Hallo
Here's a UK perspective.
I have probably bought more posters in the last year than in the three years
before that. It seems that quite a few posters which have historically been in
the low-hundred dollar range now pop up for (sometimes considerably) less than
$100. This has been useful to me, as any poster sent into the UK is subject to
a customs fee of $12.50 plus VAT at 20%.
I recently bought a "Hold Back The Dawn" poster on ebay for $27.89.
International shipping was $11.60 and the Customs Fee came to $19.80 (How's
THAT for a Buyers Premium?!).
So the real cost of the poster to me was $59. As this poster has gone for $130
and $180 at Heritage & Bruce, I still feel I got a pretty good deal.
UK customs fees are levvied haphazardly, but in this current buyer's market
it's good to know that - even when there is a charge - the kick of getting a
bargain will not be transformed into buyers remorse by these additional fees.
Neil
________________________________
From: Bruce Hershenson <brucehershen...@gmail.com>
To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU
Sent: Saturday, 11 August 2012, 13:32
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Is this the best time ever to find and buy vintage movie
posters?
I have heard forever about the days of cheap great items, and yes, there WAS a
day when you COULD possibly buy great posters and lobby cards for what are now
very inexpensive prices. But I KNOW full well that not very many collectors
ever took advantage of these opportunities, because when old time collectors
consign their collections to me, they have very few or none of these types of
items.
People sometimes act like there was once a time when you could easily purchase
Frankenstein and Dracula lobby cards, but that was NEVER the case. Here's an
example of how it was. Someone advertised a single Frankenstein lobby card for
say $75 in Film Collectors World (forerunner of Movie Collectors World).
Everyone who got the publication saw the ad, but only one person got to buy
that one card, and yet for years after people talk about "the days of buying
$75 Frankenstein lobby cards".
But in today's hobby, you CAN buy just about ANY item (except for the
absolutely most scarce items) and the prices are set by supply and demand, and
quite often supply exceeds demand, and there are lots of cases where you can
buy nice items for far less than you would have paid 10 or 20 years ago (when
inflation is taken into account) and in some cases even far less than those
items sold for in absolute terms.
And, as I stated in my original post, the selection and ease of purchase is
unparallelled compared to 20, 30 or 40 years ago. Yes you won't have that one
in 1,000 chance of buying that $75 Frankenstein card, but in every other way,
the hobby has vastly improved in terms of price AND selection.
On Sat, Aug 11, 2012 at 5:15 AM, Daniel Kinske <colorfulcomedi...@me.com> wrote:
I have a limited range of experience compared to the more veteran collectors on
here, but any and all advice helps.
>
>
>One constant sentiment is that if you really like a rare poster (or lobby
>card, press book, etc.) that you really want, you should do what you can to
>get it then as it may not pop up again. I love the film art of Al Hirschfeld
>and though I feel I am adequately knowledgable I know there are some posters
>of his out there in private collections that are one of a kind and I may never
>see them. I have found a few like that with private collectors and have one or
>two myself.
>
>
>I recently picked up a glass slide to the 1928 MGM film "Baby Cyclone." It
>features some of the earliest MGM artwork Hirschfeld rendered. The gentleman
>was selling reproductions of his glass slide and I just politely inquired
>about the original slide and lucked out that he had it. So, 84 years later I
>obtain it. Doubt there are many others out there.
>
>
>Rambling at 3 am, but I'm very glad the treasure trove finds like the Berwick
>group pop up from time to time--gives us all hope that our favorite unknown
>extant poster might still be out there.
>
>-d...
>
>
>On Aug 11, 2012, at 1:42 AM, Tait Maxfeldt wrote:
>
>"Everyone is a prisoner of his own experiences..." Edward R. Murrow
>>
>>I've been waiting to apply this quote to poster collecting..
>>
>>If you read between the lines than both Bruce and Rich are correct but in
>>different ways..
>>
>>Sean (Crowzilla) astutely pointed out in February of this year
>>..."There are now more original one sheets (Dracula et all) AVAILABLE (key
>>word) than at any other time in the 60's, 70's or
80's...The style F, (Dracula) which was not even known to exist 15 years ago
is now the most common style..."
>>
>>We also have now "courtesy of Berwick" the 1931 The Public Enemy style A &
>>B..and Cimarron...and Little Caesar..And now Bruce is about to offer THE
>>iconic Cleopatra silent one sheet...
>>
>>Bruce : "There just aren't that many posters (other than the super scarce
>>ones that have ALWAYS been very hard to find) that one couldn't reasonably
>>expect a good opportunity of acquiring over...a year's time.." ...
>>
>>I agree with this specifically..(however the super scarce ones are popping up
>>too)
>>
>>In terms of being condition conscious and having the tools to be so...this is
>>the time to collect
>>Emovieposter, movie poster exchange, ebay, heritage, movieposterbid...etc all
>>speak to the greater accessibility of vintage film ephemera..
>>
>>I really can't imagine how great the 60's or 70's were for collecting but it
>>must have been
pioneering for the hobby to say the least ...and exciting!!
>>
>>Rich...Were these $100 Frankenstein cards common enough to acquire 1 every
>>year FOR SEVERAL COLLECTORS ..or where they more a fluke of a find related to
>>lack of exposure/knowledge of a savvy collecting base/dealer network?..were
>>there 10 or 20 of these during the 60's or were there less than a handful ...
>>
>>Hindsight is 20/20 and I bet some people purchased these Forbidden Planets
>>and Frankenstein pieces for a song...but they probably sold a fair number of
>>them too.... at a price well below what they would fetch today..and wished
>>they had kept them
>>
>>Alas...I can only apply my most recent experiences with collecting since we
>>only have this "moment" compared to decades past...i can't think of a better
>>time to buy silent film pieces...I personally acquired 3 complete Chaplin
>>lobby card sets in
the last year alone ..1918 A Dog's life, 1918 Shoulder arms & 1922 Pay Day...
>>
>>I'm pretty sure I'm fucking stoked about collecting in this day and age!!!
>>
>>Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
>>___________________________________________________________________
>>How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List
>>Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu
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>>The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
>>
>>
>
>Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
>___________________________________________________________________
>How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List
>Send a message addressed to: lists...@listserv.american.edu
>In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L
>The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.
--
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P.O. Box 874
West Plains, MO 65775
Phone: 417-256-9616 (hours: Mon-Fri 9 to 5 except from 12 to 1 when we take
lunch)
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our auctions
Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
___________________________________________________________________
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