Film Noir from Royal Books, Inc.

Beverly Hills, CA: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [MGM], 1945. Vintage reference photograph of actors Angela Lansbury and Hurd Hatfield from the 1945 film. Based on the 1890 novel by Oscar Wilde, about a man whose portrait magically takes on the ability to absorb the sins of his debauched life while he remains unaged. Nominated for three Academy Awards, winning one… Read more about this item

Los Angeles: Twentieth Century-Fox, 1941. Two vintage studio still photographs from the seminal 1941 film noir, here under its original release title "Hot Spot." Based on the 1941 novel by Steve Fisher, about a man seeking to prove his innocence in a murder case while being railroaded by an obsessed detective. Set and shot on… Read more about this item

Burbank, CA: Warner Brothers, 1950. Vintage studio still photograph of actress Marlene Dietrich from the 1950 film. Based on the 1948 novel "Man Running" by Selwyn Jepson, published as "Outrun the Constable" in the US, and originally serialized in "Colliers" the previous year. A key Hitchcock film, made during his brief return to the UK between 1948… Read more about this item

Hollywood: Paramount Pictures, 1950. Three vintage studio still photographs from the 1950 film. A down-on-his-luck screenwriter stumbles into the home of a forgotten silent film star, quickly becoming enmeshed in her deranged plan for a comeback. A kingpin in the pantheon of films about fame and Hollywood, and Billy Wilder's urban noir counterpart to the daylight rural… Read more about this item

Beverly Hills, CA: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [MGM], 1950. Vintage reference photograph of actors Hedy Lamarr and John Hodiak from the 1950 film noir. With release stamp on the verso. An undercover immigration officer uncovers a smuggling operation in Havana, later growing conflicted when he begins to fall for a woman about to be smuggled into the US. … Read more about this item

Burbank, CA: Warner Brothers, 1950. Vintage studio still photograph from the 1950 film noir. During a trip south to visit her sister, a woman witnesses the murder of a Black reporter by the Ku Klux Klan, later helping the county prosecutor bring the killers to justice. Actress Doris Day's first non-singing role. Shot on location… Read more about this item

Universal City: MCA TV, 2000. Vintage studio still photograph from the 2000 re-release of the 1938 film, showing actors Sylvia Sidney and George Raft. Two former convicts meet while working at a department store and fall in love, but their relationship soon sours when one suspects the other of infidelity, leading him to return to a life… Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1955. Collection of five vintage reference photographs from the 1955 film. Two with provenance labels affixed to the versos. Perhaps the ultimate film noir in the classic cycle, and by far the best (and most insanely interpreted) Spillane adaptation. Director Robert Aldrich spins the hard boiled source material into a symphony of speed, violence, and… Read more about this item

Universal City: Universal-International, 1947. Vintage reference photograph of director Zoltán Korda talking with producer and head of Universal-International William Goetz on the set of the 1948 film noir. Printed mimeo snipe affixed to the verso. From the archive of film historian and author Joel Finler. Based on Aldous Huxley's 1922 short story "The Gioconda Smile," about… Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1944. Vintage reference photograph from the set of the 1944 film noir, showing actors Ingrid Bergman and Charles Boyer entering Bergman's aunt's long-vacant London townhouse. Based on Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play, and a remake of the 1940 British film starring Anton Walbrook and Diana Wynard. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning two, including Best Actress for… Read more about this item

Los Angeles: Paramount Pictures, 1981. Vintage borderless studio still photograph taken on the set of the 1981 film, showing director Bob Rafelson, actors Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange, cinematographer Sven Nykvist, and other crew members gathered around a monitor. Partial provenance label and annotations in manuscript ink on the verso. Based on the 1939 novel by James M.… Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1946. Collection of five vintage reference photographs from the 1946 film noir. Based on the story, "You Were There" by Thelma Strabel, serialized in "Woman's Home Companion" between 1944 and 1945. Vincent Minnelli's second dramatic film, following "The Clock" (1945). 8 x 10 inches. Very Good plus. Grant US. Selby Canon. Silver… Read more about this item

Burbank, CA: Mark VII Ltd. / Warner Brothers, 1955. Vintage reference photograph taken on the set of the 1955 film noir, showing composer Ray Heindorf at the piano, with actress Janet Leigh and director Jack Webb to the left. With the stamps of Warner Brothers and photographer Floyd McCarty to the verso. In 1927, a Kansas City trumpet… Read more about this item

Beverly Hills, CA: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [MGM], 1946. Vintage reference photograph from the 1946 film noir, showing actress Audrey Totter adjusting a camera. Printed mimeo snipe affixed to the verso. An unusual and ambitious film noir, and Robert Montgomery's final film for MGM. In a concept that originated with Montgomery, who directed, the entire film is shot from Marlowe's… Read more about this item

Universal City, CA: Universal Pictures, 1947. Vintage reference photograph from the 1947 film noir, showing actors Edmond O'Brien and Maria Palmer. Printed mimeo snipes affixed to the verso. A man hired to be a secret bodyguard for a wealthy industrialist kills a man to protect his employer-but begins to suspect that the murder was a set-up. … Read more about this item

Universal City, CA: Universal Pictures, 1957. Two vintage studio still photographs from the 1957 film noir, one showing Tony Curtis and Peggy Maley, the other showing Maley. Annotations in manuscript pencil on the verso. A traffic cop investigates the cold-blooded murder of his beloved friend, a San Francisco priest, whose death is linked to an Italian immigrant family. … Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1950. Vintage promotional flyer for screenings of the film noir, "No Way Out" at the Carver Theater in Alexandria, Virginia circa 1950. Films promoted in this flyer include "No Way Out" (1950), "The House Across the Street" (1949), and "If You Knew Susie" (1948). This flyer also includes advertisements for local business in Alexandria such… Read more about this item

Culver City, CA: RKO Radio Pictures, 1948. Vintage studio still photograph from the 1948 film noir, showing Frank Faylen and Marilyn Maxwell. Based on the 1946 magazine serial by Maurice Davis, about a nightclub owner seeking vengeance for the death of his bookie friend. Shot on location in San Francisco. 10 x 8 inches. Near… Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1955. Vintage reference photograph from the UK release of the 1955 French film. Printed mimeo snipe affixed to the verso. Based on the 1952 novel "Celle qui n'etait plus" by Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac. The wife and mistress of a cruel, brutish school principal orchestrate the perfect murder, but their plans are thrown into confusion… Read more about this item

N.p.: N.p., 1964. Vintage borderless reference photograph from the 1964 French film, showing Pierre Brasseur and Anna Karina reading a newspaper together. Stamp specific to the French release of the film on the verso. Based on Dolores Hitchens' 1958 novel "Fools' Gold." A young woman convinces two men to help her steal a large stash of money from… Read more about this item