The posters featured on this site are original Movie Posters: actual theatre-used promotional materials printed in very limited quantities and put on display when the film was released. If you have any questions please contact us.

RARITY

Over one hundred thousand movies have been made with roughly 10 different posters per movie. From these numbers, you may be surprised to learn that few of these original posters have survived. Nearly 80% of all vintage posters have been destroyed by overuse, paper drives, natural disasters, etc.

To compound matters, these posters were limited prints to begin with. In the Golden Age of American cinema, production studios were judged by the success of their next picture, so movie posters were issued directly to theaters to help drive ticket sales.

Current thought is that fewer than 300,000 of all vintage posters have survived. Of those that survived, only of a fraction of them are westerns. There are many posters from the 1930’s where no one has been able to find even 1 copy!

GRADING

Because most of these posters were actually hung in the theater at one time, their condition varies. The following grading system has been used to describe condition. A condition rating is only intended as a guideline; we encourage you to request a more detailed grading report on any item of special interest. Unless otherwise noted, all posters have been folded at one time or another since they were mailed folded from the printer to the theater.

POSTER CONDITION GRADING SCALE

• Near Mint (NM)
  Near Mint (NM) means almost flawless. It is virtually unused with only the slightest signs of wear.
• Excellent (EX)
  The Excellent (EX) poster has light use with few signs of wear. It has either few or no cosmetic flaws.
• Very Good (VG)
  The Very Good (VG) poster shows signs of moderate use. A Very Good (VG) poster may demonstrate some of the following cosmetics. Cosmetics include: some wear at major fold intersections, tackholes, a small crease/tear, or a light staining/tapping at the edges.
• Good (G)
  A Good (G) poster shows obvious signs of use. Good (G) posters are generally presentable when framed. Image area is not significantly damaged.
• Fair (F)
  Fair (F) posters show signs of heavy use and may require possible image restoration. Expect some damage.

SIZING

• 27x41" 1-Sheet
  This is the standard, common size and style for American movie posters and the One-Sheet is still in use at theatres today. One-Sheets usually have one vertical and three horizontal folds.
• 22x28" Half-Sheet
  A Half-Sheet is usually printed on thick-stock paper horizontally.
• 14x36" Insert
  An Insert is usually printed on thick-stock paper vertically.