A Starstruck Collection of Movie Posters by Linda Rosenkrantz on Creators.com

Recently

FDR'S Fala and the Fad for Scotties There has been any number of well-known presidential pooches in modern history, including Richard Nixon's infamous spaniel, Checkers; LBJ's beagles, Him and Her; Gerald Ford's golden retriever, Liberty (much spoofed by Chevy Chase in the early days …Read more. The Yo-Yo Story The yo-yo, like many other things, has been around for so long that we tend to take it completely for granted, not thinking about how it originated or, for that matter, how it got its distinctive name. But now that the yo-yo is becoming something of …Read more. Recollecting and Collecting Mutt and Jeff Even today, more than a century after they entered the realm of popular culture, this comic-strip team's name is part of the common vernacular — put a tall guy and a short guy next to each other and they'll almost inevitably still be called …Read more. For Collectors, the Milkman Cometh You may have noticed that glass milk bottles are gradually reappearing on supermarket shelves, bringing them back into the modern era. But for people of a certain age, there is still no sound quite as nostalgic as the clink of milk bottles jangling …Read more.

A Starstruck Collection of Movie Posters

There are no more colorful and evocative collectibles than vintage posters, and among the most arresting and vibrant of these are movie posters, which essentially form a visual chronicle of the history of the motion picture.

A superb selection of these items can be seen in a new book, "Starstruck: Vintage Posters from Classic Hollywood," by Ira M. Resnick (Abbeville Press, $65). Drawing from Resnick's own outstanding collection of more than 2,000 vintage movie posters and 1,500 stills, the book contains 258 full-color examples of some of his finest gems, ranging from the silent era of Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Valentino and Garbo, through the Golden Age of the Talkies (the sexy pre-Hays Code Barbara Stanwyck, a fierce Bette Davis, a googly-eyed Astaire and Rogers, the Marx Brothers cutting up) to the last important period,1941-1962 — of "Citizen Kane," "Casablanca" and "Gilda" — with a special section focused on the great directors.

Along the way, Resnick chronicles the formation of his collection over the past 40 years and offers advice to those starting out. He also includes a list of his 50 favorite one-sheets, and a glossary of terms and poster sizes. This illuminating, entertaining, beautifully illustrated book would appeal to anyone interested in 20th-century graphic art and, especially, the history of Hollywood.

In the earliest days of film, black and white placards were printed for theaters, which after the run had to be returned to the distributor for recycling to other cinemas. As a result of this process, not many of these have survived — but, since they have little graphic appeal, they are not of much interest to collectors.

The vividly colored and beautifully printed one-sheets (27 by 41 inches) that form the basis of most poster collections were made at first by the same printers who were making similar posters for circuses. One of these was the Morgan Litho Co. of Cleveland, which, after having done a lot of work for the Ringling Brothers, started creating posters for the major studios around 1910.

This firm continued to dominate the field for 30 years, along with such other companies as Tooker Litho of New York and Continental Lithographic Corporation of Cleveland. (Trivia tidbit: Sometimes, these firms made different posters for different parts of the country — Greta Garbo might be shown in a passionate embrace in the urban Northeast, and much more demure in the Bible Belt.)

When offset lithography came into use in the 1930s, the images grew clearer, but they sacrificed the richer color and texture found in those made with earlier stone lithography. However, although relatively large editions were printed, the fragility of paper posters and their disposability left a limited number on the market. In addition, many posters from the 1920s and 1930s were sacrificed to World War II paper drives.

In the early 1990s, auction prices for posters began to go through the roof, especially for iconic films. In December 1991, an original three-sheet "King Kong" poster sold for $57,200; in May 1993, one of only two known examples of a 1931 one-sheet for "Dracula" brought $77,000; and in December of that year, a 1931 one-sheet for "Frankenstein" fetched $198,000. But that was just the beginning — in 2005, the record price for a poster was set when one for Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" sold in London for $690,000.

Here are some more recent examples of posters that fetched more modest four figures.

"Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe," 1940, one-sheet: $4,700.

"Headless Horseman," with Will Rogers, 1922, 41 by 27 inches: $2,150.

"Godzilla: King of the Monsters," with Raymond Burr, 1956, one sheet: $1,800.

"Second Fiddle," with Glenn Hunter and Mary Astor, 1923, 41 by 27 inches: $1,450.

"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," 1958, one-sheet: $1,350.

"Abbott & Costello Meet the Mummy," 1955, one-sheet: $1,250.

"Harvey," with James Stewart, 1950, one-sheet: $1,000.

Linda Rosenkrantz has edited Auction magazine and authored 18 books, most recently "Beyond Ava & Aidan: The Enlightened Guide to Naming your Baby" (St. Martin's Press). Visit her baby names website at http://nameberry.com. She cannot answer letters personally. To find out more about Linda Rosenkrantz and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.