From the classic films of golden age Hollywood to intergalactic ‘80s battle epics, the incredible visual history of 20th-century cinema quietly unfolded in daily newspapers across the country. Stunning advertising images scorched readers’ eyes with Action! Laughs! Kung fu! Romance! Werewolves!, but the handmade letterpress plates used to physically print these ads were then discarded and lost to time… until now.
The Press Room Collection offers prints and other creations from our friends at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema’s unique collection of these rare metal blocks – over 60,000 original printing plates for films spanning the 1930s to the 1980s. The collection is the largest single archive of these irreplaceable artifacts of movie history, all kept alive by our dedicated master printer, hand-cranking an original 1940 Vandercook press to create distinctive collectible prints that celebrate the history of cinema.
The first round of the Collection includes a poster curated and signed by a legend, a bloody great shower curtain, slick new t-shirts, one-of-a-kind puzzles, and even... wrapping paper. Each is available for purchase right now in The Press Room Collection and at thepressroom.bar. In addition, each purchase from The Press Room Collection through September 8th will receive a free Alamo On Demand rental of PRESSING ON: THE LETTERPRESS FILM, the acclaimed 2017 documentary about the 500-year-old printing process’ improbable survival in the digital age.
KUNG FU AD BLOCK Poster Signed by RZA
Fists of steel… Weapons of vengeance…
Musician/filmmaker/kung fu cinema historian RZA of The Wu-Tang Clan presents a hand-picked collection of the finest and most furious martial arts ad plates, just in time to coincide with his new feature, CUT THROAT CITY.
This hand-printed, three-color print is available in a one-time numbered edition of 250, each signed by RZA himself.
BLOOD BATH Shower Curtain
Turn every morning into the opening scene from PSYCHO with this bone-chilling addition to the scariest room in your house.
The Press Room’s BLOOD BATH shower curtain is a carefully curated collection of classic — and not-so-classic — horror film ads, each aesthetically alive with the thrills of death. While you’re scrubbing up, Dracula’s creepin’ and Frankenstein’s peepin’, all reproduced in murderously fine detail from their original handmade printing blocks.
BLOOD BATH is resistant to mold, mildew, and soap. Non-vinyl, non-PEVA, environmentally friendly, and made from heavyweight 140 gsm polyester. 12 metal guarded holes with hooks included.
THE WEIRD WORLD OF LSD T-shirt
Put on, tune in, drop out. 
Slip into something a little more transdimensional with the psychedelicious all-cotton tee that rearranges reality. This psychoactive three-color image comes from an original ad block promoting the 1967 documentary that blew the lid off the acid racket during the “Summer of Love.”
SEIZURE T-shirt
Before he redefined ‘80s cinema with PLATOON and WALL STREET, Oliver Stone’s relentlessly eccentric inaugural feature reveled in ‘70s insanity.
Now the pulse-pounding paranoia of SEIZURE has been captured from its original ad block on a stunning two-color tee, as the film’s three harbingers of doom creep towards you on a purple portal to the afterlife.
SECRET AGENT SUPER DRAGON T-shirt
Only four years after the release of the first James Bond film, countless budget-grade secret agents were bursting through the screens of every movie theater on earth.
And now you can be as dashing, fearless, and irresistible as Italy’s answer to 007 in this stylish spy-ish two-color tee, transferred from the original 1966 printing block.
LIGHTNING SWORDS OF DEATH T-Shirt
In the 1970s, kung fu films made the overdue leap from Asian cinemas to becoming a full-blown international phenomenon. 
Movie fans suddenly faced an insatiable hunger for daredevil stunts, hand-to-hand combat and antigravitational blades, all of which are on full display in the iconic LIGHTNING SWORDS OF DEATH, now transformed from the original printing block into a blazing four-color design.
DEVIL’S EXPRESS T-Shirt
When kung fu cinema came triple-flip-kicking into the US, it found particularly strong support among black audiences in major cities. Some fans opted to enter the martial arts movie game themselves, one extra exciting example being mighty NYC resident Warhawk Tanzania, whose unmatched fighting skills and yellow overalls are stretched to the limit when he squares off against a 50,000-year-old subway demon.
Capture the chopsocky fury in this fearless three-color tee from the original 1976 printing block art.
THE GROOVE TUBE T-Shirt
Yes. That’s right. Totally, it’s a gorilla with a TV head. 
But it’s also a battle cry of the no-rules lawlessness of ‘70s chaotic comedy, when taboo-smashing gutbusters like ANIMAL HOUSE and KENTUCKY FRIED MOVIE knocked filmgoers through their seats. Proudly display your disdain for authority with this primal three-color attack on the galaxy’s funny bone.
MONSTERS & MOTORS Puzzle
A skull-squeezing full-color array of vehicular monster-slaughter, showcasing the most untamed and inhuman creatures and/or vehicles from the ‘50s through the ‘80s, all reproduced from the original printing blocks. Spaceborne plant-beasts collide with custom ‘70s swinger vans! Flesh-ripping dinosaurs get cozy with toothless bikers!
Plus, this is a two-sided puzzle, with the ad art on one side and a photo of the actual printing plates on the reverse, making your living room table twice as fascinating and a thousand times more fun.
MAD SCIENTIST Puzzle Set
10 out of 9 mentally unstable scientists agree: This collection of four double-sided miniature masterpieces of maniacal movie malevolence are the supreme sci-fi strike against our species.
Each 150-piece puzzle comes disassembled in its own clear test tube, showcasing classic science fiction film ad art from the original plates, with the reverse being a photo of the unique handmade press blocks themselves.
This collection features the following puny-yet-powerful themed puzzles: SHRINK RAY, X-RAYS & OUTER SPACE, DOCTORS JEKYLL, and SPACY INVADERS.
MUSIC, MONSTERS & MOTORS Wrapping Paper Set
In this deluxe duo of exclusive wrapping paper rolls, the hills are alive… with the undead!
First, entomb your loved ones’ gifts in this skull-squeezing full-color array of vehicular monster-slaughter, showcasing the most untamed and inhuman creatures and/or vehicles from the ‘50s through the ‘80s, all reproduced from the original printing blocks. Spaceborne plant-beasts collide with custom ‘70s space vans! Flesh-ripping dinosaurs get cozy with two-wheeled warriors!
Then, not sure how to wrap that surprise for the Bavarian who has everything? Turn any present into the gift of song with this exclusive wrapping paper designed from a selection of original ad plates for THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Your heart will fill with melody and good-timey anti-Nazi sentiments as you unroll this 10’ x 26” sheet of art from the timeless musical.
THE PRESS ROOM Coaster Collection 1.0
Respect wood. Protect your table. Make the bottom of your drinking glass the most exciting part of your life. 
The Press Room presents a sextet of delightful die-cut cinematic coasters hand-printed from the original handmade printing blocks on a genuine antique letterpress machine.
