Press Book Collection - Scanners (1981)

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Famous Monsters - The Film Art of Basil Gogos

Here at The Celluloid Highway I do my level best to celebrate some of the finer promotional materials used in the selling of films I consider interesting. My abiding interest is not in unimaginatively photo-shopped or blandly airbrushed posters, but in posters that employ the skills of artists. Naturally this bias is weighed heavily towards materials produced from the 1950's to the late 1980's, the period afterward has become an arid creative wasteland, only occasionally lessened by an all too rare moment of inspired film artwork. The various journals and magazines published from the 1950's to the late 1980's are an important part of the promotional machine. Although often the work of dedicated fans and enthusiasts, these works feed into the images we come to associate with certain movies and certain genres. One of the key artists working in this field during the period under discussion was the Egyptian born Greek Basil Gogos. His wonderful efforts adorned the covers of numerous editions of Famous Monsters of Filmland, Creepy, Eerie, Spaceman, and Wildest Westerns, and many film posters from the period. I don't own a single copy of any of these magazines; I've never really been much of a magazine of fanzine purchaser. But my appreciation and admiration of the artistic efforts involved in their production will never diminish. So without further ado I invite you on a slightly different journey than normal...into the monstrous art of Basil Gogos!