Hello JR, Clint and all,
We are all longtime collectors and know things about
movie posters that many don't, such as original size, certain
terminology, etc. For instance, if you look at this seller's listing for
Cool Hand Luke and other titles as well, he uses the term original reissue. He
also says it comes rolled with sharp edges in a clear protective plastic wrap.
He also states that the size is 24x36. Now, we as collector's know that the
original one sheet is 27x41, not 24x36, did not come rolled, etc. As a
collector, I wouldn't call this a reissue, I would call it a reprint. I
realize this may be just a case of semantics to some, but to others it is
an attempt to defraud. The seller further states that it would take an expert
to tell the difference. He then goes on to tell you the values of the original
and states that a reissue is not as valuable, eluding to the idea that it does
have some value, just not as much as the original. I believe that is
misleading.
I have many customers that buy my framing who have
bought from dealers like this assuming the poster is not just a reprint and
will eventually have some collectability. We know this is not the case. This
seller gives some whole story about the studios realizing the mass interest in
their movie posters and says they went back and made these reissues. I would
like to see proof of that, because I do the studio's framing here in Los
Angeles and I have been told by many that there has been no such project to
reproduce and call these posters reissues by the studio's. In fact I don't
know any of the studios that are even involved in making reprints of movie
posters for sale. If they were, though, there would be current dated copyright
information on the bottom of the poster and the ones I have framed from this
company do not. Through the years, there has been many licensed reproductions,
obviously Portal Publications is a good example, but there have also been
smaller companies that have obtained licensing rights for certain
posters.
The bottom line is that I believe the ads are
misleading and perhaps even false. This seller has thousands of posters up for
sale, some of them originals, many of them not. These reproduction posters are
just that, reproductions, not "reissues". To call them reissues gives an
impression of their rarity and value that just isn't true.
Sue Heim
(800) 463-2994
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, May 20, 2006 10:52
AM
Subject: Re: [MOPO] stopping a fraud
seller
Clinton,
You need to be much more specific when you make a charge like this, and
include links to the auctions so that we can take a look and see what's
going on. It is important not to claim someone is a "fraud seller" without
documentation. For instance, the last time I checked believeinmovies
listings, he was selling high-quality, studio-authorized reprints and was
clearly identifying them as such in his auction descriptions -- this is
very different from trying to sell reproductions and claiming they
are originals printed at the time of the original release of the film.
Studio-authorized reprints are not "fakes" unless someone tries to pass them
off as original-issue posters. He does list these posters in the
"Originals" category, which bugs me, but so does everyone else who
sells reprints and reproductions. Sadly, eBay doesn't really care if
something is in the correct category or not, so there's nothing that can be
done about that.
Now, if believeinmovies has started selling reprints and
claiming they are original movie posters printed at the time the film was
original released and used in the promotion of the film at the time, then of
course that is fraud and should be reported to eBay by using the "Report
This Item" link at the bottom of the page -- sometimes eBay acts on this and
sometimes they don't. You can also send an email to anyone who has placed a
bid on them an inform them that they are not genuine originals. That's about
the only options one has for dealing with a seller who is misrepresenting an
item.
I actually bought one of believeinmovies
studio-authorized FORBIDDEN PLANET half sheet reprints because I like
that version of the poster and am unlikely to ever spend the really big
bucks required to get a genuine original. But it was very clear that I was
buying a reproduction. The print quality of the FORBIDDEN PLANET half sheet
is excellent -- it looks exactly like the original, except no NSS info at
the bottom (instead there are two separate places where it clearly says the
poster was printed in 1995, so that no one who looks is going to be fooled
into thinking it was printed in 1956). But, it is exactly the same size as
the original (which is important to me). The paper is very different from
the original, it is slightly glossy, significantly thinner paper than an
original and the paper is a very bright white (an original from 1956,
printed on high-acid cardstock, would be light tan or cream-colored by
now).
I think these high-quality reprints are a benefit to the
hobby/industry, as they let people display some of the great old posters
when the prices of genuine originals have moved beyond the ability of most
people to own them.
The only time there is anything wrong with them is when some
unscrupulous (or just plain dumb dealer) tries to sell one as a genuine
original-release poster printed at the time the film was original released.
If believeinmovies is doing that, it's news to me -- please include some
links to those auctions so we can investigate.
-- JR
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, May 20, 2006
12:55
Subject: [MOPO] stopping a fraud
seller
Is there any way we can stop believeinmovies from
selling reprints and
listing them as original's about 90 percent of
his posters are
fake
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