Sci Fi World Loses Three of its Greats

This week the world of science fiction lost three of its greats.

On December 4th Forrest J. Ackerman, founder and first publisher of the magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland passed away in his home in Horrorwood, Karloffornia. He was 92. Ackerman, who coined the term sci fi was an inspiration to nearly everyone who ever made a science fiction or horror film, wrote a sci-fi or horror novel or who was just a fan of the fearsome and fanged. Uncle Forry, as he was known to his fans, discovered such science fiction luminaries as authors Ray Bradbury and A.E. van Vogt, and acted as their literary agent. He was a renowned collector of science fiction and horror film memorabilia and generously opened his home, the Ackermansion, to fans who wanted to see his collection.

The following day, December 5th, the world lost Beverly Garland. A versatile actress, Garland had roles in numerous films and TV shows from her debut in 1950 up until 1998. Many will recall her recurring roles in the TV shows My Three Sons and Gunsmoke, although, to me, she will always be the one person who stood up to the horrifying Venusian walking cucumber in Roger Corman's cult classic It Conquered the World. Garland died in her Hollywood Hills home aged 82.



On November 30th, Koichi Takano passed away in his home in Tokyo, Japan. Although Takano's name isn't nearly as well-known as either Ackerman's or Garland's, to me his loss is much more personal. He used to be my boss. Takano was a special effects director who was initially hired in the 1950's by Eiji Tsuburaya, the special effects director of the classic Godzilla films. After Takano had worked in the background on a number of Godzilla pictures, Tsuburaya hand-picked him to direct the effects for his groundbreaking television series Ultraman. Takano continued to direct special effects for hundreds of science fiction and superhero television shows and theatrical films until complications from emphysema forced him to retire five years ago. Although no longer active as a special effects director, Takano continued to appear in numerous documentaries and making-of TV shows and specials to talk about his legendary contributions to the field. Some in this country have derided his work as cheesy — his preferred method for depicting a city-smashing monster was to put a stuntman into a rubber dinosaur costume and have him thrash through a miniature replica of Tokyo. But I challenge anyone to find examples of special effects work done in the US on a similar budget and time frame that is anywhere near as meticulous, detailed and fun to watch as what Takano accomplished.

All three of these legends will be missed.

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