RIP Forrest Ackerman

Elizabeth Bear just sent this sad news over Twitter.

 

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A spokesman says sometime actor, literary agent, magazine editor and full-time bon vivant Forrest J Ackerman has died.

I never met him, I’ve never been to his reportedly awesome house, but all of us who enjoy or make a living from sci-fi (or both) owe him a moment of silence and remembrance.

Rest in peace, sir.

Most people who read my blog only do it via RSS and never see the comments, so I’m updating my post to add this comment from reader Stickman: 

I do need you all to know what a class act Forry is.
 
For decades, Forrest J Ackerman opened his private home every week for public tours of his literally overwhelming collection of sci-fi and horror memorabilia. He had a practiced patter and plenty of horrid puns worthy of the founding editor of Famous Monsters Magazine.
 
A few years ago, Mr. Ackerman was hospitalized in serious condition. I had recently lost an inspirational college professor who I didn’t even know was hospitalized, so I made a point of traveling to see Forrest to deliver a rocketship-featuring get-well card.
 
He looked bad. Really bad. He had spinal blocks in following a surgical procedure, a scar on his scalp, his partial dental bridge was out, his skin was ghastly pale, his hair was sickgreased, and his medically paralyzed body was arranged at odd angles within the tucked-in blanket.

He literally looked like the bag of bones he was.
 
And he was smiling at his visitors.
 
He was telling his trademark corny jokes.
 
He insisted I take a complementary copy of Cult Movies magazine, an issue for which he recently wrote a column.
 
He was a gracious host even on what looked to be his deathbed.
 
That amount of grace in a person is stunning to experience.
 
You become very conscious of the air you walk through after such an encounter. He gave me proof of the possibility and ability of Human Grace firsthand. That’s the kind of good man he is.
 
I am glad that in the subsequent years, and the last few weeks, he’s had additional opportunity to receive well-wishers and tributes to him personally as well as his legacy to the fandom that Wil wrote about in the previous post.
 
I’m saddened he’s gone, but I’m glad he existed, as Ray Bradbury said of our purpose, "to witness and to celebrate."
 
RIP, 4sJ.

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25 thoughts on “RIP Forrest Ackerman”

  2. I actually met Forrest Ackerman many years ago when he appeared as an invited guest at the grand opening of a comic bok store owned by a good friend of mine. I only said hello to Mr. Ackerman, but he was very nice and my friend had nothing but good things to say about him. I know he will be very much missed.

  4. One of the main reasons I went to San Diego Comic Con in ’06 was to see him on stage with Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen.
    I knew this was coming eventually but it doesn’t make it easier to hear. R.I.P., Forry.

  6. RIP 4E!
    I met him when he did a con in Austin, many moons ago.
    First, in the lobby of his hotel, and later at the con.
    He was really sweet and patient with some especially worshipful FX fanboys. A couple of them had made miniature re-creations of some scary thing or other. He fussed-over and discussed the details with the proud artists. Nice guy.

  8. Sad news indeed. I actually met him in his museum/house which is filled to the brim with memorabilia and sci-fi awesomeness. And he himself was quite a character, showing us around as a museum guide in his own home – it was a brilliant performance. He’s the only person I ever met that was fluent in Esperanto (or so he claimed, it might as well have been just a few sentences learned by heart), and he had such a presence that even though I was there ten years ago I remember it like it was yesterday.
    I have a few really old German science fiction books from my grandfather that I always wanted to mail to him for his collection. I never got around to doing it. Now it’s too late.

  10. I remember reading his magazines when I was in Jr. High (I’m pushing 60 now), May I echo everyones sadness and words of praise, and express my condolences to his family, friends, and fans.

  11. I had the honor of meeting him at Dracula ’97 in Los Angeles. He joined us at our table for lunch, and was delightful company. I’m sad to hear of his passing. The sci-fi community is so much richer for his having been at the heart of it.

  12. sad sad news.
    I was lucky enough to be at the egyptian theatre for a Return of the King screening back in 2004 where a very humbled Peter Jackson got to present Forry with an honorary seat at the theater (or something like that, their own sort of lifetime achievement award). He seemed to be just a genuinely nice guy… God, I loved Famous Monsters as a kid!! 🙂

  14. Oh. I’ll have to let my parents know. They were good friends of his back in the 60’s. Somewhere I still have a copy of “The Red Fairy Tale Book”, inscribed from “Uncle Forrey”. My own memories are of the hazy childhood sort. A nice old man with a good laugh. He was a sweet person. RIP

  15. Sad to hear. I did a paper/presentation on him when I was in fourth-ish grade. Mostly cribbed from Starlog and its sister publications. I thought he was the coolest guy ever. (Still do.)

  16. I met him briefly at the San Antonio Worldcon in 97. I was working backstage for the Hugo Awards, and helped him navigate the rickety stairs to the stage in total darkness. A great gentleman and a true legend.

  17. I do need you all to know what a class act Forry is.
    For decades, Forrest J Ackerman opened his private home every week for public tours of his literally overwhelming collection of sci-fi and horror memorabilia. He had a practiced patter and plenty of horrid puns worthy of the founding editor of Famous Monsters Magazine.
    A few years ago, Mr. Ackerman was hospitalized in serious condition. I had recently lost an inspirational college professor who I didn’t even know was hospitalized, so I made a point of traveling to see Forrest to deliver a rocketship-featuring get-well card.
    He looked bad. Really bad. He had spinal blocks in following a surgical procedure, a scar on his scalp, his partial dental bridge was out, his skin was ghastly pale, his hair was sickgreased, and his medically paralyzed body was arranged at odd angles within the tucked-in blanket. He literally looked like the bag of bones he was.
    And he was smiling at his visitors.
    He was telling his trademark corny jokes.
    He insisted I take a complementary copy of Cult Movies magazine, an issue for which he recently wrote a column.
    He was a gracious host even on what looked to be his deathbed.
    That amount of grace in a person is stunning to experience.
    You become very conscious of the air you walk through after such an encounter. He gave me proof of the possibility and ability of Human Grace firsthand. That’s the kind of good man he is.
    I am glad that in the subsequent years, and the last few weeks, he’s had additional opportunity to receive well-wishers and tributes to him personally as well as his legacy to the fandom that Wil wrote about in the previous post.
    I’m saddened he’s gone, but I’m glad he existed, as Ray Bradbury said of our purpose, “to witness and to celebrate.”
    RIP, 4sJ.

  18. He was a good guy. I met him when he was the very first person to say “yes” to being a guest at our fledgling sci-fi convention, CONvergence.

  19. Now I’m sad. Forry was one of the reasons I got into fandom. His unrelenting enthusiasm and passion for SF in film, theater, literature and magazines was an inspiration to so many of us. God bless you, Mr Ackerman. And may flocks of angels sing thee to thy rest. : (

  22. Thats so sad.. even though ive never met him, let alone never really heard of him I still gave him a moment of silence… Speaking of people passing on, would you say that Heath Ledger was the next River Phoenix?

  23. When I was around ages 8-12, I spent a lot of time sitting next to magazine racks flipping through the pages of the latest issue of Famous Monsters magazine. It actually got me interested in how movies were made.

  24. Sad Day indeed – “The Patron Saint of Fandom” has passed on. (And I am missing yet another friend.) I first met Forrey when I was working as Technical Director for teh first ever “World Horror Con”. Forrey was showig a film he was in with Vincent Price. (He gave me a button he was wearing of him in a vampire costume – chewing on a bloody wooden stake.). I later encountered Forrey many more times. Just part of the price of being friends with Brad Lineaweaver and Brink Stevens and John Bushlow. Forrey showed e the rings he wore from the movies – The Mummy, Dracula, The Werewolf… I remember that it was Forrey who introduced me to Ray Harryhausen. This later led to me meeting John Phillip Law (another friend recently passed) Forrey was the consumate gentleman, story teller and wonderful friend next door kind of guy. he is considered the father of CosPlay — although to him it was just wearing costumes to conventions like it was another Halloween. He worried more for the people around him than himself. So yes a legend, and a good man has passed on. I hope he is hanging with Vincent, Lagosi, and the gang and smiling down at us. Goodbye 4E — and be well.

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