It's amazing to think that back in January of 1978, you could score one of these gorgeous,
Del Nichols Star Wars posters - and a matching,
collectible drinking glass - for the price of a regular soft drink at your local Burger King (or Burger Chef) restaurant. These much-desired premiums were sponsored by Coca-Cola, and are highly prized today. Personally, I think they're probably my favorite
Star Wars related premiums ever. Here are the best scans I've ever come across of these stunning posters - enjoy!
Sorry for posting two art gallery-style posts in a row. I try to avoid that, but I didn't have anything else ready for today. However, I'm working on a bunch of more substantial entries (including November's Anniversary Space Babe) that should appear shortly. Stay tuned!
Sigh. Another one of those cool things you used to have as a kid, but no longer.
ReplyDeleteThese are some of my favorite posters ever. Probably because I had them on my walls as a kid.
ReplyDeleteI STILL have all four in PRISTINE condition. I.. LOVE.. THEM..
ReplyDeleteMust be the finest, most coolest/distinquished poster offering of this movie. I know they don't sell for too much on eBay for are SURE WORTH IT.
I haven't looked much, but this is the first time I've seen these images posted on-line.
Excellent scans, sir.
Do you have the glasses that went with them?
DeleteThis is actually a very rare thing -- if you have the set, despite what you might see on ebay etc, they're worth a lot. Increasingly so. I have seen a set of four going in a gallery in London for about $3000 framed. Ebay can often be misleading because so many so-called original movie posters are spurious copies, because they're not in great shape, or because you're only looking at a starter bid. If you buy in the American auctions, for example, a poster can be $50 an hour before closing and $2000 when the bell goes. So it's hard to calculate value. This particular set is considered by some to be the best posters ever made for the movie -- and they are beautiful illustrations. Hold on to them, and if you put them on the market, may a handsome profit be with you.
Deletegot all four when I was a kid. Would love to get the set again and hang them in the basement office (when I actually manage to get it all done that is...)
ReplyDeleteI had those on my wall when I was a kid and managed to score a complete set at a good price a few years ago on eBay. Gorgeous posters.
ReplyDeleteI love the artwork and I remember getting the glasses at Burger King in St.Pete. That's classic. Thank you for posting this.
ReplyDeleteWow, I hadn't thought about these in 30+ years, but man, they are absolutely gorgeous pieces of art, the montage of images, the color palettes and Nichols fantastic technique, somebody should contact Lucasfilm about re-releaseing these four pieces as prints, they are some of the best, most nostalgic pieces of art for the first film ever produced in my opinion. I can not recall if I ever had any as a kid, but if I didn't I sure bet I wish I had!
ReplyDeleteI had the poster featuring R2D2 and C3PO. I lost it somewhere between college and going in the Air Force.
ReplyDeleteJust read that Disney is buying Lucasfilm. Maybe we have a better chance to get a reissue now.
Ditto on what everyone else said. I had the Vader and the droids.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the memories!
The glasses were from Burger King while the posters were from Burger Chef. I have both the posters and the glasses. Love them.
ReplyDeleteBurger King must have had the posters as well, because I had three of them, and there have never been any Burger Chefs in Maine.
DeleteI have all four - from my childhood. They are still in pretty good condition - always thought they were great posters.
ReplyDeleteAny Star Kids remember the commercial for these posters when Burger Chef offered them? It had C-3PO and R2-D2 actually visiting a Burger Chef restaurant, where they met an overly enthusiastic female employee in a silly looking '70s-style uniform (complete with silly looking '70s-style floppy hat). There were also appearances by Jawas, Tusken Raiders, Stormtroopers and even Lord Darth Vader himself. Btw, the same posters were eventually sold at Burger King (as well as a matching set of glasses), but these are somewhat harder to find today than the Burger Chef versions. The main difference is that the BK ones have a white border around them.
ReplyDeleteWhen my husband was clearing out his family's house after his father passed away in '07, he was stunned to discover that his late mother (a HUGE sci-fi fan, ultimate Nerd Mom; I wish I had known her) had not only carefully packed away my husband's SW and ESB glasses, but the four SW posters as well! And they're in pretty good shape, considering their age and that he'd had them on his walls as a teen; on a 1-10 scale (10 being mint/pristine), they're about a 6-8, the 6 being the Chewie poster had a small tear in the middle of it, but I fixed it so the tear looks like the lines of his fur. And after finding frames for them, I surprised him by restoring (matte boards hide a multitude of sins) and framing them. They are now the first thing you see when you walk into my living room, and depending on when the person seeing them was born, we either get a loud "WHOA! I HAD THOSE!" or a bewildered "Those are nice, where are they from, one of the comics?" Thank you for naming the artist, since we can't quite make out his signature, and thank you to Tim for pointing out the difference between the BK and BC posters; ours have the white border, so they're from BK-- so who knew?
ReplyDeleteHe also discovered that his dear Mom had saved ALL of his original SW action figures, in their original carrying case (the vinyl lunchboxy kinda deal), with ALL their li'l bitty weapons. I married a fastidious Vulcan; he took/takes really good care of his stuff!
Your Pal,
Storm
Wow. Wow.
ReplyDeleteI had these. Had the glasses too. Best Star Wars art ever.
ReplyDeleteIt's heart warming to hear such comments about Del Nichols posters. He was my husband and passed away December 2013. His grandson's have the sets of 4 framed and on their walls. They're 'cool' today even though that was 1977.
ReplyDeleteHolly shit Kevin did your dad do those? Actually I shouldn't be surprised...I know how good he was...he will be missed
ReplyDeletePeter