VHS might be old hat now but that doesn’t stop people from collecting them or keeping them around. Check your attic, I bet you’ll find boxes of tapes. My love of VHS is more overt as I have two VCRs in my house (although one is broken so that’ll need replacing) and a humble collection of tapes, some recorded, some official.
I could digitise them but that costs money on equipment and I don’t care enough to do it. Fortunately, some people did and uploaded their works to The Internet Archive’s VHS Vault. It’s a treasure trove of nostalgia with over 25,000 uploaded videos covering all kinds of genres.
I’ve picked 5 to look through:
1. Linnea Quigley’s Horror Workout
(Content warning: contains nudity from the offset)
If the horror part is watching a naked woman not wash her legs in the shower, consider this a scarefest. In fact, why did it even start with a sultry shower scene when it’s not a porno? Here’s the synopsis from IMDB:
After a nice shower, Linnea does some warm-up stretches and then goes for a run. She encounters some flabby zombies who follow her back to the house, where she leads them in some poolside aerobic routines. Later she unwinds by inviting some girlfriends over for a slumber party and some exercise. When something goes bump in the house, her friends begin experiencing an attrition problem.
What’s the point in weight loss for the undead? Fatphobia is truly boundless.
2. Microsoft Windows 95 Video Guide
This is still pretty famous now and back in 1995, it was a masterstroke having two famous actors demonstrate how to use Windows 95, if a little peculiar.
The video guide was split into three sections:
Our guide is separated into three sections.
- Section one presented the world’s first “Cyber-Sitcom”, starring Jennifer Aniston and Matthew Perry set in the Bill Gates’s office.
- Section two gives a step-by-step review of all the Windows 95 components demonstrated in section one.
- Section three answers the 20 most asked questions about Windows 95.
I’m sure this wonderfully hilarious 25 years ago but it just seems very cheesy and outdated.
3. Power Rangers In Space Psycho Ranger Saga
AJ Brown is a Power Rangers fan so I’m sure he’d appreciate this and correct me if I’ve got anything wrong in this description.
This video appears to be an episode from the “Psycho Ranger” story arc where the evil Astronema creates a team of Psycho Rangers to gain more power. I only ever watched Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers but I did notice Zordon and Bulk & Skull in the credits so that was pleasant to see.
4. VHS 1987 – 1998 – ThunderCats, DuckTales, Pooh, Donald Duck, ScoobyDoo, Ghostbusters, Flintstones
That’s right—it’s a collection of 5 videos featuring episodes of:
- ThunderCats
- Duck Tales
- Winnie the Pooh
- Donald Duck
- Scooby Doo
- Ghostbusters
- The Flintstones
It’s a childhood dream for any millennial. There are some tracking issues (when the picture gets distorted and those lines wipe down the screen) but that adds to the charm.
5. The Ultimate Xena Warrior Princess Video Tape
To complete the 90’s fest, here’s “The Ultimate Xena Warrior Princess Video Tape” starring an intro with Lucy Lawless, loads of bloopers, and interviews and behind-the-scenes footage.
For any Xena fans, this will be a dream come true.