The April 30 auction of Forry Ackerman’s remaining treasures is the subject of Alicia Lozano’s latest post to Hero Complex blog online at the LA Times. She spoke with Joe Maddalena, president of Profiles in History, who estimates that Ackerman’s collectibles will fetch around $500,000 at auction. The proceeds are to be distributed among 17 beneficiaries in Ackerman’s will:

[The] beneficiaries aren’t famous. Among them is a waitress from his favorite restaurant, House of Pies in Los Feliz, said friend and estate trustee Kevin Burns.

The Dracula/Lugosi items are expected to attract the highest bids, the black cape in the range of $15,000 to $20,000, and the ring, $20,000 to $30,000 or more.

A writer for the Criterion Collection has his own favorite items:

The myriad of marvels to be sold this week include a monocle worn by Fritz Lang during the making of Metropolis (1926), prosthetic teeth from Lon Chaney Sr.’s makeup kit, and a first American edition of Dracula, signed by Bram Stoker, Bela Lugosi, and Christopher Lee.

It’s possible to bid online – see LiveAuctioneers.com Hollywood Auction – Day 1.

[Thanks to John King Tarpinian for the links.]

Update 04/29/2009 Corrected Times writer’s name. Thanks to Mark Kruskol for the pointer.