All

Superman III

£50.00

Film

Superman III

Additional information

Year

1983

Size/Type

UK Quad (30" x 40") Single Sided

Country of Origin

UK / British

Condition

Near mint minus – Very fine plus / originally folded (as issued)

Director

Richard Lester

Actor/Actress

Annette O'Toole, Annie Ross, Christopher Reeve, Jackie Cooper, Marc McClure, Margot Kidder, Pamela Stephenson, Richard Pryor, Robert Vaughn

SOLD - this item is sold. Please browse our currently available stock

“Synthetic kryptonite laced with tobacco tar splits Superman in two: good Clark Kent and bad Man of Steel.”

The third entry in the Salkind’s ‘Superman’ canon sees Richard Lester’s more comedic action touch as Christopher Reeve again dons the red cape in the 1983 release “Superman III”. Humour is largely provided by an excellent over the top performance (in reality just playing himself) by comic genius Richard Pryor as computer genius Gus Gorman. And it is Reeve and Pryor who feature prominently on this British UK quad film poster. The colourful all-action design sees Superman in full flight smashing his way to defeat the ‘villain’ Gus’ ‘super-computer’ Gorman From first year of release (1983) this rare folded (as issued) example displays and presents to excellent effect with only very minimal handling wear. Beautiful artwork and vivid unfaded colours this is an exceptional unrestored  example of very collectable original movie memorabilia.

Read More +

Trivia: According to Ilya Salkind, an earlier version of the script included the comic book villains Brainiac and Mr. Mxyzptlk teaming up, and Superman meeting his cousin, Supergirl, which would lead to the potential Supergirl spin-off.

 …more detail

Vintage Movie Posters Grading Criteria... read more +

Film Description

Superman III Movie Poster

“If the world’s most powerful computer can control even Superman…no one on earth is safe.”

After being caught for a money making computer scam, Gus Gorman (Richard Pryor) is recruited by unscrupulous multimillionaire Ross Webster (Robert Vaughn). With Gorman’s computer expertise, Webster plans to take complete economic control. But first there is the considerable issue of eradicating Superman (Christopher Reeve) to deal with.

Richard Lester, as everyone now knows, inherited Superman II from the jettisoned Richard Donner. Here we have a complete Richard Lester Superman film, and from the extended slapstick opening we are aware that this is far lighter in tone than the previous two films. Lester’s credits are steeped in comedy traditions, so it’s no real surprise that Superman III is more airy comic book than troubled caped crusader. This is something that many franchise fans are completely unforgiving about. Which is a shame, because viewed as a comic book bit of nonsense it’s a rather enjoyable film, certainly it’s the one with the most fun approach. The action is very well put together, with a franchise highlight as Clark Kent gets to fight a clearly off kilter Superman, and the comedy, if accepted on its own terms, is very rewarding.

However, it only works as entertainment if one can cast off the mythology of Superman and his fantastical complexities. To do so is not a crime against ones superhero beliefs, it’s just an acceptance that it’s a different approach, and that Superman III‘s only real crime is not being as good as the first two franchise belters.

Vintage Movie Posters Grading Criteria

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.

Most Popular Poster Types

US Posters

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 Posters

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 Posters

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 Posters

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.