JM Cozzoli

Thanks to The Serial Squadron member Chris McCleary, I’ve been posting many pressbooks from his dad’s collection. He did two great things: collected serial pressbooks to keep the history alive and met his screen heroes to boot. Here’s one signed by Roy Barcroft. I miss the days when you could meet and greet your screen heroes, chat a bit, and walk away with a signed something or photograph while keeping your shirt on your back. Today, of course, it’s a Wells Fargo stagecoach holdup’s worth to do anything like that at a convention.

ComicRack reader version: Download Desperadoes of the West Pressbook

Don’t get desperate! Here are more pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet, pardner.

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Desperadoes of the West (1950) PressbookRead More »

Treasure, a miracle drug, and jungle mystery and intrigue are “sizzling” in this jungle serial from Columbia. I wonder if any theaters added jungle sounds or the fortune telling idol to their lobbies? I also would love to have one of those club cards, punched or unpunched. Nice use of contest mats, a code, and a jungle sundae help round out the promotional business. The poster art is also exciting and there were 8×10 art stills available highlighting it. I don’t know what was more exciting: the serial itself or the ballyhoo around it?

ComicRack reader version: Download Jungle Raiders Pressbook

You don’t need to raid a jungle to find more pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet.

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Jungle Raiders (1945) PressbookRead More »

Here’s the 1956 re-release pressbook for Columbia’s Hop Harrigan serial. Somehow, I don’t think going after everyone in town who is air-minded is the best promotional campaign I’ve come across. However, the other promotional items are nifty: a model display, a lobby death ray gun (always a draw for me), club card for youngsters (but I still want one), a substitution code, and inviting people named Harrigan to the opening. Of course there’s the usual clothing and luggage, the not so usual making paper planes, and the very challenging finding airplane parts “from your local air field” to put in theater lobbies.

ComicRack reader version: Download Hop Harrigan Pressbook

You don’t need to be air-minded to enjoy more pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet.

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Hop Harrigan (1946) Re-Release PressbookRead More »

I was drawn to this pressbook because you don’t often see early movies fronting a female lead character. There were three Sophie Lang movies of which this is the last one.  Promotion ideas for this one had fashionable clothing trends, luggage, a hope chest stunt, and a photo-fun contest. Larry “Buster” Crabbe (Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers) plays the heavy.

ComicRack reader version: Download Sophie Lang Goes West Pressbook

You don’t need to go West to see more pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet.

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Sophie Lang Goes West (1937) PressbookRead More »

It gets confusing trying to keep track of the Dead End Kids, the Little Tough Guys, the Bowery Boys, and the East Side Kids as they pop up in various serials and movies. Long story short: the Dead End Kids were a group of young actors that appeared in the Broadway play Dead End in 1935. In 1937 they wound up in Hollywood to star in the filmed version of the play. Then in 1938 some of them, along with newbies, starred in the movie, Little Tough Guy, so they also became known as the Little Tough Guys. This led to more movies and eventually acquiring the additional monikers East Side Kids and Bowery Boys as they continued to participate in the lucrative franchise over the years. Interestingly, though they began on a serious note, their movies became more comedic and light-hearted as time progressed.

ComicRack reader version: Download Give Us Wings Pressbook

You can find more of their pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet.

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Give Us Wings (1940) PressbookRead More »

Burlesque stripper Ann Corio made her way to Hollywood to star in Swamp Woman, Jungle Siren, Call of the Jungle, and Sarong Girl. Note the trend toward steamy environs to lessen the need for clothing. What’s unusual about this pressbook is that it’s larger than most (18×12 inches) and has two fold-out sections, which makes this a pricey pressbook to print and distribute.

ComicRack reader version: Download Jungle Siren Pressbook

No siren needed to see more pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet.

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Jungle Siren (1942) PressbookRead More »

Contrary to the title, the blonde woman is not a captive. She also puts in just a few minutes of screen time.  This whole movie is a sham. Basically taking a 1928 documentary and adding a blonde woman subplot along with some extra footage, blame Columbia Pictures for this pre-code weirdness in 1932.  Exploitation? Hell yes. Someone snoozing during a new ideas meeting for generating more box office? Hell yes. The only saving grace here is the poster art by Wynne Davies, a superb pulp-style artist who could capture the sexy and tawdriness with the best of them. This movie was lost at one point but someone found it in 2010.  They can’t find London After Midnight but they could find this?

ComicRack reader version: Download The Blonde Captive Pressbook

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The Blonde Captive (1932) PressbookRead More »

What drew my eye to this pressbook for Pirate Treasure, Universal’s swashbuckling movie serial, was the showmanship page. From lobby stunts, pirate coloring competition, pirate mask and hat, pirate treasure bags, heralds, hangers, and more, it’s a splash of thrills. The stunt work in this serial is noted as stellar too. Yo ho ho!

Find more buried treasure pressbooks without a lot of digging from Zombos’ Closet.

ComicRack reader version: Download Pirate Treasure Pressbook

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Pirate Treasure (1934) PressbookRead More »