MoviePropCollector
Sr Member
I just received this press release about the Michael J Fox foundation and Profiles in History teaming up at Comic Con.
Comic Con Press release.
Comic Con Press release.
Back to the Future museum at Comic Con
- Thread starter MoviePropCollector
- Start date
They might. Couple of years back they allowed people to take photos of the Hoverboard on display at the con.
Thanks for the heads up MoviePropCollector. BTW that was your 88th post, quite a coincidence
.
MoviePropCollector
Sr Member
They might. Couple of years back they allowed people to take photos of the Hoverboard on display at the con.
Thanks for the heads up MoviePropCollector. BTW that was your 88th post, quite a coincidence
Really? That's wild.
I will be taking lots and lots and lots and lots.... well you get the idea, of pics and video while at Comic Con :thumbsup
Super awesome, can't wait to see this!
In case anyone wants to know more about the Part III Car and it's restoration.
BTTF3 DeLorean
It's a really awesome read with a great amount of history about just what happened to all the original cars.
-Gary
BTTF3 DeLorean
It's a really awesome read with a great amount of history about just what happened to all the original cars.
-Gary
Java
Sr Member
You know, this brings up an interesting thing - at what point is something a replica? What percentage of the "real deal" needs to be there in order be called a screen-used restoration?
Because the reality here is the chassis IS the screen used Drive-in time machine used in Part 3, but almost everything else that makes it The Time Machine" is replicated.
This is what was left:
BTTF3 DeLorean Which car is this
As per normal with PIH, they like to misrepresent the "real deal" along the lines of "honesty is the best policy, but sometimes keeping your mouth shut is better"
Because the reality here is the chassis IS the screen used Drive-in time machine used in Part 3, but almost everything else that makes it The Time Machine" is replicated.
This is what was left:
BTTF3 DeLorean Which car is this
As per normal with PIH, they like to misrepresent the "real deal" along the lines of "honesty is the best policy, but sometimes keeping your mouth shut is better"
Most in the circles know that this car was used by Universal as a "donor" for years on the backlot. A good number of parts form this original car made their way to the A-Car and beyond.
Time Circuit Display
Armrest Components
Black Discs (on the driver pontoon).
Also, the car was left outside for 20 years and parts just naturally fell off like the Upper Flux Boxes and Wormhole Emitter.
All that being said, the car when purchased by Desi was still together enough to warrant a restoration/rebuild. The original all-custom engine, chassis, and wheels were still there. The Innerbulkhead, some interior props, rear vents, and front flux boxes were all accounted for. That's enough of a Screen Used BTTF DeLorean to start from.
Time Circuit Display
Armrest Components
Black Discs (on the driver pontoon).
Also, the car was left outside for 20 years and parts just naturally fell off like the Upper Flux Boxes and Wormhole Emitter.
All that being said, the car when purchased by Desi was still together enough to warrant a restoration/rebuild. The original all-custom engine, chassis, and wheels were still there. The Innerbulkhead, some interior props, rear vents, and front flux boxes were all accounted for. That's enough of a Screen Used BTTF DeLorean to start from.
My main "beef" with the car is that this car is a replica to start with. It's a hastily-constructed replica built by the production team for BTTFII & III.
They had access to one of the original DeLoreans from BTTFI and they copied it as best they could, bearing in mind that this car would only have a very short amount of screen time and didn't need to be a quality replica - it only had to fool people.
Now it is a "restoration" of a replica. It's a replica prop where half the parts went missing over the years and had to be fabricated from scratch.
For me, it lacks the soul of the original. The designers and builders of the original were real artists. The reason the original DeLoreans look so cool is because the people that designed and built them really cared about how they looked. The parts they chose had a very specific aesthetic.
This particular DeLorean car is briefly screen-used, but a lot of the parts on it aren't screen-used. I don't know where the line is. As long as the buyer knows they are getting a franken-prop.
If I wanted a Part III Off-Road DeLorean, I would start with a perfect replica of the A/B Car from BTTF I and then just swap out the chassis and wheels. That's what the production guys would have done if they'd had infinite time and money to throw at it.
They had access to one of the original DeLoreans from BTTFI and they copied it as best they could, bearing in mind that this car would only have a very short amount of screen time and didn't need to be a quality replica - it only had to fool people.
Now it is a "restoration" of a replica. It's a replica prop where half the parts went missing over the years and had to be fabricated from scratch.
For me, it lacks the soul of the original. The designers and builders of the original were real artists. The reason the original DeLoreans look so cool is because the people that designed and built them really cared about how they looked. The parts they chose had a very specific aesthetic.
This particular DeLorean car is briefly screen-used, but a lot of the parts on it aren't screen-used. I don't know where the line is. As long as the buyer knows they are getting a franken-prop.
If I wanted a Part III Off-Road DeLorean, I would start with a perfect replica of the A/B Car from BTTF I and then just swap out the chassis and wheels. That's what the production guys would have done if they'd had infinite time and money to throw at it.
OMG! Def one of my favorite movies!I wish I was able to buy tickets to the con. I still can't believe they sold out of them the first day
Robert
Robert
movieobjects
Active Member
Some of the BTTF props attended the london comic-con last week
At the end of the day, it's still a screen used car. This offroader and it's sister saw a pretty decent amount of screentime in the first third of the film.
I'd also disagree with the idea that it was hastily built. The part one cars were built primarily from found surplus. When part II and III rolled around, they used what parts were left over from Part 1 (the other offroader) and then heavily referenced the B-Car for their replicas. They did not have the knowledge base to rebuild the Part III Cars with the same parts since they were built by two completely different teams than the part I cars. Various interior and exterior parts from the B-Car were directly copied to make the Part II and III cars (wire housings, mr fusions, green tubes, etc). A lot of stuff DOES match the Part I cars.
The original II and III builders weren't trying to 100% match the A and B cars, they just needed a BTTF Delorean which could drive on off-road terrain.
I can't find a better example of how little the film makers cared for these cars than the simple fact that they had zero qualms about destroying the B car with the Train. This was a car that prior to the filming of Part II and III had been in near mint condition since it was being stored at Amblin while the A-Car was suffering at the theme park in an open air display.
As replica builders and movie fans we may be extremely dissapointed with the ultimate fate of these cars and the decisions made at the time. However, we need to realize that during filming they really didn't see these as the pieces of movie history they were destined to become to some of us. I can hardly fault anyone for that.
To me, that makes the salvage and restoration of this car all the more special. This is one of those historic pieces that DID get saved for future generations.
-Gary
I'd also disagree with the idea that it was hastily built. The part one cars were built primarily from found surplus. When part II and III rolled around, they used what parts were left over from Part 1 (the other offroader) and then heavily referenced the B-Car for their replicas. They did not have the knowledge base to rebuild the Part III Cars with the same parts since they were built by two completely different teams than the part I cars. Various interior and exterior parts from the B-Car were directly copied to make the Part II and III cars (wire housings, mr fusions, green tubes, etc). A lot of stuff DOES match the Part I cars.
The original II and III builders weren't trying to 100% match the A and B cars, they just needed a BTTF Delorean which could drive on off-road terrain.
I can't find a better example of how little the film makers cared for these cars than the simple fact that they had zero qualms about destroying the B car with the Train. This was a car that prior to the filming of Part II and III had been in near mint condition since it was being stored at Amblin while the A-Car was suffering at the theme park in an open air display.
As replica builders and movie fans we may be extremely dissapointed with the ultimate fate of these cars and the decisions made at the time. However, we need to realize that during filming they really didn't see these as the pieces of movie history they were destined to become to some of us. I can hardly fault anyone for that.
To me, that makes the salvage and restoration of this car all the more special. This is one of those historic pieces that DID get saved for future generations.
-Gary
Last edited:
ScreenUsed
New Member
renesisx (Charles I think), what would you do with the car if you had the opportunity to put it in your garage? Would you just throw a piece of movie history away because it's not as complete as you want?
I had two choices:
1. Leave it as is in terrible condition, even though it had lost many of the add on props.
2. Restore it to what the public remembers from the movie. Keeping in mind that all of the restoration we did could be reversed if someone really wanted to. It could be put right back to what it looked like on the back lot, short of rust, corrosion, and weather damaged leather.
So have I ruined the car? I think not - I saved it from getting crushed just like two of the other cars used the movies. Future generations of fans will never see those cars again - ever.
Sorry to differ, but it is not a replica - it is a screen used car, built for the movie. You may disagree with how they built the car, but that doesn't really matter - it was driven on screen by MJF, and there are scratches and other things to make it screen matching. I have a bill of sale from Universal Studios as well, with the VIN, signed by them, so it's all legal.
I have no problem calling it a screen used car that has reproduction pieces put back on it in order to restore the way it looked on the movie. I'm helping to promote the car, so nobody is going to hide facts - look at the website I put together for the car, all of the facts are laid out right there. I want any potential buyer to understand the exact history of the car. For original screen used collectors that know me well enough, I go out of my way to make sure a customer is happy with what they are purchasing.
Desi
I had two choices:
1. Leave it as is in terrible condition, even though it had lost many of the add on props.
2. Restore it to what the public remembers from the movie. Keeping in mind that all of the restoration we did could be reversed if someone really wanted to. It could be put right back to what it looked like on the back lot, short of rust, corrosion, and weather damaged leather.
So have I ruined the car? I think not - I saved it from getting crushed just like two of the other cars used the movies. Future generations of fans will never see those cars again - ever.
Sorry to differ, but it is not a replica - it is a screen used car, built for the movie. You may disagree with how they built the car, but that doesn't really matter - it was driven on screen by MJF, and there are scratches and other things to make it screen matching. I have a bill of sale from Universal Studios as well, with the VIN, signed by them, so it's all legal.
I have no problem calling it a screen used car that has reproduction pieces put back on it in order to restore the way it looked on the movie. I'm helping to promote the car, so nobody is going to hide facts - look at the website I put together for the car, all of the facts are laid out right there. I want any potential buyer to understand the exact history of the car. For original screen used collectors that know me well enough, I go out of my way to make sure a customer is happy with what they are purchasing.
Desi
Ask the Science Fiction Museum what they would think about their restored Spinner that is hanging. Paull Allen paid a lot to get that car restored, and most of the stuff on it is "new/replica" stuff, but it still the BEST example of a screenused Spinner out there. I know many of the people involved in the restoration of that and more so the restoration of the Part 3 screen used vehicle. It is a labor of love to keep a piece of movie history from being crushed.
I seem to remember on one of the bttf DeLorean boards people were outraged over the destruction of the fiberglass flying DeLorean. That car was less "accurate" than the Part 3 DeLorean that screenused owns. I remember when Jeff and Desi bought this car, no one wanted it. Some of the movie car brokers would go to Universal and look at the vehicles and they would pass on vehicles like this, they had better luck getting an "A-Team" GMC van from Universal, throwing some paint on it, and make a quick couple grand.
Movie cars are very different than many other movie props because they are usually used in other productions, or used for promotional use after filming. There are some exceptions to this such as the Batmobiles owned by Warner Brothers, those are well maintained and stored in a warehouse. On the flip side look at the Batmobiles from the 60s, there are things that are changed missing, and some cars were used just as promotional vehicles, but since they have a history to the STUDIO then even that car has extra value.
There are a total of around 14 DeLorean time machine props that have any studio connection and extra value. No matter what replicas are built by which fans, at the end of the day the studio paperwork will always win out more so relating to the original vintage time period of the movies, tv show and Rides.
So out of all these cars, clearly the most desirable would be the actual screen used DeLoreans. So the one car was destroyed and is now a shell in Planet Hollywood's archives/warehouse as it is no longer on display. Planet Hollywood is a large corporation, not a private collector. The "A" car is still rotting away being stripped so people can make replicas that look better than the original film car, but Universal doesn't care about the car. The other car remaining that is screen used is the DeLorean in Florida, that USF just did a minor restore on, cleaned up some props, redid the interior and a few other things. The fiberglass car was destroyed. Many fans online want to "SAVE THE CAR," the "A" car. Nothing wrong with that, but that is exactly what Jeff and Desi did, they "saved a car".
I have known and been talking to people in the movie car business for the last 12 years. The stories are amazing. Sometimes the actual car will have different bodies put on it for different productions but the actual vin or studio serial number matches through all the paperwork. In the movie car world and the high auto collector/museum world, that is what matters. Ralph Lauren has a large Ferrari collection, many criticize him for over restoring his vehicles, but they look great and many times they are one of a kind. There is a point with vehicles where you have to save what you can, so a one of a kind that looks great, or a rotted out shell of a car, which is going to bring in millions? Another example is he Pollack Automuseum, I know the mechanic who worked for his museum, and Pollack was a pioneer in the American collector car hobby. He had a knack for finding things. He found a Mercer raceabout in the weeds while flying around one time. It was nothing but a rotted out frame with some panels... it was restored with a lot of "replica bits" however it is one of something like three remaining and is currently on display at another museum. Pollack is gone but the car that he restored lives on... And that is the point to the desert offroader.
It is a piece of movie history, it was there at Monument Valley the same grounds where film pioneers like John Ford with Stage Coach created iconic images of the "western." The hood box was designed by Micheal Scheffe who was the one who placed everything on the DeLorean in the first movie. It was designed and coordinated by Tim Flattery another well respected film artist/designer who still works on all the block busters of today. Micheal J. Fox was in that exact car for the filming of the movie. The car, the panels, the engine, and many of the props were the exact props that were there during filming... but since the car is survived a piece of BTTF 3 history has survived. Nothing can take away from the fact that Fox was Marty McFly in that exact vehicle, and that is the big thing. It is not a replica of a Part 1 car. It is a vehicle created for use in a film series... PERIOD. To call it a replica to begin with is an insult to the car, the owners and the fans of the film series. It is the only CAR that is in private hands. The train wrecked car you can't sit in. The "A" car and Oxnard cars are still owned by the studio in various conditions. None of which are museum ready, which this car is.
The other thing, and this is what is sad about the BTTF hobby, is at the end of the day, THAT car has hallmarks from all sides of the hobby. The hood box, the conduit, the interior, the research. Many of the best minds of the BTTF DeLorean hobby actually had a hand in building that car. It says alot how people complain about the car, yet the brightest minds in the hobby were involved with the project.
I seem to remember on one of the bttf DeLorean boards people were outraged over the destruction of the fiberglass flying DeLorean. That car was less "accurate" than the Part 3 DeLorean that screenused owns. I remember when Jeff and Desi bought this car, no one wanted it. Some of the movie car brokers would go to Universal and look at the vehicles and they would pass on vehicles like this, they had better luck getting an "A-Team" GMC van from Universal, throwing some paint on it, and make a quick couple grand.
Movie cars are very different than many other movie props because they are usually used in other productions, or used for promotional use after filming. There are some exceptions to this such as the Batmobiles owned by Warner Brothers, those are well maintained and stored in a warehouse. On the flip side look at the Batmobiles from the 60s, there are things that are changed missing, and some cars were used just as promotional vehicles, but since they have a history to the STUDIO then even that car has extra value.
There are a total of around 14 DeLorean time machine props that have any studio connection and extra value. No matter what replicas are built by which fans, at the end of the day the studio paperwork will always win out more so relating to the original vintage time period of the movies, tv show and Rides.
So out of all these cars, clearly the most desirable would be the actual screen used DeLoreans. So the one car was destroyed and is now a shell in Planet Hollywood's archives/warehouse as it is no longer on display. Planet Hollywood is a large corporation, not a private collector. The "A" car is still rotting away being stripped so people can make replicas that look better than the original film car, but Universal doesn't care about the car. The other car remaining that is screen used is the DeLorean in Florida, that USF just did a minor restore on, cleaned up some props, redid the interior and a few other things. The fiberglass car was destroyed. Many fans online want to "SAVE THE CAR," the "A" car. Nothing wrong with that, but that is exactly what Jeff and Desi did, they "saved a car".
I have known and been talking to people in the movie car business for the last 12 years. The stories are amazing. Sometimes the actual car will have different bodies put on it for different productions but the actual vin or studio serial number matches through all the paperwork. In the movie car world and the high auto collector/museum world, that is what matters. Ralph Lauren has a large Ferrari collection, many criticize him for over restoring his vehicles, but they look great and many times they are one of a kind. There is a point with vehicles where you have to save what you can, so a one of a kind that looks great, or a rotted out shell of a car, which is going to bring in millions? Another example is he Pollack Automuseum, I know the mechanic who worked for his museum, and Pollack was a pioneer in the American collector car hobby. He had a knack for finding things. He found a Mercer raceabout in the weeds while flying around one time. It was nothing but a rotted out frame with some panels... it was restored with a lot of "replica bits" however it is one of something like three remaining and is currently on display at another museum. Pollack is gone but the car that he restored lives on... And that is the point to the desert offroader.
It is a piece of movie history, it was there at Monument Valley the same grounds where film pioneers like John Ford with Stage Coach created iconic images of the "western." The hood box was designed by Micheal Scheffe who was the one who placed everything on the DeLorean in the first movie. It was designed and coordinated by Tim Flattery another well respected film artist/designer who still works on all the block busters of today. Micheal J. Fox was in that exact car for the filming of the movie. The car, the panels, the engine, and many of the props were the exact props that were there during filming... but since the car is survived a piece of BTTF 3 history has survived. Nothing can take away from the fact that Fox was Marty McFly in that exact vehicle, and that is the big thing. It is not a replica of a Part 1 car. It is a vehicle created for use in a film series... PERIOD. To call it a replica to begin with is an insult to the car, the owners and the fans of the film series. It is the only CAR that is in private hands. The train wrecked car you can't sit in. The "A" car and Oxnard cars are still owned by the studio in various conditions. None of which are museum ready, which this car is.
The other thing, and this is what is sad about the BTTF hobby, is at the end of the day, THAT car has hallmarks from all sides of the hobby. The hood box, the conduit, the interior, the research. Many of the best minds of the BTTF DeLorean hobby actually had a hand in building that car. It says alot how people complain about the car, yet the brightest minds in the hobby were involved with the project.
slave1pilot
Sr Member
so, there's going to be a BTTF museum of some sorts at SDCC this year you say?
I love the restorations! I love everything Back to the Future. Some of my best memories are from going to see these movies with my family.
I can't wait to see photos from this! Thanks for sharing the info about this!
I can't wait to see photos from this! Thanks for sharing the info about this!
ScreenUsed
New Member
slave1pilot, yes stop by booth 1605 - we'll have the BTTF3 Time Machine there along with several props and wardrobe from all 3 movies. Hoverboards, Doc's telescope, Doc's train shirt, Biff's cane, etc. I don't want to ruin the fun of the discovery, so for those coming to SDCC, stop by and say hello.
The car is a replica. It's a copy of another car. It's a replica of the original DeLorean A/B "hero" cars from BTTFI.
That doesn't mean it isn't screen used. It is a screen used car. That was never in doubt. It was on-screen. It rotted away on the backlot (because, well, only Universal Studio and the Universal Resorts can tell you the reasons why that happens to all their vehicles), and then Desi bought it.
But it's still a replica.
Would I have loved to have bought this car myself? Of course.
What would I have done with it?
Restored the base DeLorean and chassis, just as Desi has done.
After that is where I'd change it. The thing was built for a few seconds of screen time at the start of BTTFIII. Close-up it looks goofy as it's a replica. The parts on the car don't match the original "hero" cars from BTTFI.
It's a replica that even lost all its parts. It was the perfect opportunity to right a wrong.
Could have replaced all the goofy looking parts that the builders were forced to use (due to time/money constraints) and put proper parts on it. Make it look how it was supposed to look, so that when you saw it up close it looked like people remembered it.
That's what I would have done with it.
That doesn't mean it isn't screen used. It is a screen used car. That was never in doubt. It was on-screen. It rotted away on the backlot (because, well, only Universal Studio and the Universal Resorts can tell you the reasons why that happens to all their vehicles), and then Desi bought it.
But it's still a replica.
Would I have loved to have bought this car myself? Of course.
What would I have done with it?
Restored the base DeLorean and chassis, just as Desi has done.
After that is where I'd change it. The thing was built for a few seconds of screen time at the start of BTTFIII. Close-up it looks goofy as it's a replica. The parts on the car don't match the original "hero" cars from BTTFI.
It's a replica that even lost all its parts. It was the perfect opportunity to right a wrong.
Could have replaced all the goofy looking parts that the builders were forced to use (due to time/money constraints) and put proper parts on it. Make it look how it was supposed to look, so that when you saw it up close it looked like people remembered it.
That's what I would have done with it.
movieobjects
Active Member
I wish I could be there...
ScreenUsed
New Member
Charles, thanks for the reply on what you would do with the car. Let's agree to disagree as I personally believe that would be the wrong thing to do with any screen used piece - basically changing it the way you prefer. But that's cool, that's what you would do.
Let me try to draw a parallel.
If you were to get a real screen used Mattel hoverboard - valued from $30K - $50K depending on the market at any point in time. Let's just say you got it for free. Now there are several "types" of Mattel boards - StyroFoam versus wood, as well as lenticular material versus photo surface. A lenticular board is the more rare, and the initial ones that were created first. They are used in most of the close up shots. This was the "original design" by the prop guys.
Once they realized they needed a bunch as they got damaged every day, they took a high res picture of the lenticular surface, and then start gluing pictures on the rest of the boards - much faster and more efficient. The "photo boards" are still very cool, and worth a little less, but not by too much.
OK back to my parallel. If you were to receive the lesser Mattel photo board - it is really a copy (or replica in your words) of the original as designed. So if I follow what you would do with an original Time Machine, you would strip the photo Mattel board down and replace the top and bottom surface with lenticular material because you feel that is the "better" and "original" design.
I think the above is a similar situation. Do you understand why I would not do this? Of course it's a personal decision, but this also parallels muscle car restorations. There are two distinct camps - bone stock restoration making the car look like it was from the factory; and the other is a RestoMod, customized the way you want it in order to drive daily. Funny enough, on my 69 Camaro restoration, I'm going the RestoMod route as it's not a rare model. If it was rare, I would make it look as close to what it was before.
In these scenarios. either way that you wanted to go, I would respect your choice.
Desi
Let me try to draw a parallel.
If you were to get a real screen used Mattel hoverboard - valued from $30K - $50K depending on the market at any point in time. Let's just say you got it for free. Now there are several "types" of Mattel boards - StyroFoam versus wood, as well as lenticular material versus photo surface. A lenticular board is the more rare, and the initial ones that were created first. They are used in most of the close up shots. This was the "original design" by the prop guys.
Once they realized they needed a bunch as they got damaged every day, they took a high res picture of the lenticular surface, and then start gluing pictures on the rest of the boards - much faster and more efficient. The "photo boards" are still very cool, and worth a little less, but not by too much.
OK back to my parallel. If you were to receive the lesser Mattel photo board - it is really a copy (or replica in your words) of the original as designed. So if I follow what you would do with an original Time Machine, you would strip the photo Mattel board down and replace the top and bottom surface with lenticular material because you feel that is the "better" and "original" design.
I think the above is a similar situation. Do you understand why I would not do this? Of course it's a personal decision, but this also parallels muscle car restorations. There are two distinct camps - bone stock restoration making the car look like it was from the factory; and the other is a RestoMod, customized the way you want it in order to drive daily. Funny enough, on my 69 Camaro restoration, I'm going the RestoMod route as it's not a rare model. If it was rare, I would make it look as close to what it was before.
In these scenarios. either way that you wanted to go, I would respect your choice.
Desi
Similar threads
