Heritage Auction Galleries’ auction of Vintage Movie Posters, held March 30 and 31, 2007, set a new world record with final prices realized exceeding $2 million for 1,133 lots offered.
The star of the show was a spectacular Black Cat one sheet that had a preauction estimate of $100/175,000. “But there were two highly motivated bidders who had their eye on the prize,” Grey Smith, director of vintage movie poster auctions at Heritage, said, “and when the dust cleared, one winner emerged victorious with a final bid of $286,800.”
“I’m thrilled by the results of this most recent auction,” Smith continued. “Breaking the $2 million mark has always been my ‘Holy Grail’ in regard to these auctions, and I’m very grateful to everyone who participated, both bidders and consignors, for helping me to achieve this goal.”
Other highlights showed that horror is still a popular topic: The Raven style B half sheet and the Frankenstein title card both performed well in the auction, bringing $50,787 and $33,460, respectively. This genre continues to reign supreme in the field, with no signs of slowing down.
A pair of important six sheets also brought top dollar. A beautiful six sheet for Errol Flynn’s The Adventures of Robin Hood and a stone litho six sheet for Basil Rathbone’s The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes , previously unknown to exist, finished at $31,070 each.
Another lot that also sold for $31,070 was a single sheet from Twentieth Century Fox, Moon Over Miami , style A. Then, The Wayward Canary, single sheet from United Artists, 1932, brought $26,290; Sally of the Sawdust , by Paramount, 1925, one sheet, sold for $17,925, as did Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs , RKO’s 1937 Disney hit, Werewolf of London , Universal, 1935, and Warner Brothers’ 1924 one-sheet, Beau Brummel .
All prices quoted include the buyer’s premium. Heritage Auction Galleries are at 3500 Maple Avenue, 17th floor. For information, www.HA.com or 800-872-6467.
