Bob Steele’s look could play sinister, innocent or comedic roles. From the cold-blooded killer in The Big Sleep (1946) to the only survivor of the Alamo, Trooper Duffy , in F Troop.
Comic book reader version: Download Smoky Trails Pressbook
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The Stranger from Pecos was the second movie in Monogram’s Marshal Nevada Jack Mckenzie franchise, starring Johnny Mack Brown. Brown appeared on Wheaties boxes and in comic books and roped in well over a hundred movies before he passed away in 1974.
Comic book reader version: Download Stranger From Pecos Pressbook
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The good old days, when the only thing you had to worry about in the jungle was what was going to eat you. I'm nonplussed about that tagline: "Johnny Against the Cannibals! as the flames lick her lovely legs." Did Johnny have lovely legs? The sentence logic here is atrocious. So is Johnny Weissmuller's acting throughout the Jungle Jim series, in spite of his lovely legs. But there is a strange fascination for me with these jungle adventures, I admit.
Comic book reader version: Download Jungle Man-Eaters Pressbook
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Black Camel (with Bela Lugosi) and Charlie Chan at the Opera (with Boris Karloff), are two of the best Chan movies. Currently, you can see both on YouTube. I strongly recommend them. I realize for many that Charlie Chan reflects a less politically correct age, but I would only recommend you re-evaluate this very large body of work, especially with Warner Oland, arguably the best Charlie Chan (even though he was Swedish). An essential reference work to aid you is Charlie Chan at the Movies:History, Filmography, and Criticism by Ken Hanke.
Comic book reader version: Download Charlie Chan at the Opera
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This very impressive pressbook, at 36 pages for Five Graves to Cairo, plays up Erich von Stroheim, an impressive director and Hollywood presence himself.
Comic book reader version: Download Five Graves to Cairo Pressbook
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My favorite movie heralds are the comics-style ones. Here's the one for Enter the Dragon with Bruce Lee. (See Black Belt Jones herald.) I fondly remember catching the early Lee movies in a Chinatown theater in New York City. After hearing all the hype, it was breathtaking to watch him on the big screen.
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Humphrey Bogart was third-billed for this stage play, The Cradle Snatchers. Remember those battle-of-the-sexes movies and plays? Well, some of you, anyway, I'm sure. Fun, fun, fun. Here's the die-cut herald for the play. I found it too cute, so now it's in Zombos' Closet (I mean literally: it's in my closet). I have a soft spot for die-cut printing. This one in particular conveys the fun, fun, fun of the play in a (wait for it) playful way.
Here's the movie herald for Red Barry, a 13-chapter serial put out by Universal. The blank space on the last page was left for movie theaters to add their location, play dates, and whatever marketing hype they deemed relevant. The herald's purchasing cost was usually priced per thousand. Ordering information, and a sample herald, could be found in the campaign or pressbook sent out by distributors. Heralds were usually smaller than 8 x 11 inches and printed on one sheet, although both were often used, and larger heralds with multiple pages can be found. Many heralds were even fashioned to look like tabloid newspapers, while others, like this one, used a neat poster ad that conveyed all the thrills and chills to be found in the movie (hopefully).
When your honeymoon starts with your wife telling you she’s bad, but will try to be good, you know you’re in for a wild ride. The poster art says it all. An intense thrill ride toward a dead end, Gun Crazy is a must-see noir film.
Comic book viewer version: Download Gun Crazy Pressbook
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In this Western the bad guy goes straight and has time to sing three songs along the straight and narrow path.
Comic book reader version: Download Singing Guns Pressbook (See more crooning pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet)
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Ah, the good old days, when gossipy neighbors could ruin your reputation and ruin your weekly bridge-playing get togethers. Now everyone can pretty much chime in on Twitter or Facebook or whatever gossipy website there is on the Internet. Would I really want to watch this movie? No. But this pressbook, with its die cut silhouette and the overall design of the pages, is pretty nifty.
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I haven’t seen this movie, but I liked the pressbook design. Hotshot pilots and fast flying seemed all the rage in the 1950s cinema. The poor man’s space opera. The “curvaceous” Elena Verdugo, from House of Frankenstein, puts in an appearance. Playing up the eye-candy aspect of female actors in 1950s movies was also another, thankfully abandoned, selling point of that decade’s movies too.
Comic book reader version: Download Jet Job Pressbook (see more high-flying pressbooks From Zombos’ Closet)
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