Louisiana Movie Poster Museum
Welcome to the the Louisiana Movie Poster Virtual Museum. Since 1895 more than 3,000 movies have been made in or about Louisiana. These posters advertised a few of them. We have hundreds to add, so check back with us as we grow.
Ed and Susan Poole, renowned movie poster experts and authorities on Louisiana film history, curated this initial exhibit. It is based on the Backdrop Louisiana! exhibit that premiered in Slidell, Louisiana in January, 2020 and we’re looking forward to a post-pandemic tour. A smidgen of their knowledge can be found at Learn About Movie Posters, known worldwide as LAMP. Visit Hollywood on the Bayou for a deeper dive into Louisiana film history.
This museum is funded in part by grants from the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation and the New Orleans Entertainment Coalition.
Take a Tour – We love your stories!
Click on a poster to view larger image. Then click “i”. Post your story in Comments. We love to hear about films you remember and your experiences. It’s a highlight of our live exhibits that we hope to recreate in the virtual museum.
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Panic In The Streets
Elia Kazan was a director, producer, writer and actor, described by The New York Times as "one of the most honored and influential directors in Broadway and Hollywood history.” His first project filmed on location in New Orleans was the 1950 “cold-war-fears inspired” Panic in the Streets.
According to a Times Picayune article dated August 20, 1950, Kazan said that he chose New Orleans as the scene for the filming of Panic in the Streets because he did just what comes naturally to him. In his opinion, making a film about New Orleans could not be done anywhere else if an “honest” screen presentation was to be achieved.
The story, an original melodrama by Edward and Edna Anhalt, dealt with the pursuit of a murderer who has been exposed to a deadly and highly communicable plague. Such a circumstance never happened in New Orleans -- or anywhere -- but Kazan’s passion for honesty was satisfied by the knowledge that his story could have happened, and if it had happened in New Orleans, the events would have taken place just about the way he staged them.
The film was shot entirely on location in New Orleans. Although Kazan had three accomplished stars in Richard Widmark, Paul Douglas and Barbara Bel Geddes, he employed 111 policemen, taxi drivers, bond salesmen, teachers, housewives and persons representing a general cross section of New Orleans in speaking roles. For example, H. Walter Fowler, Jr., who plays "Mayor Murray," was a New Orleans stockbroker, and Emile Meyer, who plays "Captain Beauclyde," was a cab driver. Panic in the Streets marked the first screen appearance of Jack Palance.
In an interview, Kazan recounted an occasion which caused the best laugh of the production. An old woman in the French Quarter was chosen to order Widmark and Douglas off her premises, and, when she had some trouble with Murphy’s lines, the director urged her to “say it in your own words, mother.” She did, and the sound track was enriched by perhaps the most sulphurous expletives every recorded.
Poster: U.S. Insert