What's Up Superdoc

Artist: Thomas William Chantrell
Format: UK Quad (30"x 40")
Condition: Excellent
Year: 1978

Description

The British sex comedy genre was at its peak in the late 1970’s, largely thanks to how cost effective the films were to produce. British cinema was in a state of decline with many high-budget efforts failing to find sufficient demand. Due to the sparseness of available work, many well-respected comedy actors appeared in the sexploitation genre. “What’s Up Superdoc” alone featured the likes of Harry H Corbett, Bill Pertwee, Hughie Green and Melvyn Hayes. At a time when the British populace was shielded from hardcore porn, these vehicles of titillation proved very popular.

 

As has been evidenced elsewhere on this site, Tom Chantrell had a particular knack for illustrating and designing posters for the British sexploitation films of the 1970’s. Chantrell’s tongue-in-cheek humour coupled with his charming artwork turned what could well have ended up as offensive smut into genuinely fun and creative posters. “What’s Up Superdoc” remains one of his best sexploitation posters and is now regarded as one of the most collectable of the genre.

 

Maintaining continuity with his design for “What’s Up Nurse” (pictured below courtesy of www.moviepostermem.com), a cheeky ‘rising’ temperature chart features on the background for the poster whilst playful and risqué images of semi-naked women and other hijinks populate the foreground. Though undeniably racy, Chantrell’s spirited, breezy designs are what have made his posters in this category so attractive and collectable today.