Nice pic Carlo. Isn't that the ESB poster promo faceplate? The one owned by a member here? You said ANH promo, so wasn't sure that's what you meant.

Hope you don't mind:

Hi Pete,

Sure. no probs.
I was told by Brandon Allinger that it is the Baker ANH Promo faceplate not the MP ESB Vader.

Ahh, yes ok. They are different, I couldn't remember what the other one looked like and the break across the left tusk tube made me think it was the ESB promo helmet.

BTW email sent.

Ok, sorry got you wrong mate

Ok, so to resume this interview.

They say that the book is a kind of first invotory of the collection (those that mean that more is comming??).

Arnaud Grunberg say that he started his collection when he was 11 years old, just after seeing Star Wars in theatre. He started with small objects (11 years old, I guess that he didn't get the ANH face mask at this time ^^).
Years later, he got the Aliens eggs. And there is the beginning. As he say, with chance and good contacts, he started his impressive collection.

Patrice Girod works with Arnaud since 6 years now. Around 400 costumes seems to be referenced.

They talk about Luke's hand. He got it from Stuart Freeborn.

Apparently, they really really wants to create a big Sci Fi museum in important city (Paris for exemple or another big city in France).

Then come the question about the two originals Vader's facemask. Journalist insist on the fact that nobody knows were it was.

Arnaud answer that he got it around 25 years ago in England from a member crew who worked on the movie and kept it as a souvenir and for moulding it in order to create the helmets from ESB. He say that it was used by children for playing and costuming (christmas season). Arnaud finish on the fact that the facemask have been rescue because not so far to be trashed :-/

And finally, the journalist call for guys who have a serious project to offer to Patrice Girod and Arnaud Grunberg and say that both will study and answer to serious "offers" of creating a museum.

Sorry for my poor english, but this is the main lines.

Used by children for playing around christmas

Thanks a ton for the translation, Nairod

Piece by piece, more information comes to light. It's like a jigsaw puzzle, the more pieces you have the better idea of what the whole picture might look like.

And for those of you who are still on the fence about buying the book...

...here's a little preview



It's worth every penny!

Mhh... if this helmet above is from the Rick Baker mould as i understand, it might be the reason why Gino claimed there isn't a C scar in the mould and so also not in the cast efx did on there helmet?
As i don't see any C scar markings on that pic, too.

Just to get it right.

that helmet above is the screen used ANH which most certainly does have the C-Scar

The C-scar is on the screen used ANH but not on the Baker ANH promo faceplate.

Thank-you so much for this translation, Nairod.

I'm curious then if the crew member knows whether it was used for molding again for ESB? If it was kept for that was it then used for that? It seems that way and that would be the "UK mold".

But which crew member? It is so weird that the story of the kids playing with the mask is so familiar to me. I think Paul Harrison told me that. I wonder if Norman knows the crew member? I could ask Paul I guess.

But 25 years ago????? 1991????? So then a crew member had the mask for 14 years.

It is excellent they plan a museum for all to see it.

The RB mold absolutely has the C scar markings on it. It was shown very vividly in the past, but continues to be ignored. We also don't know if RB sanded down the faceplates after they were cast, but even if he didn't paint will hide a lot if applied thick enough. For example, with the amount of detail shown on the raw TM, do you see any of it here?

Funny, I still have that table... ;)

Almost every surface detail on that faceplate was hidden under batches of bondo, a thick coat of primer, black and gunmetal paint in several layers.

Along with "chance and good contacts," Grunberg's best advantage was likely that he is the heir and chairman of his late father's Ludendo chain toy store fortune. (founded 1977, 350 stores, €700 million euro annual sales) So the mask returns to the UK from the USA and a crew member "kept it as a souvenir" and then sold it to Grunberg. The question remains- what entity is the original owner and does that original entity technically still own it? As a significant symbol of American and British cultural heritage worth perhaps $1 million, an investigation of provenance and legal ownership is critical.