Memorabilia Historian

Memorabilia -> Movie Memorabilia -> Posters

Pin up posters might not have the popularity today that they once did, but most people will immediately recognize some of the most popular pin up moments from the heyday of beautiful pin up models. Marilyn Monroe was a pin up queen in her day, and any collection of pin ups should feature her in at least a few pieces. Marilyn was a popular pin up girl in the 1950s, considered a sex symbol and the epitome of beauty and glamor. She was more than just an actress, though, acclaimed for a comic performance in Some Like it Hot and her rare dramatic turn in Bus Stop. She was an idol, an icon, and one of the Hollywood legends created during that period.

A collection of pin up posters represents a phase of US history that relied heavily on entertainment in movies and magazines. World War II made entertainment at home necessary to show the country that no matter what, there were good things to look forward to and keep morale from getting too low. Entertainment also served during this period to make things look as normal as possible at home, and try to give the illusion that though we were at war, everything was all right and would remain all right. It took the emphasis off the fact that people were dying elsewhere.

Pin up posters weren’t all about Marilyn, though, she was merely one of the best-known subjects. Betty Grable was featured on perhaps the most widely recognizable pin up of all time, popular during World War II. Almost everyone who’s been exposed to entertainment media in any form, even today, is probably familiar with the shot of Grable. She’s wearing a bathing suit and standing with her back to the camera, looking over her shoulder. The seductive backward look, the high heels and the hands on her hips were all provocative at the time, and helped cement her as a sex symbol and the woman of many soldiers’ dreams. Grable had what were considered to be perfect legs, insured for $1,000,000 by her movie studio. She was even reported to be Hugh Hefner’s inspiration for his Playboy empire.

Pin up posters didn’t always feature sex symbols like Monroe and Grable in photographs. Artwork was another popular pin up subjects. Alberto Vargas fro Peru created so many pin up of beautiful and voluptuous girls that the term Vargas girl is widely recognized and often is used to refer to a drawn or painted pin up girl.

A great place to find original and reproduction pin up posters is eBay, where you can often find the original magazine covers or intact magazines featuring photography, and even artwork by well known pin up artists like Vargas. Originals are rarely in great condition, but they’re still surprisingly available. Just be sure to clarify whether it’s an original or one of the reproductions that are so popular with fan of the genre who don’t want to spend the time or money necessary to track down an original.

Originally posted 2008-10-31 05:00:06. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Memorabilia -> G -> Grateful Dead

Grateful Dead fans, often called Dead Heads, and music memorabilia collectors can pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for items like handbills and Grateful Dead posters. Anyone not familiar with the band or the unique style of images and posters used during the band’s run might be surprised at the value of some of the items, but it comes as little surprise to collectors. While not everyone might enjoy Grateful Dead music or memorabilia, almost everyone has heard of them. And fans are particularly loyal, even though the Grateful Dead was never a popular “mainstream” band and never quite achieved the fame of many of the same bands around during its heyday.

The Grateful Dead’s lead guitarist Jerry Garcia became a well-known name in music because of his talents and his outspokenness. The group formed in San Francisco in 1964 with their original name, The Warlocks, and continued on until Garcia’s death in 1995. Grateful dead posters from their early period, particularly concert posters from the 60s and 70s, are the most rare and valuable posters available from the band.

They drew their following because of their unique type of music, which combined several different styles, and their psychedelic leanings. Drug use in the 60s among those who went to see San Francisco bands was the rule, not the exception, and because some of the bands openly used drugs, it became a sort of culture among bands and fans, and a symbol for the counterculture of the time. The Grateful Dead embraced that psychedelic stoned attitude, and became popular among those who felt the same.

Grateful Dead posters are a visual delight for fans of the 60s counterculture and all things psychedelic. Often the concert posters are dominated by the large vintage lettering, and others often feature skeletons symbolizing, “The Dead,” as the band was often called by its fans. Some of the more valuable posters feature skeletons and roses, and one features a multi-colored skull wearing a top hat—a poster that can bring from $250 to $500 at an auction.

The band came out of the same area, and was part of the collective group of bands that became popular called the San Francisco Sound, with groups like the then Jefferson Airplane (later known as Jefferson Starship, and then just Starship) and Santana. One of their most widely known songs is probably “Touch of Gray.” Fans delighted in the way the band would play for the sheer love of it “jamming” like few other bands at the time did. Grateful Dead posters from those early concerts are harder to find because the focus was so much more on the music than memorabilia at the time, not many people worried about getting them or saving them.

If you want to find vintage Grateful Dead posters online, then auctions like eBay are an excellent source. Even posters with tiny tears around the edges and minor damage can be valuable, so don’t overlook those as collector pieces.

Originally posted 2008-11-12 14:00:35. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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