I'm not surprised that the "splash" publicity surrounding the infamous
"Metropolis" 3-sheet - and its brief offering for sale for $850,000 before it
was suddenly pulled from Sean and Peter's MoviePosterExchange site - could lead
to to more stories, albeit nearly four months later. There are many
interesting things in the article below that - while NOT NEW to hobbyists - are
still "new news" to the rest of the world. I find it intriguing that The
Hollywood Reporter boldly takes credit - asserting media publicity about the
poster - and the publication of its own story in March 2012 - led to its
seizure by federal authorities. The update below cuts through the tedium of
going through reams of court documents posted elsewhere. I now wonder if
editors at other news organizations - might "piggy-back" or "copy-cat" the
Hollywood Reporter - with updated stories of their own. -d.
World's
Most Expensive Movie Poster Seized in Bankruptcy Case
One of four surviving "Metropolis"
posters along with valuable "King Kong" and "Invisible Man"
posters will be sold as part of a liquidation auction.
12:01
PM PDT 6/22/2012 by Andy Lewis
A rare and coveted Metropolis movie poster -- one of only four known
surviving
copies from the 1927 silent classic -- has been seized as part of a Chapter 7
liquidation bankruptcy case involving its owner Kenneth Schacter, a well-known
collector. The poster will
be auctioned off soon.
The case is being overseen by the
U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Los Angeles, with John Menchaca serving as the
bankruptcy trustee.
The historical importance of the Fritz Lang-helmed movie and
the rarity and beautiful art deco design of the Metropolis poster combine to
make it “the crown jewel of the
poster world," according to Sean
Linkenback, a well-known poster dealer. (See the full poster
below.)
The poster had been offered for
sale in March for $850,000 by Movieposterexchange.com.
Estimates vary as to what it would fetch on the open
market.
Schacter paid a still-record $690,000 for it in 2005.
In the bankruptcy filing, he estimates its value at just
$250,000, a number most observers view as comically low.
High-end estimates put the value of the poster at more
than $1 million, which would make it the first poster to cross that barrier in
a public sale.
Conversely, a sale at Schacter's low estimate of
$250,000 or even any number below $690,000 would represent a softening of the
poster market at a time when other collectibles such as movie props and rare
comics are selling for record amounts.
Other key items in Schacter's
collection include a King Kong
poster from 1933, which is considered by experts to be nearly as valuable as
the Metropolis poster, and a
1933 one-sheet teaser from The
Invisible Man.
The total collection could be worth as much as $5
million, according to court filings, but the exact value is uncertain because
Schacter has ignored court orders to provide a full and complete inventory.
It was THR's reporting about the poster being offered for sale that
pushed Schacter from a Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy to a Chapter 7
liquidation bankruptcy.
Schacter had filed for bankruptcy protection on Dec.
12 to avoid a judgment over a roughly $500,000 loan from Robert Mannheim, an
investor
who provided money for Schacter to invest in posters to sell for a profit.
When Mannheim learned about the
possible Metropolis sale via
Movie Poster Exchange, it reinforced his belief that Schacter was trying to
conceal assets to avoid repayment.
(The owners of Movie Poster Exchange were unaware of
the bankruptcy case when Schacter consigned the poster to them for sale and
immediately withdrew it from the site when they learned of the dispute.)
Mannheim filed a motion to force a
conversion to a Chapter 7, which the court granted March 12, concluding that
Schacter had indeed abused the Chapter 11 process by failing to disclose his
full inventory or complete financial assets.
Schacter was required to
immediately turn over his entire collection to a court-appointed bankruptcy
trustee, which he failed to do.
On May 16, the court found Schacter in contempt,
ordering him to submit a list of his holdings by May 31 or face a $2,000-a-week
contempt fine.
Schacter submitted an inventory of
his collection, but the bankruptcy trustee still is trying to assess whether it
represents his full and total holdings at the time he filed for bankruptcy (to
account for any sales he may have surreptitiously made after filing).
The trustee is in possession of the Metropolis, King Kong and Invisible
Man posters but only has
a list of many of the other items.
Once the inventory investigation is
complete and creditors have submitted timely claims, the bankruptcy trustee
intends to hold a liquidation auction.
If the court approves the request, the trustee is
likely to use Heritage Auctions, one of the largest auctioneers of movie
posters,
to conduct the liquidation sale.
Given the size of the Schacter's
collection, Heritage might auction it in waves, but no final decision has been
made.
The liquidation is expected to begin before the end of
2012, but the exact date is dependent on the speed of the inventory assessment
and the court's ruling on the application to conduct the sale.
Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
___________________________________________________________________
How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List
Send a message addressed to: [email protected]
In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L
The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
