tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post7457458498116700110..comments2024-02-17T12:14:04.097-08:00Comments on CartoonsOnFilm: Sorry, Oswald: You're an Unlucky, Exploited Rabbit.Tommy José Statheshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10235114704489063272noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-83507230676590699962014-04-08T14:58:52.354-07:002014-04-08T14:58:52.354-07:00Very late update: Indeed, the film sold with a nic...Very late update: Indeed, the film sold with a nice and high price realized, and the buyer was Disney. I highly suspect that that was a one-time thing, however. Let us see if it ever happens again. Tommy José Statheshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10235114704489063272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-18082378511162859712011-12-16T17:16:01.058-08:002011-12-16T17:16:01.058-08:00The film sold for $25,000 plus the buyer's pre...The film sold for $25,000 plus the buyer's premium for a total of $31,250(plus any tax).docnadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13176391968160060126noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-62183766867213982252011-11-30T15:16:28.795-08:002011-11-30T15:16:28.795-08:00Thank you, Tom, for a brave and important perspect...Thank you, Tom, for a brave and important perspective on this matter.<br /><br />I'm a newly trained film archivist, and my MA dissertation looked at British animation from WW1. Furthermore, I am (fairly) local to the Huntley Film Archive and was overjoyed to find out via the listserv that this discovery had been made so close to home.<br /><br />While, as docnad notes, the film may sell under the estimate (or not at all), I think that is beside the point - putting it up for auction, especially at a price beyond the means of most collectors/historians/enthusiasts, is not in the best interest of the artefact.<br /><br />Many archives (at least public archives) cannot 'buy' film, no matter how rare, because it sets a precedent. If all donators to an archive found out that that archive was willing to buy films, might they demand equal payment? No archive could afford to acquire and preserve without the generosity and good will of like-minded collectors.<br /><br />In essence: I'm with Dino.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-33008494702232083862011-11-30T04:30:49.094-08:002011-11-30T04:30:49.094-08:00I left the following comment on the Cartoon Brew&#...I left the following comment on the Cartoon Brew's post and, with you're indulgence, I'll repeat it here:<br /><br />The minimum online absentee bid is 40% of the low estimate, Bonhams’s standard practice. This means a bid of $12,000 is the minimum bid required to get you in the game. The reserve, the minimum price at which the film will be sold, is not generally revealed, but it’s possible for it to be anywhere between the minimum bid and the low estimate, in this case $30,000. <br /><br />If Bonhams has erred and set its estimate too high, the market will let them know it and the item won’t sell. It can always be sold privately or offered another time with a lower estimate. But this is a unique item with historical significance to the Disney legacy, and it’s just possible it has value beyond its commercial release. <br /><br />I can imagine a scenario, for example, where a museum might want to acquire the world’s only copy of this film and make a print for viewing. Imagine receiving an invitation to a gala benefit for the Disney Family Museum or the Museum of Modern Art. Attendees at the $500-a-plate dinner will be treated to the first screening since 1928 of a “lost Disney masterwork.” Afterwards, an expert from, say, Cartoon Brew will make a few remarks about the historical significance of the cartoon. Later, all visitors to the museum will be able to see the rarity in a special screening room. In the meantime, arrangements can be made with Disney for the long-term preservation of the film. How much is that worth?docnadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13176391968160060126noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-23769895466177749912011-11-29T21:55:29.902-08:002011-11-29T21:55:29.902-08:00Tom well said,, and what a crime for people to exp...Tom well said,, and what a crime for people to exploit this historical material for such financial gain...I walk both sides of the street as a collector and an archivist by profession so I believe I can comment... I have in my possession a 8mm print of a disney cartoon called Cannibals, and I personally feel certain it is the only print in the world and therefore I am now opening it up to the highest bidder, because I believe this stuff deserves to get out there......(did the sarcasm come through firmly enough?)<br />Great post Tom<br />Dino EverettDino Everetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05505140227577633418noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-15305863963968332252011-11-29T08:16:12.172-08:002011-11-29T08:16:12.172-08:00Price is way over inflated.Price is way over inflated.videoclassichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00266771740335238445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-89948240194644585752011-11-29T08:15:04.870-08:002011-11-29T08:15:04.870-08:00It looks like people are simply trying to exploit ...It looks like people are simply trying to exploit this material for its perceived financial value. Nowadays, there is only a small core audience for this material. I can say that for animation and silent films in general, there is a small core audience, so the inflated prices asked here are not only ridiculous , but not even viable in todays market. So if you run accross a rarity such as this , kindly sell it to someone who cares to preserve it. This individual who preserves silent film animation is doing historians a tremendous favor. This material is preserved as a labor of love, so sell it to the person who wants it for $10. It is a great favor for film history.videoclassichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00266771740335238445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-6882018919779665212011-11-29T07:06:10.199-08:002011-11-29T07:06:10.199-08:00Excellent post. Historically, there is little-to-...Excellent post. Historically, there is little-to-no connect between historians and empiricists, and dealer, vendors and investors. I have long dreamed of an extensive archive of our shared movie history, but so much of it is sold at auction and parceled off in private collections. Some day such an archive might be created, but I'm not holding my breath.James Abbotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16542728058203964856noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070344523392085980.post-90760167496529732602011-11-28T22:56:44.406-08:002011-11-28T22:56:44.406-08:00Hello, Tom
Thats very thoughtful article.
The ask...Hello, Tom<br />Thats very thoughtful article. <br />The asking price is absurd. You even don't have been an expert on the field to know that this asking price is way over inflated. Its also a shame that film archive is putting it up for an sale with that stunning price tag I would have understood the price is if it was for all "the lost" Disney cartoons both Alice and Oswalds. But for that one Oswald cartoon, thats way over the top. There only two things to do now pray god that Disney bites bullet and pay the asking price or win the lotter buy the cartoon and donate it to Disney. But also we can pray that David Gerstein turns up with some more positive news on discovering rare "lost" Disney cartoons.Kristjan Birnirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00883549055603648083noreply@blogger.com