Asimovs.com - General Discussion - Forrest J. Ackerman RIP - Messages

Message from Marian

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:36:26 GMT

Thanks for posting the url. That's a fascinating collection of letters to the editor.

Message from RandyBeck

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 16:23:53 GMT

Yes, that's definitely him. I plugged his address into Google and got this: Superman's birthplace -- restored house of creator Jerry Siegel. It's at the same address.

You can also see it at Google's Maps if you go to street view, but it's one house off. There's also one at Forrest J Ackerman's address but I don't know that the house is that old. I peeked just on the off chance that he might still have lived there when the Google Maps car went by, and (near impossibly, I know) that he might have been outside at the time.

And yes, it was a very small world. I wouldn't have thought it was quite that small until now.

Message from karlb

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 15:13:56 GMT

It really is an amazing coincidence (if I'm right about Seigel - am sure about Weisinger). Those guys were both in their mid-teens in 1931, way before either was involved in one way or another with Superman. I think it demonstrates that the world of SF/fantastic literature and fandom was a VERY small one in those days.

Message from RandyBeck

Sun, 08 Aug 2010 15:17:43 GMT

Two Superman-related letters just can't be a coincidence.

I was (barely) smart enough to give the other names another once-over before posting that message, but not astute enough to catch those names. I do recognize them now.

Message from karlb

Sun, 08 Aug 2010 11:22:26 GMT

Synchonicity Dept., Small World Division: Randy, look at the names of a couple of other letter writers. The first letter in the column is signed by Jerome Siegel of Cleveland, Ohio - I'm guessing that this is very likely Jerry Siegel, later co-creator of Superman. He was from Cleveland.
Further on down the page is a letter from Mortimer Weisinger, the Bronx. This was almost certainly Mort Weisinger, long-time editor of Superman, Batman and other comics during the 40s, 50s, 60s. He was from NYC.

Message from RandyBeck

Sat, 07 Aug 2010 19:06:31 GMT

Just looking through the August '31 issue of Astounding and I see a letter from none other than Forrest J. Ackerman, 530 Staples Ave., San Francisco, Cal.

Here's a direct link to the Reader's Corner.
edited by RandyBeck on 8/7/2010

Message from AspE

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:27:21 GMT

...I have a weird story about that that's a little too personal/self-dredging for me to put up right now .
That aside-Yeah , in a sense , he could be said to have INVENTED " fandom " , or the concept of being a " fan " , couldn't he ??????????? ( In the Fantasy/SF/whatever sense , not of " eally liking an actor/actress , or vocalist " , etc. )

Message from Dave_Truesdale

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 08:48:04 GMT

Thank you, Marian. Good ole Forry. :-)

Message from Marian

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 05:09:40 GMT

He made a video a few days before he died to say farewell http://scifiwire.com/2009/03/forrest-j-ackerman-has-a.php#more

Message from gdozois

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 19:45:37 GMT

No, I think it's just a group of his admirers--there's also a "Friends of H.P. Lovecraft" group--but it was a bit startling.

Message from Dave_Truesdale

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 19:16:48 GMT

That someone was just being a bit of a joker, Gardner. In 4E's will it states that all proceeds going to his estate will be divided up among his "friends." :-)

Message from gdozois

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 11:55:09 GMT

Someone just urged me to become a Friend of his on Facebook, which I thought was a little odd, since he's dead.

Message from Marian

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 04:39:45 GMT

A final word. His collection is to be auctioned off http://scifiwire.com/2009/02/forrest-ackerman-memorabilia-including-draculas-cape-to-be-sold.php#more

That link gives a photo of him plus gives an idea of his collection.

Message from TCO

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 13:01:20 GMT

We are losing even the connections to when SF was great.

Message from Annie

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 03:55:54 GMT

RIP

Message from dolphintornsea

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 13:43:07 GMT

Once again, my condolences to all those who loved him. I hope he had some pleasure from his recent 92nd birthday celebrations, which he seems to have hung on for.

Message from Bill Moonroe

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 08:19:17 GMT

Saw this on the SFWA page, too. RIP, Forrest.

Message from Marian

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 02:40:01 GMT

Locus now has the announcement under Breaking News but no write up yet. Here's more from SF Wire http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=62610

Message from John E. Rogers, Jr.

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:21:23 GMT

A sad day.

May he rest in peace.

Message from Dave_Truesdale

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:02:00 GMT

4E was 92, having been born November 14th (or 24th?), 1916. I will miss him immensely. Had lunch with him and Fred Pohl once, at the 1978 Worldcon in Phoenix. He had just returned from a trip to Japan where he was honored in a ribbon-cutting ceremony of an SF museum (I _think_ devoted to a lot of his stuff, but am not sure). He returned with this spiffy, slick, full-color, full-size one-shot tribute to him and some of the coolest stuff in his collection. All of the text was in both Japanese and English. I was honored when he presented me with a copy, as it's pretty darn rare.

I hated Perry Rhodan, but it did bring in a lot of new readers, I guess. But Forry was never without a smile in all the years I saw him at worldcons. Another legend now sadly gone.

Message from alastair_mayer

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:47:44 GMT

Nothing about it in Locus Online yet. Perhaps they're waiting to be sure this isn't another false alarm.

(Somehow it strikes me as very Forry-like to be repeatedly reported dead and rising from the grave yet again.)
.
edited by alastair_mayer on 12/5/2008

Message from Marian

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:31:01 GMT

Rest in peace. He made a unique niche for himself in the world and filled it beautifully.

Message from Lee S

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:06:52 GMT

MSN is reporting that he passed of a heart attack at home. Apparently this was yesterday.

link hope the link is formatted properly.
edited by Lee S on 12/5/2008

Message from galaxie500

Sat, 08 Nov 2008 14:17:13 GMT

Well, folks, good news is that he isn't dead yet, so you should wait with condolences.
The news about death were somewhat premature.
He is in serious condition, but not dead. It seems that nobody read what Thomas R. had written few columns above.
And man is a living legend.
edited by galaxie500 on 11/8/2008

Message from pc

Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:16:06 GMT

One of those towering figures, for sure.

I've got an anthology of his, of short stories that got made into hit SF movies.

Message from alastair_mayer

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 15:50:04 GMT

Forrest J did a film review column, "Scientifilm World" for the 'zine Novae Terrae back in the 30s, of which I inherited a few copies. My dad once did a guest review for that column (in 1936), later reprinted (I discovered recently) in Perry Rhodan volume 81. Personally I remember 4SJ best from reading issues of "Famous Monsters of Filmland" when I was a kid. He's certainly had an impressive influence in the field.

Message from gdozois

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 11:40:37 GMT

If anyone would be pleased about coming back from the dead, even for only a short while, it would be Ackerman.

I just read that H.P. Lovecraft makes a jibe about Ackerman in one of his letters from the '30s, saying that he'd send a ghoul to eat him but was afraid that the ghoul would get sick, which shows you just how long he's been around.

Message from Tom Purdom

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 10:16:59 GMT

Ackerman was a major presence in SF when I started reading it 58 years ago. The way people referred to him, in fact, he already seemed like a legendary figure.

Message from Thomas R

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 09:36:52 GMT

"Uhh the latest news is that he's not, in fact, dead but is instead very very ill. SFF.Net has retracted and someone apparently contacted him."

No longer true.
edited by Thomas R on 12/5/2008

Message from Marian

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 08:58:34 GMT

I'm sorry to hear it but what a legacy! The ultimate fan and collector and repository of knowledge of all things sf.

Message from dolphintornsea

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 06:35:59 GMT

Gosh, that's incredibly sad. I'm not sure how old he was, but I think he was far into his nineties.

Forry Ackerman was probably the greatest fan the SF world ever had. In fact, he was probably the greatest fan of anything the world has ever seen.

He even collaborated of a few stories with well known SF writers, and put together a few anthologies as editor. I picked up a copy of an intriguing collection of oldies, not long ago, called Gosh! Wow! Sense of Wonder. It's on a shelf of books I hope to get to one day, but I've already read some of his entertaining introductions to the stories.

He will be missed, but not forgotten.

Message from bluetyson

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 00:09:52 GMT

Perry Rhodan, thanks very much.