Lobby cards are one one of the earliest movies studios promotions, dating back to 1908. These 11 x 14 prints came in sets of 8 (or more) with the sole purpose of luring the public into the movie theaters.
Rarely used now, lobby cards are highly collectible by film fans who are looking for pieces of cinema history. One of the best sources for viewing lobby cards is the Lobby Cards Tumblr. The blog posts images from US and also foreign cards, some which contain different images from their US counterparts. The blog also enables the viewer to search its library alphabetically by movie titles so fans can quickly find their favorites.
Most cards feature simple screenshots from the film, but the ones I enjoy are those behind-the-scenes and promo shots that are rarely seen. My favorites mainly come from the ’80s (including the fantastic Ghostbusters II headline image) but you can find movies across all decades on the blog. Here are some of my favorites…
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| Batman, US lobby card. 1989 |
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| Beverly Hills Cop, German lobby card. West German theatrical release 1985 |
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| The Goonies, Spanish lobby card. 1985 |
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| Stripes, US lobby card. 1981 |
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| Spaceballs, US lobby card. 1987 |
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| Octopussy, German lobby card #23. 1983 |
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| Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, French lobby card. 1986 |
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| Superman II, Spanish lobby card. 1980 |
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| Back to the Future, German lobby card. 1985 |
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