Collectibles: Tom Tyler and Cuentos Cinematograficos film booklets

The Cowboy Cop

One of the more elusive Tom Tyler Spanish film booklet collectibles are those published under the youth-targeted audience Cuentos Cinematograficos title, under the Biblioteca Films brand based in Barcelona, Spain. There are a total of four known booklets, three of them based on Tom’s silent films made for FBO, with the fourth being an interesting work of fiction, most likely as a marketing tactic to the public as a way of encouraging silent film patrons to view the latest cinematic exhibition.

At one point, a number of these silent film booklets were compiled and bound into a book, as with the one titled Cuentos del Cine. Interestingly enough, not all of the film books are under the Cuentos Cinematograficos title: some of the bound booklets were published under Biblioteca Infantil Cinematografica. Measuring 4 ¾” x 6 ¾” in size, the book has a brown fabric cover with Cuentos del Cine on the binding. Covers from the individual film booklets are left intact. Each cover for Cuentos Cinematograficos bears an illustration from a silent film scene in the colors red, brown, gray, black and white, with a mast across the top of each cover containing an illustration of Tom and his young pal Frankie Darro, with the words Tom Tyler, Chispita (a reference to Frankie), Vivales (a reference to Franki’s pet dog Napoleon). The three Tom Tyler silent films which appear under Cuentos Cinematograficos are: “La Fortuna del Bandido/The Masquerade Bandit”, “El Cowboy Policia/The Cowboy Cop”, and “Valor Salvaje/Cyclone of the Range”. It is worth noting that “El Cowboy Policia” was the first publication for Cuentos Cinematograficos, suggesting that Tom Tyler’s popularity would help get the new brand off the ground.

The Masquerade Bandit

Individually sold during their circulation time, these film booklets are derivatives from silent films starring the famous French actor Georges Biscot, Tom Mix, Tom Tyler, Jackie Coogan, Rin Tin Tin, Billy Sullivan, and many others. Like other issues of Cuentos Cinematograficos, instead of film stills being reproduced in the film booklets, sketches of the stills are used to illustrate the story.

Cyclone of the Range

A special edition booklet, “Una Aventura de Tom Tyler” is included, which appears to be a work of fiction, which of course includes Tom’s pal Frankie Darro from his silent film days. Unlike the regular covers designed for Cuentos Cinematograficos, this one shows a full-length shot of Tom Tyler on the cover, with some decoration in the publication name and story title. The singular noteworthy full-page sketch which is added to the story depicts Tom seated and being tied up by a group of men wearing white sheets over their heads with two holes cut out for the eyes, ghost-style. Such a story must have been an exciting treat for young fans of Tom Tyler, and like so many other ultra-rare Tom Tyler silent film collectibles, are sought after by serious collectors.

Upcoming special project for “The Cherokee Kid”

Coming up in 2024, our fourth installment of the lost Tom Tyler silent film reconstruction series, "The Cherokee Kid" (1927) with Sharon Lynn has been selected. As usual, the basis for this reconstruction will be the film's derivative published by Biblioteca Films. Existing copies of stills, promotional materials, and movie cards will be included in this project.

Once "The Cherokee Kid" is translated, it will be posted here on the Aventuras de Tom Tyler Blog plus social media pages.

Cine Aventura: Tom Tyler

Definitely one of the rarer items to come from Spain, at least in booklet format, Cine Aventura: El Valiente Tom Tyler was published by Sociedad General Española De Librería in Barcelona, Spain. This is not a film booklet in the style of Biblioteca Films per se, but is rather a brief biography of the star, along with a pulp fiction story, and an illustration of Tom fighting a bandit. The western story herein takes place during the time of President Lincoln. Thus with this addition included in the booklet, it is not quite like the more popular Tras La Pantalla published by Publicaciones Cosmos, also based in Barcelona, but rather something unique which appealed to western fans.

The booklet itself is slightly smaller compared to the size of a Biblioteca Films booklet, being 3 ¾” x 5 ¼” in size. The red and white border of the booklet is decorated with a western theme, and the still of Tom Tyler, seen with Bud Osborne on the cover, is from Tom’s 1930 silent film, “Call of the Desert”. The actual date of publication likely came after 1941 and no later than 1945 due to Tom’s list of credits including “Adventures of Captain Marvel”, which was released that year. Other booklets in this series are dedicated to the following stars: Tom Mix, Buck Jones, Ken Maynard, and Hoot Gibson. At least five issues are known in this series, although it is highly likely the series had a limited number of these small booklets, as well as limited circulation.

According to the Spanish website Sociedad General Española De Librería (SGEL), the company has been in business for over 100 years, founded in 1914 in Barcelona when its origins were in managing bookstores and publishing novels, weekly periodicals, and comics during the 1920's to 1940's. Today, SGEL is a marketing and distribution company based in Madrid.

Reading silent films: “Red Hot Hoofs” starring Tom Tyler

I am very pleased to say that the translation project of “Red Hot Hoofs” from the Biblioteca Films film booklet “Por la fuerza de los puños” is now completed and available for reading.

I encourage everyone to read the Introduction to my translation and Terms of Use before reading the actual story.

Most importantly, enjoy my translation, hopefully this will be an incentive to rediscover the actual silent film. I am hoping to add more of these film booklet translations as time permits in the near future to Aventuras de Tom Tyler.

Click here to read my translation!

Collectibles: Tom Tyler on Biblioteca Films card

Biblioteca Films, the popular Spanish-language film booklet series published by in Barcelona, Spain, also manufactured a set of collector cards bearing many Hollywood stars as well as European stars. It is unknown if these cards were distributed along with a film booklet, as in the way the British Boy’s Cinema cards were done so, or if these were made available separately for collectors of film memorabilia.

Each Biblioteca Films card is 3 3/4” x 5 3/4” in size, about the size of a postcard, but of paper-thin quality. Some of the cards in the series had an ornate border surrounding the star’s face, while others, like the Tom Tyler card, had plain, straight-edged borders. The backs were blank. Each card was monochrome in color; however, there were at least four different colors issued, with only one star per color. For example, the Tom Tyler card is antique brown in color, while the card for Aileen Pringle is red. The other two colors were black/white, and sienna. There were at least 600 cards in the series, distributed over the 1920’s and 1930’s, into the 1940’s. Each card bore the number at the upper right corner and the star’s name below the image. The number on the Tom Tyler card is 166.

Other stars who appeared on the Biblioteca Films cards are: Virginia Valli, Al Jolson, Katherine Hepburn, Douglas Fairbanks, Constance Talmadge, and Roy D'Arcy.