Vintage Movie Heralds, Posters and Memorabilia

Movie heralds were small, flyer-like advertisements distributed to promote upcoming films, primarily from the silent era through the mid-20th century. They were an essential part of early movie marketing, especially before the dominance of trailers and widespread newspaper ads. Studios and theaters used them to generate excitement and awareness about new releases.  They were particularly useful before Television began to populate American households in the mid-late 1950s.   Today original movie theater Heralds are Highly desirable to collectors. 

Typically printed on lightweight paper, heralds often featured colorful artwork, dramatic taglines, and enticing descriptions of the film’s plot, cast, and spectacle. They were handed out on the street, mailed to potential moviegoers, or included in newspapers. Some heralds even had detachable coupons or incentives to encourage attendance.

Heralds were particularly effective during the silent era and early talkies, when studios relied on bold visual promotion rather than television or radio ads. Over time, they became less common as film marketing shifted toward larger-scale posters, trailers, and mass media advertising. Today, original movie heralds are sought-after collectibles, valued for their historical significance and striking vintage designs.

My passion for vintage movie poster art collecting began around 1980.  But not long after that my classic film collecting passion blossomed and branched out into other niches like historical photographs and other movie promotional treasures like Heralds and Press Books.   What I like about the hand held Herald is the size, vintage design and striking artwork that often surpassed the movie theater advertising posters. Some even have the movie theater and date on them and hence providing invaluable historical provenance.   They are also much more rare then the movie posters as they were handed out to the public and about 99.99% were discarded.  Few were ever saved. 

For example, one of the most impressive Heralds was for the 1939 showing of the Wizard of OZ.   Since I started collecting in 1980 I have only seen about three surface on the market and it is highly desirable by collectors and Oz fans.