An authentic, vintage Johnny Cash concert poster designed to advertise tickets for his Ventura, CA concert on December 9, 1956. Yes, 1956!!

If you have some recognition of this piece, the template found on this Johnny Cash show poster – red & yellow colors, an early picture of Johnny looking up, his name nice and big in red, and a few song titles down below – was used for The Man In Black’s concerts throughout much of the 1950s-early ’60s.

What makes this Johnny Cash placard so special is that his career was only about one year old at the time of this show… he had charted his first single just 13 months prior.

This Johnny Cash boxing-style poster was printed by the Colby Poster Printing Co. on cardboard (not paper) and measures the standard 14 by 22 inches.

This Johnny Cash display advertised tickets for a show that occurred only 5 days after “the Million Dollar Quartet” (a name given to them later) came together at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee – with Johnny as one of the four.

Known in poster circles as a “tour blank,” this Johnny Cash tour poster was used for many concert dates in 1956 and perhaps ’57… with each concert’s specific ticket information printed in up at the top.

As you can see while I’m holding it, this Johnny Cash broadside is in darn good condition given its age, and this copy was restored somewhat to eliminate some of the wear & tear.

As I always do, what follows is the complete and entire text as it reads from top to bottom on this Johnny Cash concert placard:

(Red lettering in the venue info space): Sun. Dec. 9 – Moose Hall – Foster Park – Ventura – (black stripe): dance! show!

(Huge red letters): JOHNNY CASH *Grand Ole Opry Star in Person

Hear Him Sing: “I’ll [sic – should be “I”] Walk the Line,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “I Get So Doggone Lonesome” [sic – the hit 45 was just called “So Doggone Lonesome”]

(Printer’s credit at the bottom): Colby Poster Co., 1419 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles 16, Calif.

You gotta love the way three hit song titles appear at the bottom of this Johnny Cash billboard… with two of them remaining in his repertoire for the rest of his career.

In case you weren’t impressed enough, Mr. Cash is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.  Wow!

Any vintage Johnny Cash Sun Records sign is bound to be of interest to fans and collectors, given his long and storied career.

This Johnny Cash window display is discussed, dissected and raved about by veteran collector Pete Howard (pete@postercentral.com or by Ma Bell at 805-540-0020). Yep, I will pay top dollar, period for any vintage tour placard like this used to sell tickets back in the day.

Now then, to see more rare and collectable C&W concert posters from the 1950s-60s, just point yourself over to this page on my hobby Web site: http://www.postercentral.com/country.htm