Anyone here collect Lobby Cards?

Oversized (In terms of average trading card - though sizes vary) sets used to promote movies. Each card features a still from various scenes (possible information on reverse side?). Usually released in sets of 8 (though can be 6 or 12 ).

Been around since the 30s and I know they're still made today but perhaps not as reguarly? eg More popular in World Cinema than the American market?

Can anyone give me any more information on these? Or what it's like to build up a collection eg price, rarity, age/condition etc.

Oh! and before I forget: What's the best way to store them??

Thanks all.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: TC00,

I used to collect these back in the 80's.If you were friendly with your local cinema they could be had for free when the film completed it's run at that cinema.

Those were the days! .

I just kept them in a tin box,wonder where that is now .

If you want to staet collecting now there are loads on the auction websites but they all seem expensive to me who got them for nothing.

Sadly I can't rmember the last time I saw any in a cinema in the UK,they seem to have gone the way of the small independent cinemas that used to be everywhere but have been killed off by the multiplex chains .

I still collect lobby cards, though to a lesser degree these days as I have only been hunting ones for the films of Ray Harryhausen and I now have most of the ones I can afford. I have something like 200-300 plus at least as many press pack photos.

Pretty much the only way to pick them up these days is off sites like FeeBay. Prices can vary tremendously but it is all about condition and scarcity.

Storage is tricky. Most of mine are in protective sleeves, much like penny sleeves for cards only bigger and more expensive

A lot depends on which films you are trying to collect.

I've got a lot of lobby cards. Mostly James Bond, Clint Eastwood and Charles Bronson movies. I also store them in plastic bags, where they've been sitting in a dresser drawer for many years, except for the ones I have framed. They were pretty cheap back when I bought them, $25 or so a set. I doubt you could touch the Bond ones for that now though. Maybe $25 a card, I don't know.

I have some of them, and a few press kits besides. The Lobby cards really are like big trading cards, and are often even printed on card stock as opposed to photo paper.

One thing that's pretty neat about lobby cards is that they often differ from country to country. I found this out when I was looking to purchase a set for "Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle" as a Christmas present for my girlfriend. I found out that in addition to the U.S set, there was one from Spain and a different one from France. The cool thing was that the language of the text wasn't the only thing different about them. The images were different on many of the cards from set to set, so I picked up all the sets and got lots of great pictures from the movie with very little overlap of images.

All of that to say that not only are there lots of them from the UK to collect, but once you have all the ones you want from your favorite movies from your country, you can go on and collect the international ones from the same movie, likely picking up a lot of different images in the process. Good luck!

For some strange reason which i have no memory of i have a full set of lobby cards for the film Airport 75.

Somewhere way in the distant past i must have purchased these but i have no idea where from or why.

Thanks for all the feedback (so far)!

Didn't realise the variety of lobby cards available.

I didn't know about lobby cards until I came across some for my favourite German cinema releases. For now I'll stick to that territory -Not the cheapest but resonably priced (For modern German cinema).

I used to collect Disney lobby cards but pared it down to the Lion King which is what I collect.

A lot of collectibles are in an "up market" right now, and lobby cards seem to be gaining in interest. Beware of counterfeits and reprints, strangely especially for newer movies for which no actual lobby cards were made. Unfortunately, there does not seem to be an actual price guide that I've found. Graded ones seem especially optimistic price wise, and it can sometimes be tough to judge value with no trackable sales on the auction site. Like all collectibles, no one can afford the good stuff and beat up **** is plentiful. As always, buy what you like I guess... --Chris

Yes I found that a lot of them are rather over priced. More so than I anticipated still it will not prevent me from checking out authentic lobby card sets and picking them up for reasonable prices.