statuette of the Maltese Falcon
Dimensions: 12 in. h. x 4 1/2 in. d. x 5 in. w.
Weight: approx. 45 lbs.
One of two known cast lead statuettes created for use in John Huston’s screen version of The Maltese Falcon, the “bent tail feather” bird, and THE ONLY STATUETTE CONFIRMED BY WARNER BROS. ARCHIVES AS HAVING APPEARED ON SCREEN.
Humphrey Bogart plays San Francisco detective Sam Spade in John Huston’s directorial debut. Spade tangles with three nefarious characters played by Mary Astor, Sidney Greenstreet, and Peter Lorre, all of whom are chasing a statuette they believe to be a gold and jewel-encrusted figure of a falcon, but which ultimately is revealed to be made of lead.
The WB 90067 falcon was purchased privately by the present owner in the 1980s, and has been in his collection or on exhibition at the Warner Bros. Museum and other prominent institutions since that time (see full exhibition history below). Accompanying the falcon is correspondence from Warner Bros. Archivist Leith Adams confirming that WB 90067 is seen on screen in the classic 1941 film, and that the present owner is the rightful owner of the piece.
Additional statuettes made of other materials1 have come to market in the past two decades, but only the lead statuettes bear the smooth breast feathers, almond eyes and rounded tail feathers that match the falcon seen on screen during the credits and in Sam Spade’s apartment. Additionally, at least three publicity department memos of the period written by Robert S. Taplinger, Warner Bros. Director of Publicity (today part of the Warner Bros. Archive housed at USC; copies are available for review), state that the falcon used on screen was made of lead or metal. Furthermore, one of the film stills showing Greenstreet, Astor and Lorre examining the bird on the table in Spade’s apartment shows that the blotter paper on the table has ripped under the weight of the bird as it is turned, suggesting that only one of the lead versions can have been used.
The second lead falcon with a consecutive Warner Bros. inventory number (WB90066) to its rear tail feathers and underside sold at auction in 1994, and is identical to the present lot except for the damaged right tail feather. The bent tail feather of our bird, however, sets it above even its twin. One of the Taplinger memos mentions a significant incident during filming of the finale: actress Lee Patrick (as Spade’s secretary Effie, the woman who delivers the falcon to his apartment) dropped the statuette while handing it over to Bogart. Bogart pushed Patrick out of the way of the falling bird, but in so doing his own foot caught the brunt of the falcon’s weight, causing him to injure two toenails. The right tail feather of the falcon was reportedly damaged in the fall, and the damage is visible2 as Sam carries the bird out of his apartment at the end of the film (see next page for detail).
Given the exact visual match to the film, the extensive archival evidence, and the long exhibition history of WB 90067, its authenticity is beyond reproach. Long celebrated as one of the greatest pieces of movie memorabilia of all time, its appearance at auction marks a major event. This rare bird with the bent tail feather truly is—to quote Sam Spade in the final moments of the film—”the stuff that dreams are made of.”
Selected exhibition history:
France, Paris 1991-1992: Homage a la Warner Bros. exhibit at Centre Georges Pompidou, October 16, 1991 to March 5, 1992
United States, New York City 1992-1993: Warner Brothers: Behind the Shield at the Museum of Modern Art, June 4, 1992 to March 1, 1993
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Germany, Berlin 1995: Kino – Movie – Cinema: 100 Jahre Film at Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek, April 7 to July 2, 1995
United States, Burbank, CA 1996-2013: continuously on exhibition loan to Warner Bros. Studio Museum since its opening in 1996
United States, San Francisco, CA August 1, 1997: United States Postal Service release of Humphrey Bogart postage stamp
United States, Los Angeles, CA 2004: Turner Classic Movies’ In the Picture, An Exhibition at The Grove, October 4 to December 31, 2004
United States, Los Angeles April 11, 2013: Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences opening of fund drive for new Museum on the LA County Museum campus
Publication history
Adams, Leith. “From the Archives … The Maltese Falcon.” In WB Highlight (July/August 1996).
“The Dream Factory, Reborn.” Fortune Magazine (February 16, 1998), p. 106.
Broadcast history:
The History Channel, “Stones, Bones and Missing Links,” 1990
The History Channel, “History, Lost and Found,” 1999
“The Oprah Winfrey Show,” June 10, 1997
“The Connie Chung Show,” c.2002
Turner Classic Movies, “What Dreams Are Made Of,” October-November 2013
Turner Classic Movies, November 19, 2013
Estimate: refer to department.
FOOTNOTES
- 1.The most recent lightweight falcon to appear at auction is the Chekmayan resin copy, last sold in 2008, possibly used in publicity photographs with Bogart. Another commonly seen version is the “raised breast feather” bird, made of plaster or some other lightweight material and painted black. Many of these date from 1975, when Warner Bros. executive Shirley Krim commissioned a limited edition series of “raised breast feather” birds to be distributed to executives and other industry VIPs. That edition of 250 was issued with a small plaque on the pedestal identifying the bird as part of a special edition, but this plaque is often missing. None of the “raised breast feather” birds, whatever their vintage, are a visual match to the bird that appears on screen in the 1941 film.
2.The seller notes that only a statuette made of a malleable material like lead would be bent in a fall.To learn more about this film, click here.
SALEROOM NOTICES
- Clients interested in bidding on lot 225 must contact the Client Services department in advance of the auction for pre-approval. Live online bidding will not be available for this lot.
