SAUL BASS | THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN ARM (Dec 26, 1955) Film premiere invitation

The Man with the Golden Arm. Los Angeles: United Artists, 1955. Vintage original 6  x 8″ (15 x 20 cm) cardboard program with vellum paper cover. Fine.

The Man with the Golden Arm was the first major Hollywood film to tackle the subject of drug addiction, which was still a taboo subject for American films during the 1950s. Its release defied censorship codes of the time while its success signaled moviegoers’ growing interest in serious, adult film themes. As early as 1949 the source material was considered as a vehicle for John Garfield, and even in 1955 censors were very hard on the content of the film.

Saul Bass designed the crooked arm symbol used in the film’s advertising campaign, which director Otto Preminger liked so much that he threatened to pull the picture if an exhibitor changed the advertisements. Ranked at number 14 of the 25 best poster designs of all time, here is Bass’ art in its purest form. Bass also created the film’s animated title sequence, the first of many such sequences he created for films by Preminger, Alfred Hitchcock and others. (Wikipedia)

For the opening guest-invited premiere, stars including Judy Garland, Bette Davis, Noel Coward, Liberace, Debbie Reynolds, as well as cast and crew, attended and would have received an invitation such as this. The West Coast premiere, as indicated on the invitation, was held on Dec 26th, 1955, at the Fox Beverly Theatre and was a formal affair.