Backwoods Horror

How could I have missed this shit? I’ve been so wrapped up in not getting fired from my job I’ve completely missed the death of Forrest J. Ackerman. Sad, really…sad he’s gone, sad I missed it.  Here’s the obituary from the AP:

The following courtesy of the Associated Press:

Forrest J Ackerman, the sometime actor, literary agent, magazine editor and full-time bon vivant who discovered author Ray Bradbury and was widely credited with coining the term “sci-fi,” has died. He was 92.

Ackerman died Thursday of heart failure at his Los Angeles home, said Kevin Burns, head of Prometheus Entertainment and a trustee of Ackerman’s estate.

Although only marginally known to readers of mainstream literature, Ackerman was legendary in science-fiction circles as the founding editor of the pulp magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland. He was also the owner of a huge private collection of science-fiction movie and literary memorabilia that for years filled every nook and cranny of a hillside mansion overlooking Los Angeles.

“He became the Pied Piper, the spiritual leader, of everything science fiction, fantasy and horror,” Burns said Friday.

Every Saturday morning that he was home, Ackerman would open up the house to anyone who wanted to view his treasures. He sold some pieces and gave others away when he moved to a smaller house in 2002, but he continued to let people visit him every Saturday for as long as his health permitted.

“My wife used to say, ‘How can you let strangers into our home?’ But what’s the point of having a collection like this if you can’t let people enjoy it?” an exuberant Ackerman told The Associated Press as he conducted a spirited tour of the mansion on his 85th birthday.

His collection once included more than 50,000 books, thousands of science-fiction magazines and such items as Bela Lugosi’s cape from the 1931 film “Dracula.”

His greatest achievement, however, was likely discovering Bradbury, author of the literary classics “Fahrenheit 451″ and “The Martian Chronicles.” Ackerman had placed a flyer in a Los Angeles bookstore for a science-fiction club he was founding and a teenage Bradbury showed up.

Later, Ackerman gave Bradbury the money to start his own science-fiction magazine, Futuria Fantasia, and paid the author’s way to New York for an authors meeting that Bradbury said helped launch his career.

“I hadn’t published yet, and I met a lot of these people who encouraged me and helped me get my career started, and that was all because of Forry Ackerman,” the author told the AP in 2005.

Later, as a literary agent, Ackerman represented Bradbury, Isaac Asimov and numerous other science-fiction writers.

He said the term “sci-fi” came to him in 1954 when he was listening to a car radio and heard an announcer mention the word “hi-fi.”

“My dear wife said, ‘Forget it, Forry, it will never catch on,’” he recalled.

Soon he was using it in Famous Monsters of Filmland, the magazine he helped found in 1958 and edited for 25 years.

Ackerman himself appeared in numerous films over the years, usually in bit parts. His credits include “Queen of Blood,” “Dracula vs. Frankenstein,” “Amazon Women on the Moon,” “Vampirella,” “Transylvania Twist,” “The Howling” and the Michael Jackson “Thriller” video. More recently, he appeared in 2007′s “The Dead Undead” and 2006′s “The Boneyard Collection.”

Ackerman returned briefly to Famous Monsters of Filmland in the 1990s, but he quickly fell out with the publisher over creative differences. He sued and was awarded a judgment of more than $375,000.

Forrest James Ackerman was born in Los Angeles on Nov. 24, 1916. He fell in love with science-fiction, he once said, when he was 9 years old and saw a magazine called Amazing Stories. He would hold onto that publication for the rest of his life.

Ackerman, who had no children, was preceded in death by his wife, Wendayne.

Thanks to SHOCK TILL YOU DROP for the Pic

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R.I.P. Michael Crichton. This from FANGORIA:

The Los Angeles Times reports that author/screenwriter Michael Crichton died yesterday in LA. The creator of JURASSIC PARK and numerous other science-fiction thrillers, who had been privately battling cancer, was 66.

crichtonobitnews
The Chicago-born Crichton was an English major at Harvard University before dropping out to travel across Europe, then returned to Harvard to study medicine-a background that served him well both in his novels/screenplays and as creator of TV’s hit series ER. His first novel to hit the big screen was THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN, about a team of scientists trying to halt the spread of a deadly extraterrestrial virus, filmed in 1971 by director Robert Wise; a new ANDROMEDA adaptation aired last year on A&E. Crichton made his feature directorial debut (following the 1972 TV movie PURSUIT) with 1973′s WESTWORLD, which he also scripted, set in a futuristic amusement park populated by robots that violently turn on the guests.

Subsequent writing/directing credits include 1978′s COMA, 1981′s LOOKER and 1984′s RUNAWAY, but easily the best-known feature bearing his name is 1993′s JURASSIC PARK, based on his best-selling book. Under director Steven Spielberg and with the aid of groundbreaking digital FX, the film (which Crichton co-scripted) brought dinosaurs to frightening life on screen like never before and became a massive box-office hit, spawning two sequels (with another currently in development). Further films derived from Crichton’s genre tomes were 1995′s CONGO, 1998′s SPHERE and 1999′s THE 13TH WARRIOR (based on EATERS OF THE DEAD). As a bit of horror trivia, he wrote the 1996 weather-porn hit TWISTER with his then-wife Anne-Marie Martin, an actress who previously appeared in genre flicks like THE BOOGENS and (under the pseudonym Eddie Benton) THE DARK RIDE (a.k.a. KILLER’S DELIGHT), SAVAGE HARVEST and the original PROM NIGHT.

I wonder who’s next. Uncle Forry’s on his way, and these things always come in threes.  I hope it’s not Uncle George, I haven’t met him yet…AND, he still has to redeem himself due to that atrocity DIARY OF THE DEAD.

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Forrest J. Ackerman, or Uncle Forry, or The Ackermonster to his legion of fans is slowly slipping away into that great unknown.  For the uninitiated, Ackerman was the creator of FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND, and if you don’t know what THAT is, you’re in the wrong place, buddy, but click the name for linkage if you need to get up to date (also, the octoberiffic RUE MORGUE has this huge piece on the subject).  Here’s the sad news from DREAD CENTRAL:

It’s never easy to say goodbye to a legend. A man who gave his entire life to the genre that we love. That man is Forrest J. Ackerman, and sadly he’s slipping away as you read this.

Word of this sad news first broke this morning, and while I was getting set to write a story, I discovered that Harry at Ain’t It Cool News had done it best and even provided us with a way to say goodbye.

From his article in its entirety:

Hey folks, Harry here … I spoke briefly with Forrest J. Ackerman earlier today, he wasn’t sounding very strong, it hurt to hear his voice knowing that it wouldn’t be here with us much longer. But at the same time, it was nice to say goodbye to one another.

Ackerman is one of the founders of my love of cinema. My father is the geek he is because of his magazine – and I’m the geek I am because of his magazine as well as the influence it had on my father. That magazine was, of course, FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND. In speaking with Uncle Forry’s caretaker, an amazing gentleman named Joe Moe, I was told that Forry was lucid, peaceful and not even on pain medication, but that he was progressively getting worse – and was ready to move on. However, he was wanting to say his goodbyes to as many of his neice and nephews that he has created in his almost 92 years on this Earth. His 92nd Birthday is this November 22nd.

I’m sure many of us can relate to Harry’s words. God, I know I can. So tearfully and with a heavy heart … say goodbye we must. From the same article:

Many friends of Forry have visited his bedside, hearing one last story, one last pun and to say one last goodbye. Ray Bradbury even flew to his bedside. We here at AICN are preparing a fitting memorial – and something, most likely, permanent to AICN. In the meanwhile – there is a chance for you to say your final goodbye, here’s how…

I talked to Joe Moe, Forry’s caregiver and best friend. He told me to spread the word about Forry. Forry is leaving us quickly. If youre going to write or call, do it now before it’s too late. He’s in good spirits and not in any pain or taking any meds. He did not have any heart attack or stroke. He is home resting comfortably, but his body is starting to shut down and he’s sleeping alot now, hes very weak.

Even if you do what I did, just write “I love you” on a piece of paper and mail it, please do something if he touched your life in some way…………….joey OBrien

FORREST J ACKERMAN
4511 Russell Avenue
Los Angeles, CA
90027

He’ll be missed…

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What the hell are we going to do for Trailer Voice Overs now? Don LaFontaine, the voice of a movie trailer generation, has died.  This from FOX NEWS:

LOS ANGELES —  Don LaFontaine, the man behind the chilling voice in various movie trailers and commercials, died Monday, his agent said. He was 68.

LaFontaine died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles of complications from a collapsed lung, ETOnline reported. The official cause of death, however, was not immediately released.
LaFontaine’s vocal talents have appeared in over 5,000 movie trailers and nearly 350,000 commercials. He is most famous for the introductory line, “In a world…”
LaFontaine most recently appeared in a Geico Insurance commercial where he was referred to as “that announcer guy.”
He is survived by his wife, singer/actress Nita Whitaker, and three children Christine, Skye and Elyse.

So Long Creepy-Voiced-Announcer-Guy…

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Ok, this site isn’t anywhere near ready to be generally viewed, but I couldn’t just sit back and let this news go unpublished within these pages.  Stan Winston, the visionary makeup artist behind movies such as Jurassic Park, Terminator, Aliens, etc., has passed on.  My tattered horror flag rests at half mast today, kiddos.

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