April 25,  2001

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  John Pavlik - (310) 247-3000

Beverly Hills, CA - An extraordinary gift from husband-and-wife Academy members John Landis and Deborah Nadoolman has given the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences what appears to be the only matched set in existence of giant posters from the 1933 movie "King Kong."

Academy members John Landis and Deborah Nadoolman, left, Academy President Robert Rehme and Margaret Herrick Library Director Linda Mehr

Director Landis, a long-time classic film poster collector, and costume designer Nadoolman formally presented Academy President Robert Rehme on Wednesday, April 25, with a 6 1/2 foot x 3 1/2 foot "three-sheet" poster from the original "Kong" release, one of only four copies of the poster thought to exist in the world.

As was common in the 1930s, there were two different designs for "Kong" three-sheets. An example of the other design, also apparently one of a quartet still existing, was donated to the Academy in 1999 by the Cecil B. DeMille Foundation.

At a gathering at the Academy's Center for Motion Picture Study, Rehme thanked the Landises for a gift that has been appraised at well over $100,000. "John and Deborah have not only made an extraordinarily significant contribution to the Academy's holdings," he said, " they've made sure that this gorgeously preserved piece of art can be seen by the public for generations to come."

The Academy is thought to be the only organization or individual that holds both of the "King Kong" three-sheets, said Academy Executive Director Bruce Davis. The imposing pair of apes will be mounted in the Academy's Margaret Herrick Library for the time being, although Davis indicated that the public might eventually be able to enjoy them in a different setting.

"We're getting closer to the day that we help our industry reach its long-time goal of a truly magnificent movie museum," Davis said, "and I think these two big guys, hanging out in the lobby of that facility, will constitute a pretty impressive welcoming committee."

The Margaret Herrick Library holds nearly 22,000 posters in its Charles M. Powell Repository of Motion Picture Marketing Materials.