Collecting
The collecting of movie memorabilia began with such things as scrapbooks, autographs, photographs, and industry magazines, but quickly expanded in the post-World War II era. Collectors began seeking out original advertising material, and the classic "one sheet" film poster became the pinnacle object to own for any given film. Other material, such as lobby cards, other-sized posters, international posters, personality posters, and glass slides also began to become highly sought after. Today, the field of movie memorabilia collecting has grown into an internationally recognised community of increasingly serious and financially secure collectors, making it one of the fastest areas of speculation for investment.
After the National Screen Service ceased most of its film poster printing and distribution operations in 1985, some of the posters which they had stored in warehouses around the United States ended up in the hands of private collectors and film poster dealers. Today there is a thriving collectibles market in film posters. Some have become very valuable. The record price was set on November 15, 2005 when US$690,000 was paid for a poster of Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis from the Reel Poster Gallery in London. Other early horror and science fiction posters are known to bring tremendous prices as well, with an example from The Mummy realizing $452,000 in a 1997 Sotheby's auction, and posters from both The Black Cat and Bride of Frankenstein selling for $334,600 in various Heritage Auctions. The 1931 Frankenstein six-sheet poster, of which only one copy is known to exist, is considered to be the most valuable film poster in the world..
Occasionally, rare film posters have been found being used as insulation in attics. In 2011, 33 film posters, including a Dracula Style F one-sheet (shown left), from 1930-1931 were discovered in an attic in Berwick Pennsylvania and auctioned for $502,000 in March 2012 by Heritage Auctions.
As a result of market demand, some of the more popular older film posters have been reproduced either under license or illegally. Although the artwork on reproductions is the same as originals, reproductions can often be distinguished by size, printing quality, and paper type. Several websites on the Internet offer "authentication" tests to distinguish originals from reproductions.
Original film posters distributed to theaters and other poster venues (such as bus stops) by the movie studios are never sold directly to the public. However, most modern film posters are produced in large quantities and normally become available for purchase by collectors indirectly through various secondary markets such as eBay. Accordingly, most modern posters are not rare. However, some recent posters, such as the recalled Pulp Fiction "Lucky Strikes" United States one sheet poster, are quite rare and valuable.
Read more about this topic: Film Poster
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