Customer profile
What was the name of your video store?
Video ETC
Where was the store located?
Enterprise, Alabama (United States)
When did you start shopping at this store?
1984
Describe your video store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
This was the first video tape rental store in my hometown. It started out as an electronics and camera store, then expanded into videos. There was one short wall of tapes on one side; the rest of the store was video hardware. Maybe 200 tapes, tops. Rental rates started at $8 a night, then dropped to about $4 by the time the store folded (call it late 1985, early 1986).
What were the employees and/or owners like, and what kinds of interactions
did you have with them? What particularly memorable exchanges or events
do you remember?
The guy who worked in the store most of the time (I wish I could recall his name, but this was 20 years ago) was very friendly to everybody, particularly the kids (which definitely included me). He was happy to talk movies and electronics, and he was pretty prescient about the future of home video.
What other services/products did the store offer besides the rental or sale
of videos? Did this change over time?
See above. I believe they did dedicate the store more to videos and less to hardware over time.
What video formats did the store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
VHS and a few Beta tapes. They were all on the same wall.
In addition to mainstream Hollywood movies, what other kinds of videotapes
(for example children's, exercise, or X-rated) did the store rent/sell? Where were these
videos found in the store, and how often did you rent or purchase them?
Nothing x-rated (this was a small town in south Alabama). I don't recall any other genres other than movies.
Did you tend to rent or buy videos? Why?
RENT! Movies were priced at $80 and up back then; even the real crap. I think "Star Trek II" was the first really affordable movie, at around $30.
During the period that you shopped at this store, what changes did you see?
See above. More emphasis on software, less on hardware.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
Best of my memory, the store closed around late 1985 or early 1986. I suspect they weren't selling enough hardware. By that time, Movie Gallery had moved in right around the corner (large shopping strip), and there were a number of mom and pop video stores that had opened up by then. I remember one of them was in the back of the Curtis Mathes television store (also long-gone by now, of course). Blockbuster didn't show up until (I'm guessing) around 1988-89.
In your own words, tell the story of your first VCR/video player. Where
and when did you buy it, and why did you decide to make the purchase?
My folks bought an RCA two-piece unit to go with a gigantic (by today's standards) camera. It had a wired remote control. I remember thinking how cool it was thay I could watch "Star Wars" (we had a bootleg copy from the original theatrical release) on the one-inch B/W viewfinder of the camera (you had to carry around half the VCR on a strap to film anything on the fly).
Did you ever rent a VCR or other hardware (a camera, for instance)? If so,
how often and why?
Don't recall renting any hardware in those days. Might have rented a VCP at the beach once.