I’ve received a number of inquires about the authenticity of the metal Endo skull on eBay, so I thought I would post a response here and archive the auction for future reference. I have not researched the piece beyond the auction listing, and from my point of view, it has not been proven authentic nor inauthentic, so I would personally view authenticity as inconclusive.
“TERMINATOR 1 PUPPET ENDO HEAD MOVIE PROP STAN WINSTON”, eBay Item #190231300554
Marketing Description:
UP FOR AUCTION IS AN INCREDIBLE SCREEN-USED ENDOSKELETON HEAD FROM THE 1984 FILM “TERMINATOR” STARRING ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER. THIS FILM LAUNCHED DIRECTOR JAMES CAMERON, FX GREAT STAN WINSTON AND ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER’S FILM CAREERS.
THIS IS A FANTASTIC PIECE OF MOVIE HISTORY AND A GREAT EARLY EXAMPLE OF FX GENIUS STAN WINSTON’S WORK.
THIS HEAD IS MADE COMPLETELY OUT OF METAL AND WAS DESIGNED AND BUILT FOR A FEW DIFFERENT REASONS. THE CREW KNEW THERE WOULD BE SCENES INVOLVING FIRE, AND A RESIN OR PLASTIC HEAD WOULD NOT HOLD UP. AT THE FILM’S FINALE THE ENDO GETS HIS HEAD SMASHED IN A PRESS. KNOWING A FIBERGLASS OR PLASTIC HEAD WOULD NOT COLLAPSE REALISTIC, (CRACKING OR SHATTERING), THIS WAS BUILT. LASTLY, WHEN THE ENDO IS IN PURSUIT OF THE MAIN CHARACTERS AND RAMS HIS HEAD AND BODY THROUGH A STEEL DOOR.
THE HEAD ‘S CONSTRUCTION IS AMAZING. IT IS MADE FROM METAL, ALL BUT THE GLASS LENSES FOR THE EYES. IT IS AROUND 12 TO 16 POUNDS. HIS FINISH IS A LITTLE MORE DULL THAN THE FINISH OF THE ENDO FROM TERMINATOR 2. (COMPARING IT TO THE METAL ONE THAT WAS BUILT FOR THE OPENING CREDITS FIRE SCENE). THE EYES ARE WIRED TO LIGHT UP.(SEE PICTURE OF BOTTOM OF SKULL). THE MOUTH WAS MADE TO BE IN EITHER A CLOSED OR OPEN POSITION. WHEN YOU OPEN THE MOUTH THE PISTONS IN THE MOUTH AREA MOVE AS REAL PISTONS DO. THE NECK RODS ARE THERE ALSO BUT HAVE BEEN GROUNDED DOWN FOR DISPLAY PURPOSES. THIS IS BUILT AS A REAL ENDOSKELETON WOULD HAVE BEEN BUILT IF HE REALLY EXISTED!!!
THIS WAS RECEIVED FROM AN FX PERSONNEL THAT HAS BEEN IN THE FX BUSSINESS FOR YEARS. HE WORKED ON THIS FILM AND MANY OTHERS. I ORIGINALLY GOT THIS PIECE AND ARNOLD’S PUNK JACKET WITH THE CHAINS AND ARNOLD’S T2 JACKET.(PLEASE SEE PICTURES). AT THE TIME COA’S WERE NOT EVEN HEARD OF. THIS PIECE IS EXTREMELY RARE CONSIDERING IT’S AGE(24 YEARS AGO) ALMOST NOTHING SURVIVED FROM THIS FILM DUE TO IT BEING LOW BUDGET, AND OF ALL PROPS AND COSTUMES FROM THE FILM THIS WOULD HAVE TO BE THE ULTIMATE PIECE.
THIS ENDO SKELITON HEAD WOULD MAKE A GREAT ADDITION TO ANY MOVIE MEMORABILIA COLLECTION AND A FANTASTIC INVESTMENT.
PAYMENT IS DUE NO LATER THEN 5 DAYS AFTER AUCTION CLOSES!!!DUE TO SOME PEOPLE BUYING PROPS, MOLDING THEM AND TRYING TO RETURN THE ITEM. NO RETURNS FOR ANY REASON!
AUCTION IS FOR ENDO HEAD ONLY!! PICS OF JACKETS IS FOR PROVIDENCE PURPOSES ONLY!!!!
UPDATE:
HELLO, THE FIRST 24HRS. HAS HAD A GREAT RESPONSE. MANY REQUEST FOR BUY IT NOWS, MANY OFFERS, 65 WATCHERS, AND OVER 500 HITS. OFFERS ARE WELCOME. WILL ONLY CONSIDER BUY IT NOWS OR OFFERS IF YOU FIRST BID. THIS WAY I WILL KNOW YOUR SERIOUS. PLEASE NO BID CANCELLATIONS OR YOU WILL BE BLOCKED FROM FUTURE AUCTIONS. THANKS
Of particular interest is one of the responses to the “Q&A” published within the auction listing:
Text from Question #5:
Q: Hi there, quite nice piece I must admit ; ) I watched your sales over the past months and saw the items you sold so far. All seemed pretty authentic. So I am in a good mood this one is original too. I am wondering if there is a chance for an instant buy. If so…let me know what you have in mind. One thing…wouls you agree to write down a few lines abouts its origin and sign it with your name…LOA style? It is good to have for history. Best, Jun-22-08
A: THANKS, BEEN DOING THIS FOR 25 YEARS.MOST ALL MY PROPS COME DIRECTLY FROM A CREW PERSON, PRODUCER, DIRECTOR, OR FX ARTIST. ALSO CHECK OUT www.moviepropsmuseum.com. LISTENING TO OFFERS, STILL A LITTLE EARLY. BUY IT NOW IS POSSIBLE. WILL TYPE UP A LOA TO WINNING BIDDER. THANKS
A public WhoIs search of the cited website – www.moviepropsmuseum.com – shows the domain registrant to be Jeff Gustafson in Burbank, CA.
There was a Jeff Gustafson in the news in 2002-2003 with regard to the Spider-Man costumes stolen from Sony which received a tremendous amount of press at the time:
Stolen Spiderman Suits Owner in Burbank to Stand Trial
by Myles Senex
Writer/Editor, MylesSenex.com / November 16, 2002LOS ANGELES – A Burbank man accused of receiving stolen Spiderman and Batman costumes after working as a security guard at movie studios will stand trial, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled on Thursday.
Judge Robert O’Neil ordered Jeffrey Glenn Gustafson, 36, to stand trial on two counts of stolen property and the allegation that the property was worth more than $150,000. As a security guard, Gustafson worked for Warner Bros. in March 1996 and for Sony Pictures Entertainment, Deputy District Attorney Donald Tamura said.
Robert Hughes, 35, of Los Angeles, is also ordered to stand trial for receiving the Spiderman suits.
If convicted, Gustafson would face a maximum prison term of seven years and eight months, and Hughes could face five years in prison, Tamura said.
“We took this seriously from the beginning,” said Gary Martin, president of Production Administration at Columbia Pictures, a Sony Entertainment company, which produced the Spiderman movie.
“We have a zero tolerance policy for theft and will pursue all violators,” Martin said.
Four custom-made Spiderman suits were stolen from the Sony Pictures Studio set of the movie in Culver City on April 3 2001. During an “exhaustive 18-month investigation,” the studio received thousands of tips from around the world about the whereabouts of the costumes, which were valued at $50,000 each, the studio’s executive director of Security Operations Mike Moser said.
“This was like a Hollywood who-done-it,” Moser said. “We received so many tips and false leads that took us to several different continents, but it was worth the time and effort.”
According to the studio, those leads resulted in Sep. 12 arrests of Hughes and Gustafson, who left the studio’s employ in January 2001, and in the recovery of two costumes in New York and one in Los Angeles. The studio is attempting to secure the return of the fourth Spiderman suit, which was traced to a resident in Japan, a spokesperson for the film’s producers said.
“We are willing to invest the time and money to track down those responsible,” Martin said.
The Spiderman costumes are one-piece molded suits printed with a computer-generated rectangular pattern that creates a quasi 3-D effect, the spokesperson said.
The studio’s investigation also netted the return of Batman memorabilia that was stolen from the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank in March 1996. The Batman costume and a mannequin, which were traced to a New York collector, have been retuned to the studio, authorities said. They were valued at $150,000.
The Spiderman fan community, which helped the movie become the fifth highest grossing title of all time in the country with more than $403 million domestic take, has reacted to the incident rather indifferently. “Original artwork has been stolen ever since someone found out there was a buck to be made from the sales of such items,” said Barry Harter, a member of SpiderFan.org said.
Mike Fichera, another member of the fan organization, said the theft would have no real impact on the “already negative” public image of comic fans.
“Comic fans already have a social stigma attached to them,” Fichera said.“We’re all supposed to be nerdy, petty, interested in the importance of trivia, living in a fantasy world, and all need to grow up. It’s hard to tarnish a reputation already tarnished.”
The idea of having the hero’s costumes used for the movie, however, could sound irresistible at first to many fans, Harter said.
“My initial response to the news was, ‘How can I get one?'” he said. “But theft is theft no matter how nice they would look in a collection.”
Gustafson and Hughes, free on the $350,000 bail and $50,000 bail respectively, are ordered to return to court on Dec. 12 for arraignment at the Airport Branch Courthouse in Los Angeles.
From the Scoop Archive – 5/17/2003
You Call This Security?
The Associated Press reported Monday that a former movie studio security guard pleaded no contest to receiving custom-made Spiderman and Batman suits stolen from Warner Bros. and Sony Studios, respectively. He sentenced to nine months in county jail, placed on formal probation for five years and ordered to pay restitution of approximately $93,000.
The former security guard, Jeffrey Glenn Gustafson, 36, worked as a security guard for Warner Bros. in 1996 and for Sony until January 2001. Another defendant pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of receiving stolen property and was sentenced to 30 days of community service and placed on two years probation, Deputy District Attorney Donald Tamura told the AP.
“Four custom-made Spiderman suits were stolen from the Sony Studios lot in Culver City in April 2001 and a Batman suit and mannequin were stolen from the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank in March 1996,” the AP reported. “Three of the Spiderman costumes were recovered from undisclosed locations in Los Angeles and New York. The Batman suit and mannequin were traced to a New York collector and the fourth Spiderman suit was traced to Japan, Tamura said.”
There is further discussion at:
TheRPF.com – “Real Terminator Endo Skull???”
StatueForum.com – “Endoskulls are made by Stan Winston Studios!!”
Jason De Bord