Found today at Earl Hays. 1 of the plethora of props/ephemera found in 107 years of accumulation at the oldest prop-house in the US.
Blade Runner ID Card Original Print Blocks
- Thread starter PropsToHistory
- Start date
Fantastic discovery. I’m surprised these didn’t end up with Blade Runner’s graphic designer Tom Southwell like many of the other design masters he created for the film did. I can add a little more information about this badge design; We know that there were at least four badges created using this design. Deckard has one in his wallet which he shows, Gaff and Bryant are wearing them in on-set pictures from cut scenes and we have the James Jacobson badge which is the only surviving screen-used piece. There were probably others (Holden?) which we don't know anything about but these four are definite.
I now own the only known surviving screen-used badge. It was among the large batch of items which were sold at the end of filming, including the original hero gun and a load of costumes, which were bought by Hollywood marketing specialist Jeff Walker and remained unseen and thought lost for the next 25 years before being re-discovered at World-Con in 2006 by Karl Tate (phase pistol). The badge was sold alongside the hero blaster (which was bought by Dan Lanigan) at Profiles-in-History in 2009.
This particular badge was worn on screen by Assistant Property Master Arthur 'Art' Shippee during the LAPD scenes shot at Union Station in LA in the early summer of 1981. Art was in Police uniform with the ID badge below a metal 995 badge on his shirt.
On screen Gaff and Deckard enter LAPD and stride towards Captain Bryant's office but Gaff hesitates to speak to an officer (Shippee) which allows a little distance between them for Deckard's dramatic entrance into the office before he catches up.
The badge is now in my collection under a UV-blocking glass dome to preserve it for the future as this is the only surviving (non-metal) badge from the original production. The metal FORCE badge set sold in 2009 for $7,500.
I now own the only known surviving screen-used badge. It was among the large batch of items which were sold at the end of filming, including the original hero gun and a load of costumes, which were bought by Hollywood marketing specialist Jeff Walker and remained unseen and thought lost for the next 25 years before being re-discovered at World-Con in 2006 by Karl Tate (phase pistol). The badge was sold alongside the hero blaster (which was bought by Dan Lanigan) at Profiles-in-History in 2009.
This particular badge was worn on screen by Assistant Property Master Arthur 'Art' Shippee during the LAPD scenes shot at Union Station in LA in the early summer of 1981. Art was in Police uniform with the ID badge below a metal 995 badge on his shirt.
On screen Gaff and Deckard enter LAPD and stride towards Captain Bryant's office but Gaff hesitates to speak to an officer (Shippee) which allows a little distance between them for Deckard's dramatic entrance into the office before he catches up.
The badge is now in my collection under a UV-blocking glass dome to preserve it for the future as this is the only surviving (non-metal) badge from the original production. The metal FORCE badge set sold in 2009 for $7,500.
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joberg
Legendary Member
It would be fun to contact Tom Southwell, on Facebook, about those plates since he designed them. He kept an interesting collection of many of his designs: Spinner logo that was supposed to be affixed inside the car, The White Dragon logo and the Blade Runner business card.
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Both very cool. Thanks for sharing.
PropsToHistory Are any printing cuts (either from this or other films) likely to be offered for sale, or only prints? I could see the potential issue of a new owner using them to print more, so I'm unsure how you'd deter that... but I could picture them being very desirable historical artifacts.
userd1402 Do you know why there appears to be a silvery outline to the hair in your ID?
PropsToHistory Are any printing cuts (either from this or other films) likely to be offered for sale, or only prints? I could see the potential issue of a new owner using them to print more, so I'm unsure how you'd deter that... but I could picture them being very desirable historical artifacts.
userd1402 Do you know why there appears to be a silvery outline to the hair in your ID?
I think that’s microscopically thin air bubbles under the plastic lamination migrating to areas surrounding thick ink coverage as opposed to thin ink coverage on the photo. It was probably less noticeable when first made but as these were created in the spring of 1981it’s now 42 years old.
The printing blocks (cuts) will never be sold. Only prints if the owners decide to do so
I had to...
Outstanding! Thanks for sharing, PropsToHistory
that's a huge find! and the video was great! seing all the machines probably used for those badges at the time! very cool 
The machine used to round the corners! amazing! I have a small palstic thing for my badges, very impressive to see the real deal!
I had no idea there was two block for the front, one for the 8 logo, super cool!
Did you get any info for the red tape you used even found it lying around next to the block? the general concensus was that Amberlith film was used for this, not red tape. The amberlith is very weird in the sense that it's mostly orange looking in reality but it often photoghaphs red. But the original badge from userd1402 (Damn David! I wasn't sure you got this! amazing!) is often showing orange colors on the X.
ps: funny that you used my replica badge as a reference in your video for the round corners of your lineage badge ahah!
The machine used to round the corners! amazing! I have a small palstic thing for my badges, very impressive to see the real deal!I had no idea there was two block for the front, one for the 8 logo, super cool!
Did you get any info for the red tape you used even found it lying around next to the block? the general concensus was that Amberlith film was used for this, not red tape. The amberlith is very weird in the sense that it's mostly orange looking in reality but it often photoghaphs red. But the original badge from userd1402 (Damn David! I wasn't sure you got this! amazing!) is often showing orange colors on the X.
ps: funny that you used my replica badge as a reference in your video for the round corners of your lineage badge ahah!
that was incredible!! loved the video and looking forward to more!!
We're pretty sure it's amberlith. But the intent was to make it look as "on screen" as possible. And as this is a badge to be worn, the set up for yours made the most sensethat's a huge find! and the video was great! seing all the machines probably used for those badges at the time! very cool
I had no idea there was two block for the front, one for the 8 logo, super cool!
Did you get any info for the red tape you used even found it lying around next to the block? the general concensus was that Amberlith film was used for this, not red tape. The amberlith is very weird in the sense that it's mostly orange looking in reality but it often photoghaphs red. But the original badge from userd1402 (Damn David! I wasn't sure you got this! amazing!) is often showing orange colors on the X.
ps: funny that you used my replica badge as a reference in your video for the round corners of your lineage badge ahah!
I'm sorry, I'm not understanding your message completely, neither the part about the red tape to look more as on screen as amberlith, nor the part about the setup that made the most sense! Might be because English is not my native language, but I would be curious for more explanations
UPDATE: So. The red x. I made that with brake light tape as in the film they show up red.
The "x" was originally done with a material called amberlith. Which is used in print masking. Or at least was.
It hasn't been made for a while.
Well one of the many benefits of archiving a 100 year old prophouse/print shop...
If you dig long enough you find what you're looking for.
It's also dated 1981... so maybe?
The "x" was originally done with a material called amberlith. Which is used in print masking. Or at least was.
It hasn't been made for a while.
Well one of the many benefits of archiving a 100 year old prophouse/print shop...
If you dig long enough you find what you're looking for.
It's also dated 1981... so maybe?
Is the amberlith you found self adhesive? Mine wasn't and I always wondered if it was always like that or if it got old.
No. It's supposed to be used for masking on acetate. So it relies on static. So getting on card stock should be an adventure
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