Pricing for MTI Theater Lobby Banner

[Robb]

Hi,
Just new here.
I wanted to ask about the value of my new acquirement. I have an original Muppets Treasure Island theater lobby banner. It's pretty big...about 6' x 4'. It has wooden dowels attached at the top and bottom with the original clear string to hang.

Just wondering if I should hold onto it or if the price is right, sell it to a collector.

Thank you, in advance, for your replies.

Robb

 

[Robb]

Hi,
Not to be a bother.....but wondering if this is a collector's item to sell or something to hold onto for future use.

I have .....I THINK...... the original box it was shipped to the theater, BUT the side of the shipping box says "ID4 - Independence Day". So, I'm thinking the Muppets banner was stored in the box that ID4 was stored......Correct?

Thank you, in advance, for your replies!!!!

 

[SwedishTech]

Well MTI and Independence Day were in theaters around the same time, maybe they used that box to put the MTI banner in to?

Not sure on price, I do know it sounds cool!!! And I'd personally love to see a picture of it as well. If you don't want to keep it, throw it on eBay and see what happens.

 

[CaseytheMuppet]

Wow! Sounds Cool!

 

[panmanthe2nd]

Wow! Sounds Cool!

I second that!

 

[Quazimoto]

Don't know what it would be worth, would have to do some research on it. I can tell you that things such as that do tend to appreciate in value over the years. Most items of this nature end up sitting in movie warehouses forever or being destroyed/recycled, so the very fact that you have it in your possession is awesome (at least to me, as a Muppet fan - I and many others here would love to see some pictures if you care to share). It's certainly not something that's in every Muppet fan or movie buff's collection.

I shall do some research and digging around, see if I can't come up with a educated guess on value for ya.

 

[Quazimoto]

Alrighty... So I've been researching the banner since I lasted posted and am afraid I don't have great news for you.

While I still think having a huge Muppets banner would be awesome, apparently the things aren't worth all that much. I wasn't able to find any past sales of a Muppet Treasure Island banner itself, but judging from the past sales and listing from similar type of movies and similar sized banners, it's value would be somewhere in the $100 range and you might sit on it for a while at that. $50 would probably move it quick, $150 would need a serious collector, so right around $100 sounds right to me. Of course, this is assuming it's in very, very close to mint condtion (ie zero rips, tears, creases, stains, etc...). Any damage or flaw at all is going to dramatically effect the price. So much so that IF there were any sort of damage you'd be talking $50 at the high end. I've always thought that was being a bit too picky personally, but that's the reality of most collectibles.

It seems like the fact that it's so big is what really hurts it's saleability. Most folks just don't have the room to display something that's six foot by four foot large and people who buy things like this definitely want to display them.

As far as actually selling it, my advice would be that unless you want to sell it to a serious Muppet fan (ie someone on a forum such as this), you're probably best to hold onto it for a while. Around about the time the new movie hits theaters there's going to be much more interest in all things Muppets, so it's much more likely you'd find a buyer at such a time. That said, a specialized forum for either Muppet fans or film memorabilia collectors would probably hold some interest year round. but, as I said before, it's going to take someone who's a serious collector/fan or someone with enough space to display something so large, so it might be a bit tougher sell than other Muppet or film collectibles.

Bottom line, it's definitely a cool piece, just not a particularly valueable piece. Something the right person (myself included if I had the money or the space) would love to have, but certainly not something for everyone.

 

[Robb]

Thank you so much DLGabriel for your extensive research....you went above and beyond....THANK YOU! But I knew you would be able to find the necessary info, being a Muppets collector....which I am not. Lol.
I may hold onto it, but I am surprised that it may fetch $100. And as far as I can see, I don't see any defects whatsoever. But I will give it a close examination to be sure and will definitely post pics for all to see here soon.

Again, thank you so much for your assistance and apologize for my delay in responding.

 

[Quazimoto]

Ah no worries. I kind of like doing research on such things, so I'm happy to help.

 

[Robb]

Hi everyone,
I got a chance to take some pics of the piece. Sorry they aren't the best of quality, but you can see and get an idea of what I have.