1939 Hollywood Movie Advertising Token - Cecil B. DeMille ' S Union Pacific
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:35006618 |
PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER AUCTIONS - THIS IS JUST ONE OF 12HOLLYWOOD/SO-CAL AND OTHER TOKENS BEING LISTED, AND MORE WILL BE LISTED AFTERTHESE SALES Description: Obverse: CECIL B. DE MILLE'S / (old locomotive) / MOTION PICTURE "UNION PACIFIC" Reverse: ROAD OF THE Streamliners AND THE Challengers / (vintage train and streamlined train on either side of a Union Pacific logo) / ALUMINUM IN THESE / FAMOUS TRAINS / FURNISHED BY / ALUMINUM COMPANY OF... AMERICA / UNION PACIFIC Aluminum. About 33mm in diameter. Catalog number: Kappen - Hollywood, CA K-40 High grade. This is the most difficult to locate, and the most valuable, of the 1933/1939 series of Union Pacific advertising tokens. These tokens were possibly given out at the opening of the movie, which may account for their scarcity. A nice addition to any collection of vintage movie or railroad memorabilia. Background information: From Wikipedia (in part): Union Pacific is a 1939 American Western drama produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Barbara Stanwyck and Joel McCrea. Also included in the cast were Robert Preston, Brian Donlevy, and Anthony Quinn. Based on the 1936 novel Trouble Shooter by Western fiction author Ernest Haycox, the film is about the building of the famous railroad of the same name across the American West. Haycox based his novel upon the experiences of a civil engineer, Charles H. Sharman, who worked on the railroad from its start in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1866 up to the golden spike ceremony on May 10, 1869. This was to celebrate the joining of the rails for the First Transcontinental Railroad across the United States connecting the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory. In fact, the movie recreated the event using the same 1869 golden spike, on loan from Stanford University. Basic Plot: The 1862 Pacific Railroad Act signed by President Lincoln authorizes pushing the Union Pacific Railroad westward across the wilderness toward California, but financial opportunist Asa Barrows hopes to profit from obstructing it. Chief troubleshooter Jeff Butler has his hands full fighting Barrows's agent, gambler Sid Campeau. Campeau's partner Dick Allen is Jeff's war buddy and rival suitor for engineer's daughter Molly Monahan. Who will survive the effort to push the railroad through at any cost? Some interesting production notes: According to a news item in The Hollywood Reporter, DeMille directed much of the film from a stretcher, because of an operation he had months earlier. However, studio records indicate DeMille collapsed from the strain of directing three units simultaneously, and used a stretcher for about two weeks. For the Indian attack on the train, Paramount hired 100 Navajo Indian extras. The company had rented many local Pinto horses for the filming of the Indian attack on the train. During filming, however, local cowboys had to be hired to round up the horses, as they would scatter and sometimes stampede because of the noise and confusion of these scenes—all the shooting, yelling, and yards of unfamiliar cloth on the horses, along with kettles and other implements tied to their manes and tails, made them extremely nervous and uncomfortable, and it didn't require much to make them bolt. In order to operate the number of trains required by the production, Paramount had to get a regulation railroad operating license from the Interstate Commerce Commission. My seller info: My father, who is a retired coin dealer, has for years beensending me old tokens and medals from Hollywood and the Los Angeles area as heran across them. He figured that they would be of more interest to people in myarea than in Oregon where he currently resides. It is now time for me to partwith some of these interesting and historic items. Some of them picture moviestars of bygone days. Others are vintage "movie money" used by theproduction companies to represent coins in their movies, and still others areadvertising or employee tokens used at Paramount and other famous studios. Afew of the tokens are from businesses that operated in the Los Angeles areafrom the early 1900s to the 1960s. He also has a passion for other interestingU.S. and world tokens and medals issued before 1900 so some of my listings mayinclude a few of those items. I'll be starting my auctions at the price my father paid for themyears ago, and let the market take them where it will. All items are guaranteed genuine, unless otherwisestated. You will receive the exact item(s) pictured on myauction. Actual color of the item(s) being auctioned is often alittle different from the color on my pictures. Some items just don'tphotograph as well as others. Since I am not a coin dealer, I will not attemptto grade the item(s). I've tried to make the pictures as clear as possible soyou may use them to determine the grade for yourself. Obvious damage will benoted, but minor marks and wear due to age will not. Please contact me with yourquestions before bidding. I do combine shipping for auctions won within a three day period.Please contact me if you intend to bid on auctions closing on different days.Items won will usually be mailed housed in my father's original package unlessthe package has been damaged. I would love to see these items go to a newhome where there is the same appreciation for their historic significance as myfather and I have had for them. Mailing via first class USPS envelope inside a firm cardstocksleeve. Undercurrent Post Office slowdowns, other mailing options are available and otherscan be requested.Internationalbuyers: Message me after bidding to discuss shipping.
