"Good Morning", Original First Release Japanese Double-Sided Speed Poster 1959, Yasujirō Ozu, Ultra Rare, Speed Size (26 × 73 cm) P258
"Good Morning", Original First Release Japanese Double-Sided Speed Poster 1959, Yasujirō Ozu, Ultra Rare, Speed Size (26 × 73 cm)
Japanese title: 「お早よう」(Ohayō — “Good Morning”)
Size: Speed Poster / c. 10.25 × 28.75 in (26 × 73 cm)
Country / Studio: Japan / Shochiku
This is an original Japanese double-sided speed poster printed in 1959 for the first theatrical release of Yasujirō Ozu’s Good Morning. First-release Japanese paper for Ozu is always sought after, but surviving speed posters are especially scarce: narrow-format theatrical display pieces produced in comparatively small numbers and never intended for public sale. For one of Ozu’s most beloved late films, this is an ultra-rare and highly desirable format.
Film background
Released in 1959, Good Morning is one of Ozu’s warmest, funniest, and most deceptively precise films. Set in a suburban Tokyo housing development, it follows two young brothers who go on a comic vow of silence after their parents refuse to buy a television, while adult life around them turns on etiquette, gossip, embarrassment, and the quiet rituals of everyday living. Starring Keiji Sada, Yoshiko Kuga, Chishū Ryū, and Kuniko Miyake, the film is also notable as Ozu’s second colour feature, following Equinox Flower.
Poster design
The front is a superb example of late-1950s Ozu advertising: clean, elegant, domestic, and unmistakably Japanese. Two of the film’s central adult figures stand within a modest suburban interior, framed by shoji, tatami, and the rumpled kotatsu blanket that instantly evokes the film’s everyday world. The contrast between the man’s vivid orange sweater, the woman’s soft cardigan, and the restrained architecture around them gives the image a beautifully balanced mid-century palette. The title 「お早よう」 runs vertically in bold black calligraphy over a pink ground, while the surrounding copy emphasizes the film’s Aqua Color / total natural colour presentation and its finely observed humor of modern family life. It is an unusually charming and visually distinctive design for Ozu—less severe than Tokyo Twilight, lighter than Equinox Flower, and perfectly in tune with the film’s suburban wit.
The reverse is equally appealing as an original theatrical artifact, printed in monochrome with extensive publicity text, cast and staff listings, scene stills, and whimsical line illustrations echoing the film’s domestic comedy. Like other surviving Ozu speed posters, it serves almost as a compact studio press sheet on the back, adding real documentary value.
Rarity and condition
Japanese 1950s speed posters are genuinely scarce, and examples for major Yasujirō Ozu titles are especially difficult to locate. A first-release 1959 speed poster for Good Morning is therefore a significant survivor.
Condition is excellent overall, especially for such a fragile format. The front displays beautifully, with strong, attractive colour, a very clean overall appearance, and excellent eye appeal. The reverse shows more pronounced, typical age toning / light storage wear and gentle handling impressions, but remains complete, clean, and highly presentable for an original 1959 Japanese cinema poster. Overall, this is a remarkably well-preserved example of a very scarce Ozu format. Please inspect the photos carefully, as they show the exact poster for sale.
Authentication
Guaranteed original; not a reproduction or reprint. Certificate of Authenticity included.
About Japanese Speed Posters
Speed posters are narrow, vertically oriented Japanese theatre-display pieces produced in relatively small numbers for short-term promotional use. Because they were ephemeral by nature—handled, posted, and often discarded—far fewer survived than standard B2 and larger formats. Original 1950s speed posters are especially difficult to find today, making a first-release survivor for a major Yasujirō Ozu title like this particularly desirable.
