're going to have nightmares!" warning every time she saw me with one. Still have 'em all, too, but in a little less pristine shape than when they were handed to me...

Sad News. Forrey passed away on 12/4/08

Excite News: Forrest J. Ackerman

I'll hoist tonights Mai Tai in his memory. I remember reading the few copies I could horsetrade from my cronies repeatedly. Might be why I'm so twisted as well!!! Something makes me think that kids these days are deprived with the abundance of, well, kid stuff out there these days. I remember reading about Vincent Price in House of Wax, and a while later finally getting to see it on tv. The anticipation was torturous...but what a payoff when I finally got to see it.

RIP FJA

Sad sad news. I'll be thinking of all the great memories that he's is responsible for by pushing a kid's love for monsters into the public eye.
Thank you Forrey, you'll be missed.

Great photo, MR, thanks.

Very sad to hear of Forrey's passing.

Now he belongs to the ages, may his memory live as long as those he inspired and delighted continue to share his myriad interests, and may that memory continue to inspire and delight succeeding generations of fantasy fans long into the world of tomorrow.

I hope someone captures his likeness as a Halloween mask; few would get it, but I think he'd love the notion.

Goodnight Forrey, and most sanguine cheers.

I saw the sad news when I was reading my paper during lunch. I had to put the paper away and finish it later. The news saddened me so.
I was never fortunate enough to visit the Ackermansion, but did visit the Ackerbungalow. It was a joy just to hang out with him the few times I did. He was a charming man and regaled everyone with stories from his past. Long live Forry!

Sad news, I went to his 90th B-day pary a couple years ago and he was still so friendly and full of great stories. I never went to the mansion, however, I did visit him at his home in Los Feliz and he was funny, friendly and animated when telling detailed stories and gossip from back in the day. He is missed.

Forrest J Ackerman in a movie which he was probably very proud of

Nudist Colony of the Dead

A Petition

Declare Forrest Ackerman's house a historic monument!