This is not the same store that was owned by Eric Caidin on Hollywood Blvd. nor do they have even a fraction of a percentage of the stock that was available at that shop, but the two stars are not about that.
Caidin's shop was a veritable heaven of film stills and scripts and the poster stock remained strong even as most memorabilia shops went out of business. But after Eric's death in May 2015, his family liquidated the business assets and there will probably never be a shop like the original Hollywood Book & Poster Co. that existed in various locations along Hollywood Blvd from 1977 to 2015.
This version of the shop is tucked in back of a much larger memorabilia shop (Blast from the Past) in Burbank, but utilizes a separate entrance. This stretch of Magnolia Blvd. has quite a few little collectibles shops in close proximity to each other, and I miss visiting Halloweentown and Dark Delicacies when I lived nearby. For some reason, this new Hollywood Book and Poster's website URL is www.burbankmoviememorabilia.com even though the original website seems to be available to purchase.
I called the number listed during their posted business hours, and I got no answer - but I did get an outgoing phone company message notifying me that voicemail had not been set-up. That seemed weird, since this place has been around for a few years at this point, so I redialed. Same thing happened. I then called their neighbors at Blast From the Past to ask them if Hollywood Book & Poster was still in business in back of them. They told me that Blast From the Past is in no way affiliated with Hollywood Book & Poster, but that they are indeed still in business and that they were "pretty sure" that the shop was opened right now and suggested that I call them. When I told them about my previous two attempts, they responded, "that happens all the time," and so I thanked them and dialed HBP back. On the third attempt someone picked up the phone.
He picked up the call mid-conversation with someone else, to whom he was shouting because the music playing in the shop was too loud. So I waited a moment for him to speak to me, and after a few seconds he finally said (loudly), "Hello!" with a tinge of frustration. And then, almost as an after-thought, "Hollywood Book & Poster!"
Me: "Yes, Hello. Do you still carry film trailers?"
Him: "Uh..."
Me: "the, uh... the thirty-five millimeter film trailers that run through the projectors at the theater? Usually just ahead of the feature?"
Him: "yeah...No, I don't think we have any of those right now."
While the response was indefinite, his delivery made it seem like a qualifying question was unnecessary, but I continued.
Me: "No?"
Then after a beat, "Is there someplace you could recommend that maybe deals in 35mm film trailers like the old shop on Hollywood Blvd. did?"
Him: "I don't know anybody. Maybe Ebay."
Me: "Ebay...yeah, well I, uh, also..."
He hung up.
He didn't say, "Goodbye," or anything else that would indicate that the call was over. I was in the process of speaking, so there would have been no indication from me that the call was finished.
While that is objectively a bit rude, it's also just really bad business.
He cut the call mid-sentence, not anticipating that maybe I hadn't only called about one item that he didn't "think" he had. I actually did have a few other things I was looking for (a few scripts that I knew were part of the previous HBP library, some posters, some stills). I can't imagine this shop with a mis-matched website url and with employees that don't answer the phone is doing so well that they can risk losing a potential sale but also outright alienating a customer on a first call.
I know for certain that the person with whom I spoke wasn't my old friend Scott Tisch, who used to work for Eric Caidin (and who I'm told works for this new Hollywood Book and Poster from time to time). I would guess that it wasn't the owner of the shop just based on the conversation. So maybe it's just a bad employee or someone left in charge while the owner or manager ran an errand. Unfortunately for the owner, this dude is the only representative I have for this store, and I will never call back.
How many other calls did he miss that called his competitors instead?
I didn't give a ONE STAR rating, because as a small business owner, myself, I have a bit of sympathy, but this experience warranted it.
I called Larry Edmunds Bookstore immediately afterwards, and while they, too, didn't have 35MM trailers for sale, they did have a poster and a book I wanted, and the clerk who answered the call immediately recommended three other places that might have trailers (including Hollywood Book and Poster). I would highly recommend supporting Larry Edmunds, instead.
My advice to the owner of the shop now calling itself Hollywood Book and Poster: 1. set up your voicemail or have it forwarded to your cell phone. Missed calls are money lost. 2. Get better help. read more