Only 80's Kids Will Remember!

[Bill]

https://media.patriots.win/post/5bV1moB7gXge.jpeg

Redbox, then Netflix, eventually killed Blockbuster. And now, for the price of an internet connection, I can stream literally thousands of movies and shows on demand.

Friggen' millenials don't remember a time when you actually had to drive to the video store, select a movie, rent, rewind, then return the next day. They don't know what hard work actually is.


Discuss.

[m and t's77]

Or joining the local video store because they was no "back room" at Blockbuster.:leaving:

[Aerovette]

I remember that if you tried to get anything decent on a Friday or Saturday night you were SOL.
I remember that I now own many Blockbuster movies because i neglected to return them and they charged me for them.
I remember they all smelled like popcorn and carpet glue.
I watched a lot of the 24 / Jack Bauer series on DVDs from BB.
I remember my wife and I would venture behind the "curtain" in the local video store before she stopped being any fun at all.
I remember renting a certain number and getting a free rental.
Midnight movie returns in the after hours return slot.

[Bruze]

I remember when there were only two channels, both B&W, and no remote controls.

Now, with only an internet connection and a $50 Roku stick I get thousands of movies, old sitcoms, documentaries, music, ALL FREE.

Plus 20 or so hi-def OTA channels all FREE.

[TheHammer]

Look what I found;

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/640x480q70/923/A9SgTl.jpg

[Bill]

Look what I found;

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/640x480q70/923/A9SgTl.jpg

Sir, you have a late fee of $ 54,229.34 on Porkys II. Would you like to take care of that today?

[GTOguy]

I remember when there were only two channels, both B&W, and no remote controls.

Now, with only an internet connection and a $50 Roku stick I get thousands of movies, old sitcoms, documentaries, music, ALL FREE.

Plus 20 or so hi-def OTA channels all FREE.

As a 60's kid, we had the 3 networks and black and white television. UHF (channel 44) came in about 1966, the same year many series' went color. We would all go across the street to the neighbors house to watch Star Trek and I Dream of Jeannie in color on their huge 24" RCA console.

By the '80's I was already firmly intrenched in the rut of making a living. Childhood was far, far back in the rear-view mirror.

[CurtP]

,

[Onebadcad]

I remember on Friday and Saturday evenings the store was packed shoulder to shoulder, they had 30+ tapes for the new releases, BUT they were usually all gone by early evening.

Many people would hang out by the front counter hoping someone was returning the new release movie they wanted.

I believe blockbuster in their prime had greater revenues than the next 100 competitors combined.

[Yadkin]

When Netflix started it was DVDs by mail.

[Yadkin]

I remember when there were only two channels, both B&W, and no remote controls.

Now, with only an internet connection and a $50 Roku stick I get thousands of movies, old sitcoms, documentaries, music, ALL FREE.

Plus 20 or so hi-def OTA channels all FREE.

Metro Boston we had the three networks and PBS: 2, 4, 5 and 7.

Then tune to UHF and we got channels 38 and 56. Channel 38 had Bruins games on it. Channel 56 was re-runs of old TV shows: The Three Stooges was on every afternoon after school.

Our first "colored" TV was a massive 19-inch "portable".

The rich folk had the big console TV's, and the ballers had them with remotes. :seasix:

[Louie Detroit]

I would go to places that rented Laserdisc movies, they were free of copy protection and provided a higher S-VHS resolution as opposed to lower VHS video and sound quality. I still have a copy of Disney’s Song of the South I burned to DVD. Good luck finding that these days, it seems Brer Rabbit is considered racist these days.

[Aerovette]

As a 60's kid, we had the 3 networks and black and white television. UHF (channel 44) came in about 1966, the same year many series' went color. We would all go across the street to the neighbors house to watch Star Trek and I Dream of Jeannie in color on their huge 24" RCA console.

By the '80's I was already firmly intrenched in the rut of making a living. Childhood was far, far back in the rear-view mirror.

This sparks memories.

We had one of those deluxe color TV/Stereo/record player combo things. My mom recently found the receipt for it. I think it was from 1967 or so. They paid around $700.00 for it. That's insane money back then when you consider a new car was around $3500.00.

I remember a few years later my dad behind the TV with a mirror propped up against the coffee table, swapping tubes and checking the picture in the mirror.

I remember trips to the drug store to test the tubes and my parents always hoping it was a $7.00 tube and not a $25.00 tube.

I remember having a rotating roof antenna and pushing the button to make it turn to get certain channels. I remember trying to watch my TV in my room and sometimes having to choose between a crappy picture and good sound, or crappy sound and a good picture.

My dad had a reel to reel tape recorder and I remember leaving the house as a kid in about 1969 and my dad saying " I wish there was a way to record a show like sound so I wouldn't miss any shows while we're gone".

[The_Dude]

I remember renting VCR players along with the tapes.

[bsmith]

never had a big franchise store in town, but we did have a locally owned joint.
The main employee was amazing.

He knew what you had already watched and liked and could make recommendations for you.
95% of the time he was right.

I do miss that guy. :lol:

[Aerovette]

I would go to places that rented Laserdisc movies, they were free of copy protection and provided a higher S-VHS resolution as opposed to lower VHS video and sound quality. I still have a copy of Disney’s Song of the South I burned to DVD. Good luck finding that these days, it seems Brer Rabbit is considered racist these days.

I ended up buying a copy of the movie on the internet. It came from the UK. I haven't watched it yet. I'm sure it's pirated and who knows what quality it is.

It was a harmless movie but of course libs have to wreck everything. I am amazed Gone With the Wind has survived.

[Onebadcad]

How about this for nostalgia:

https://www.nj.com/resizer/l5vUruHCc5hS--pjQ2fMmnJyveQ=/1280x0/smart/advancelocal-adapter-image-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/image.nj.com/home/njo-media/width2048/img/parenting_guest_bloggers/photo/jerroldremotecontroljpg-1f0aa27d5a2292e8.jpg

[Louie Detroit]

I ended up buying a copy of the movie on the internet. It came from the UK. I haven't watched it yet. I'm sure it's pirated and who knows what quality it is.

It was a harmless movie but of course libs have to wreck everything. I am amazed Gone With the Wind has survived.

Just hope it is in NTSC and not PAL.

[GTOguy]

I remember renting VCR players along with the tapes.


In about 1989 or so, my stepbrother and I were in Durango Colorado on a road trip though the Southwest, and he insisted I see the movie Blue Velvet, with Dennis Hopper. We got a cheap hotel room in a 1940's motel, rented a VCR from a video place down the block, got some take-out Mexican and a 12 pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon and had a great evening. I soon found our why my brother insisted on PBR and no other beer. Good times. No internet, just old fashioned fun.

[Onebadcad]

Anyone remember having one of these nearby:

https://charleschips.com/cdn/shop/products/WAFFLESITE_900x.jpg?v=1672865806

While watching one of these:

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/RvUAAOSwt59hp86u/s-l1200.jpg

[Louie Detroit]

Anyone remember having one of these nearby:

https://charleschips.com/cdn/shop/products/WAFFLESITE_900x.jpg?v=1672865806




Currently have one under my bed filled with odds and sods.

[Louie Detroit]

Right before Blockbuster went tits up they tried to compete with Netflix by renting out DVD’s for a subscription. Since there was a store close by I would check out 3 movies at a time and clone them on the computer with software that cracked the copy protection and return them. Rinse and repeat over and over again and I built a large movie collection for the price of a months subscription.

I was ****ing Hollywood before it became fashionable :kick:

DVD Shrink came in handy.

[simpleman68]

Currently have one under my bed filled with odds and sods.

https://i.redd.it/jy1rbpzw1f351.jpg

[Mick]

As a 60's kid, we had the 3 networks and black and white television. UHF (channel 44) came in about 1966, the same year many series' went color. We would all go across the street to the neighbors house to watch Star Trek and I Dream of Jeannie in color on their huge 24" RCA console.

By the '80's I was already firmly intrenched in the rut of making a living. Childhood was far, far back in the rear-view mirror.

I was a kid in the Philly area in the late '60s and early '70s, and we got 7 channels. NBC - 3, ABC - 6, CBS - 10, public TV - 12, and three UHF channels, 17, 29, and 48. My first college girlfriend was from Dushore PA, where with a regular antenna, they got zero channels. 3-4 families that lived near each other split the cost of a HUGE antenna, so they got one channel from Scranton, and one from Wilkes-Barre. We were livin' large and I didn't even know!

[Don Rickles]

No more Disco!:dance:

GTO probably had those super high heels, polyester bell bottom pants and high collared Paisley shirts......:yesnod:

Might still be in his closet?

[PLRX]

I remember going to the mon & pop video VHS store and asking for the under-the-counter material, "Do you haver any monster movies?" That meant, "Do you have porn?"

Regarding Blockbuster, who was not a member?

[Jughead]

80's & 90's = good times

[Aerovette]

No more Disco!:dance:

GTO probably had those super high heels, polyester bell bottom pants and high collared Paisley shirts......:yesnod:

Might still be in his closet?

I did. I would only buy pants if the bells were big enough to cover my shoes. :Jeff '79:

[PLRX]

80's & 90's = good times

It was, and we can prove it: most stores and terrestrial radio play 80's hits music.

[kingpin]

I would go to places that rented Laserdisc movies, they were free of copy protection and provided a higher S-VHS resolution as opposed to lower VHS video and sound quality. I still have a copy of Disney’s Song of the South I burned to DVD. Good luck finding that these days, it seems Brer Rabbit is considered racist these days.

Got that plus a few thousand more. :D

[LATB]

Regarding Blockbuster, who was not a member?

I have never been in a Blockbuster store.

[PLRX]

I have never been in a Blockbuster store.

You only listen to AM radio.

[Bruze]

I remember on Friday and Saturday evenings the store was packed shoulder to shoulder, they had 30+ tapes for the new releases, BUT they were usually all gone by early evening.

Many people would hang out by the front counter hoping someone was returning the new release movie they wanted.

I believe blockbuster in their prime had greater revenues than the next 100 competitors combined.

No Blockbuster in the nearest hick-town, but we did have a privately owned rental place. On a rainy Saturday afternoon it was the place to go; this was mid-late '80s for VHS tapes, no DVDs yet.

I remember a YOOGE poster they had in the front window with a set of legs that would snap your head around -- it was an ad for Julia Roberts in "Pretty Woman" which would have been in 1990. I watched it for probably the third time about a year ago -- great flick.

https://evoke.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/PW-poster-final.jpg


And Yadkin: Yes I remember the first Netflix: Crazy Lori, who moved in with me in the summer of '06 had a sub and got the DVDs via mail. That was the first I'd heard of it.

[Aerovette]

Trivia fact: The legs in that poster are NOT Julia Robert's legs. They used a body double.

[Bruze]

I remember renting VCR players along with the tapes.

I bought my first video player in 1983 -- A Zenith Beta tape machine for $500.

I used to record movies and pause during the commercials, ended up with a whole library of ad-free movies. I think I threw them all out years ago.

[Bill]

I have never been in a Blockbuster store.

I never had a "Member's Only" jacket.

[TheHammer]

Anyone remember having one of these nearby:

https://charleschips.com/cdn/shop/products/WAFFLESITE_900x.jpg?v=1672865806

Still making them today.

https://charleschips.com/

[Bruze]

Trivia fact: The legs in that poster are NOT Julia Robert's legs. They used a body double.

Doesn't matter to me. She looked great in the movie. :yesnod:

[Vandelay Industries]

How about this for nostalgia:

https://www.nj.com/resizer/l5vUruHCc5hS--pjQ2fMmnJyveQ=/1280x0/smart/advancelocal-adapter-image-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/image.nj.com/home/njo-media/width2048/img/parenting_guest_bloggers/photo/jerroldremotecontroljpg-1f0aa27d5a2292e8.jpg

For us, 14 was HBO, 16 was Cinemax. If you wedged a dime in next to the button you could usually find a clear enough picture to see boobs watch the movie.

:yesnod:

[Aerovette]

I bought my first video player in 1983 -- A Zenith Beta tape machine for $500.

I used to record movies and pause during the commercials, ended up with a whole library of ad-free movies. I think I threw them all out years ago.

My first VCR was this RCA two piece jobber. Half of it disconnected from the base and had a shoulder strap to carry it and then a camera connected to that half for video recording. The other half (the tuner) stayed on top of the TV. I paid 500 bucks for it if I recall, and I got the movie "Footloose" free with the purchase.

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/1VQAAOSwGjZkK38v/s-l1600.jpg

[Don Rickles]

These are a huge hit with the current rug rats running around here!

[Aerovette]

These are a huge hit with the current rug rats running around here!

That Snow White is most likely a collector's item now.

[Burro (He/Haw)]

I wasn’t a kid in the 80s. I’m out. :D

[Bill]

I wasn’t a kid in the 80s. I’m out. :D

Thanks for stopping by!

https://j.gifs.com/Kel9Ap.gif

[VITE1]

As a 60's kid, we had the 3 networks and black and white television. UHF (channel 44) came in about 1966, the same year many series' went color. We would all go across the street to the neighbors house to watch Star Trek and I Dream of Jeannie in color on their huge 24" RCA console.

By the '80's I was already firmly intrenched in the rut of making a living. Childhood was far, far back in the rear-view mirror.

:iagree:
I went to a tech meeting back in 1994 at an AT&T facility. I spoke with dozens of management and tech guys. They knew that data transfer rates were going to massively increase ( Moore's laws)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moore's_law

[sublime1996525]

I'm a ****ing Millennial and I remember those things.

[Don Rickles]

That Snow White is most likely a collector's item now.

So am I…..

[Frankie the Fink]

Ha! Back when TVs were real wooden furniture and status symbols - we had a Magnavox as long as a couch - and yeah 2 UHF channels, 3 VHF channels and 2 genders..

[Bruze]

For us, 14 was HBO, 16 was Cinemax. If you wedged a dime in next to the button you could usually find a clear enough picture to see boobs watch the movie.

:yesnod:

So that's a cable thingy I assume . . . ? Never had cable so not sure. :shrug:

[Bruze]

That Snow White is most likely a collector's item now.

Didn't Disney turn her into a trans-lesbian homo or something recently?

https://i.imgur.com/6NdWTxX.gif

[donuts]

Our little video shop back in early 80’s also had a tanning bed. I remember still renting movies in year 2000 through 2005 or so, then went to the mail subscription through Netflix.

What’s funny is my kids hardly have enough time to pull up a movie on smart tv before getting upset .. buncha pussies

[Louie Detroit]

Didn't Disney turn her into a trans-lesbian homo or something recently?

https://i.imgur.com/6NdWTxX.gif

They’ve pretty much ditched the dwarfs for a more diverse crowd. Peter Dinklage from the game of thrones climbed the step stool of success, and then kicked it out from under all the other dwarf actors looking for successful movie roles.

[GTOguy]

We had UHF channel 52 that broadcast all the Japanese cartoons.
I would go to my friends house after school every day and watch ‘Speed Racer’



Those satisfactions are permanent

I rushed home from school each day to watch Speed Racer on UHF channel 44.
The Mach 5, Racer X, Snake Oiler......priceless. Super Chicken was also kick-ass.

[Bruze]

They’ve pretty much ditched the dwarfs for a more diverse crowd. Peter Dinklage from the game of thrones climbed the step stool of success, and then kicked it out from under all the other dwarf actors looking for successful movie roles.

https://www.thevettebarn.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=84316&stc=1&d=1689806799


I'm too old, don't know anything about any of those peeps. :(

[Vandelay Industries]

So that's a cable thingy I assume . . . ? Never had cable so not sure. :shrug:

If those channels were scrambled, you could often play with the button to get a clear-ish picture. The dime would build the button in place.

:dance:

[Louie Detroit]

I'm too old, don't know anything about any of those peeps. :(

I just know snow white isn’t so much anymore.

[Bruze]

Speaking of old stuff, I remember being at the neighbor kid's house and watching Route 66 and Dragnet, lol.

I thought: "How cool, just drive around in a Vette, meet new chicks in each town, never worry about gas money . . . maybe I'll do that when I get old enough."

I could actually do that now but I don't want to. :shrug:

[JRD77VET]

I was a kid in the Philly area in the late '60s and early '70s, and we got 7 channels. NBC - 3, ABC - 6, CBS - 10, public TV - 12, and three UHF channels, 17, 29, and 48. My first college girlfriend was from Dushore PA, where with a regular antenna, they got zero channels. 3-4 families that lived near each other split the cost of a HUGE antenna, so they got one channel from Scranton, and one from Wilkes-Barre. We were livin' large and I didn't even know!

:iagree:

and I was dad's remote :rofl:

Fall of 1980 I had a good job (Union Ironworker) and I went to Lansdale to the TV store to check out used console TV's. $125 ( ten hours of wages before taxes) got me a good 25" color console TV that lasted a good long time.

Hatfield had a block buster style store that had a good selection of VHS tapes. Had a Zenith VHS player

[Bruze]

:iagree:

and I was dad's remote :rofl:

Fall of 1980 I had a good job (Union Ironworker) and I went to Lansdale to the TV store to check out used console TV's. $125 ( ten hours of wages before taxes) got me a good 25" color console TV that lasted a good long time.

Hatfield had a block buster style store that had a good selection of VHS tapes. Had a Zenith VHS player

I got married the first time on New Year's Day 1972. We bought a 19" B&W portable, it was about $120. I was a 4th-year toolmaker apprentice and that was more than one week's paycheck.

We were in an apartment complex, no cable, rabbit ears only and the reception was HORRIBLE. Constantly ****ing with the rabbit ears to minimize ghosts, rolling picture, etc. Switch channels (there were only 3) and you'd have to do it all over again.

[Yadkin]

I rushed home from school each day to watch Speed Racer on UHF channel 44.
The Mach 5, Racer X, Snake Oiler......priceless. Super Chicken was also kick-ass.

Speed Racer came on just before dinner time, so I could only watch the first half. "I'll eat later" didn't fly with my mom or dad.:(

[Yadkin]

I got married the first time on New Year's Day 1972. We bought a 19" B&W portable, it was about $120. I was a 4th-year toolmaker apprentice and that was more than one week's paycheck.

We were in an apartment complex, no cable, rabbit ears only and the reception was HORRIBLE. Constantly ****ing with the rabbit ears to minimize ghosts, rolling picture, etc. Switch channels (there were only 3) and you'd have to do it all over again.

For Baby Doll and my first apartment, my BIL gave me a 15" color portable that didn't work. The local repair guy cost me $75 and gave a six week guarantee. It worked for seven then quit entirely. I swore of TV for several years, until we could afford our first house.