VHS and I - A Love Affair

While discussing some flicks tonight over Twitter, a good friend of mine sent me the following Tweet (this was after I told him that I didn't want to come over and watch a movie, simply because it wasn't on video tape) -- @mikeemedia You know me... I get nostalgia, collecting, and all that. But I do NOT for one second get the VHS thing -- Sigh . . . suffice to say, I couldn't wrap up my thoughts in 140 characters, hence, my retort, for all to hopefully enjoy, I have included below. Please join me in listing all YOUR reasons for loving VHS!

VHS and I - A Love Affair

I love collecting VHS . . .

I love collecting VHS for all the classic movies I find with Bogart, Chaplin, Cagney, Fields, Crosby and Wayne (amongst other luminaries). The film noirs, the comedies, the dramas - so many of which I've never heard of. All shot in 4:3 (pre 1954 or so) and most of which were hardly watched by their previous owner, if at all. All for - at most - $2, and most often times, around a buck a piece.

I love collecting VHS for all the great 70s crime/action movies with names I've never heard of, with cameos from people like Adam West (such as tonight's viewing selection, "Night Raiders" aka "Night of the Kickboxer"). or "Deadly Triangle" aka "Part-Time Wife" with Alex Rocco. I paid 75-cents for each of them. You cannot fail to smile watching these pre-CG movies that wanted nothing more than to give you 90-minutes of escapism and little else (including good acting in most cases - which only adds to the amusement).

I love collecting VHS for all the obscure horror like "The Spell" - a made-for-TV movie back when they still made really good TV-movies, this one reportedly a Carrie-like tale about a girl with supernatural powers. Stumbled across this at a Sally Ann the other day. I can’t wait to watch it. But speaking of Sally Ann . . .

I love collecting VHS for the unpredictability of selection and location of sale. You honestly never know what you'll find from one location to the next, and that ONE day you think, "Feh, they won't have anything new" is the very day you might miss something GLORIOUS.

I love collecting VHS because they were, at one time, so prevelant - and now, seemingly so scarce . . . and discarded.

I love collecting VHS because it takes me back to the humble beginnings of home entertainment, to the days when my cousins and I used to rent not only movies but the actual VCR (!) from the corner store, as we then tried our best to watch all five or six movies we would eagerly rent for an evening of unending Hollywood magic . . . until inevitably, one by one, we would all fall asleep during a Friday the 13th sequel at 4 o'clock in the morning.

I love collecting VHS for all the stickers you find on the used tapes, memories of shops long gone, souvenirs of stores I may (or may not) have ever visited, like a cinematic passport, stamped along the way en route to my basement.

I love collecting VHS for that moment you come across a sealed copy of a movie with a kick-ass box, and even though you have it on DVD, you JUST GOTTA HAVE IT BECAUSE IT LOOKS SO DAMN COOL.

I love collecting VHS for alternate covers, too, especially the older flicks with painted poster art or other artistically-designed jackets - back when that still meant something beyond a head shot of the big name star of the flick.

I love collecting VHS for those great openings on Lightning Video and the like, that use those really, REALLY early graphics and sound. An instant flashback to a bygone era you don't get on the DVD release of the same flick.

I love collecting VHS for all the different boxes and styles - slipcases; big boxes; bookcase; clamshell, bubble clams - I love'em all. CUT BOXES NEED NOT APPLY.

Most of all? I love collecting VHS . . . simply because I love movies.

Sure, Blu-Ray or HD-DVDs look better. Yep, DVDs are also way easier to find nowadays. And yeah, it's annoying when that tracking line goes across your tape, or, if the sound is messed up, or (heaven forbid) your machine eats your tape.

Nothing a little scotch tape, some scissors, a screwdriver and lots of patience can’t cure.

I still love collecting VHS - and when you really love something, that means forever.

How 'bout you? 

- by Mike Michalski