From Finding Dulcinea:

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Forrest J. Ackerman died of heart failure on Thursday at his home in Los Angeles.

Ackerman’s mark on science fiction was wide-ranging and dated back to the genre’s early development.

“He was really considered the godfather, or what I call the Pied Piper of science fiction and horror,” said Kevin Burns, president of Prometheus Entertainment and a trustee of his estate, to Reuters.

He is widely credited with coining the word “sci-fi,” and was a literary agent to prominent science fiction authors including Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, A.E. van Vogt, Curt Siodmak and L. Ron Hubbard. He edited Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, created the Vampirella comic book franchise, and wrote more than 2,000 articles and short stories for magazines and anthologies, including the first lesbian science-fiction story ever published. He edited and co-edited several books, including “A Book of Weird Tales” and “365 Science Fiction Short Stories,” and appeared in more than 50 films, including Dante’s “The Howling” and Landis’ “Innocent Blood.”

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LA Times

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