LOS ANGELES, CA.- Van Eaton Galleries, one of the world’s premiere animation and collectibles auction houses, has announced the “It Came From… Van Eaton Galleries!” auction featuring over 1,000 lots of extraordinary pop culture artifacts. Of the many rare and unusual items to be offered, nothing quite compares to the collection of vintage movie memorabilia from Linda Ondo. Ondo inherited a massive vintage sci-fi collection after the passing of her cousin, David, and was shocked to learn it was one of the greatest collections of vintage sci-fi posters ever seen in private hands. The vintage Sci-Fi posters in the collection are extremely rare and feature sought-after titles including “Forbidden Planet,” “Creature from the Black Lagoon,” “Invasion of the Saucer Men,” “War of the Worlds,” “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” and many more.

Mike Van Eaton recalls, “When Linda came in saying she inherited a vintage movie poster collection, I was hopeful that while we went over her collection together, there might be a few nice gems in it. What I didn’t expect, was she would have one of the most impressive and complete collections of vintage sci-fi posters that I have ever encountered. We have worked with many collections over the years, and this is far and above the greatest collection of 1950s-70s sci-fi posters we have seen in private hands.”

Ondo inherited the collection from her cousin, David Ichikawa. A US Army veteran and video technician, Ichikawa would spend the majority of his professional and personal life preserving cultural history captured on film. A lifelong film fan, David did the rounds of the collectibles shops on Hollywood Boulevard, befriended theater managers with the offer to take old posters off their hands, and in many cases, rescued now-classic movie memorabilia from ending up directly in theater trashcans. As a graduate of the California Institute of Art in Valencia, he turned his trained eye to curating his collection, which ultimately included examples of many of the most influential and revolutionary designs in motion picture history. The public appearance of many single items from his collection would cause a stir among collectors. For this entire body of material to emerge at once constitutes a historic event.

David and his brother started collecting at a young age, being the rare type of children that would prefer to keep their action figures pristine in the box instead of playing with them. In later years, their collecting grew primarily as a desire to keep a part of the movies they enjoyed so much with them as a memento.




In the 1970s-80s, when movies started producing action figures, toys, and posters, they would head to Hollywood stores to buy them. Every weekend, they would go to Hollywood memorabilia shops and buy toys, photographs, posters, movie props, and more.

According to Ondo, “David had all kinds of equipment related to his passions. He had a huge projector and screen and he collected 100 reels of film, like Goldfinger and Forbidden Planet. He would often play an old movie for us on the projector during family gatherings.” He passed away March 22, 2007 at a young age 59 due to ongoing health issues.

Highlights of the incredible Sci-Fi Poster Collection include “The Day the Earth Stood Still” 1-Sheet poster (Estimate: $6,000-$8,000); “War of the Worlds” 1 Sheet Poster (Estimate: $3,000-$5,000); “Creature from the Black Lagoon” 1 Sheet Poster (Estimate: $2,000-$4,000); “Forbidden Planet” Silkscreened Poster (Estimate: $7,000-$10,000); “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” 1 Sheet Poster (Estimate: $1,000-$2,000); “Invasion of the Saucer Men” (Estimate: $3,000-$5,000), and more.

“It Came From… Van Eaton Galleries!” auction event will also feature an unprecedented collection of rare toys and Disneyland memorabilia. The auction is one of the most comprehensive and historically significant auctions Van Eaton Galleries has ever offered, covering some of the greatest characters, shows, films, and theme park memorabilia of the last century. The auction includes many significant items that have never before come up for public sale.

The two-day event includes The Simpsons memorabilia from the collection of Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart Simpson, featuring personal and career memorabilia from the hit television show. Items include a custom made The Simpsons pinball machine (Estimate: $7,000-$10,000), television production cels and other items which Cartwright is selling in support of the charity The Know More About Drugs (KMAD) Alliance.

Other highlights that defined pop culture include a “River of No Return” (1954) Opening Title Board (Estimate: $3,000-$5,000); a Peter Ellenshaw “The Island at the Top of the World” Original Art (Estimate: $4,000-$6,000); Star Wars C-3PO Hand (Estimate: $1,000-$2,000); a Millennium Falcon 6 Foot Star Wars Toys R’ Us Display (Estimate: $2,000-$3,000); “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Wonka Bar Prop (Estimate: $500-$700); John Lennon Yellow Submarine Production Drawing (Estimate: $300-$500); Mighty Atom/Astro Boy Atom Patrol Police Car (Estimate: $1,500-$2,000); The Munsters Butch Patrick Opening Credits Art (Estimate: $4,000-$6,000); The Munsters Herman Munster Kite (Estimate: $3,000-$4,000); a Star Trek Pilot Master Script for “The Cage” (Estimate: $2,000-$4,000); Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs Decal Store Display (Estimate: $1,000-$1,500); Original Kem Weber Walt Disney Animator’s Desk (Estimate: $4,000-$6,000); 20,000 Leagues Complete Original Spanish Comic Book Art (Estimate: $1,000-$1,500); Thumper Disneyland Parking Lot Sign (Estimate: $3,000-$5,000) and hundreds of other lots featuring rare toys, Disneyland memorabilia and props, and items from television and film.