First wave of The Dark Knight Rises props hits ebay #TDKR

Pittsburgh is standing in for Gotham City in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises,and  the first wave of props and set dressing has begun to appear on ebay.  So far the Pittsburghers lucky enough to be extras are at a disadvantage from their Chicago counterparts on The Dark Knight.  They were passengers on the ferry and had logo’d Gotham City Transit tickets and schedules.

The Gotham Rogues version of The Steelers "Terrible Towel"

The Pittsburgh extras at Heinz Field last weekend were portraying fans of the hometown Gotham Rogues. They were given towels to wave, analagous to the Steelers own “Terrible Towel,” but alas the towels do not have any type of logo. At least one seller includes his set pass for authenticity.

Another enterprising Pittsburgher has collected some of the snow scattered as set dressing on the downtown streets.

Batman fans wanting a more identifiable piece of Gotham City more than an authentic movie prop should keep their eyes open.  The Dark Knight viral produced The Gotham Times newspaper, Wayne Industries Bearer Bonds, and Gotham Pizza pizza boxes.  Most command high prices the first time they appear, and then settle in the $10-20 range, so unless you really have to have it, sit tight.

Batman at Comic Con: The Dark Knight Viral Remembered

The trick with Comic-Con, as Warner Bros. learned the hard way with “Batman Begins,” is that the rabid audience thinks they’re entitled to see exclusive footage first, and they get nasty when the filmmakers don’t deliver.

The reality Comic-Con attendees and comic book fans in general never want to acknowledge is that they are a tiny minority of the movie-going public and their demands cannot supercede opportunities like the one Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II presented this past week, for Warner Bros to release the first teaser trailer to a world-wide audience on the biggest movie-event of the year.

The situation was similar in 2007 when the second Nolan installment The Dark Knight was filming and there was no new footage to launch at Comic Con.  Instead, Nolan and Warner Bros devised an ingenious scavenger hunt kicking off the TDK viral Part 1:  Why So Serious focusing on the Joker, while keeping Harvey Dent in reserve for a second viral closer to the movie’s opening.

It all started at whysoserious.com, the movie’s viral marketing site, with a scavenger-hunt challenge that would require fans on the ground to partner up with friends online to unlock an exclusive Joker photo (seen here) and teaser trailer.

July 26, 2007 – At the San Diego Comic-Con, “Jokerized” $1 bills are found that lead to Whysoserious.com, a page advertising for jobs as Joker henchmen. The page includes coordinates to a location near the convention center and a countdown clock set to go off the next morning at 10am.

Batman at Comic-Con Launch of the Dark Knight Viral Scavenger Hunt

Batman at Comic Con Launch of the Dark Knight Viral First Look at Joker

July 27, 2007 – Hundreds gather at the time and place listed on Whysoserious.com. At 10am, a phone number is written in the sky, launching the game. Collaborating with friends online, the assembled crowd (now wearing Joker face paint) is sent on a scavenger hunt throughout the city. After solving all the clues, a fan was selected to be abducted and killed in place of the Joker. The participants at San Diego were given clown masks as a reward, while online players were rewarded with the first teaser trailer for The Dark Knight.

July 30, 2007 – Whysoserious.com is shut down and replaced with Rent-a-clown.com, a clown rental company whose “employees” are the fans from Whysoserious.com. The page contains the message “made you look” hidden in its source code.

See Related:
The Epic Conclusion to the Dark Knight Legend
Different company doing The Dark Knight Rises viral