When Forrest J Ackerman, known as Forry, passed away recently he left behind a collection of movie memorabilia. And items from it will be available to bid for at Profiles in History 's 36th auction of Hollywood memorabilia, taking place the last week of April 2009.
The "Ackermonster" played a big role in science fiction fandom, and is credited with coining the term sci-fi. He was also editor of the magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland, as well as an influential author and literary agent. He was noted for having amassed an extremely large collection of science fiction, fantasy and horror film memorabilia, which was, until 2002, maintained in the remarkable 18-room "Ackermansion" in Los Angeles.
Items remaining from the collection, including Bela Lugosi's Dracula ring and cape, along with Lugosi's costume from The Raven; a first edition of Dracula signed by Bram Stoker and Lugosi; and Fritz Lang's monocle from Metropolis, are among the first confirmed items available at the auction. This will be the most important sale of horror-related items ever assembled for auction. The Dracula ring alone is estimated to sell for between $20,000 and $30,000, and the cape, which was made for Bela Lugosi in 1932 and used many times for his stage portrayal of Dracula, is estimated to fetch $15,000 to $20,000. He also wore the cape in Plan 9 from Outer Space.
Worldwide bids can be placed live on the internet via LiveAuctioneers.com . Other methods, including the address and phone number, are available on the official site . Previous auctions by Profiles in History, founded in 1985 by Joseph Maddalena, have included the Cowardly Lion costume from The Wizard of Oz ($805,000) and a full-scale model T-800 endoskeleton from Terminator 2 ($488,750).
Look out for a column by David Langford dedicated to FJA in a forthcoming issue of SFX.
Pictures courtesy of Profiles in History. Front page thumbnail courtesy of photographer Mark Berry, who compiled our 2005 article about Forry Ackerman.
