Ed of an era

Forrest Ackerman died Friday. I think it's wonderful that - despite the fact his health was failing - he came home from the hospital and lived for a number of weeks while fans and friends from across the world sent him greetings. Apparently it helped buoyed his spirits.

Here is a link to the memorial on the SFWA web site:

http://www.sfwa.org/news/2008/fackerman.htm

I don't recall if I mentioned it in an earlier post, but like so many others, I sent him a birthday greeting when he turned 92 on Nov. 24. I wrote a little limerick, ran it off, and dropped it in the mail.

To Forrest Ackerman:

There was a great genius named Forry,
Whose life was one big sci-fi story.
When word one day spread,
He was quite nearly dead,
He growled, “I’m still here boys, dontcha worry!”


Happy 92nd birthday!
Lou Antonelli
Mount Pleasant, Tx.

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Got the online proof of the story "Acroscaphe" ready to be published by the e-zine Planetary Stories. It's another Antonelli/Morris collaboration. It's been a year since our fantasy "Off the Hook" was published by Dark Recesses.

"Off the Hook" was a story that Ed started and I jumped into. "Acroscaphe" is the reverse, I did the first draft and then Ed came in.

I have three other stories lined up to be published soon, "The Silver Dollar Saucer" by Raygun Revival, "Video Killed the Radio Star" by Apehelion, and "Professor Malakoff's Amazing Ethereal Telegraph" by the annual Science Fiction Trails.

Not much money, but a lot of fun. Just call me the Last Prince of the Pulps.

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Rich Horton, on his blog The Elephant Forgets, has published his rundown of the best of Jim Baen's Universe for 2008. He has included "The Witch of Waxahachie" as one of his favorites stories.

http://ecbatan.livejournal.com/2008/12/05/

Thanks, Rich! Glad you liked it.