The Golden Age of Hollywood through the lens of Joe Ackerman started as a wonderful collaboration between me and my mother Marian Ackerman. We were able to scratch the surface of my father’s, extensive autograph, photograph and color slide collection from the “Golden” era in Hollywood. It started for us, after my dad’s passing. His collection spans over 60 years and with everything we discovered we were able to create a rich narrative. It captures his experiences with the stars during the Golden Age of Hollywood and beyond. It was a 15 year project discovering all the black and white and color photos along with the thousands of autographs that helped weave this beautiful story.

This book reflects only a portion of his collection as there are over 5,000 autographs, over 300 individually autographed photos and hundreds of color slides my father took of the stars of that time. It is through these images, all photographed and collected by Joe, that the Hollywood of yesterday comes to life. It reflects a different time in Hollywood–a simpler time. It is my hope that this book embodies Joe Ackerman’s passion and love of Hollywood.

Julie (Ackerman) Anderson – Author