RIP: Ernest Borgnine
Category Archives: 1950s posters
Life’s A Nistri
Giuliano Nistri grew up in the shadow of big brother poster artist, Enzo Nistri (in fact, I wrongly credited Dial M For Murder and a few other designs to Enzo in the past) — but let the record show that young Giuliano is more than capable of defending himself. The proof can be seen below in his terrific oeuvre of manifestos from the 1950s and 1960s, going from the classics to kitsch in one fell swoosh of his pen. (MoviePosterDB, EMP)
Bass Country…
Although Saul Bass is typically viewed as modern design’s urban sophisticate with his simple, savvy titles, he wasn’t afraid to put on his cowboy hat when he had to…
Saul Bass + Elaine Bass = All Class.
Okay, I’ve finally gotten through the 415-page blockbuster book, Saul Bass: A Life in Film & Design by Pat Kirkham and Jennifer Bass (Saul’s daughter) — and my eyeballs hurt. Wow, what a visual feast! Part biography, part loving tribute, this tomé features over 1,400 illustrations, spanning Bass’s iconic career in movies and corporate identity/commercial logos. It’s almost unthinkable what the 1950’s-1970’s would’ve looked like without Bass’s clean, colorful logos decorating everything from cereal boxes to 747’s.
Although the career highlights of Mr. Bass have been well-documented in Art of the Title and Movie Titles, this publication uncovers many lesser-known tidbits about the modern master, including how his Walk on the Wild Side titles influenced a young Stevie Spielberg to do an 8mm film with his diva dog, Thunder, as well as Bass’s work on such late 1980’s pictures as Broadcast News, Big, and Mr. Saturday Night.
The book also clarifies the vitally important contributions of Saul’s accomplished wife, Elaine. Much like the Eames’s close-knit relationship, Elaine Bass took over production on the title sequence for Stanley Kubrick’s Spartacus (1960) and their cool collaborations continued on with Otto Preminger, Alfred Hitchcock, and Martin Scorsese (their Casino titles no doubt inspired the Mad Men intro), all the way up to Saul Bass’s death in 1996.
Kim Novak Art Show
Don’t get dizzy, but Kim Novak, the star of Hitchcock’s Vertigo, is returning to the scene of the crime — in this case, San Francisco — to make a local appearance to celebrate her movies as well as donate the sales of her personal artwork to charity.
Joan of Arcs
Last week’s Hollywood Reporter profile of Mad Men star, Christina Hendricks, entitled “The Arc of Joan” — got me thinking about all of those other powerful Joan film adaptations that caused a firestorm.
The Beauty of Bradbury
Upon hearing of the passing of science-fiction/fantasy writer extraordinaire, Ray Bradbury, I thought back to when I first moved to Los Angeles in the late 90’s and heard the legend was doing a local neighborhood bookstore signing (which wasn’t that unusual since he was known to graciously sign everything!).
I’m not much of an autograph hound — or a sci-fi geek — but for some reason I got his John Hancock. Such a sweetheart of a guy. Here’s what he wrote…
Eames-y Does It!
If you love modern design, then be sure to check out the rockin’ mid-century doc, Eames: The Architect and The Painter.
Pigeot Posters
Not merely satisfied to feed off the crumbs from such 1940’s contemporaries as Bernard Lancy, Henri Cerutti, and Jacques Bonneaud, Pierre Pigeot spread his artistic wings, flying high with several Hollywood classics during his time, including Casablanca and Key Largo.
But if you really want to get a master class in Pigeot’s work (and many other French artists), be sure to check out Dominique Besson’s website, and drop her an email to download her latest catalog.
Movie Poster Museum 