1982 Kaufman Astoria Studios Custom Investor Portfolio & Archive Stills

Kaufman Astoria Studios ; [Levy, Stephen, Personal Copy]

Astoria Studios 1920–1982 1982 [Custom Leather Binder] [34 Stills & Stamped Provenance] [NYC Landmark Historic Archive]

Queens, NY: Astoria Studios Foundation / Kaufman Astoria Studios, 1982. A custom-bound investor presentation portfolio documenting 62 years of motion picture history at the landmark Astoria Studios in Queens, New York.

Specially prepared for investor Stephen Levy during the landmark 1982 multi-million dollar studio redevelopment, this volume contains 34 high-quality 8x10 inch black-and-white photographs (spanning silent era productions to modern 1980s features), accompanying historical text, and facsimile documentation of the studio's New York City Landmark and National Register of Historic Places designations.

PHYSICAL DFESCRIPTION:
This large folio (13 x 14.5 inches) is housed in the original publisher's padded black leather binder featuring a 2-inch rounded spine, heavy multi-ring mechanism, and silk-lined endpapers, with a silver gilt emblem and personalized owner's name ("STEPHEN LEVY") stamped on the front board. 

Housed within 21 double-sided plastic leaves are 34 glossy 8x10-inch black-and-white studio and film stills highlighting Rudolph Valentino, W.C. Fields, Sidney Lumet, Martin Hewitt in Endless Love, backlot set constructions, and the 1982 groundbreaking ceremony. Accompanying the photographs is key institutional documentation, including an introductory investor letter detailing studio history from Famous Players-Lasky to the Army Pictorial Center era, an eight-page production filmography spanning 1921 to 1982, and facsimile landmark certificates from 1978.

PROVENANCE & CONTEXT.
Investor Presentation Copy: Specially personalized for Stephen Levy, whose name is foil-stamped on the front board. As detailed in the interior introductory letter ("When you became an investor in Kaufman Astoria Studios..."), this custom portfolio was non-commercial and distributed exclusively to key financial backers involved in George S. Kaufman’s 1982 multi-million dollar redevelopment of the historic complex

CONDITION: Very Good+.
+++ Binding: Black leather boards clean, supple, and unworn; silver foil stamping crisp and bright. Inner ring mechanism fully operational.
+++ Contents: All 34 photograph prints and inserted text pages remain pristine, flat, and fully preserved within protective sleeves.

Visual Material & Scarcity: Features 34 total 8x10-inch glossy black-and-white stills. While the silent era stills reflect classic publicity photography, over a dozen images—including backlot set constructions, studio interior facilities, and early-1980s redevelopment milestone ceremonies—appear entirely unrecorded in digital film archives, representing rare primary visual documentation of the studio's physical plant.

Unrecorded in OCLC/WorldCat and institutional finding aids. While precursor planning files from the 1970s foundation era are preserved in municipal archives, this custom 1982 investor portfolio—distributed privately to key financial backers during George S. Kaufman’s redevelopment drive—appears unrecorded in public institutional holdings.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
THE EAST COAST HOME OF PARAMOUNT.
Established in 1920 as the Famous Players-Lasky studio for Paramount, the Astoria complex became the principal center of East Coast feature-film production during the transition from silent pictures to sound. Productions associated with the studio included films starring Rudolph Valentino and early Marx Brothers features, including The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers.

FROM HOLLYWOOD TO THE U.S. ARMY.
From 1942 until 1970, the complex operated as the U.S. Army Pictorial Center, an important production facility for military training, informational, and motion-picture work during World War II and the Cold War. Its activities connected the former commercial studio with another significant chapter in twentieth-century American filmmaking.

THE RETURN OF FEATURE FILMMAKING TO NEW YORK.
After the Army's departure, the deteriorating complex found new life during the late 1970s as major productions including The Wiz, Hair, and All That Jazz returned filmmaking to Astoria. Recognition of the site's architectural and cinematic importance followed, while the revival demonstrated that large-scale feature production could again be successfully based in New York.

THE 1982 TURNING POINT.
This portfolio documents the crucial next stage: the 1982 reorganization associated with developer George S. Kaufman that secured the studio's survival and redevelopment. Rather than simply recording an historic motion-picture facility, the portfolio captures Astoria at the point when its earlier identities—as Paramount studio, military production center, and revived film facility—were being transformed into the modern film and television complex that followed.

SUBJECTS: Kaufman Astoria Studios, Paramount Pictures, Queens NY History, NYC Landmarks, Silent Film Stills, Army Pictorial Center, Film Production Ephemera.
GENRES: Investor Prospectus, Film Archive, Photograph Album, Movie Memorabilia.

Item #22402

Price: $850.00