Builders strike film poster gold under house carpets
ABURIED treasure of classic Hollywood movie posters have been uncovered in perfect condition – after being used as carpet underlay for decades.
The giant prints from the halcyon days of cinema, featuring Alfred Hitchcock, Sir Laurence Olivier, Henry Fonda and John Wayne, were laid under new carpets by a Cardiff cinema owner more than 70 years ago.
The perfectly preserved posters up to 10ft tall were turned into makeshift underlay after once adorning the walls of cinemas in Cardiff between 1936 and 1940.
Two builders stumbled on the huge collection of more than 70 posters while renovating the home of the late cinema owner.
They include Alfred Hitchcock’s second Hollywood feature Foreign Correspondent in 1940 – and John Wayne’s breakthrough film Stagecoach in 1939.
Also included is Fire Over England, the first British film to have its premiere in Los Angeles and the first to pair together Hollywood stars Sir Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh in 1937.
The large find of film and bill posters were once used on the New Theatre, Capitol, Empire and Olympia cinema theatres between 1936 and 1941. They were found in his home in the nearby seaside town of Penarth by the builders back in 1985 but kept in pristine condition.
And movie buffs will now have a chance to own their own slice of cinema memorabilita as they are going up for auction.
The collection is so rare auctioneers Rogers Jones & Co have not been able to set a guide price.
Auctioneer Ben Rogers Jones said: “It wasn’t just the sheer volume of them that was impressive, but the condition was fantastic considering their age and the imposing size of the 12-sheet posters.
“The builders explained to me that the house they renovated had been previously owned by a local cinema owner who had died. Valuing the posters was nearly impossible because no comparisons in terms of titles, condition and size of some them had ever come to market.”
The auction will take place on September 15 at Rogers Jones & Co’s Cardiff saleroom, with the collection separated into 70 separate lots.