Bidding for this lot will end on Wednesday, August 26th. The auction will begin at 9:30 AM (PDT) / 12:30 PM (EDT) / 5:30 PM (GMT) and lots are sold sequentially via live auctioneer; tune in to the live streaming broadcast on auction day to follow the pace. Note other lots in the auction may close on Thursday, August 27th or Friday, August 28th or Saturday, August 29th.
"Doc" Emmett Brown’s (Christopher Lloyd) DeLorean "OUTATIME" license plate from Robert Zemeckis’ Back to the Future. Doc’s distinctive plate was mounted to the rear of his time-traveling DeLorean during the first temporal experiment conducted by Doc and Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) at Twin Pines Mall. The "OUTATIME" plate is prominently visible when Doc remotely backs the DeLorean out of his trailer and prepares to send Einstein one minute into the future.
Doc's DeLorean was the signature vehicle throughout the original Back to the Future trilogy, used in each film by Brown and Marty as they scrambled to restore the timeline. The world-famous high-tech vehicle was designed by Andrew Probert and effects consultant Michael Fink based on original concepts by time travel consultant Ron Cobb. The DeLorean underwent numerous design iterations during pre-production, including versions in which its license plate read "NOTIME," before its final approval with the "OUTATIME" plate by Zemeckis and co-writer/producer Bob Gale.
This specific plate - one of a small number made by the Universal Studios sign shop - originates from the collection of James "Jim" Passanante, a renowned Hollywood scenic artist and standby painter on the first film. During production, Passanante received this plate from prop master John Zemansky along with instructions to touch up both the plate and the DeLorean between takes to maintain visual continuity throughout filming. This entailed aging both down with Streaks-N-Tips temporary hair color spray, cleaning off unwanted grime, or spraying them with soapy water for rain scenes, such as the now-classic finale.
After filming wrapped, Passanante retained this metal plate along with memorabilia from his time on the production and is coming to auction for the first time. Designed to emulate a period California license plate, the plate features "OUTATIME" lettering hand-cut from sandblast paper, hand-painted, and applied to a white metal blank. A coat of clear acrylic paint was applied over the lettering to create the appearance of rounded, embossed characters. The front of the plate features "CALIFORNIA" with the sun logo, "AUG," "CA86," and "The Golden State" decals. Blank plates were obtained by production for the creation of the license plate, along with the decals created and applied by production.
Also included are Passanante's cardboard production crew parking placard; a rare invitation to an early cast-and-crew screening of the film at the AVCO Cinema Center on June 26, 1985; a printed crew program made by Universal for screenings and listing Passanante in the credits; and an original vintage "Official Collector's Edition" copy of Back to the Future Souvenir Magazine.
The plate shows evidence of intentional distressing by production, including liquid streaking on its front. The memorabilia also shows evidence of wear consistent with production use, handling, and age. Dimensions: (plate) 12" x 6" x 0.25" (30.5 cm x 15.25 cm x 0.75 cm)
Additional Provenance: Letter of Authenticity from Passanante.
Estimate: $25,000 - 50,000This item comes with a Propstore Certificate of Authenticity.