In the world of science fiction, fantasy and horror, there is one man whose spirit and enthusiasm for fantastic film was stronger than anyone's. With the creation of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, Forrest J. Ackerman created the ultimate fan guide that inspired generations of fans. The magazine and the enormous collection of memorabilia Ackerman accumulated throughout the years have proven to be a true testament to his love of fantastic film and literature.

Ackerman has been a collector since 1926. When he was in his twenties, he would write to Carl Laemmle, the president of Universal, for movie stills from their classic horror films, and would travel by streetcar to pick up them up (he eventually accumulated 125,000 stills). He had every issue of the old sci-fi pulp magazines like Weird Tales and Amazing Stories, which he bought when they were new. He owned a copy of the English-literature classic Frankenstein that was autographed by Mary Shelley when she was 19. He also kept a costume of the iconic black lagoon monster a janitor at Universal took home for his kid to wear on Halloween. Bela Lugosi's cape, the model pterodactyl the original King Kong battled, one of the model Martian ships from the original War of the Worlds, and much, much more are also part of his collection.

Ackerman's collection never stopped growing, and like an out-of-control 1950s science fiction monster, it ended up consuming his house, a four-story, eighteen-room mansion in the hills of Los Feliz, Calif., which he dubbed the "Ackermansion." According to one report, the house became so overcrowded with memorabilia that Ackerman and his wife had to park on the streets because their garage was too full.