Customer profile
What was the name of your video store?
C&C Video
Where was the store located?
Morristown, Tennessee (United States)
When did you start shopping at this store?
1985
Describe your video store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
In the beginning C&C was in a smaller building, and the shack-like state was disconcerting. Small aisles made browsing uncomfortable at best, and their small selection of video games (I was 6-7 at the time), was all I was interested in. This little section was decrepit and small, metal tokens (with a hole in the middle so they could hang off a penny nail beneath the game/movie) were used to rent the movies with. Later on the mom and pop shop moved into a larger location, with more room to breathe and a much better selection ("Movin on up..."). They did good business but at some point (around 1990), the mom and pop were divorced and the store was sold off to a local chain (whose name escapes me) and one of the employees there went off to begin a store of his own. I shopped at the latter store for a few years, before moving on from video stores entirely (got a job and responsibilties keeping me from using them).
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?
A Mom and pop ran C&C, though I can't remember exactly what it stood for. Most of my extended conversations (beyond the average "This is how much its going to cost to rent these videos/games" exchanges) had to do with late fees. Considering my age, they were generally pretty lenient with me and more than once I can recall them holding video games for me when their policy strictly states that they do not do such things. In the case of Super Mario Bros. 3 (the best selling video game of all time, ever) came out, they had one copy and I begged and pleaded and the mom took pity on me and one day after coming into the store and heartbroken that it wasn't there, she revealed it from behind the counter much to my delight. This is my last clear memory of the store before it was sold off.
What other services/products did the store offer besides the rental or sale
of videos? Did this change over time?
Videos only at the beginning, with no adult. Later on adult videos came into the picture (behind the Elusive Curtain), but nothing beyond that. No tanning beds, et al.
What video formats did the store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
In the very beginning, Beta was almost keeping up wiht VHS (though it was losing, even back then), and I clearly remember seeing The Love Bug in Betamax on the shelf and upset that they didn't have it on VHS (I was little, take pity). Laserdisc never entered the picture in a small East Tennessee town, though I do recall a few behind the counter, two or three at best.
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?
Once C&C got into a larger building, they began to get the Other Videos, such as Wrestling and Exercise tapes. Adult videos came into the picture as well. I rented a few of the Wrestling tapes (Wrestlemania X, etc) for awhile until I got tired of the sport. Never rented the Adult kind (too young at the time) nor Exercise.
Did you tend to rent or buy videos? Why?
Blockbuster. Simply because they've got the selection when I'm in a pinch (normally I'll just buy the movies I look for), and because they are convenient. Late charges are terrible (and count for a lot of their business, as I understand), but they normally have the DVDs I'm looking for nowadays. Note, however, that I refuse to rent Full Screen DVDs, regardless of how badly I want to see said film.
During the period that you shopped at this store, what changes did you see?
I've already written about this in previous answers, but basically they went from Shack to a Nicer Building, and all of the changes that are incurred from that.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
It closed around 1995 when it was sold to a large local chain, when the Mom and Pop got divorced.
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 mother bought an old silver VCR (you know the kind, classic 80's, big silver buttons and an ungodly difficult way of recording programs) around 1984 or so. We used it for many years, even got it repaired a few times, until we finally broke down and bought another.
Did you ever rent a VCR or other hardware (a camera, for instance)? If so,
how often and why?
Never had to, always had a VCR in the house.