HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill
Size AU Daybill Post-War (13" x 30")
HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill, Starring James Stewart, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Debbie Reynolds, Directed Henry Hathaway is in Very Fine+ Condition. Movie Poster...
HOW THE WEST WAS WON (1962) Movie Poster, Original Vintage Daybill, Starring James Stewart, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Debbie Reynolds, Directed Henry Hathaway is in Very Fine+ Condition.
Movie Poster and Condition.
Condition: This Original Daybill, Movie Poster is presented in Very Fine+ condition, 2 Daybill folds as issued, small amount of edgewear on the right and left top side. Otherwise, this poster presents in excellent condition with a colourful clean presentation.
This is an original Australian How the West Was Won (1962) movie poster, promoting one of the most spectacular Western epics ever produced by Hollywood. Featuring an extraordinary ensemble of legendary actors, including James Stewart, John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda and Debbie Reynolds, this original vintage Australian Daybill is an appealing collectible for enthusiasts of classic Western films, Hollywood history and 1960s original movie posters.
Movie Synopsis
How the West Was Won (1962) is an ambitious American historical Western epic that chronicles the expansion of the American frontier across five decades, from 1839 to 1889. Directed by three legendary filmmakers, Henry Hathaway, John Ford and George Marshall, the film follows several generations of the Prescott family as they experience the hardships, adventures and conflicts associated with the westward expansion of the United States. Narrated by Spencer Tracy, the film features an extraordinary all-star cast and remains one of the most celebrated large-scale Western productions of its era.
The story begins in 1839 when Zebulon Prescott, played by Karl Malden, decides to move his family westwards in search of a better life. Accompanied by his wife Rebecca, portrayed by Agnes Moorehead, and their daughters Eve and Lilith, the family travels along the Erie Canal before continuing towards the American frontier. During their journey they encounter Linus Rawlings, a rugged mountain man and trapper played by James Stewart, who initially prefers the freedom of the wilderness to settling down.
Following a dangerous river journey involving bandits and treacherous waters, tragedy strikes the Prescott family. Eve, played by Carroll Baker, survives and eventually marries Linus, while her sister Lilith, portrayed by Debbie Reynolds, continues her journey westwards. Their different paths introduce the film's central theme of how individual lives and family generations become intertwined with the transformation of an entire nation.
The second chapter, The Plains, follows Lilith as she travels through the developing American West. An aspiring entertainer, she performs in a St Louis saloon but dreams of reaching California. She becomes involved with professional gambler Cleve Van Valen, played by Gregory Peck, a charming but financially troubled adventurer. Their relationship develops as they travel west with a wagon train led by Roger Morgan, portrayed by Robert Preston. The journey exposes them to the dangers of frontier travel, including hostile encounters, difficult terrain and the constant uncertainty of life on the plains.
The story then moves into the American Civil War, where the Prescott family becomes caught up in the national conflict. Zeb Rawlings, played by George Peppard, the son of Eve and Linus, becomes involved in the Union war effort. This segment, directed by John Ford, features John Wayne as Union General William Tecumseh Sherman and Henry Fonda as Union officer Jethro Stuart. It explores the personal consequences of a war that divides communities and families while fundamentally changing the future of the country.
Following the war, the narrative turns to the construction of the transcontinental railroad. This enormous engineering undertaking promises to connect the eastern and western territories, opening new opportunities for settlement, trade and economic development. However, the construction process brings conflict between competing railway interests, workers, settlers and the people already living across the frontier. The segment features Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda and a memorable supporting cast.
In the final chapter, The Outlaws, the film moves into the later decades of the nineteenth century. The frontier has changed considerably, with towns, railways and established communities replacing much of the earlier wilderness. However, lawlessness and violence remain part of everyday life in some regions. The Rawlings family becomes involved in a confrontation with notorious outlaw Charlie Gant, played by Eli Wallach, bringing the epic family story towards its conclusion.
The screenplay was written by James R. Webb, with the story inspired by a series of articles published in Life magazine in 1959. Produced by Bernard Smith for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Cinerama, the film was an extraordinary production undertaking, featuring an estimated budget of approximately US$15 million and more than 12,000 extras.
One of the film's most remarkable features is its use of three-strip Cinerama photography, an innovative widescreen process employing three synchronised cameras to capture an exceptionally wide panoramic image. Originally designed for specially equipped theatres with enormous curved screens, the format gave audiences an immersive cinematic experience, particularly during the spectacular river journeys, wagon train sequences, railway construction and large-scale battle scenes. The production also utilised extensive location filming throughout the American West.
The film received eight Academy Award nominations and won three Oscars, including Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing and Best Sound. With its legendary cast, contributions from three celebrated directors, sweeping landscapes and ambitious storytelling, How the West Was Won remains a landmark of classic Western cinema and an outstanding example of the grand Hollywood epics of the 1960s.
To find out more about How the West Was Won (1962) click here to go to IMDB.com.
Special Notes.
Images may have a small 'MPA' digital watermark and this does not appear on the poster. Posters are being held by magnets in the corners to take photographs, so you may see some magnet and shadows from the magnets in these areas. The magnets are not included in the sale of the item.
Postage, Insurance & Your Country Taxes
Postage costs are quoted for this item, include insurance up to AUD$100, but if you reside outside of Australia, the price does not include any import taxes/fees that you may be required to pay when the item reaches your borders. Please check with your local authorities for any additional taxes or fees. If you would like full insurance coverage for your purchase, please message me and I would be happy to quote the additional cost (estimate is AUD$2.50 p/AUD$100 or 2.5% of the item value, up to a maximum item value of AUD$5,000).
FAQ
At Movie Posters Australia, the love and conservation of movie posters comes first, and we like to share this passion. Our commitment to quality means we will provide high quality memorabilia to our customers. Posters are carefully chosen and authenticated to ensure originality and value. We want our customers to trust MPA, so we always try to be as open and transparent as we can, provide detailed condition information and images, to ensure customers are comfortable and confident in their purchase.
While the industry does have a few condition rating standards, there is no movie poster condition rating system that has become the accepted standard world wide. This unfortunately makes condition terms vary from movie poster dealer to movie poster dealer. Terms like Mint, Near Mint, Very Fine, Fine, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, seem to be universal to most condition rating standards, but most standards still lack definition about what and how many flaws/defects/damage defines a specific condition level. For more information on how Movie Posters Australia grades the condition of its movie posters, daybills, lobby cards and other ephemera please see out Movie Poster Condition and Grading page.
In the early days of cinema, posters were primarily hand-drawn and printed in various sizes, often tailored to fit the available space in theaters or promotional areas. In the United States, the "One Sheet" size (some times called '1 Sheet' or '1SH' approximately 27" x 41", became the standard during the 1930s. This size was manageable for theater display and suited the needs of a growing film industry.
Different countries developed their own poster sizes and styles, which also changed sometimes over the decades, and were influenced by local preferences and practical considerations, like available paper sheet sizes and how many posters could be printed on one sheet.
In Australia, the most popular size, the Daybill, has evolved over the decades. Australian Daybills sizes in chronological order are:
- Long Daybills (15" x 40"), from 1920's to pre-WW2 or pre-1941, were printed two to a sheet, longer than current Daybill versions. There were size variances in width from 14.5" to 15" and in height from 39.5" to 40".
- War Time Daybill (10" x 30"), during WW2, for a short time to conserve paper during a war time shortage, four Daybills were printed on one sheet. Information from Press Sheets also referred to these War-Time sizes as "New Size Daybills".
- Post-War Daybill (13" x 30"), this 13" x 30" Post-War size carried through until the 1980's, but also varied in size from 13"-14" x 29.75"-30.25".
- Post-80's Daybill (33cm x 66cm, or 13" x 26"), over a few years in the late 80's, the size changed again to a metric 33cm x 66cm, although these have also varied from 32-33cm x 64.5-66cm. New sizes from the late 80's were created, sometimes called a Mini Daybill or Mini Poster, in 9" x 12", 11" x 17" and 13" x 20".
In the UK, the somewhat unique 'Quad' poster, measuring 30" x 40", became popular, offering a larger landscape format that allowed for more elaborate designs.
In Japan, movie poster sizes were smaller, such as the "B2" (20" x 28"), which suited the more compact living environment of larger cities, smaller advertising spaces, and unique aesthetic sensibilities.
The 1970s and 1980s, witnessed the rise of the "six-sheet" (81" x 81") format, reflecting a trend towards larger and more visually impactful advertising.
Overall, the variation in movie poster sizes across different countries and decades highlights the interplay between technological printing advancements, paper resource availability, paper sheet size changes, cultural preferences, and the evolving nature of movie marketing.
At Movie Posters Australia we tag each poster we sell with a 'size' and 'condition' description at the very top of the page for our customers to easily see. There may however be some slight variations to sizes by up one inch due to variations in production and guillotine methods by printers over the decades.