That Vulture half-sheet is the one I consigned to Bruce. Picked it up many years ago at Space Age books in Swanston Street, Melbourne. It had part of the image painted over for censorship reasons and an injury on her cheek (badly painted over). Here's the original version.
One more actual U.S.A. 22 x 28 image of a poster for MGM's Sweet Biird Of Youth ( 1962 ) that was used in Australia.
Suitable Only For Adults Australian censorship stamp.
This poster, originally with the Paul Newman and Geraldine Page getting cosy image, was apparently considered to be outside the Australian censorship guidelines, so it was removed as can be seen below..
The original U.S.A. card image follows.
The censored scene apparently was a problem with the Australian film censors. The Australian one sheet was changed from a similar, but steamier image of Paul and Geraldine, to a more less passionate Paul and Shirley Knight embrace.
Originally I had thought that the censorship may have occurred in New Zealand, but it definitely did take place in Australia. Firstly The Vulture and now Sweet Bird of Youth, so one has to think that there may have to be other 22 x 28 posters imported and subsequently censored here. Love to see if anyone else has any other examples to display here of this happening.
Lawrence, has anyone actually ever seen a 22x28 that was clearly printed in Australia, NOT a U.S. one that was sniped or censored?
Is it possible that the 22x28s advertised on press sheets were simply imported U.S. posters? After all, we know for sure that TONS of U.S. lobby cards were important and stamped or sniped (although there HAVE been some lobbies that were surely printed in Australia, so maybe they did that on some titles with 22x28s).
HAS lifetime guarantees on every item - IS eMoviePoster.com HAS unrestored and unenhanced images - IS eMoviePoster.com HAS 100% honest condition descriptions - IS eMoviePoster.com HAS auctions where the winner is the higher of two real bidders - IS eMoviePoster.com HAS up to SIXTEEN weeks of "Pay and Hold" to save a fortune on shipping - IS eMoviePoster.com HAS real customer service before, during and after EVERY auction, and answers all questions - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS 25% or 26% "buyers premiums" of any kind (but especially the dreadful "$29 or $49 minimum" ones) - NOT eMoviePoster.com HAS "reserves or starts over $1 - NOT eMoviePoster.com HAS hidden bidder IDs - NOT eMoviePoster.com HAS "nosebleed" shipping charges - NOT eMoviePoster.com HAS inadequate packaging - NOT eMoviePoster.com HAS no customer service to speak of, before, during and after any auction, and answers almost no questions - NOT eMoviePoster.com
Lawrence, has anyone actually ever seen a 22x28 that was clearly printed in Australia, NOT a U.S. one that was sniped or censored?
Is it possible that the 22x28s advertised on press sheets were simply imported U.S. posters? After all, we know for sure that TONS of U.S. lobby cards were important and stamped or sniped (although there HAVE been some lobbies that were surely printed in Australia, so maybe they did that on some titles with 22x28s).
I certainly have never sighted any any Australian printed 22 x 28 half sheets, and I firmly believe that there were not any ever printed here either.
There was talk that the following poster, that was printed by M.A.P.S. was a half sheet but I discount this for the following reasons.
This poster, although credited as being a half sheet ( incorrectly ) on the press sheet, is actually what I would call a special sized poster, as also described by Bruce as such. I am informed it is printed on paper and not card,. It also has a different format style presentation. Most importantly though it that it was printed in the different size of 20 x 29 3/4 on the copy I checked on.
To answer your question regarding the printing of Australian lobby cards. The cards that were printed here mainly consisted of titles that were produced for Australian made films, also for overseas films that were distributed in Australia by different distributors other than original U.S.A. or other countries distributors, and therefore they weren't able to use the overseas cards. There were also re-issue cards, and sometimes such in the case of The Werewolf ( 1956 ) it was because the film was originally banned and not released in Australia for around between 13 to 15 years later. By this time the original U.S.A. cards were no longer available, so lobby cards were printed here
I have earlier today obtained an image sent to me by a fellow member and this certainly opens up a much greater period of time when these imported 22 x 28 cards were used in Australia. I will need to do some more research, and after this is completed I will have more information on this subject to report.''
At this point of time only three U.S.A. distributors are known to have imported 22 x 28 cards in to Australia for usage here. The distributors are Paramount, United Artists ( late start ) and MGM.
I have now found evidence that Paramount Pictures imported and distributed original U.S.A. printed 22 x 28 ( half sheets ) cards here in Australia during the 1940s and the 1950s.
( John )
Arise, My love ( 1940 ).
( Bruce )
From Whom The Bell Tolls ( 1943 ) Australian press sheet information.
The Hour Berore The Dawn ( 1944 ) Australia press sheet details.
Actual image examples of The Hour Before the Dawn cards that appear on the Australian press sheet, showing exactly what the cards looked like.
( John )
Big Town After Dark ( 1947 ) Australian press sheet information.
Big Town After Dark actual image of what the poster appearing on the press sheet looked like.
( John )
The Rainmaker ( 1956 ) Australian press sheet information.
A comprehensive update of all my findings oftained so far will follow and be presented here in the near future.
UPDATE ON GATHERED INFORMATION ON IMPORTED 22 x 28 POSTERS.
There has been a large problem in accessing the
information that I am after from the limited number of located available Australian
press sheets. The problem here being that the page containing the accessories
information is more than often not included when the press sheets pages are
posted and displayed on Google. To add to this there are many press books where only the main purchsed accessories are listed, leaving off material that is known to have been available. The accessories information provided on Australian press sheets differed from film distributor to film distributor and from decade to decade,
The only known Australian film distributors that I have confirmed imported and distributed U.S.A. 22 x 28 half sheets, and the known period of time this occurred, are as follows.
Paramount Pictures known usage in Australia from 1941 to very late 1960s. MGM usage 1950s and 1960s. United Artists usage late 1960s to early 1980s.
The Half-Sheet was
discontinued in the early 1980's.
During the period from 1941 to the early 1980s the cards were described on Australian press sheets under various descriptions.
22 X 28 cards ( United Artists ) 22 X 28's ( United Artists ) 22 x 28 coloured cards ( MGM ) 22 x 28 lobby cards ( Paramount ) 22 x 28 photos ( Paramount ) 22 x 28 stills ( Paramount )
I thought that I would include the following experts details on the U.S.A.printed 22 x 28 posters for anyone that may be new to poster collecting that may find this information to be of interest.
Half Sheet or Display: (22"
X 28") Printed on card stock paper, the studios often printed two styles
of this size. One style would be identical to the Title Lobby Card. These
posters were often a photographic and artwork combination and were displayed in
the lobby of the theater. They were pictured in the pressbooks and called
“Displays,” whereas the collectors have taken to calling them Half Sheets, as
they are half the size of a One Sheet. – Heritage Auctions.
• Half-sheets measure 22"
x 28" and are printed on heavy card stock, the same as inserts, and
similar to that of lobby cards. They were sometimes folded twice immediately
after printing, although sometimes they were left unfolded, but most collectors
don't consider folding in this way a defect (learn more about the folding of inserts and half-sheets).
Most movies have two different styles of half-sheets. The "A" style
(sometimes these have a "T/A" in the corner of the poster) which is
almost always the exact same image as the title lobby card. The "B"
style is almost always an image that appears on no other size of movie poster
for that movie! Note that these were almost always referred to as "22x28
displays" in pressbooks, and NEVER as
"half-sheets". That term is one that was coined in movie poster
exchanges and was carried over into the hobby, because half-sheets ARE roughly
half the size of one-sheets. But if you are a purist, they ARE "22x28
displays –EMOVIEPOSTER.COM
"During the early part of 1999, a collection of Universal Pictures half sheets were discovered under the floor of a house being renovated in Wellington, New Zealand. The posters were in an amazing state of preservation, with the majority of them in very fine to mint condition. The family that found them realized they had something unique and tried
to sell them through a local antique publication for $25.00 each. They
had one call regarding the posters and the man who called offered to buy every poster the family had. The family became suspicious that they might have something far more valuable than they realized, so they declined the man’s offer and went about finding a way to discover the true value of the posters.
Through the internet, they found several poster dealers, but couldn’t find any prices to compare their posters to (hey guys anyone who has ever bought a high line poster can relate to this, can’t we?). They next contacted some of the auction houses including, Christie’s South Kensington and Bonham’s. The auction houses promised them quite a return on their posters and the family suddenly became aware of the posters true value. However, rather than pay high commissions and wishing to keep their discovery somewhat quiet, they decided to sell their collection privately.
It was at this point the family contacted a private dealer who then contacted Cinema Icons. The dealer knew that Ron dealt in very rare Universal horror posters and that he would make them a fair offer on their items. In June 1999,
he traveled to New Zealand and purchased one complete set of half
sheets (meaning both the A and B styles) of each title they had. Upon
his arrival back in the U.S., the posters were immediately sold into
private collections. And that’s where the story should have ended…
Over the course of the next year, he began to hear rumors the people in New Zealand still had more half sheets. The rumor was that there were multiple copies of some of the half sheets, and there was at least one other complete set of what he had purchased the prior year. He discounted the rumors because the family asked him to keep our transaction quiet. They didn’t want people to know the posters had already been sold. He assumed the set he had purchased was the same set that collectors were saying was still available. During this time, he kept hearing about the posters coming to auction, first Sotheby’s New York, then Christie’s South Kensington. But with each catalog that was issued, the posters failed to materialize, and he came to the conclusion that the rumor was just that; a rumor!
In October 2000, the New Zealand family called Ron. They told him that they did indeed still have more half sheets. They were tired of dealing with the auction houses and were getting spooked when strange people were showing up on their doorstep in New Zealand and asking about the posters. They wanted to know if he was interested in buying them out.
He went into negotiations with them and was able to purchase all of their remaining posters. Before Ron did this, he managed to get a statement from them that this was indeed the last of the posters.
The following list of posters accounts for the entire inventory of the horror posters from the New Zealand Collection. Although Universal didn’t mark their half sheets as A and B styles, for simplicity, we’ve denoted the style that has the same image as the title card as style A.
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Style A – 2 copies Style B – 3 copies (1 with the borders trimmed off)
The Raven (1935)
Style A – 1 copy Style B - 4 copies
The Invisible Ray (1936)
Style A – 2 copies Style B – 1 copy
Dracula’s Daughter (1936)
Style A – 3 copies (1 with a significant chunk out of the left side) Style B – 4 copies
This The Vulture ( 1966 ) U.S. half sheet previously discussed here had an outdated 1948 Australian censorship rating stamp applied to it. The correct version for 1966 appears below,
Another U.S. half used in Australia was MGM's 1948 film 3 Godfathers.
Comments
Peter
Peter
This poster, originally with the Paul Newman and Geraldine Page getting cosy image, was apparently considered to be outside the Australian censorship guidelines, so it was removed as can be seen below..
The original U.S.A. card image follows.
The censored scene apparently was a problem with the Australian film censors. The Australian one sheet was changed from a similar, but steamier image of Paul and Geraldine, to a more less passionate Paul and Shirley Knight embrace.
Originally I had thought that the censorship may have occurred in New Zealand, but it definitely did take place in Australia. Firstly The Vulture and now Sweet Bird of Youth, so one has to think that there may have to be other 22 x 28 posters imported and subsequently censored here. Love to see if anyone else has any other examples to display here of this happening.
Is it possible that the 22x28s advertised on press sheets were simply imported U.S. posters? After all, we know for sure that TONS of U.S. lobby cards were important and stamped or sniped (although there HAVE been some lobbies that were surely printed in Australia, so maybe they did that on some titles with 22x28s).
HAS unrestored and unenhanced images - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS 100% honest condition descriptions - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS auctions where the winner is the higher of two real bidders - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS up to SIXTEEN weeks of "Pay and Hold" to save a fortune on shipping - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS real customer service before, during and after EVERY auction, and answers all questions - IS eMoviePoster.com
HAS 25% or 26% "buyers premiums" of any kind (but especially the dreadful "$29 or $49 minimum" ones) - NOT eMoviePoster.com
HAS "reserves or starts over $1 - NOT eMoviePoster.com
HAS hidden bidder IDs - NOT eMoviePoster.com
HAS "nosebleed" shipping charges - NOT eMoviePoster.com
HAS inadequate packaging - NOT eMoviePoster.com
HAS no customer service to speak of, before, during and after any auction, and answers almost no questions - NOT eMoviePoster.com
There was talk that the following poster, that was printed by M.A.P.S. was a half sheet but I discount this for the following reasons.
This poster, although credited as being a half sheet ( incorrectly ) on the press sheet, is actually what I would call a special sized poster, as also described by Bruce as such. I am informed it is printed on paper and not card,. It also has a different format style presentation. Most importantly though it that it was printed in the different size of 20 x 29 3/4 on the copy I checked on.
To answer your question regarding the printing of Australian lobby cards. The cards that were printed here mainly consisted of titles that were produced for Australian made films, also for overseas films that were distributed in Australia by different distributors other than original U.S.A. or other countries distributors, and therefore they weren't able to use the overseas cards. There were also re-issue cards, and sometimes such in the case of The Werewolf ( 1956 ) it was because the film was originally banned and not released in Australia for around between 13 to 15 years later. By this time the original U.S.A. cards were no longer available, so lobby cards were printed here
I have earlier today obtained an image sent to me by a fellow member and this certainly opens up a much greater period of time when these imported 22 x 28 cards were used in Australia. I will need to do some more research, and after this is completed I will have more information on this subject to report.''
At this point of time only three U.S.A. distributors are known to have imported 22 x 28 cards in to Australia for usage here. The distributors are Paramount, United Artists ( late start ) and MGM.
I have now found evidence that Paramount Pictures imported and distributed original U.S.A. printed 22 x 28 ( half sheets ) cards here in Australia during the 1940s and the 1950s.
Arise, My love ( 1940 ).
From Whom The Bell Tolls ( 1943 ) Australian press sheet information.
The Hour Berore The Dawn ( 1944 ) Australia press sheet details.
Actual image examples of The Hour Before the Dawn cards that appear on the Australian press sheet, showing exactly what the cards looked like.
Big Town After Dark ( 1947 ) Australian press sheet information.
Big Town After Dark actual image of what the poster appearing on the press sheet looked like.
( John )
The Rainmaker ( 1956 ) Australian press sheet information.
A comprehensive update of all my findings oftained so far will follow and be presented here in the near future.
Peter
UPDATE ON GATHERED INFORMATION ON IMPORTED 22 x 28 POSTERS.
There has been a large problem in accessing the information that I am after from the limited number of located available Australian press sheets. The problem here being that the page containing the accessories information is more than often not included when the press sheets pages are posted and displayed on Google. To add to this there are many press books where only the main purchsed accessories are listed, leaving off material that is known to have been available. The accessories information provided on Australian press sheets differed from film distributor to film distributor and from decade to decade,
The only known Australian film distributors that I have confirmed imported and distributed U.S.A. 22 x 28 half sheets, and the known period of time this occurred, are as follows.
Paramount Pictures known usage in Australia from 1941 to very late 1960s.
MGM usage 1950s and 1960s.
United Artists usage late 1960s to early 1980s.
The Half-Sheet was discontinued in the early 1980's.
During the period from 1941 to the early 1980s the cards were described on Australian press sheets under various descriptions.
22 X 28 cards ( United Artists )
22 X 28's ( United Artists )
22 x 28 coloured cards ( MGM )
22 x 28 lobby cards ( Paramount )
22 x 28 photos ( Paramount )
22 x 28 stills ( Paramount )
I thought that I would include the following experts details on the U.S.A.printed 22 x 28 posters for anyone that may be new to poster collecting that may find this information to be of interest.
Half Sheet or Display: (22" X 28") Printed on card stock paper, the studios often printed two styles of this size. One style would be identical to the Title Lobby Card. These posters were often a photographic and artwork combination and were displayed in the lobby of the theater. They were pictured in the pressbooks and called “Displays,” whereas the collectors have taken to calling them Half Sheets, as they are half the size of a One Sheet. – Heritage Auctions.
• Half-sheets measure 22" x 28" and are printed on heavy card stock, the same as inserts, and similar to that of lobby cards. They were sometimes folded twice immediately after printing, although sometimes they were left unfolded, but most collectors don't consider folding in this way a defect (learn more about the folding of inserts and half-sheets). Most movies have two different styles of half-sheets. The "A" style (sometimes these have a "T/A" in the corner of the poster) which is almost always the exact same image as the title lobby card. The "B" style is almost always an image that appears on no other size of movie poster for that movie! Note that these were almost always referred to as "22x28 displays" in pressbooks, and NEVER as "half-sheets". That term is one that was coined in movie poster exchanges and was carried over into the hobby, because half-sheets ARE roughly half the size of one-sheets. But if you are a purist, they ARE "22x28 displays –EMOVIEPOSTER.COM
http://www.mcwonline.com/pdf/705drv.pdf
THE NEW ZEALAND COLLECTION
"During the early part of 1999, a collection of Universal Pictures half sheets were discovered under the floor of a
house being renovated in Wellington, New Zealand. The posters were in an amazing state of preservation, with the
majority of them in very fine to mint condition. The family that found them realized they had something unique and
tried to sell them through a local antique publication for $25.00 each. They had one call regarding the posters and the man who called offered
to buy every poster the family had. The family became suspicious that they might have something far more valuable
than they realized, so they declined the man’s offer and went about finding a way to discover the true value of the posters.
Through the internet, they found several poster dealers, but couldn’t find any prices to compare their posters to
(hey guys anyone who has ever bought a high line poster can relate to this, can’t we?). They next contacted some of the
auction houses including, Christie’s South Kensington and Bonham’s. The auction houses promised them quite a
return on their posters and the family suddenly became aware of the posters true value. However, rather than
pay high commissions and wishing to keep their discovery somewhat quiet, they decided to sell their collection privately.
It was at this point the family contacted a private dealer who then contacted Cinema Icons. The dealer knew
that Ron dealt in very rare Universal horror posters and that he would make them a fair offer on their items. In June
1999, he traveled to New Zealand and purchased one complete set of half sheets (meaning both the A and B styles) of each title they had.
Upon his arrival back in the U.S., the posters were immediately sold into private collections. And that’s where the story should have ended…
Over the course of the next year, he began to hear rumors the people in New Zealand still had more half sheets.
The rumor was that there were multiple copies of some of the half sheets, and there was at least one other complete set
of what he had purchased the prior year. He discounted the rumors because the family asked him to keep our transaction
quiet. They didn’t want people to know the posters had already been sold. He assumed the set he had purchased
was the same set that collectors were saying was still available. During this time, he kept hearing about the posters
coming to auction, first Sotheby’s New York, then Christie’s South Kensington. But with each catalog that was issued,
the posters failed to materialize, and he came to the conclusion that the rumor was just that; a rumor!
In October 2000, the New Zealand family called Ron. They told him that they did indeed still have more half
sheets. They were tired of dealing with the auction houses and were getting spooked when strange people were
showing up on their doorstep in New Zealand and asking about the posters. They wanted to know if he was interested
in buying them out.
He went into negotiations with them and was able to purchase all of their remaining posters. Before Ron
did this, he managed to get a statement from them that this was indeed the last of the posters.
The following list of posters accounts for the entire inventory of the horror posters from the New Zealand Collection.
Although Universal didn’t mark their half sheets as A and B styles, for simplicity, we’ve denoted the style that
has the same image as the title card as style A.
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Style A – 2 copies
Style B – 3 copies (1 with the borders trimmed off)
The Raven (1935)
Style A – 1 copy
Style B - 4 copies
The Invisible Ray (1936)
Style A – 2 copies
Style B – 1 copy
Dracula’s Daughter (1936)
Style A – 3 copies (1 with a significant chunk out of the left side)
Style B – 4 copies
This The Vulture ( 1966 ) U.S. half sheet previously discussed here had an outdated 1948 Australian censorship rating stamp applied to it. The correct version for 1966 appears below,
Another U.S. half used in Australia was MGM's 1948 film 3 Godfathers.