Avalon Ballroom 5/6-7/66

Known simply as “Euphoria,” this rare poster had a press run of less than 500 copies for both versions of the original. This is one of the toughest Family Dog posters to find in top condition and most collections contain a second or third print.

This poster advertises “An Air Conditioned Dance-Concert” and has a central image of a wildly dancing bearded man surrounded by a fern-like design. A number of copies of the Type A original poster were hand-colored by employees of the Family Dog and are highly-prized today. Since they were colored before the show under the direction of Chet Helms, they should be considered as collectible as non-colored versions.

There are two versions of the original poster, classified as Type A and Type B.

The Type A is printed on white vellum in black ink. The Union logo #72 appears in the lower left corner of the poster, under the numeral “6.” This poster measures approximately 14″ x 20″.

The Type B also measures approximately 14″ x 20″ and was printed on white vellum in black ink. It carries the same Union logo in the lower left hand corner as the Type A. This variety has the addition of green ink in the outline of “Euphoria,” the border with the dates and “Avalon Ballroom,” and the group names.

The second print poster measures approximately 14″ x 20″ and was also printed on white paper. The notation “7(2)” appears in the lower left corner and is absent the Union logo. This poster has coral-colored ink in the word “Euphoria,” and also in the fern-like design surrounding the central image.

The third print poster Measures approximately 14″ x 20″ and carries the notation “No. 7-3” in the lower right corner. This poster has the addition of green ink in the word “Euphoria,” and also in the fern-like design surrounding the central image.

Additionally, there is an unauthorized pirate print made in the early 1970s that can be identified by the “San Francisco Poster Co.” credit in the lower right hand corner. These regularly appear on eBay with a description that makes them sound like an authorized reprint.

The original handbill measures approximately 5″ x 8″ and is printed on thin white paper in black ink.