World's most famous collector of flying saucer and alien movie memorabilia celebrates courtroom victory.
5/19/2000
Flying Saucers over Hollywood! by filmmaker Paul Davids offers a rare glimpse into the great Hollywood UFO films.
Wednesday, May 10th, in Van Nuys, California, a most unusual trial came to an end. 83-year old Forrest J Ackerman, former editor of Famous Monsters of Filmland and undisputed worldwide champ at collecting flying saucer and alien knick-knacks from movie and TV shows, savored his victory. This was no ordinary trial. The witnesses in the case (on Forry's side) included icon and science-fiction author Ray Bradbury (The Martian Chronicles) and director John Landis. Landis had his own legal problems a number of years ago when he was embroiled in a wrongful death suit, which involved a child actor and sci-fi actor Victor Morrow when a TWILIGHT ZONE special effects scene turned deadly.
Forry Ackerman's science-fiction collection, housed in his 17-room Hollywood home known as "The Ackermansion," boasts original Frank R. Paul paintings that are truly an "AlienZoo" -- full of space-beings -- and spacecraft from the covers of Amazing Stories magazine circa 1930. At one of his gala birthday party bashes (which I attended in Century City), Forry issued a party program in the form of a magazine called "Amazing Forries." It was modeled after Amazing Stories, in honor of both himself and the magazine that had won him over to a life-long love affair with science-fiction when he was a youngster, back in the days of the original KING KONG and DRACULA.
I've known Forrest J Ackerman (he never uses a period after the "J") since I was a youngster, always busy after school making amateur space movies with my friends in elementary and junior high school. In fact, when Forry awarded me an Honorable Mention for one of my productions, the publicity about me as a child filmmaker in Famous Monsters went to my head. Forry's influence was so profound that when I graduated college back east, even though most of my friends were heading off to get law and medical degrees, I packed all my belongings in an old car and drove across the country for Hollywood. Yes, I was crazy, defined as Paul Simon sung about it ("Still crazy after all these years...") And yes, all the usual suspects tried to talk me out of it. By then I had won myself entry to the American Film Institute Center for Advanced Film Studies in Beverly Hills (with full scholarship), so it was impossible to reason with me about whether I was wise to pursue such a risky occupation.
Forry has played father-figure to lots of wayward lads who wandered into Tinseltown with dreams of becoming producers and directors, and I was no exception. Thus, Forry certainly deserves a place of honor in FLYING SAUCERS OVER HOLLYWOOD, and what better occasion for us to acknowledge him than the occasion of Forry's legal victory, which will bring him nearly three-quarters of a million dollars (if he can collect it).
He is a man of many nicknames. Some call him "Forry." Others call him "4SJ." Still others call him the "Ackermonster." And to others he's "Mr. Sci-Fi." Since 1958, he signed his editorials on the opening page of Famous Monsters magazine as DR. ACULA -- and that somewhat obscure fact was at the heart of his lawsuit against publisher Ray Ferry, who revived Famous Monsters from the grave in recent years with Forry's help.
Famous Monsters, originally a publication of James Warren, eventually came to the end of its first incarnation, just shy of 200 issues. Somehow, Forry filled virtually every page of every issue with photos and posters from his personal collection. There probably was not a single space alien, spaceship, or flying saucer of moviedom (or the TV world) in those days that did not have its photo printed on those black and white pages. As a shlockmeister of all things alien, Forry befriended every creature from every fictional planet or civilization ever conceived, and he served them up like home-grown vegetables in his personally cooked stew -- always with the caption "MONSTERS ARE GOOD FOR YOU!"
When Famous Monsters died a beastly death, Forry eventually resurrected the concept from the gallows with similar magazines called Monsterama and Forrest J. Ackerman's Monsterland. Neither lasted long. The publishers of Monsterland, the Schuster brothers, proved less devoted to the cause than James Warren had been, and kicking up a cloud of dust with their boots, they soon flew the coop from Los Angeles, leaving Forry once again without a magazine to helm.
In the early days of Famous Monsters magazine, Forry specialized in the sci-fi B-flicks of Roger Corman, American International Pictures, and the like. The titles included, among others, INVASION OF THE SAUCERMEN and PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (the Ed Wood monsterpiece that was the last stake ever hammered into Bela Lugosi's heart). More than anyone else, Forry Ackerman can take credit for spreading the fame of ace special effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen, whose films such as EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS and FIRST MEN IN THE MOON taught us what classic saucers and aliens (Harryhausen's moon men) ought to look like. Forry also championed in his magazine the science fiction and fantasy films of George Pal (WAR OF THE WORLDS, WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE, THE CONQUEST OF SPACE, DESTINATION MOON, and THE TIME MACHINE.) The George Pal films were seminal to the foundation and advancement of cinematic science fiction, and Famous Monsters was the monthly mouthpiece that briefed youngsters on George Pal's cosmic adventures.
In Famous Monsters, Forry championed the science-fiction books of Ray Bradbury, and the films of John Landis. In fact, Forry even made a brief appearance as an actor in Landis's first film, SHLOCK. So it's no wonder that Bradbury and Landis were ready to march to the courtroom and testify on his behalf when duty called.
Forry has had a reputation for decades as a man with a vampire's heart of gold. He has been generous to fans, opening the Ackermansion to all interested parties who phone in advance to make a reservation to attend his frequent open house afternoons. He's a man who is loved and admired by nearly everyone infatuated with his favorite film genre. (Harlan Ellison is the one exception. Ellison has never forgiven Forry for coming up with that cute catch-phrase that is a play on HI-FI and an abbreviation of science-fiction: SCI-FI. He thinks it indelibly "cheapened" the field). But never mind about Mr. Ellison. Forry is one of the nice guys of Hollywood -- some say too nice to look after his own best interests -- and he has been presented with the "key" to many cities by mayors in many countries. He even attempted to donate his entire collection (which some value at around ten million dollars) to the City of Los Angeles, but the former mayor, the late Tom Bradley, botched it. Bradley never found a suitable site for the museum to house the treasures, so the offer of Ackerman's gift was eventually rescinded when the contract with the city expired. No one else has stepped forward to help Forry realize his dream of a museum for his collection, which would keep the collection intact.
So how does such a man as Ackerman end up in a bloody gladiator duel with a young publisher like Ray Ferry, who presents himself as merely an aggrieved entrepreneur?
The relationship started off well enough. Ray Ferry came up with a plan to resurrect Famous Monsters - to shepherd it past issue #200 into the new millennium. After the failure of Monsterland (with its flashy color pictures and updating of the old format), it seemed apparent that fans wanted the REAL Famous Monsters back, not a cheap imitation. Ferry and Ackerman decided to return to the all black-and-white format, thinking that's what the fans preferred. The emphasis was once again to be on the old science fiction, space, and alien movies rather than the new. This was a nostalgia magazine to introduce a new generation to the creature features that were popular before they were born.
Forrest J Ackerman had top billing as editor-in-chief and imagi-movie sage, and Ray Ferry was billed as publisher, art director, and managing editor. Walter Daugherty, who had been with Famous Monsters since its beginning in the 1950s, was back as "special photographer to the Ackerman archives." Dynacomm published the new release of the magazine, with Ray Ferry as the company's president.
The rebirth of Famous Monsters even began with a spectacular convention held in the Crystal City Holiday Inn in Virginia, right across a bridge from Washington, DC -- a stone's throw from the Pentagon. Forry was there in an appropriate space costume, signing autographs galore, and a museum of famous movie monsters was on display, including Robby the Robot, Gort, and the female robot (Robotrix) from Fritz Lang's silent science-fiction classic, METROPOLIS. And of course Ray Ferry was there to promote the launch of the new incarnation of Forry's famous magazine. A year or so later, in 1995, the festivities were repeated in Hollywood at the Universal Sheraton Hotel under the name FM-CON.
But soon thereafter, there was a terrible falling out between Forrest J Ackerman and Ray Ferry. The details are now public knowledge. A battle of the beasts began, which became a gladiatorial conflict that turned into a civil lawsuit. It's ironic that it turned out to be "Forry vs. Ferry."
Ray Ferry continued the publication of Famous Monsters magazine without Forry. Ray Ferry even took the step of filing trademarks for all the features of the magazine that had been Forry's brainchild. Much to Forry's horror, the magazine soon featured a trademark and copyright notice proclaiming that all of Forry's pet expressions used so frequently in the magazine were now trademarks of Dynacomm and could not be used in any manner without express written permission from the publisher. The list included the following terms - Horrorwood, Karloffornia, Dr. Acula, Fearbook, Feary Tale, More Fun than a Barrel of Mummies, Prof. Gruebeard, Graveyard Examiner, Screambag, Fang Mail, You Axed for It, Horror Hall of Flame, Mystery Photo, Gallery of Ghouls, etc.
One can imagine how Forry Ackerman reacted to discovering that his life's work had been trademarked by Ray Ferry's company, which Forry felt was done entirely without his consent. Outside Forry's house is a sign that reads Horrorwood, Karloffornia that has been there for decades. Was he supposed to take it down because the expression had been trademarked, and he didn't have permission from his former publisher to use it anymore? The worst offense, as far as Forry Ackerman was concerned, was the fact that Ray Ferry took the "Dr. Acula" name. Now it was Ray Ferry who wrote the editorials under the name "Dr. Acula" in the magazine from which Forry had been banished. Quite a number of fans never bought another copy of the magazine after that happened, including me! We knew who the real "Dr. Acula" was!
Forry's friends had never seen him so furious. The world's least litigious person thus filed a lawsuit -- and as fate would have it, after being worn down during years of litigation, he finally had his day in court and won! On May 11, writing in the Los Angeles newspaper the Daily News, staff writer Jesse Hiestand stated: "Proclaiming ghoulishly that "Dr. Acula lives," horror film cult figure Forrest J. Ackerman celebrated a Van Nuys jury verdict Wednesday that awarded him $724,500 in a civil lawsuit. The Superior Court jury ruled against the publisher of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, saying he owed Ackerman pay for his writings, that he wrongly claimed ownership of the pen name "Dr. Acula" and committed libel by saying Ackerman was merely a hired contributor, not an editor." The jury rejected Ray Ferry's countersuit that had claimed Ackerman "stalked him through harassing behavior and violated a trademark by using Dr. Acula."
Forewoman Teresa Cassidy stated the jury's conclusion that Ray Ferry "was stealing Forrest Ackerman's persona, his character, his very essence. "We, the jury, saw him as 'Dr. Acula,' she said. "For over 60 years this man has been the voice of Famous Monsters of Filmland and Dr. Acula." Another juror, Richard Havner, stated that Ackerman had a right to feel slighted when his contribution to the revived magazine was questioned. "It was an inference of senility - that he's in his 80s and is kind of losing it," Havner said, according to Jesse Hiestand in The Daily News.
One of the remarkable facts about Forry, as any of his acquaintances could tell you, is that he is as sharp today as he was forty years ago. People in his family typically live well into their nineties or even pass the hundred-year mark. At the trial, Forry was up to form. He wore Bela Lugosi's "Crest of Count Dracula" ring on one finger and Boris Karloff's ring from "The Mummy" on another. Of the jury award, $342,000 was for punitive damages.
Ray Ferry contests the jury judgment and intends to appeal. He sees the case as a matter of "sympathy vs. fact." He said, "It's what you get when you paint the poor old man against the young entrepreneur." He intends to go on using "Dr. Acula" in the magazine throughout the appeal, and he's counting on the verdict being overthrown.
And now for some personal asides -- memories that the Ackerman legal victory stir up from the recesses of Grey matter in my brain. For FLYING SAUCERS OVER HOLLYWOOD fans, it may be of interest to know that Forrest J Ackerman wrote the foreword to my first book (which I co-wrote with my wife, Hollace Davids): The Fires of Pele: Mark Twain's Legendary Lost Journal. It was published in 1986. Spiderman creator Stan Lee wrote the preface, and Forry Ackerman wrote the foreword (which Ackerman refers to as his Forryword).
In Famous Monsters #68, Forry wrote an article about master science-fiction filmmaker George Pal, in which it states, "What does George Pal do for an encore? He was discussing his filmic future recently at a round table of 20 new talents assembled in Hollywood at the American Film Institute. Paul Davids asked him about his future plans - Paul Davids, a young man who just a few years ago was featured in the pages of FM (Famous Monsters) when he was a winner in our amateur films contest with his version of SIEGFRIED SAVES METROPOLIS. George Pal replied that METROPOLIS is one of the many projects I have in mind. Being a classic, of course, it poses a great challenge to make a worthy remake." Pal didn't live long enough to realize that dream.
In that same article, Forrest J Ackerman wrote, "George Pal has his destiny written in the stars." This was an ironic foreshadow from the man who a few years later, in 1980, gave the eulogy at George Pal's funeral and announced that a star had indeed just been named in George Pal's honor. I was there as Forrest J Ackerman gave that eulogy, and I'll take you there next week in FLYING SAUCERS OVER HOLLYWOOD, when we'll explore the George Pal connection with visionaries and designers such as Willy Ley, Chesley Bonestell, and even the pioneer of rocketry, Werner von Braun. We'll also uncover a great documentary film (THE FANTASY FILM WORLDS OF GEORGE PAL by producer/director Arnold Leibovit) which every AlienZoo fan should see (www.scifistation.com).
Log on to AlienZoo next Friday and join me for the next installment, as we continue our wanderer's quest in Tinseltown, searching for THE TRUTH! See ya then!