Hi guys, not sure if anyone has seen this but it closes in a day or so.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/370622887675

Well, someone saw it. Twenty-two bids, and two and a half days to go.

I was talking with a friend and we think someone should buy it and sell reproductions from it. I don't have the resources to produce the finished product or I might consider it. Not sure about the legalities of it either.

I am sure: that's illegal.

I just "love" it when people needlessly bid on items with several days left in the auction. That just drives up the price.

I don't see the point of always being the highest bidder well before the auction is over.

In this case, I'm talking to you "r**r" with a feedback rating of 328. Look at all of your pathetic bids!

Speaking of the legalities. I remember years ago when there were but a few of these posters available and they were only in the Fort. I don't ever remember seeing one available for resale at any time. The posters may have been sold at one time but I'm one of those knuckleheads who's never gone a year without staying for months or at least visiting the Fort a few days since it originally opened. I can guarantee you that if I saw one for sell, I would have bought several but the only ones I've ever seen were securely fastened to various walls in the Fort. (Please, no questions as to how I know they were securely mounted) The only two I ever saw were posted were in the backstage office where the GM hid and another one was posted in the outpost for several years where campers checked in. And, there may have been one in Crockett's Tavern for a while.

So, what I'm saying is that I kind of think we might be seeing copies of something that never really had mass quantities produced in the first place. Then, does that make it illegal to reproduce copies of a copy?

If it's not illegal to reproduce copies of a copy, I say we peons pool our pennies, buy it and go into
business!

I'm open for corrections from any accurate FW historian.

Considering that the seller is Theme Park Connection, a place that sells actual props and items previously used in the parks, I would say that this poster is the real deal that was once displayed at Fort Wilderness and not a copy.

I'm with Steve

Hey guys:

The ORIGINAL park used FORT WILDERNESS POSTERS were serigraphs---(elaborate silk-screening) they were done on the same equipment as the 1976 JUNGLE CRUISE and 1977 DISNEYLAND RR poster attraction posters. For WDW resort there was also a Pioneer Hall poster as well as a Empress Lilly poster done. Production was overseen by Rudy Lord. About 150 park -use posters were screened for WDW.

A FULL SIZE off-set lithograph poster was sold for a few years to Fort Wilderness guests when the ORIGINAL poster was produced. The guest copy sold for $4.95 --kinda pricey for a poster in the 70's. I'd suspect there are THOUSANDS of those FORT WILDERNESS POSTERS.

The real park-used posters are on tyvek paper that almost feels like a thin cloth and doesn't like to roll easily. The guest souvenir version is on a nice-weight paper, but the printing quality , while is ok--is a souvenir 70's poster and the color is slightly duller than the originals . The souvenir version also is completely smooth. The originals will feel kinda heavy (all those ink pulls!!) and if you run your fingers gently across the front, you can feel slight raises in ink levels. Also the color on the originals is EXTREMELY VIBRANT!

The ones that have been on display for historical exhibits and inside Fort Wilderness today are neither ORIGINALS NOR original souvenir 70's posters, they are modern copies made by special services for WDW decorating copies from an original silkscreen.

Most of the ones I've seen in the past years ( i've seen at least 30-35 since about 2003) on EBAY appears to be the souvenir copies. Awhile back however someone had a REAL one, but it had been laminated or plastic sealed at some point (odd).but none-the-less, it was a real silk-screened.

Just keep these points in mind when biding folks!

-Mike

Mike that was great info. I can't believe I wasn't there at the right time to get one or just was oblivious for some reason. I do think the one I saw in the FW operations building a few years back was mounted on a wooden back somehow. Not sure though.