In November 2007, a “fertility idol” attributed to Raiders of the Lost Ark, with a Certificate of Authenticity issued by Nick Harrison of “Elstree Film Studios” as part of the “Danziger Collection”, was listed for sale on eBay as “an original” that was “used in the production”. A second, different fertility idol was listed on eBay yesterday with the same paperwork and provenance. [Read more…]
In October, there was a significant amount of buzz, discussion, and questions about a Stormtrooper helmet presented to hobbyists publicly and described as original and attributed to Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. These debates resulted from the owner of the helmet, “JoeR”, initiating discussions about the newly acquired piece on several original and replica prop hobby discussion forums. [Read more…]
As a follow-up to an article published last year (see The Original BMX Bike from E.T. The Extra Terrestrial), I thought it would be productive to share some additional information about the custom Kuwahara BMX bikes used in the Steven Spielberg classic, E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial (1982), including an article from “BMX Plus!” magazine circa October 1982. [Read more…]
Given the British High Court ruling on the case of Lucasfilm vs. Andrew Ainsworth (see Lucasfilm vs. Ainsworth High Court Ruling: Full Document from Royal Courts of Justice), and the additional information available from the court documents, I thought it would be a good opportunity to build on the prior OPB article exploring the “prototype” Stormtrooper helmets (see Star Wars “Prototype” Stormtrooper Helmets) trading in the marketplace as original and authentic precursors to the helmets used on set and filmed in Star Wars: A New Hope. [Read more…]
“Exoray” from the RPF is hosting a full HTML version of the High Court ruling on the case between Lucasfilm and Andrew Ainsworth in the legal dispute over the trademark and copyright of the Stormtrooper helmet and other helmets and armor produced for Star Wars: A New Hope. I have not had time to review the full ruling in detail, but thought readers would be interested in reviewing it first hand: [Read more…]
The prop under discussion in this article, once marketed as an “Original 1977 Prop Imperial Officer’s Blaster” from Star Wars, is an example of a fan-made replica being sold as an original prop. This article is written with the permission of the current owner. [Read more…]