Celebrate the golden age of porn with 350 orgasmic X-Rated posters

For connoisseurs of the film poster, porn cinema offers an alternative history of the 1960s and 1970s” writes Peter Doggett in his introduction to X-Rated Adult Movie Posters of the 60s and 70s, a publication that is ready to explore the sexy side of imagery and lettering in a stunning volume released this summer by Reel Art Press.

“Few people ever turned to exploitation movies in search of subtlety: the task of the X-rated graphic artist was to arouse urgent desires that could only be satisfied by a seat in the stalls. Their designs required no decoding.”

More often than not the posters were crudely printed “cut and paste” collages featuring the over-endowed regulars of the B-movie circuit. Scantily-clad forms abound suspended above screaming taglines and provocative titles, like the not-so classic Flesh Gordon, Kiss Me Mate, Hot Lunch and Oh! so many more.

Very occasionally, this formula was broken: when the soft-core masterpiece Emmanuelle was released in 1974, one of the most respected designers in the business – the original Mad Man Steve Frankfurt – was even persuaded to work on the poster campaign. Of course, such sophistication was an exception. As Peter writes, “Variations on the same glamour-mag approach – women, breasts, buttocks – were routine, with pictures and typography that often looked as if it had been thrown at the poster rather than artfully arranged.”

Gloriously retro, this wonderfully curated collection is a new and expanded celebration of Nourmand and Marsh’s original cult bestseller, X-Rated Adult Movie Posters of the 60s and 70s, released over a decade ago.

Featuring the crème de la crème of X posters, X-Rated Adult Movie Posters of the 60s and 70s features over 350 orgasmic posters, pressbooks and stills from the Golden Age of the X-rated movie – an inspiration for graphic designers and creatives alike, an invaluable time-capsule for historians, and an irresistible page-turner for everyone else.

The tome is destined to become a cult classic and is an absolute must-have. After all sex does sell since forever.

Grab your own copy here.