Fall 2007
40 pages half-legal
VHS R.I.P.
This issue couldn’t have come out at a better time. ESR? Timely? Who knew? In 2006, Variety began an article with the statement, “VHS, 30. dies of loneliness”, continuing with a snarky postmortem on the half-inch videotape.
It all began as a joke over lunch between Dave Faris and myself—“Hey let’s do an issue of ESR all about VHS, and we’ll call it VHS RIP!” When I put out the call for submissions, the response was overwhelming and incredibly enthusiastic. This edition features our record number of contributors for one issue, perhaps surpassing those for one copy of Cine-Action… and maybe even Cinema Sewer.
While the title of this issue may sound a bit sarcastic, the content is anything but. If not already born into a household which already had the convenience of home video, all of the writers otherwise remember when VHS completely revolutionized their lives, flowering -perhaps fittingly- right around when they hit puberty.
Bottom Feeders for Uncle Fuzzy!
JC Culp encounters VHS bliss at Mizener’s Flea Market.
I’ve Never Made Love in Technicolor
Will Sloan remembers child rearing via cheap PD VHS tapes.
The Interglobal Story: Now Playing at a Department Store Near You
Toronto’s own beloved Interglobal Video label, who flourished in supermarkets and department stores.
My Home Video Story
Simon St. Laurent remembers VHS, and growing up in Barrie.
VHS: Instrument of Evil
Brian Random’s essay on how movies have portrayed videotape.
VHS Board Games
Skot Deeming remembers Clue and beyond!
Analog to Analog, Dust to Dust?
Jason Pankoke picks up choice titles at That’s Rentertainment’s VHS liquidation sale.
Do It K-Tel’s Way: K-Tel’s Entry and Exit into the Home Video Market
Dion Conflict’s dive into the famed record company’s short-lived attempt in the VHS world.
Music on Video: The Music Film Comes Home
David Faris offers a look into the VHS-only world of music films.
The Rise and Fall of Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future
Skot Deeming recounts how VHS interacted with your action figures.
It Came from Nevada (or, Paragon: A Love Story)
Sometimes the medium is the message, as seen in this love letter to the lo-fi, otherworldly offerings from Paragon.
The Back Page
Several of our writers reveal the contents of randomly picked unmarked tapes in their collections.
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