Star Wars Movie Poster

Miscellany /

A word of caution. Like any collectibles community there are reputable trustworthy dealers and particiants, as well as self-serving dishonest ones. Do some research. Get referrals. Feel good about who you’re dealing with. It doesn’t matter if you’re buying Star Wars or Bambi, a lot of the basics for movie posters will be the same. I ultimately purchased two posters from John Hazelton at filmposters.com and have no regrets. He was very helpful and patient in answering all my questions.

When starting your search (for anything), it’s important to get good information. The first step to getting good information is to ask good questions. When I started my search for a Star Wars poster, I put together a list of questions that I would ask every dealer. I’m interested in a Star Wars: Episode IV-A New Hope “Style A” (1977) original (no reissues or reprints) U.S. one sheet movie poster. Can you please provide the following details if you have one in stock:

  1. Is it rolled or folded?
  2. Is it linen-backed?
  3. How is it graded?
  4. Please describe any wear/damage (e.g. tears, stains, scratches, pin/staple holes, fading, etc.) and any retouches or repairs.
  5. What is your return policy?
  6. How much are you asking for it? Is there a discount if I buy multiple posters?

Like a lot of collectibles, posters have their own set of religious topics that will set off heated debate. Among those are linen backing, autographs, and framing. Some of what I learned is below. For better or worse, there may not be a “right” answer.
Rolled vs. Folded
Beware of people selling rolled original Star Wars posters. The likelyhood of finding a poster earlier than 1985 that is rolled instead of folded is pretty slim. Even reputable dealers will tell you that they have only ever seen a handful, and that even then it wasn’t 100% that they were legit.

Linen Backing
I struggled with this for quite a while. Linen backing is intended to help preserve old and/or fragile posters by adhearing the paper to a linen sheet. It’s fairly common, but requires money, time, and quite a bit of trust in the person doing the backing. In short, I decided that I’d rather have a folded, non-backed, poster in excellent condition than one that was linen backed and appeared to be mint. The linen backed one may display flatter, but it can also hide restoration. Ultimately it just doesn’t get more original than a poster that’s still folded. That’s how it came, that’s how it is.

Autographs
To sign or not to sign. Another one that I struggled with. A lot people consider movie posters art. Anything that alters a piece art from its original state devalues it in many people minds. So having someone write on a poster with Sharpie is a no-no to purists. Particularly when the autograph market is overrun with forgeries. The easy alternative is to get a reprint and get anything you want on it.

The best piece of advice I got distilled this one down for me very clearly. Are you buying the poster for your own enjoyment or for an investment? I was buying it for my own enjoyment, and really liked the idea of having those involved with the movie put their mark on a piece of history. Since then, I’ve had several cast a crew members sign my original Star Wars and Empire posters.

References
Thanks to all the people that put their time and energy into sharing their knowledge and passion online. These helped me a lot in my search. MTFBWY!

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