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This ORIGINAL, silver gelatin photographic still was printed to promote the first theatrical release of the 1953, classic American drama/war feature, STALAG 17.

The Academy Award winning film stars William Holden, with Otto Preminger, Don Taylor, Robert Strauss, Harvey Lembeck, Richard Erdman, Peter Graves, Neville Brand, Sig Rumen, Michael Moore, and Gil Stratton.  The film was co-scripted and directed by Billy Wilder.

The single-weight, glossy, silver gelatin photographic still is an ORIGINAL still, printed from the original negative, at the time the film was first released in the United States (1953).   It is NOT a reprint, restrike, reproduction, re-issue, or commercial item available to the general public. It was created to be used by magazines and newspapers to publicize the film.

This still is from the W. Ward Marsh archives.

Provenance of the Movie Stills

W. Ward Marsh (1893-1971) was the film critic for the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper from 1919 until his retirement in 1970.  In 1919 Marsh wrote his first of 23,000 movie reviews for the Plain Dealer. As the area's movie trivia authority, Marsh wrote and produced a local television movie quiz program in the 1950's called "Lights, Camera, Question."  He also taught "The History, Enjoyment, and Criticism of the Movie" course at Western Reserve's Cleveland College.  In the 1960's, Marsh fought a losing battle against the screen's increasing sexual permissiveness.  His scathing review of a film titled THE LOVERS in 1959, contributed to the prosecution of its exhibitor, Nico Jacobellis of the Heights Art Theatre, for obscenity.  In a landmark censorship ruling in 1964, the U.S. Supreme Court declared the film was not obscene.  Marsh died less than a year after his retirement in 1970.  His library, and photographic and memorabilia archives were given to the proprietor of Cleveland's finest bookstore.  I was the first person with a background in film history and collectibles to examine the archives.  I was hired in 1972 to evaluate the entire collection.  I worked for three to four hours a day, for six months.  It was an unbelievably exciting time for me, never knowing what I was going to find, as I opened a new box or file drawer.  My compensation was my pick of the archives.  The thousands of photographs that I received still form the core of my still collection.  Many of the stills that will be offered here, are from the W. Ward Marsh archives.

CHECK OUT MY MANY other items, MANY WITHOUT RESERVE!

TITLE

STALAG 17