“Phantom of the Rue Morgue” (謎のモルグ街), Original Japanese First-Release Movie Poster 1954, Ultra Rare, B2 Size (51.5 × 72.8 cm) H255

A striking 1954 first-release Japanese B2 for Warner Bros.’ 3-D gothic horror mystery Phantom of the Rue Morgue—released in Japan as 『謎のモルグ街』. This is a truly sensational Japan-market campaign design: the enormous yellow Japanese title lettering cuts diagonally across the sheet, a shadowed figure looms at upper left, red Paris rooftops glow in the background, and a monstrous claw descends toward a terrified woman below. It is pure mid-century horror-showmanship—bold, lurid, theatrical, and unmistakably Japanese in its graphic force.

For collectors of 1950s horror, 3-D cinema, Warner Bros. genre posters, and Edgar Allan Poe adaptations, this is a crown-jewel Japanese B2. The poster foregrounds everything that made the film a prestige horror attraction in 1954: Poe source material, Warner Bros. production value, vivid color, 3-D spectacle, and the classic beauty-in-peril imagery that defined so much of the era’s horror advertising.

This example is especially desirable not only for its rarity, but for its provenance. The verso bears a handwritten theatre/exhibitor notation reading “Ginza Theatre / from the 7th”—a remarkable surviving detail connecting the poster to a period Japanese cinema engagement. That kind of local exhibition provenance is increasingly difficult to find, particularly on unrestored Japanese paper posters of this age.

Preserved to an impressive standard for a poster now over seven decades old, this B2 retains rich, saturated color and unusually strong visual impact. According to the prior ownership history, the poster was stored in a plastic file for approximately 25–30 years, which helps explain the freshness of the front presentation.

Date & Japanese Theatrical Release

Phantom of the Rue Morgue was released in 1954 by Warner Bros. and opened in Japan under the title 謎のモルグ街 on June 23, 1954, distributed by Warner Bros. Japan Branch. This poster is a survivor from the film’s original Japanese theatrical release campaign.

The Film & Its Place in 1950s Horror

Directed by Roy Del Ruth and produced by Henry Blanke, Phantom of the Rue Morgue is Warner Bros.’ 1954 color 3-D horror-mystery adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Murders in the Rue Morgue. The screenplay was by Harold Medford and James R. Webb, with cinematography by J. Peverell Marley. The cast includes Karl Malden, Claude Dauphin, Patricia Medina, and Steve Forrest.

The film belongs firmly to the early-1950s wave of studio horror attractions that used color, stereoscopic presentation, and aggressive shock marketing to draw audiences into the theatre. AFI records the film as a Warner Bros. horror/mystery release, photographed in WarnerColor, presented in 3-D, with prints by Technicolor—details echoed directly by the Japanese poster’s bold 総天然色 / 立体映画 callout.

Design Notes

• Explosive Japanese title design: the giant yellow 謎のモルグ街 lettering slashes diagonally across the composition, giving the poster immediate shelf and wall presence.

• Classic horror silhouette: the brooding figure at upper left, almost swallowed by deep blue-black shadow, creates a powerful sense of menace before the viewer even reaches the monster imagery.

• Beauty-in-peril composition: the woman below, rendered in dramatic pin-up horror style, anchors the poster in the visual language of 1950s fright campaigns.

• Monstrous claw imagery: the oversized orange-black hand at right is one of the sheet’s strongest graphic elements—grotesque, theatrical, and perfectly suited to 3-D-era exploitation advertising.

• Parisian gothic atmosphere: the red rooftop silhouettes and night-sky palette transform the Rue Morgue setting into a heightened nightmare version of Paris.

• 3-D and color prestige callout: the top text 総天然色 / 立体映画 announces the film’s color and stereoscopic presentation, making the poster especially desirable to collectors of early 1950s 3-D cinema.

Warner Bros., the Japanese First-Run Campaign, and Ginza Theatre Provenance

This poster carries strong first-release fingerprints collectors look for: the Warner Bros. shield at upper left, the ワーナー・ブラザース映画配給 distribution credit at the bottom, and Japanese credit text naming Edgar Allan Poe, Henry Blanke, Roy Del Ruth, Harold Medford, James R. Webb, and Peverell Marley. The cast block highlights the key players, including Karl Malden, Claude Dauphin, Patricia Medina, and Steve Forrest.

The Japanese campaign copy is especially vivid: the top line promotes the film as a supreme strange tale drawn from a famous mystery-horror source, while the diagonal white text evokes screams in the Paris night and beautiful women falling one after another. It is a superb example of how Warner’s Japanese campaign heightened the film’s gothic mystery into full theatrical horror spectacle.

The verso notation reading “Ginza Theatre / from the 7th” is a particularly valuable provenance detail. Rather than being merely a clean surviving poster, this example retains evidence of its Japanese exhibition life—precisely the kind of historical trace that gives a vintage poster added collector significance.

Condition Report

Overall condition: Excellent for age, unrestored.

This ultra-rare Japanese B2 presents beautifully, with rich color, strong contrast, and excellent graphic impact. The deep blue-black figure, vivid red background, bright yellow title typography, and orange monster-hand imagery remain especially striking. For a 1954 Japanese paper poster, the front presentation is exceptional.

This poster has been stored in a plastic file by its previous owner for approximately 25–30 years, and the preservation is evident in the strength of the colors and the clean overall presentation. We have provided multiple detailed photos—please review them closely, as they show the exact poster for sale.

This poster is over 71 years old.