TITLE: Butch and Sundance: The Early Days
YEAR OF MOVIE RELEASE: 1979
FILM STUDIO / PRODUCTION COMPANY: Twentieth Century-Fox; presented as a Pantheon–William Goldman Production
TAGLINE: “They spent their youth learning their trade and earning a reputation...”
DIRECTOR: Richard Lester
CAST: William Katt, Tom Berenger, Jeff Corey, John Schuck, Peter Weller, Brian Dennehy, Christopher Lloyd and Jill Eikenberry
PRODUCERS: Gabriel Katzka and Steven Bach
CINEMATOGRAPHY: László Kovács
SCREENPLAY: Allan Burns
MUSIC: Patrick Williams
POSTER PRINTER: Robert Burton Printers Pty. Ltd.
FORMAT: Australian One Sheet
GENRE: Western
COLLECTOR’S NOTE
Released ten years after Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, this prequel casts Tom Berenger as the younger Butch Cassidy and William Katt as the Sundance Kid. William Goldman, who wrote the earlier film, lent his name to the production, while Allan Burns wrote the screenplay.
The project grew from discussions between Goldman and producer Steven Bach about exploring the outlaws’ younger years. Its combination of Western adventure and comedy offers collectors a companion piece to the celebrated 1969 film, documenting a later return to the characters with a new leading partnership.
POSTER DESIGN FEATURES
A large sepia-toned photograph shows William Katt and Tom Berenger in Western hats and period clothing, posed together on an Old West street. The image is framed by an irregular printed edge resembling torn, curled paper, giving the composition the appearance of an aged photograph.
Yellow tagline lettering sits above the photograph against a dark background. Below, the bold black title appears on a yellow illustrated parchment banner with decorative nail-head details, echoing frontier notices and wanted posters. An orange rectangular border surrounds the design, while a white lower panel carries the film credits, NRC classification marking and Twentieth Century-Fox logo.
The combination of historical-style photography, Western lettering and parchment effects gives this Australian One Sheet a distinctly nostalgic frontier character.