NJ collector Ralph DeLuca outbids heavy hitters, pays $1.2M for Metropolis poster group in courtroom A courtroom is probably not the first place one thinks of when searching for rare movie posters, but that’s where NJ collector Ralph DeLuca made the score of a lifetime – a 1927 Metropolis poster.
website. Consequently, Mannheim asked the Bankruptcy Court to convert Schacter’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, stating he believed Schacter was concealing assets. The Court sided with Mannheim and re-categorized the bankruptcy as a Chapter 7, thereby forcing Schacter to liquidate his assets. Shortly thereafter, Bankruptcy Trustee John J. Menchaca stepped in to take possession of the Metropolis poster and other items.
When Ralph DeLuca learned of the seizure, he hired a Los Angeles bankruptcy attorney to investigate his options as a potential purchaser. DeLuca’s attorney informed him that it would be possible to present an offer to the trustee.
“Ordinarily in an arrangement of that type, a person making an offer puts up 25 percent and shows proof of funds for the remaining 75 percent. I immediately put up the full $700,000 I was offering, in the form of a cashier’s check. The trustee felt it was a good deal.”
Ultimately, Trustee Menchaca decided to liquidate the posters through a courtroom auction, with DeLuca’s privately tendered bid serving as the opener.
While reselling the Metropolis poster is an option, DeLuca said he is not in a hurry to part with his most valuable artwork.
“Eventually if I get the right price for it, I’ll sell it, and when I do, it will be for a world-record price,” he said.
To contact Ralph DeLuca, call 800-392-4050. Online: www.RalphDeLuca.com
