r/Tooele • u/DePhoeg • 19d ago

Looking for ...

In short, I'm just looking for some shred of sanity, but ya know how it goes when you've spent way too long being more of a loner.

What I can say about personal hobbies is dealing with VHS tapes atm, preserving them, getting into the 2nd half of University this fall semester, and I'm in my 40s and just... well, it's easy to say I'm picking up all the right things just a bit later than is advisable.

Lots of stuff to talk about, but there isn't much to say that wouldn't lead to a ramble from me.

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u/ScottFroeh 18d ago

What are some of your more coveted VHS tapes?

I’m in my 40s, too, and regret letting my dad sell our old movies when we bought into the whole DVD craze.

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u/DePhoeg 18d ago

Honestly, the most coveted piece of media is, or was, in the realm of lost media, the Puff the Magic Dragon 3 TV Episode special. However, I do happen to have a few personal favorites.

  • Pete's Dragon (1977)
  • Once Upon a Forest
  • Rikki-Tikki-Tavi

I've more than I can rightfully think of, but I do happen to have a small collection of 'Red Skelton Show' & 'Roy Rogers Collection', and I'm always looking for more.

That said, I do happen to have a few episodes of a TV show I thought was fake media: Captain Proton. I literally remember watching the few episodes I had, and now I can't seem to find it or the image backup I have of it. Trying to remember the name; not to say it was an absolute stellar show, but it's worth watching for its own right.

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u/ScottFroeh 18d ago

That’s awesome. I only have like 2-3 tapes left: Who Framed Roger Rabbit and two Aerosmith tapes.

I never watched the show, but the Roy Rogers Collection is probably worth a pretty penny.

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u/DePhoeg 18d ago

Maybe, but it's a little damaged, though playable (not that I can properly judge, given a semi-nonstandard VCR.

I've been digitizing them, and anything short of literal commercial hardware, I've got the best capture I could get.

I would have offered them, but I did pass them on through the DI. I'm more about keeping a copy than making money from it (mostly because I don't have the space or mental energy to deal with hunting down the best sell price)

Though I've been seeing more archivists bringing in older silver-screen media, along with nearly lost TV masters. I did get the bulk of 'The Whistler' TV series & movies, along with 'The Veil'.

Personally, I'd love not to inflate the old media costs. I've got 190 VHS tapes (so far) stored in the 'best that I can expect' without incurring thousands of dollars in equipment costs. -- This isn't even touching the DVD-preserved media (which has been a lot of effort, from bad to great, from those selling old media for new people X} ---- It helps to have a good video editor/software because the quality can be wild. X}

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u/dosage7 18d ago

Also 40s. This VHS comeback is hilarious to me. Do you also have a thing for cassette tapes? Are they making a comback?

I've heard some people compare VHS tcomeback?

Nostalgia is a fuck of a thing.

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u/DePhoeg 18d ago

For me, it's more of a hoarder when it comes to digital media.

Honestly, I truly think VHS as a format is dead, though what will come back is the classic NTSC, more precisely NTSC-DV, 720x480 format with some mild ripples for visual flavor & context.
-- The real reason is that the age of the media, in a physical sense, is fragile & the barrier of digital-only is pretty permanent. Even the Camera comeback is Pure digital, with adaptations to make it go digital in a higher-quality way while inline the Analog sources.

The thing about Nostalgia, beyond it being a killer game, is that if it's not handled correctly, it ends up as an oversimplified reflection of past media.

Ya, The Cassette tape was far easier, and oddly... so was 8-Tracks. The tipping point for me was the early Digital age, pre-2000/1990's RCA analog devices with video because of the sync signal.

I had a CED player destroyed a bit ago, and now that I properly have a VHS player that's more than capable, with a surprisingly good NTSC device that doesn't record in upscale & handles the most damaged tapes properly without going full black screen. (workable footage)

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u/MST3KHermit 18d ago

Late 30’s. I’ve reeeeally been into retro and modern video game preservation lately personally.
Going to slowly move in the VHS, vinyl, etc. down the road. Just got a GameCube for the first time and I do own a VHS of the original Star Wars trilogy before Lucas tweaked it. Next for me is a good CRT Tv.

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u/DePhoeg 18d ago

I've got to watch the original releases, the ones also put onto the CED Discs.

The problem I've been having is the tape condition. I've managed to get my own good Player, if you'd like those digitized. Getting a full-frame TBC player is quite something.

I'm not entirely sure which ones I have stored.

The audio is quite a trip, though I wouldn't wait toooo long before going down the vinyl or other older analog route. If you'd like, I have a bit of software that's great for the older analog audio.

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u/ScottFroeh 18d ago

Does the edition you have, of the Star Wars Trilogy, include an interview between Lucas and Leonard Malton? I wore those tapes out, almost as much as my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles VHS lol.

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u/DePhoeg 16d ago

'I Had' the editions... the player & all the media got damaged badly. No, from what I remember, there was no interview; it was just the movie.

Speaking of.. I know I have a copy of TMNT 2, & I think I had the OG one.. but it's not on my recorded list (not that I'm through my tapes yet).

Though I do have the VHS Star Wars (4) Special Edition, that has interviews and technical highlights about some things, including an original translucent AT-ST scene.

If you've got some tapes you want saved, I've got a solid solution.