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Auction History Result 4r001b MAN WHO LAUGHS linen signed German 38x56 '28 by Mary Philbin, incredible art of her & Veidt! Date Sold 4/9/2009 Sold For: Login or Register to see sold price. An Original Vintage Theatrical Linenbacked Autographed German Movie Poster (measures 37 1/2" x 56") (Learn More) The Man Who Laughs, the classic 1928 Paul Leni Universal romantic horror thriller (based on the novel 'L'Homme Qui Rit' by Victor Hugo; about the son of an English nobleman whose father tries to overthrow the King, and his father is executed and his infant son is sold to gypsies, but first his mouth is cut so that it looks to be permanently smiling!; he ends up becoming a sideshow star and falls in love with a blind girl, but he feels certain she would be repulsed if she could see how hideous he looks) starring Conrad Veidt (in the title role as Gwynplaine, The Man Who Laughs), Mary Philbin (as Dea, the blind girl), Olga Baclanova, Stuart Holmes, Josephine Crowell, George Siegmann (as Dr. Hardquanonne), and Julius Molnar Jr. (as Gwynplaine as a child). Note that most film buffs might assume this movie was a German production, given that its top star (Conrad Veidt) and its director (Paul Leni) were both major figures of silent German cinema, but in fact, it is a U.S. production made by Universal Pictures (although of course, it was released in Germany, as well as in all other European countries). NOTE: Click on linked names to see a biography. Artist: Dori Important Added Info: Note that this poster has a very interesting and wonderful "provenance"! It was the personal property of star Mary Philbin (she was given this poster and an example of the other style German poster when the movie first opened). She kept it in her possession for many years, until she gave them to a friend of hers, at which time she autographed them as follows: "To Mike, My sincere Best Wishes, Love always, Mary Philbin". He kept them in his collection for years and then sold one of them a number of years ago, and is now selling the remaining poster in this auction! Also note that, as is typical of pre-World War II German posters, the poster has a seal in the printing in the middle right, which gives the date of "30 JAN 1929". We know that the movie premiered in New York City in April of 1928, and did not go into wide release until November of 1928, and apparently did not open in Germany until January of 1929. We have never seen or heard of another example of this poster (not at all surprising, because there are very few German movie posters from before World War II in existence, and most of those few are in museums). Condition: very good. The poster had tiny paper loss at several crossfolds and some creases, tears, and tiny paper loss on parts of some foldlines (nothing substantial, just typical fold wear in an 80 year-old German poster!). Overall, the poster was in very good condition prior to linenbacking. The poster was quite nicely backed, and displays well! I certainly hope this poster will be displayed by its new owner, and I am envious of that person or institution! Learn More about condition grades 
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