Movie Prop Collecting with Jason DeBord's Original Prop Blog Film & TV Prop, Costume, Hollywood Memorablia Pop Culture Resource

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‘Comic Book Men’ AMC TV Series Features Laughable Star Wars Luke Skywalker Lightsaber Movie Prop Authentication & Valuation

Filmmaker Kevin Smith’s new television series on AMC, Comic Book Men, recently featured in its second episode (“Life After Clerks”) an individual bringing a prop into the comic book store, claiming it was an original lightsaber used in Star Wars: A New Hope.  The shop brought in a third party “expert” to authenticate and value the piece, though no information was provided as to who the authenticator was, or what his qualifications were in being cited as an expert.  Having reviewed the segment, in my personal opinion and subjective reaction, the entire affair was quite laughable, from the positive authentication to the assessed value of $7,000 for an original Luke Skywalker lightsaber from The Empire Strikes Back. [Read more…]

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Tour of ‘Rancho Obi-Wan’, Steve Sansweet’s Star Wars Memorabilia Collection and Museum, Part 2 of 2

This is a continuation of my article about a visit to Mr. Steve Sansweet’s ‘Rancho Obi-Wan’ museum in Sonoma County.  This second part includes additional photos from my visit yesterday – click here for Part 1. [Read more…]

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Tour of ‘Rancho Obi-Wan’, Steve Sansweet’s Star Wars Memorabilia Collection and Museum, Part 1 of 2

This past weekend, I had an opportunity to spend some times with friends and Mr. Steve Sansweet at his ‘Rancho Obi-Wan’ museum in Sonoma County. Mr. Sansweet is famous worldwide for his incredible collection of Star Wars artifacts and memorabilia, having written and published many books, as well as having worked for Lucasfilm for over 15 years as Director of Content Management and Head of Fan Relations.  His museum holds over 200,000 Star Wars items and spans over 9,000 square feet, and being able to view his diverse and comprehensive collection is truly amazing.  Please note this is being broken into two parts due to the large number of photos – click here for Part 2. [Read more…]

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More on the History and Development of the ‘Back to the Future 2’ Nike MAG Shoes (Videos)

Special thanks to my friend Vivek for pointing me to these three videos about the history of the now classic Nike MAG shoes worn by Michael J. Fox in Back to the Future 2. The videos talk about the genesis of the shoes as designed and made for the film, as well as highlighting the recent development, manufacture, and auction of the replica shoes being sold to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation (as reported September 8th). [Read more…]

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1,500 Replica ‘Back to the Future II’ Nike Mag Shoes Auctioned to Benefit The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

While the shoes in question are newly designed and manufactured replicas of the famous “futuristic” Nike shoes worn by Marty McFly in Back to the Future II, I thought it was worth mention here as 100% of the proceeds will benefit The Michale J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.  150 pairs will be sold each day over the next 10 days, for a total of 1,500 pairs. [Read more…]

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Lucasfilm vs Ainsworth UK Supreme Court Ruling: The Mainstream Media Interviews Andrew Ainsworth

Having followed the news reported by the mainstream media following Wednesday’s UK Supreme Court decision, there have been some interesting accounts coming from the Ainsworth camp yesterday and today, including a very simplistic characterization of how the helmet and armor made their way from two to three dimensions (completely leaving out the sculpture contributions by Ms. Liz Moore and Mr. Brian Muir).  It will be interesting to see how this saga will continue to play out following the ruling in England. [Read more…]

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UK Supreme Court Rules in Lucasfilm vs Ainsworth Star Wars “Stormtrooper Helmet” Copyright Legal Battle

Since 2007, the Original Prop Blog has been covering the legal battle between Lucasfilm Limited and Andrew Ainsworth of Shepperton Design Studios over the sale of unlicensed replica Star Wars props and costumes.  The UK Supreme Court is today published their ruling on the two issues presented to them.  Of the two, the most critical came down to whether the stormtrooper helmets themselves constituted “sculptures” in a way consistent with UK law.  The court ruled that they do not, and thus delivered a victory to Ainsworth, which also leaves those following the case wondering about the ramifications to copyrights and copyright law and the consequences of the decision.  The second question before them was decided in favor to Lucasfilm, which involves IP holders and their rights to pursue copyright claims in those cases where such laws are violated in other jurisdictions. [Read more…]

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The Marilyn Monroe Collection Blog: New Evidence “The Seven Year Itch” Profiles in History Subway Dress Altered for “Bachelor Flat”?

This morning Scott Fortner published a substantive update to his article posted on Friday, with very compelling and extensive analysis of the dress(es) worn by Marilyn Monroe in The Seven Year Itch (1955).  The questions originally raised by Scott has led to a number of significant revelations about the famous dress, one of which was sold last weekend by Profiles in History in their Debbie Reynolds auction event. [Read more…]