COVER Sybil Danning: Navigating the hazards of Hollywood 5 COMMENTARY
EDITORIAL: Help yourself to a piece of movie history
7 FORUM
MEDIAMAIL: Letters from our audience
9 FILM PROJECTS
SHOOTING STARS: Today's top filmmakers with tomorrow's hottest projects
13 FILM NEWS
COMING ATTRACTIONS: Who's doing what and where in which productions
18 CLOSE-UP Melanie Griffith: Working her way from Don to Oscar
20 ON LOCATION Alison Doody: Joins Harrison Ford on THE LAST CRUSade
26 ON LOCATION Sybil Danning: Manhunting with the star of L.A.
28 BOUNTY CLOSE-UP Talisa Soto: Spikes Timothy Dalton in LICENSE TO KILL
32 ON LOCATION
NANCY METTE: Can she survive LIFE ON THE EDGE?
34 ON LOCATION Kim Basinger: With BATMAN on the set in Gotham City
40 ON LOCATION Maria FORD: From schoolgirl to showgirl in STRIPPED TO KILL 2
44 CLOSE-UP
AMANDA PAYS: Filming the nightmare of LEVIATHAN
50 CLOSE-UP Sigourney Weaver: Spooked into GHOSTBUSTERS, too!
EDITORIAL
A few issues ago, I wrote an editorial on the passions of collecting, citing examples
from comic books to cinema posters. The response was varied, spirited and serious,
ranging from nostalgic personal anecdotes to inquiries about how material might
be obtained, especially film memorabilia.
The feedback underscored how actuely interested PREVUE's audience is in their
habit—and suggested we elaborate with specifics. Because motion pictures
extend back to the turn of the century, a staggering amount of material has been
generated, but, as with so much of our throwaway culture, a significant amount
has been damaged, discarded and destroyed.
Impossible to find—and impossibly expensive when they are found—are
one-of-akind items, particularly those with high visibility in pictures. New York
art auctions sold Judy Garland's ruby slippers for more than $13,000, while Steven
Spielberg purchased Orson Welles' Rosebud sled for four times that amount.
On the opposite end of the spectrum is material produced in quantity, such as
posters. Generally 5,000-10,000 are printed for promotional purposes on major
releases; the older the film, the more rare the poster. Often several styles were
created, designated by letters, indicating style A, B, C and so forth; the styles
sometimes typify different selling approaches: one perhaps focusing on the stars,
another spotlighting action.
Posters are collectible for a variety of reasons. Superstars from Stewart to Stallone
have an obvious appeal. Films which have won Academy Awards or been popular hits—such
as The Godfather and Ghostbusters—are no less desirable. Even genres, especially
SF and horror, are very popular. Almost all Disney animation posters are hot.
Artists have their own followings. Yesterday's greats, including Norman Rockwell,
McLelland Barclay, Russell Patterson, Thomas Hart Benton, Bradshaw Crandall, Willy
Pogany, John Held Jr. and Vargas, have passed their mantle on to Drew Struzan,
Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, Richard Amsel, Frank McCarthy, Robert McGinnis
and Bob Peak. Sometimes the worst pictures have the best graphics, while great
films have pathetic posters—it's the Hollywood way.
In less than a decade, a dozen books have been published on the art of the movie
poster. Exhibitions have been mounted at museums around the world; galleries now
specialize exclusively in film art. Auctions at top Manhattan houses have set
record prices: King Kong brought $10,000; Casablanca more than $17,000. Interestingly,
movie poster collecting is still in its early stages —there appears to be
no limit to the artistic and cultural (not to mention financial) value attributed
to the form.
During the Golden Age of Cinema—a period stretching from 1930 to 1959—approximately
11,000 feature films were produced; the number of advertising pieces created for
them is unfathomable. Variations range from 8x14" mini-window cards to mammoth
48-sheet posters that covered the sides of buildings. Window cards came in two
additional sizes: 14x22" and 22x28". Lobby cards (generally a set of
eight placed in theater showcases) featured scenes from the movie they promoted,
while inserts were in a vertical 14x36" format. Half-sheets, a very desirable
22x28" poster, were generated primarily in the '30s and '40s. Three-sheets,
measuring 41x81", six sheets, at 81x81" and the billboard-sized 24 sheets
are less collectible because of their difficult-to-display size. The most popular
are 27x41" one-sheets; they are easy to exhibit and store, and are the most
common-sized posters.
Vintage super posters, previously tossed in the trash or covered over with upcoming
movie art, have escalated above the thousand dollar mark. Captain Blood, Robin
Hood, The Dawn Patrol, It Happened One Night, City Lights, Frankenstein, Queen
Christina, The Maltese Falcon, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Reckless, Red
Dust, Riffraff, Platinum Blonde, Dimples, G-Men, Duck Soup, Top Hat, Bordertown,
Mata Hari, Dracula, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Gone with the Wind are
among the most expensive.
Those above the hundred dollar level include The Third Man, On the Waterfront,
Crossfire, Mildred Pierce, The Killers, Double Indemnity, Beau Geste, Laura, Casbah,
Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Forbidden Planet, Spellbound, A Streetcar Named
Desire, Niagara, Arsenic and Old Lace, High Noon, Across the Pacific, Dive Bomber,
Under Two Flags, The African Queen, Some Like It Hot and North by Northwest.
Superb posters under a hundred dollars are perhaps the most plentiful of all.
Romancing the Stone, Ran, Kiss Me Deadly, Dirty Harry, The Sting, Witness, Terminator,
Annie Hall, Cat People, Bullitt, BarbaUmma-porn-star">Rella, Bladerunner, Aliens, A Clockwork
Orange, the James Bonds, Indiana Jones, Star Treks and Star Wars series are all
still available at reasonable prices.
The best news about poster collecting is that the investment power involved is
nothing less than spectacular. The Star Wars posters we sold a decade ago have
increased tenfold in value, as have many others. None have decreased in price!
Unlike CDs or bonds, posters can be displayed and enjoyed as a constant source
of pleasure, a reminder of a stimulating cinematic experience or simply for an
exciting combination of graphics, typography, art and photo images. Hang them,
replace them, trade them, sell them whenever you please; the market continues
to grow.
Considering the above, Super-graphics has opted to offer a line of inexpensive,
dynamic posters listed elsewhere in this issue. They have all been selected for
their strong visual appeal, superstar quality and investment potential.
Your input would be very helpful in shaping the kind of service we hope to maintain.
Tell us what kind of material you prefer: more esoteric or vintage posters, pressbooks
or stills, lobby cards or standees, film scripts or autographed photos.
We'll try to comply with your needs, as we have with a multitude of pop culture,
fantasy and photo books for the past 20 years. Good collecting!
Until next time, take care.
STERANKO
