Film
Headless Ghost, The
1959
US One Sheet (27" x 41")
USA
Very Fine plus; originally folded; now conservation linen backed
Peter Graham Scott
Clive Revill, David Rose, Liliane Sottane, Richard Lyon
“Head-hunting teenagers lost in the haunted castle”…Very striking Reynold Brown artwork for this original 1959 US One Sheet from the Samuel Z. Arkoff produced horror comedy “The Headless Ghost”. Filmed at Merton Park Studios, England the rather creaky production values are not at all reflected in this stunning original film poster. With minimal restoration & excellent conservation linen backing this displays as new & would be a fantastic piece of movie poster artwork to display.
…more detailVintage Movie Posters Grading Criteria... read more +
“The Headless Ghost”… is a harmless, very minor but fairly likable little comedy filmed on the cheap in Britian. Three foreign exchange students – Americans Bill (Richard Lyon) and Ronnie (David Rose) and Danish gal Ingrid (Liliane Sottane) – take in the locations of the Ambrose Estate. Ronnie wants to investigate the stories of the place being haunted for his college newspaper and the three certainly do find plenty to write about. The ghosts are real, starting with amiable, helpful Fourth Earl of Ambrose (the great character actor Clive Revill, in his first credited screen role). One of the ghosts, Malcolm, needs his body and his severed head to be reunited so he can properly rest in peace. Bill, Ingrid, and Ronnie are reluctant at first but are eventually persuaded to see this “mission” through to its end. As written by Aben Kandel and producer Herman Cohen, and directed by Peter Graham Scott, there are no real comedy fireworks here. At best, the movie does elicit some modest chuckles, but at least it’s all easy enough to take. The trio of protagonists have the potential to annoy some viewers, especially Bill, but the enthusiasm of the actors’ performances is effective, and that accent of Sottanes’ is hard to resist. Revill scores as the easygoing ghost, and Alexander Archdale is a hoot as the fun loving spirit of Sir Randolph. One debit is that even at a mere one hour and three minutes, this definitely feels padded: better pacing and this could have run even shorter. Still, one can’t completely dislike the padding, as it features some incredible dance moves by a sexy performer named Josephine Blake. The special effects aren’t bad, the music by Gerard Schurmann is good, and the movie isn’t totally without decent black & white atmosphere. Originally released as the second movie in a double feature with Roger Cormans’ “A Bucket of Blood”, this is indeed lightweight stuff, and pretty damn silly, but it’s also impossible to hate. After all, it’s not as if we don’t know what we’re in for judging by the opening credits. NSS # 59/159 & Copyright 59544
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Mint
A poster that has never been used or displayed and may show the most minor signs of age and wear. The poster should have no holes or tears.
Near Mint
A generally unused poster with fresh, saturated colors. May have minimal tears at folds. Has no significant holes, no paper loss, may have minor tears along edges, may have fine pin holes.
Very Fine
A poster with bright colour and crisp overall appearance. It may have very general signs of use including slight fold separation and fold wear. It may have pin holes or very minor tears. This is the highest grade allowed for a poster that has been restored either on linen or on paper.
Fine
A poster with good colors and overall clean appearance. It may have minor tears small paper loss and minor stains. It may have some fold seperation.
Good
An average poster with overall fresh color. May have tears, minor paper loss, minor hazing. Paper may be brittle due to age, may have minor stains. May have a small amount of writing in an unobtrusive place. May have medium or major restoration.
Fair
A poster with faded colors and brittle paper, showing significant signs of use. May have tears and paper loss. May have tape, writing, stains in image area. In need of restoration or had major restoration.
Poor
A poster that is worn, torn, and/or damaged. May have staining, cracking, dry rot, and/or large tears. May be heavily soiled, may have pieces missing. In need of major restoration.
All photographs and images used on our site are photographs of the actual poster/item you are buying, we do not use stock photographs.
LOBBY CARD
11 x 14″ printed on heavy stock paper. Used as display in theatre lobbies. Originally made in sets of eight. Some sets have a title card, which contains credits and artwork, essentially a mini-poster. The remaining seven cards are coloured photographic credits and poster artwork showing different scenes from the movie.
WINDOW CARD
14 x 22″ printed on heavy stock paper with the top 4-6 inches usually left blank for the local cinema owner to fill in the cinema and the date it was due to play. Largely discontinued during the 1970’s.
HALF SHEET
22 x 28″ printed on heavy stock paper. The image displayed is normally a smaller version of the main poster, although some do have different artworks and sometimes come in two versions.
INSERT
14 x 36″ printed on heavy stock paper. Inserts usually have the same artwork as a one sheet. Popular with collectors since they are smaller and easier to frame. Normally come tri folded or rolled.
STYLE Y/FORTY BY SIXTY
40 x 60″ printed on heavy stock paper. Rare since they were primarily used for major motion pictures only. Designed to be used outside the theatre, on an easel, normally at a drive-in movie theatre.
ONE-SHEET
27 x 41″ printed on paper. This is the most common size of poster, intended to be displayed in a glass “marquee” case. It is the most sought after size by collectors. Since the 1980’s most posters are sent to the theatre rolled and maybe slightly smaller measuring 27″ by 40″ and with the advent of backlit light boxes a growing number of modern movie posters are available double-sided and the more traditional single-sided.
THREE-SHEET
41 x 81″ printed on paper. These were printed on two or three separate sheets designed to overlap, few survive. Used for larger advertising spaces, normally posted on walls, perfect for huge movie theatres the drive-in, where people could see them from a distance. From the 1970’s on, three-sheets were sometimes printed in one piece and issued as “international” versions to be used abroad.
BRITISH QUAD
30 x 40″ Most common poster size used in the UK. British Quads are horizontal and may have different artwork to the US one sheet. Like a US one sheet they normally come in two versions. Like a US one sheet they are usually supplied single-sided or more commonly now as a double sided poster.
BRITISH ONE-SHEET
27 X 40″, printed on paper. Very rarely used size.
ITALIAN LOCANDINA
13 x 28″ six inches shorter than the US insert, very nice size to frame. Italian poster illustrators are some of the best in the industry.
ITALIAN PHOTOBUSTA
18 x 26″ Glossy, high quality, used as lobby cards in Italy. Size may vary, either vertical or horizontal format. There are also double Photobusta or mini Photobusta.
2-FOGLIO (DUE)
(DUE): 39 x 55″ This is the standard poster size used in Italy. Italian poster illustrators are some of the best in the industry.
4-FOGLIO
(QUATTRO) 55 x 79″ Very large Italian poster printed in two pieces, often contains very beautiful artwork.
FRENCH
47 x 63″ (GRANDE) or 24 x 33″ (PETITE) French movie posters normally come with different artwork to either the US or the UK. Like the Italian’s some of the artwork is extrememly beautiful.
