Vintage original 27x41 in. US one-sheet poster from the classic 1980's comedy, ZELIG, released in 1983 by Orion Pictures and written and directed by Woody Allen. This fictional "documentary" is about the life of human chameleon Leonard Zelig, a man who becomes a celebrity in the 1920's due to his ability to look and act like whoever is around him. Clever editing places Zelig in real newsreel footage of Woodrow Wilson, Babe Ruth, and other famous people of the day. The cast includes Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Patrick Horgan, and John Buckwalter, among many others.
The word "zelig" is a Yiddish word, which translates as "blessed" or "dear departed soul." The poster's seemingly simple design cleverly creates the chameleon-like abilities of Leonard Zelig to emulate someone or something else. Unrestored and folded as originally issued, this vintage original one-sheet is in very fine condition without any pinholes, tears, stains, or other flaws.
To create authenticity, the production used actual lenses, cameras, and sound equipment from the 1920’s, and used the exact same style of lighting that would have been done. In addition, cinematographer Gordon Willis took the exposed negatives into the shower and stomped on them. Silent screen legend Lillian Gish was filmed for a scene in which she scolded director of photography Willis on his lighting set-up and, while the crew watched aghast, gave him step-by-step instructions on how to re-light the scene...and Willis complied! (Sadly, the scene did not make it into the final version of the film.) In order to help create the look of genuine footage from the 1930’s, DuArt, the lab that handled processing during the Golden Age, called some of their experienced technicians, who were well versed with the processing techniques of the 1930’s, out of retirement. The archival film footage of F. Scott Fitzgerald seen in the picture is the only ever footage that is known to exist of Fitzgerald. |