One tape found at a rummage sale at the local Knights of Columbus Hall earlier today. It's a full 6 1/2 hour aircheck of TNT (prime time and late night) from sometime in June 1991. Specifically, the tape contained The Yearling (1946), Heaven with a Gun (1969) and part of Lone Star (1952), all with commercials intact.
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Oldest Extant Off-Air VHS/Beta Tape You Have
- Thread starter Stanislav
- Start date
Found this thread through a Google search after finding a REALLY OLD VHS lot from Ebay a few months back. It took me a few months to read this thread all the way to page 68More about that lot later though.
Like others have said, I've noticed that the amount of home recorded VHS tapes at thrift stores has dropped to almost nothing. From time to time I will actually donate doubles of tapes I have to see if they will ever reach the store shelves, and they NEVER hit the shelves at local Goodwills or Salvation Army, it probably has something to do with regional or national rules for such things. HOWEVER, I have noticed that the smaller, non-corporate thrift stores will still sell these tapes, or at least put them in the free bins outside instead of trashing them.
Years ago when these tapes were more common (I'm talking late 1990s-mid 2000s) I would find such gems as ancient Beta K30s or K60s, the oldest recording was 30 minutes of the Carter Inaguration from January 1977, and an hour of North Carolina basketball in the 1981 Final Four plus snippets of the Reagan assassination attempt coverage from the same day in 1981. I've found the 1st game at the Dean Dome (January 18, 1986) 3 separate times at thrift stores, the coverage came from WRAL (my local affiliate). In fact, typical tapes I find are of UNC basketball, and sometimes Duke basketball, usually WRAL or WTVD, depending if the broadcast is CBS/Raycom or ABC. Rarely do I find things from Pay TV, though I did get a complete Wrestlemania 3 (1987) taped from PPV awhile back.
The best find I got in the non-Ebay wild was from an out of town Salvation Army, I was shocked to see they had a stack of 10 home recorded VHS tapes, all labeled with the old school style of sticker letters, and they looked to be RCA VK-250s! In retrospect I should have bought all of them at .25 a piece (as the rest were gone next time I went) but I snagged the 2 most promising ones, which had NFL games on them.
One was from SEPTEMBER 27, 1981 !!! (oldest VHS I've found in the wild) from the Denver, Colorado NBC affiliate of the San Diego Chargers at Denver Broncos, complete with commercials, and a bit of local postgame. The other tape was more disappointing as it was from December 1984, Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks (also Denver NBC affiliate), I say disappointing because it was heavily edited into 2 hours so no commercials or local airchecks.
Now on to the Ebay lot. The lot came up in my searches feed, and oddly enough it came from only 90 miles east of me. Tapes were not labeled, but there was a note card system of the contents that the seller photographed (it looked to be a large estate lot that the kids were selling off) and the original taper was very meticulous in that they had replaced the factory cardboard boxes with archival hardshell plastic cases. The tapes did look a bit old though, with the typical markings of RCA VK-250s and other older brands.
A week later I was pleasantly surprised with my findings:
Tape 1: Super Bowl XVI recorded from WTVD on January 24, 1982 (then a CBS affiliate before the switch with WRAL in 1985). Unfortunately most commercials were cut to save space (sad because Super Bowls have some of the best commercials). This taped over a late night movie (from WRAL I believe) that aired January 17, 1982 from what I could tell from commercials, all of which were present.
Tape 2: 1981 ACC Championship from March 7, 1981, CD Chesley syndicated broadcast, probably on WRAL. All commercials were present, as well as station breaks and such.
Tape 3: Segments of incomplete games from the 1977!!!! NCAA Tournament taped off the Greenville/New Bern, NC NBC affiliate. This included the Final 4 semifinal and regional semifinal the week before. After doing some research on the unveiling of the VHS format in America, this had to have been copied from a Umatic or Beta, as from what I can tell VHS was not around in April 1977, the date of these broadcasts. Lots of airchecks and commercials in this too.
Tape 4: January 4, 1986 NC State at UNC and January 18, 1986 Duke at UNC. Both were WRAL but edited, so not too many commercials present.
All in all I got that and some other tapes in a lot for about $3.50 each, not bad for Ebay, there is some old gold to be found for sure.
My grandfather had some *old* NFL games taped back when the six hour tapes were first brought in, like the Kansas City-Tampa Bay game from 1979 when it really rained! He also had the Falcons-Chargers game from the same season, the end of the Vikings-Rams game from the same day, and also "60 Minutes"(in it's entirety, of course) after the Vikings-Rams ending.
Do you still have these tapes?!?!? I ask because that Kansas City-Tampa Bay game is still missing from archive holdings. Bucs fans have been looking for that game for decades, especially because the clinched their 1st ever playoff berth in that game, in their 4th year of existence. Oddly enough, their first 2 wins, in 1977, DO exist, and are up on Youtube somewhere.
can you send me a copy of some of your sporting events then please as well?
All of my entries in this category, including Carson's last night on the air from 1992 WHO-TV Des Moines, have been distributed to various thrift shops by my wife, Auntie Packrat (pronounced AHN-ti in MN and other areas with alternative pronunciations) Of course, Ms. Auntie sent the VHS deck packing as well.
That includes our wedding video from 1992. It had been converted to DVD. When we got it back and watched, it was too sad to watch again. Too many loved ones no longer with us. We decided our photos were enough of a keepsake.
That includes our wedding video from 1992. It had been converted to DVD. When we got it back and watched, it was too sad to watch again. Too many loved ones no longer with us. We decided our photos were enough of a keepsake.
I did that once too. I taped over a Twin Peaks episode with an NBA game between the Lakers and the Pistons from NBC. But i really didn't need the Twin Peaks episode anyway. I didn't like taping over stuff but sometimes i had to.
This weekend's finds came from one estate sale in Yakima. Not a whole lot, but some interesting items.
Tape 1 - Both parts of 'Son of the Morning Star' taped off KAPP/ABC 2/3 and 2/4/1991 with commercials
Tape 2 - 'Schindler's List' (1993) taped off KNDO/NBC 3/14/1999, very few commercials due to limited interruptions by the network, ads were mainly for MetLife and Snap.com. Also includes Steven Spielberg's message at the end of the movie.
Tape 3 - Two episodes of War Stories with Oliver North and first few minutes of War Zone with Geraldo Rivera taped off Fox News Channel 5/12/2002 with commercials
Next week is 'Yakima's Biggest Yard Sale' at Perry Tech! I found tapes here last year and hoping to find more next Saturday. Information here:
http://mega993online.com/yakimas-biggest-yard-sale-opens-for-business-may-13-2/
Tape 1 - Both parts of 'Son of the Morning Star' taped off KAPP/ABC 2/3 and 2/4/1991 with commercials
Tape 2 - 'Schindler's List' (1993) taped off KNDO/NBC 3/14/1999, very few commercials due to limited interruptions by the network, ads were mainly for MetLife and Snap.com. Also includes Steven Spielberg's message at the end of the movie.
Tape 3 - Two episodes of War Stories with Oliver North and first few minutes of War Zone with Geraldo Rivera taped off Fox News Channel 5/12/2002 with commercials
Next week is 'Yakima's Biggest Yard Sale' at Perry Tech! I found tapes here last year and hoping to find more next Saturday. Information here:
http://mega993online.com/yakimas-biggest-yard-sale-opens-for-business-may-13-2/
I have a tape of the network premiere of Schindler's List two years earlier on NBC. The sole sponsor of the movie that year was Ford and Steven Spielberg provided an introduction and closing segment in that showing of the movie as well.
As expected, I was back at 'Yakima's Biggest Yard Sale' today at Perry Technical Institute. This has been going on several years now and this is my 2nd year going to the sale. Not as many VHS sellers this time but found some good items, including TV footage from over 2,400 miles away at one vendor. Compare to last year, where three booths had blank tapes, one having over 500 tapes in various holders.
First vendor
Tape 1 - 'The Second Time Around' (1961) taped off AMC circa September 1995 with a partial Nick Clooney introduction segment; KNDO News 23 clip from September 1995 follows; 'Weekend at Bernie's' (1989) and part of 'The Naked Gun' (1988) taped off USA Network on Labor Day 1995 with commercials; about 10 minutes of an unknown B&W movie follows taped off AMC, tape went blank afterwards
Tape 2 - 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1954) taped off TCM circa September 1999; 'Ball of Fire' (1941) and part of 'His Girl Friday' (1940) taped off AMC 9/22-23/1999 with promos and commercials in between the shows; part of Follow Me Quietly' (1949) and part of 'Beware My Lovely' (1952) taped off TCM 7/23/1999 with promos
Tape 3 - Four hours of syndicated M*A*S*H episodes taped off KIMA-29 Yakima (CBS) in late December 1992 and early January 1993 with commercials
Tape 4 - 'Road to Morocco' (1942) and 'Take a Letter, Darling' (1942) taped off AMC 5/25/1993 with promos in between the movies; 'Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation' (1962) and part of 'The Bishop's Wife' (1947) taped off AMC 3/11/1995 with promos in between the movies
Second sale
Tape 5 - This tape traveled 2400 miles to Yakima! Episode of NOVA taped off Maine PBS/WCBB-10 Portland 2/1/2000; partial broadcast of Coastal Dream Home taped off HGTV in April 1998 with commercials; 'Murder on the Orient Express' (2001) taped off WGME-13 Portland, ME/CBS 4/22/2001 with commercials (Kraft Premier Theatre, so mainly Kraft commercials); episode of Third Watch taped off WCSH-6/NBC 4/30/2001 with some commercials. After Third Watch is a partial broadcast of Inside the X-Files taped off Fox on 2/1/1998 with commercials...but it was taped off KCYU-LP 68 Yakima! Very odd. Following this is are episodes of Room to Room, Room for Change and Interiors by Design taped off HGTV in February 1998 with commercials. Perhaps the family moved to Portland, ME due to a new job or something like that, then came back to Yakima to be closer to other family members.
First vendor
Tape 1 - 'The Second Time Around' (1961) taped off AMC circa September 1995 with a partial Nick Clooney introduction segment; KNDO News 23 clip from September 1995 follows; 'Weekend at Bernie's' (1989) and part of 'The Naked Gun' (1988) taped off USA Network on Labor Day 1995 with commercials; about 10 minutes of an unknown B&W movie follows taped off AMC, tape went blank afterwards
Tape 2 - 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1954) taped off TCM circa September 1999; 'Ball of Fire' (1941) and part of 'His Girl Friday' (1940) taped off AMC 9/22-23/1999 with promos and commercials in between the shows; part of Follow Me Quietly' (1949) and part of 'Beware My Lovely' (1952) taped off TCM 7/23/1999 with promos
Tape 3 - Four hours of syndicated M*A*S*H episodes taped off KIMA-29 Yakima (CBS) in late December 1992 and early January 1993 with commercials
Tape 4 - 'Road to Morocco' (1942) and 'Take a Letter, Darling' (1942) taped off AMC 5/25/1993 with promos in between the movies; 'Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation' (1962) and part of 'The Bishop's Wife' (1947) taped off AMC 3/11/1995 with promos in between the movies
Second sale
Tape 5 - This tape traveled 2400 miles to Yakima! Episode of NOVA taped off Maine PBS/WCBB-10 Portland 2/1/2000; partial broadcast of Coastal Dream Home taped off HGTV in April 1998 with commercials; 'Murder on the Orient Express' (2001) taped off WGME-13 Portland, ME/CBS 4/22/2001 with commercials (Kraft Premier Theatre, so mainly Kraft commercials); episode of Third Watch taped off WCSH-6/NBC 4/30/2001 with some commercials. After Third Watch is a partial broadcast of Inside the X-Files taped off Fox on 2/1/1998 with commercials...but it was taped off KCYU-LP 68 Yakima! Very odd. Following this is are episodes of Room to Room, Room for Change and Interiors by Design taped off HGTV in February 1998 with commercials. Perhaps the family moved to Portland, ME due to a new job or something like that, then came back to Yakima to be closer to other family members.
As expected, I was back at 'Yakima's Biggest Yard Sale' today at Perry Technical Institute. This has been going on several years now and this is my 2nd year going to the sale. Not as many VHS sellers this time but found some good items, including TV footage from over 2,400 miles away at one vendor. Compare to last year, where three booths had blank tapes, one having over 500 tapes in various holders. Does not include tapes that were duds copied from rentals.
I saw a very odd tape at a third seller...I don't know if it was blank or not. Someone had screwed up different reels on the tape! The supply reel was of normal size, but the take-up reel was oversized (like a T-30 or T-60!) It was unlabeled and I didn't want to pick it up whatsoever...talk about screwing up the VCR! Too much tape towards the end of the tape would screw up the take-up reel.
First vendor
Tape 1 - 'The Second Time Around' (1961) taped off AMC circa September 1995 with a partial Nick Clooney introduction segment; KNDO News 23 clip from September 1995 follows; 'Weekend at Bernie's' (1989) and part of 'The Naked Gun' (1988) taped off USA Network on Labor Day 1995 with commercials; about 10 minutes of an unknown B&W movie follows taped off AMC, tape went blank afterwards
Tape 2 - 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1954) taped off TCM circa September 1999; 'Ball of Fire' (1941) and part of 'His Girl Friday' (1940) taped off AMC 9/22-23/1999 with promos and commercials in between the shows; part of Follow Me Quietly' (1949) and part of 'Beware My Lovely' (1952) taped off TCM 7/23/1999 with promos
Tape 3 - Four hours of syndicated M*A*S*H episodes taped off KIMA-29 Yakima (CBS) in late December 1992 and early January 1993 with commercials
Tape 4 - 'Road to Morocco' (1942) and 'Take a Letter, Darling' (1942) taped off AMC 5/25/1993 with promos in between the movies; 'Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation' (1962) and part of 'The Bishop's Wife' (1947) taped off AMC 3/11/1995 with promos in between the movies
Second sale
Tape 5 - This tape traveled 2400 miles to Yakima! Episode of NOVA taped off Maine PBS/WCBB-10 Portland 2/1/2000; partial broadcast of Coastal Dream Home taped off HGTV in April 1998 with commercials; 'Murder on the Orient Express' (2001) taped off WGME-13 Portland, ME/CBS 4/22/2001 with commercials (Kraft Premier Theatre, so mainly Kraft commercials); episode of Third Watch taped off WCSH-6/NBC 4/30/2001 with some commercials. After Third Watch is a partial broadcast of Inside the X-Files taped off Fox on 2/1/1998 with commercials...but it was taped off KCYU-LP 68 Yakima! Very odd. Following this is are episodes of Room to Room, Room for Change and Interiors by Design taped off HGTV in February 1998 with commercials. Perhaps the family moved to Portland, ME due to a new job or something like that, then came back to Yakima to be closer to other family members.
I saw a very odd tape at a third seller...I don't know if it was blank or not. Someone had screwed up different reels on the tape! The supply reel was of normal size, but the take-up reel was oversized (like a T-30 or T-60!) It was unlabeled and I didn't want to pick it up whatsoever...talk about screwing up the VCR! Too much tape towards the end of the tape would screw up the take-up reel.
First vendor
Tape 1 - 'The Second Time Around' (1961) taped off AMC circa September 1995 with a partial Nick Clooney introduction segment; KNDO News 23 clip from September 1995 follows; 'Weekend at Bernie's' (1989) and part of 'The Naked Gun' (1988) taped off USA Network on Labor Day 1995 with commercials; about 10 minutes of an unknown B&W movie follows taped off AMC, tape went blank afterwards
Tape 2 - 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' (1954) taped off TCM circa September 1999; 'Ball of Fire' (1941) and part of 'His Girl Friday' (1940) taped off AMC 9/22-23/1999 with promos and commercials in between the shows; part of Follow Me Quietly' (1949) and part of 'Beware My Lovely' (1952) taped off TCM 7/23/1999 with promos
Tape 3 - Four hours of syndicated M*A*S*H episodes taped off KIMA-29 Yakima (CBS) in late December 1992 and early January 1993 with commercials
Tape 4 - 'Road to Morocco' (1942) and 'Take a Letter, Darling' (1942) taped off AMC 5/25/1993 with promos in between the movies; 'Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation' (1962) and part of 'The Bishop's Wife' (1947) taped off AMC 3/11/1995 with promos in between the movies
Second sale
Tape 5 - This tape traveled 2400 miles to Yakima! Episode of NOVA taped off Maine PBS/WCBB-10 Portland 2/1/2000; partial broadcast of Coastal Dream Home taped off HGTV in April 1998 with commercials; 'Murder on the Orient Express' (2001) taped off WGME-13 Portland, ME/CBS 4/22/2001 with commercials (Kraft Premier Theatre, so mainly Kraft commercials); episode of Third Watch taped off WCSH-6/NBC 4/30/2001 with some commercials. After Third Watch is a partial broadcast of Inside the X-Files taped off Fox on 2/1/1998 with commercials...but it was taped off KCYU-LP 68 Yakima! Very odd. Following this is are episodes of Room to Room, Room for Change and Interiors by Design taped off HGTV in February 1998 with commercials. Perhaps the family moved to Portland, ME due to a new job or something like that, then came back to Yakima to be closer to other family members.
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Found four tapes at a neighborhood yard sale today.
Tapes 1-3 - All three parts of Return to Lonesome Dove, taped off KIMA/29 CBS 11/14, 11/16 and 11/18/1993 with commercials. Recorded on three separate TDK EHG tapes in SP mode.
Tape 4 - Last 15 minutes of 'A Boy Named Charlie Brown' (1969) and Dorothy in the Land of Oz taped off Disney Channel 11/7/1989 with promos, 'Fuzz Bucket' taped off Disney Channel circa November 1989; 'The Adventures of Ichabod & Mr. Toad' (1949) taped off Disney Channel on 11/11/1989 with some promos afterwards
Tapes 1-3 - All three parts of Return to Lonesome Dove, taped off KIMA/29 CBS 11/14, 11/16 and 11/18/1993 with commercials. Recorded on three separate TDK EHG tapes in SP mode.
Tape 4 - Last 15 minutes of 'A Boy Named Charlie Brown' (1969) and Dorothy in the Land of Oz taped off Disney Channel 11/7/1989 with promos, 'Fuzz Bucket' taped off Disney Channel circa November 1989; 'The Adventures of Ichabod & Mr. Toad' (1949) taped off Disney Channel on 11/11/1989 with some promos afterwards
More tapes today, plus a few last week. One yard sale this week = 7 tapes!
Tape 1 - 'Good Morning Vietnam' (1987) and 'Raising Arizona' (1987) taped off Showtime in April 1989; part of 'The Gnome's Great Adventure' taped off Nickelodeon 12/3/1988 with commercials; 'He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas Special' taped off unknown channel minus ads; episode of Inspector Gadget taped off unknown channel minus commercials, Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales taped off unknown channel minus commercials
Tape 2 - Super Bowl XXXI taped off KCYU-68/Fox 1/26/1997 with all commercials and halftime segment with The Blues Brothers, James Brown and ZZ Top; partial Frederick K. Price sermon taped off CBY Yakima (TBN) in 1989 with a few promos (CBY is 'Christian Broadcasting of Yakima,' at the time they aired some TBN and CBN programs); partial broadcasts of 'Shoot to Kill' (1988) and 'Walker: Texas Ranger, The Movie' taped off USA Network 8/2/1997 with commercials
Tape 3 - Most of 'Five Million Years to Earth' taped off TBS in the early morning hours of 1/24/1992 with commercials; A Day in the Life of Ireland taped off PBS circa January 1992 (presumed KYVE-47); part of 'Beyond the Prairie II: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder Continues' taped off KIMA/CBS 3/17/2002 with commercials and first minute of KIMA News Weekend Edition; partial Frederick K. Price sermon taped off unknown channel (suspect CBY Yakima) in 1990 before tape ends
Tape 4 - Last few minutes of Far Out Space Nuts and full broadcast of 'Agatha Christie's Sparkling Cyanide' taped off The Family Channel on 1/12/1997 with commercials; episode of Personal FX: The Collectibles Show taped off FX in January 1997 with commercials; James Taylor: Live By Request taped off A&E 6/25/1997 with commercials; first 7 minutes of The Drew Carey Show taped off KAPP/ABC 9/24/1997 with commercials; ends with partial broadcasts of Larry King Live and The World Today taped off CNN 10/7/1997 with commercials
Tape 5 - 'The Ten Commandments' (1956) taped off KABC/ABC 3/26/1989 with commercials
Tape 6 - Images & Essays episode (local production) taped off KYVE/47 Yakima in December 1992;'The Flight of the Phoenix' (1955), 'The Major and the Minor' (1942) and part of 'The Music Box' (1932 short film with Laurel & Hardy) taped off AMC in April 1993 with promos in between
Tape 7 - Two episodes of Whose Line is it Anyway? taped off KAPP/ABC 2/17/2000 with commercials; Raising the Mammoth taped off Discovery Channel 3/12/2000 with commercials; KING-5 coverage of the Kingdome Implosion, simulcasted on Northwest Cable News 3/26/2000 with commercials. The coverage starts at around 1 hr, 10 minutes from the implosion itself.
Tape 1 - 'Good Morning Vietnam' (1987) and 'Raising Arizona' (1987) taped off Showtime in April 1989; part of 'The Gnome's Great Adventure' taped off Nickelodeon 12/3/1988 with commercials; 'He-Man and She-Ra: A Christmas Special' taped off unknown channel minus ads; episode of Inspector Gadget taped off unknown channel minus commercials, Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales taped off unknown channel minus commercials
Tape 2 - Super Bowl XXXI taped off KCYU-68/Fox 1/26/1997 with all commercials and halftime segment with The Blues Brothers, James Brown and ZZ Top; partial Frederick K. Price sermon taped off CBY Yakima (TBN) in 1989 with a few promos (CBY is 'Christian Broadcasting of Yakima,' at the time they aired some TBN and CBN programs); partial broadcasts of 'Shoot to Kill' (1988) and 'Walker: Texas Ranger, The Movie' taped off USA Network 8/2/1997 with commercials
Tape 3 - Most of 'Five Million Years to Earth' taped off TBS in the early morning hours of 1/24/1992 with commercials; A Day in the Life of Ireland taped off PBS circa January 1992 (presumed KYVE-47); part of 'Beyond the Prairie II: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder Continues' taped off KIMA/CBS 3/17/2002 with commercials and first minute of KIMA News Weekend Edition; partial Frederick K. Price sermon taped off unknown channel (suspect CBY Yakima) in 1990 before tape ends
Tape 4 - Last few minutes of Far Out Space Nuts and full broadcast of 'Agatha Christie's Sparkling Cyanide' taped off The Family Channel on 1/12/1997 with commercials; episode of Personal FX: The Collectibles Show taped off FX in January 1997 with commercials; James Taylor: Live By Request taped off A&E 6/25/1997 with commercials; first 7 minutes of The Drew Carey Show taped off KAPP/ABC 9/24/1997 with commercials; ends with partial broadcasts of Larry King Live and The World Today taped off CNN 10/7/1997 with commercials
Tape 5 - 'The Ten Commandments' (1956) taped off KABC/ABC 3/26/1989 with commercials
Tape 6 - Images & Essays episode (local production) taped off KYVE/47 Yakima in December 1992;'The Flight of the Phoenix' (1955), 'The Major and the Minor' (1942) and part of 'The Music Box' (1932 short film with Laurel & Hardy) taped off AMC in April 1993 with promos in between
Tape 7 - Two episodes of Whose Line is it Anyway? taped off KAPP/ABC 2/17/2000 with commercials; Raising the Mammoth taped off Discovery Channel 3/12/2000 with commercials; KING-5 coverage of the Kingdome Implosion, simulcasted on Northwest Cable News 3/26/2000 with commercials. The coverage starts at around 1 hr, 10 minutes from the implosion itself.
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Do any of you collectors recall recording your local horror host or running across one from a nearby city?
Found four more tapes this weekend--two at a yard sale in Medina yesterday (Friday) and two at an estate sale in Brunswick today (Saturday).
Medina yard sale:
TAPE 1: (Fuji T-120, no label or case) Broadcast of News Channel 5 at 6 with Ted Henry and Tonya Strong and first eight minutes of ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings taped from WEWS in Cleveland on 2/26/2003 with commercials
TAPE 2: (Sony T-160) Part four of Kingpin (NBC miniseries) and first three minutes of Channel 3 News at 11 weekend edition with Scott Newell and Lydia Esparra taped from WKYC in Cleveland on 2/11/2003 with commercials; partial episode of The Practice taped from WEWS on 5/5/2002 with commercials; episode of NYPD Blue taped from WEWS on 5/7/2002 with commercials; partial episode of Ed taped from WKYC on 5/8/2002 with commercials; episode of Friends taped from WKYC on 5/9/2002 with commercials; episode of NYPD Blue, News Channel 5 at 11 with Ted Henry and Lee Jordan, Nightline (Chris Bury filling in for Ted Koppel), Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, episode of Wheel of Fortune (preempted from its 7PM time slot that night due to a special local program) and broadcast of Inside Edition taped from WEWS on May 14-15, 2002 with commercials
Brunswick estate sale:
TAPE 3: (Fuji T-120) All five one-hour parts of Shogun (1980 NBC miniseries) taped from KDVR in Denver circa 1990 or so minus commercials--strange recordings because although everything on this tape was recorded using a Hi-Fi VCR, the audio would not play back in the Hi-Fi mode, so I had to switch my audio settings to mono to get any audio from this tape
TAPE 4: (Maxell T-120) Behind the Music episode on the late John Denver taped from VH1 on 9/20/1998, some commercial breaks are included, others are cut; episode of Star Trek taped from Sci-Fi Channel in October 1998 minus commercials; another episode of Star Trek taped from Sci-Fi Channel in October 1998 with commercials, also including the first ten minutes or so of Dreamscape (1984), which aired afterward
I've been eyeing this one VHS lot listing on eBay and have been debating whether to give this one a shot. Located in Bradford, Ohio (outside of Dayton), the item description seems like the content of these tapes is pretty varied (seller mentions TV shows, sitcoms, movies, etc.) Not many visible labels in the photos, but one reads Home Alone, one reads Kingpin (presumably the 1996 movie) and one reads To Be the Best (1992 CBS movie). Varied brands appearing to run the gamut in terms of time period of release/recording ('80s, '90s and 2000s).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lot-Of-53-U...a249147&pid=100033&rk=1&rkt=8&sd=332207979627
Medina yard sale:
TAPE 1: (Fuji T-120, no label or case) Broadcast of News Channel 5 at 6 with Ted Henry and Tonya Strong and first eight minutes of ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings taped from WEWS in Cleveland on 2/26/2003 with commercials
TAPE 2: (Sony T-160) Part four of Kingpin (NBC miniseries) and first three minutes of Channel 3 News at 11 weekend edition with Scott Newell and Lydia Esparra taped from WKYC in Cleveland on 2/11/2003 with commercials; partial episode of The Practice taped from WEWS on 5/5/2002 with commercials; episode of NYPD Blue taped from WEWS on 5/7/2002 with commercials; partial episode of Ed taped from WKYC on 5/8/2002 with commercials; episode of Friends taped from WKYC on 5/9/2002 with commercials; episode of NYPD Blue, News Channel 5 at 11 with Ted Henry and Lee Jordan, Nightline (Chris Bury filling in for Ted Koppel), Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher, episode of Wheel of Fortune (preempted from its 7PM time slot that night due to a special local program) and broadcast of Inside Edition taped from WEWS on May 14-15, 2002 with commercials
Brunswick estate sale:
TAPE 3: (Fuji T-120) All five one-hour parts of Shogun (1980 NBC miniseries) taped from KDVR in Denver circa 1990 or so minus commercials--strange recordings because although everything on this tape was recorded using a Hi-Fi VCR, the audio would not play back in the Hi-Fi mode, so I had to switch my audio settings to mono to get any audio from this tape
TAPE 4: (Maxell T-120) Behind the Music episode on the late John Denver taped from VH1 on 9/20/1998, some commercial breaks are included, others are cut; episode of Star Trek taped from Sci-Fi Channel in October 1998 minus commercials; another episode of Star Trek taped from Sci-Fi Channel in October 1998 with commercials, also including the first ten minutes or so of Dreamscape (1984), which aired afterward
I've been eyeing this one VHS lot listing on eBay and have been debating whether to give this one a shot. Located in Bradford, Ohio (outside of Dayton), the item description seems like the content of these tapes is pretty varied (seller mentions TV shows, sitcoms, movies, etc.) Not many visible labels in the photos, but one reads Home Alone, one reads Kingpin (presumably the 1996 movie) and one reads To Be the Best (1992 CBS movie). Varied brands appearing to run the gamut in terms of time period of release/recording ('80s, '90s and 2000s).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lot-Of-53-U...a249147&pid=100033&rk=1&rkt=8&sd=332207979627
I had a Los Angeles tape do that to me (regarding not playing in Hi-Fi mode). It has various November/December 1993 TV content on it, including three Beavis & Butthead's, a KTLA news special and a bunch of KNBC primetime shows like Frasier and Seinfeld.
I completely missed out on a Beta tape lot from Bozeman, MT! This is a very rare market to find on VHS (as is ANY Montana Nielsen market...) Yes, your eyes aren't deceiving you, this was 1980s Beta tapes. One of the 22 tapes was a full Star Trek 'series' tape (either TOS or TNG), others had movies and various content.
Consolation prize (possibly?) 22 eBay tapes from Nolanville, TX, near Waco, with a variety of movies and TV programming. But I should be satisfied with the 7 tapes today and the dozens that I need to go through from previous lots!
I completely missed out on a Beta tape lot from Bozeman, MT! This is a very rare market to find on VHS (as is ANY Montana Nielsen market...) Yes, your eyes aren't deceiving you, this was 1980s Beta tapes. One of the 22 tapes was a full Star Trek 'series' tape (either TOS or TNG), others had movies and various content.
Consolation prize (possibly?) 22 eBay tapes from Nolanville, TX, near Waco, with a variety of movies and TV programming. But I should be satisfied with the 7 tapes today and the dozens that I need to go through from previous lots!
This is a great thread! I'm interested in obtaining vintage home recorded VHS tapes for the nostalgia factor - the commercials, the station bumpers, etc. I don't have many older VHS tapes now, a lot I have digitized and saved to my external HD. Rather than oldest VHS, I have a lot of old broadcasts, the oldest probably dating from 1981, given by a friend - The Wonderful World of Disney airing of "This is Your Life, Donald Duck" from CBS (unsure of the actual affiliate).
It sounds like you have had great success locating good stuff at yard and estate sales. Are VHS tapes common at those sales? I haven't really tried them out, I'm unsure if people bother selling those in this area (New England). Any advice on how to track down vintage tv broadcasts would be appreciated! Thanks!
It sounds like you have had great success locating good stuff at yard and estate sales. Are VHS tapes common at those sales? I haven't really tried them out, I'm unsure if people bother selling those in this area (New England). Any advice on how to track down vintage tv broadcasts would be appreciated! Thanks!
VHS extravaganza! Went to a huge neighborhood yard sale today with over 20 homes participating, along with several other separate sales. Lots of goodies found today, some as early as 1987. It would have been more amazing if one older lady didn't FORGET to bring her collection of over 400 home-recorded VHS tapes to the sale! She told me they had commercials, mainly movies with occasional TV shows/specials (but no soap operas) and the earliest would have been mid 1980s. Still a great day to find videos.
Sale #1
Tape 1 - About 3 1/2 hours of Lillehammer Olympics footage, taped off WUSA-9 Washington DC/CBS 2/21/1994 with commercials (mainly the Ice Dance finals) / Universal T-120
Sale #2
Tape 2 - Partial series premiere of Karen Sisco and KOMO 4 News at 11 taped off KOMO-4 Seattle/ABC 10/1/2003 with commercials, TDK EHG T-120 / SP mode
Sale 3
Tape 3 - 6-hour aircheck of KAPP-35/ABC Yakima taped 11/22/2005 with commercials: Partial episode of Oprah Winfrey (Most Memorable Guests in 20 Years), Local News at 5, ABC World News Tonight, Local News at 6, Extra!, Entertainment Tonight, The Insider, and most of the 2005 American Music Awards. TDK T-120
Tape 4 - Partial Nightline clip and episode of Up Close taped off KAPP/ABC in January 2003 with commercials (Up Close
was a spin-off of Nightline, aired as a substitute in between Politically Incorrect's cancellation and Jimmy Kimmel Live); partial episode of The View and partial Kevin Trudeau infomercial taped off KAPP/ABC in November 2002 with commercials; partial episode of Ed taped off KNDO/NBC in December 2002 with commercials; series premiere of The Bachelorette taped off KAPP/ABC 1/8/2003 with commercials; partial airing of Science and the Sexes taped off Discovery Channel in May 2003 with commercials; then flips back to the Celebrity Mole: Hawaii premiere with commercials. TDK T-120
Tape 5 - (8-HOUR TAPE) Episodes of Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy taped off KAPP/ABC 12/11/2008 with commercials; partial broadcast of KAPP Local News at 5, ABC World News Tonight, KAPP Local News at 6, and Entertainment Tonight taped 5/13/2002 with commercials; episodes of Fear Factor and Third Watch taped off KNDO/NBC 5/13/2002 with commercials. Maxell tape.
Sale #4 - First 1980s Yakima OTA recordings found since February!
Tape 6 - 'Goin' South' (1978) taped off A&E 2/13/1993 with commercials; partial broadcast of KSTW's 'The Ten O'Clock News' taped 2/6/1993, rest of the tape is blank. Safeway T-120
Tape 7 - Wild America Baby Animals special taped off PBS station (presumed KYVE) in 1989 or 1990; partial broadcast of Sesame Street, Special taped off KYVE/47 PBS sometime in March 1988 with two partial pledge breaks. Memorex T-120
Tape 8 - Third Watch series finale and partial season finale of Law & Order: Trial By Jury taped off KNDO/NBC 5/6/2005 with commercials; partial episode and full episode of Everybody Loves Raymond, and an episode of Two and a Half Men taped off KIMA/CBS 5/9/2005 with commercials, partial episode of Law & Order: SVU and partial broadcast of KNDO Local News 11 at 11 taped off KNDO/NBC 5/10/2005 with commercials; partial broadcast of KNDO Local News 11 at 11 taped 12/1/2004 with commercials. Universal T-120, originally bought in the late 1980s
Tape 9 - 18th Kennedy Center Honors taped off KIMA/CBS 12/30/1988 with commercials - Chrome Master T-120
Tape 10 - 'Foxfire' (1987) taped off KIMA/CBS 12/13/1987 with Hallmark and local commercials - oldest Hallmark Hall of Fame I've ever found! - Memorex T-120
Tape 11 - Almost-full NBC primetime block (Surface/Las Vegas/(part) Medium) taped off KNDO/NBC 11/28/2005 with commercials; most of an episode of CSI: Miami taped off KIMA/CBS same night with commercials; partial season finale of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and partial season finale of Without a Trace taped off KIMA/CBS 5/19/2005 with commercials - Safeway T-120
Tape 12 - Emmett Otter's Jug-Band Christmas taped off Nickelodeon in 1992 minus commercials; partial clip of the Equestrian final at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics taped off NBC (suspect KNDO); partial broadcast of Reba McEntire's Christmas Card taped off TNN 12/21/1991 with commercials; partial broadcast of 'What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?'
taped off KAPP/ABC 2/17/1991 with commercials; partial clip of The Young Riders taped off KAPP/ABC in February 1991 with a few commercials. Memorex T-120
Tape 13 - The Otter's Jug Band Christmas (again) taped off Nickelodeon minus commercials; Muppet Family Christmas and first several minutes of I Dream of Jeannie taped off Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite in December 1994 with commercials. Safeway T-120
Sale #1
Tape 1 - About 3 1/2 hours of Lillehammer Olympics footage, taped off WUSA-9 Washington DC/CBS 2/21/1994 with commercials (mainly the Ice Dance finals) / Universal T-120
Sale #2
Tape 2 - Partial series premiere of Karen Sisco and KOMO 4 News at 11 taped off KOMO-4 Seattle/ABC 10/1/2003 with commercials, TDK EHG T-120 / SP mode
Sale 3
Tape 3 - 6-hour aircheck of KAPP-35/ABC Yakima taped 11/22/2005 with commercials: Partial episode of Oprah Winfrey (Most Memorable Guests in 20 Years), Local News at 5, ABC World News Tonight, Local News at 6, Extra!, Entertainment Tonight, The Insider, and most of the 2005 American Music Awards. TDK T-120
Tape 4 - Partial Nightline clip and episode of Up Close taped off KAPP/ABC in January 2003 with commercials (Up Close
was a spin-off of Nightline, aired as a substitute in between Politically Incorrect's cancellation and Jimmy Kimmel Live); partial episode of The View and partial Kevin Trudeau infomercial taped off KAPP/ABC in November 2002 with commercials; partial episode of Ed taped off KNDO/NBC in December 2002 with commercials; series premiere of The Bachelorette taped off KAPP/ABC 1/8/2003 with commercials; partial airing of Science and the Sexes taped off Discovery Channel in May 2003 with commercials; then flips back to the Celebrity Mole: Hawaii premiere with commercials. TDK T-120
Tape 5 - (8-HOUR TAPE) Episodes of Ugly Betty and Grey's Anatomy taped off KAPP/ABC 12/11/2008 with commercials; partial broadcast of KAPP Local News at 5, ABC World News Tonight, KAPP Local News at 6, and Entertainment Tonight taped 5/13/2002 with commercials; episodes of Fear Factor and Third Watch taped off KNDO/NBC 5/13/2002 with commercials. Maxell tape.
Sale #4 - First 1980s Yakima OTA recordings found since February!
Tape 6 - 'Goin' South' (1978) taped off A&E 2/13/1993 with commercials; partial broadcast of KSTW's 'The Ten O'Clock News' taped 2/6/1993, rest of the tape is blank. Safeway T-120
Tape 7 - Wild America Baby Animals special taped off PBS station (presumed KYVE) in 1989 or 1990; partial broadcast of Sesame Street, Special taped off KYVE/47 PBS sometime in March 1988 with two partial pledge breaks. Memorex T-120
Tape 8 - Third Watch series finale and partial season finale of Law & Order: Trial By Jury taped off KNDO/NBC 5/6/2005 with commercials; partial episode and full episode of Everybody Loves Raymond, and an episode of Two and a Half Men taped off KIMA/CBS 5/9/2005 with commercials, partial episode of Law & Order: SVU and partial broadcast of KNDO Local News 11 at 11 taped off KNDO/NBC 5/10/2005 with commercials; partial broadcast of KNDO Local News 11 at 11 taped 12/1/2004 with commercials. Universal T-120, originally bought in the late 1980s
Tape 9 - 18th Kennedy Center Honors taped off KIMA/CBS 12/30/1988 with commercials - Chrome Master T-120
Tape 10 - 'Foxfire' (1987) taped off KIMA/CBS 12/13/1987 with Hallmark and local commercials - oldest Hallmark Hall of Fame I've ever found! - Memorex T-120
Tape 11 - Almost-full NBC primetime block (Surface/Las Vegas/(part) Medium) taped off KNDO/NBC 11/28/2005 with commercials; most of an episode of CSI: Miami taped off KIMA/CBS same night with commercials; partial season finale of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and partial season finale of Without a Trace taped off KIMA/CBS 5/19/2005 with commercials - Safeway T-120
Tape 12 - Emmett Otter's Jug-Band Christmas taped off Nickelodeon in 1992 minus commercials; partial clip of the Equestrian final at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics taped off NBC (suspect KNDO); partial broadcast of Reba McEntire's Christmas Card taped off TNN 12/21/1991 with commercials; partial broadcast of 'What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?'
taped off KAPP/ABC 2/17/1991 with commercials; partial clip of The Young Riders taped off KAPP/ABC in February 1991 with a few commercials. Memorex T-120
Tape 13 - The Otter's Jug Band Christmas (again) taped off Nickelodeon minus commercials; Muppet Family Christmas and first several minutes of I Dream of Jeannie taped off Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite in December 1994 with commercials. Safeway T-120
Very oddball Saturday for VHS tapes. Found some keepers, but only a miniscule amount from the Yakima market. Plus a first in terms of footage from certain TV markets! These were found at an estate sale and a church sale.
Estate Sale
Tape 1 - Masterpiece Theatre episode (Heat of the Day) taped off KYVE-47/PBS in September 1990; partial broadcast of 'The 90s' taped off KYVE/PBS in September 1990, blank after 2 hrs, 10 min. Laser T-120
Tape 2 - 'Ironclads' (1991) taped off the TNT premiere on 3/11/1991 with some commercials (at least two breaks were paused out) - Polaroid HG T-120
Tape 3 - 'O Pioneers!' (1992) taped off KIRO-7 Seattle/CBS 2/2/1992 with Hallmark ads and a local break; Mystery! episode (Prime Suspect Part 2) taped off KCTS/PBS in February 1992 with a couple promos before, and several promos after; part of Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles taped off KCTS-9/PBS in January 1992 with some promos afterwards; episode of L.A. Law taped off KING-5/NBC 1/30/1992 with commercials. Fuji HQ T-120
Church Sale
Tape 4 - 'Born Free' (1966) taped off unknown channel, no commercials; partial broadcast of 'Extreme Prejudice' (1987) taped off Encore 7/14/1991 with a Free Preview segment afterwards. Master T-120
Tape 5 - 'Barbarians at the Gate' (1993) taped off HBO 3/20/1993 with several minutes of promos afterwards. Gold Master T-120
Tape 6 - 'Gordy' (1995), 'Homer & Eddie' (1989) and 'Black Sheep' (1996) copied from rentals; last 10 minutes of 'Bio-Dome' (1996) copied from rental; last hour of Texas Justice part 2 and about 15 minutes of Northstate News Final Edition taped off KRCR-7 Redding/ABC 2/13/1995 with commercials (first ever content from Redding/Chico!)
Tape 7 - Season premiere of CSI: Miami taped off KEPR-19 Pasco/CBS 9/24/2007 with commercials; season premiere of CSI: NY taped off KEPR/CBS 9/26/2007 with commercials
Estate Sale
Tape 1 - Masterpiece Theatre episode (Heat of the Day) taped off KYVE-47/PBS in September 1990; partial broadcast of 'The 90s' taped off KYVE/PBS in September 1990, blank after 2 hrs, 10 min. Laser T-120
Tape 2 - 'Ironclads' (1991) taped off the TNT premiere on 3/11/1991 with some commercials (at least two breaks were paused out) - Polaroid HG T-120
Tape 3 - 'O Pioneers!' (1992) taped off KIRO-7 Seattle/CBS 2/2/1992 with Hallmark ads and a local break; Mystery! episode (Prime Suspect Part 2) taped off KCTS/PBS in February 1992 with a couple promos before, and several promos after; part of Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles taped off KCTS-9/PBS in January 1992 with some promos afterwards; episode of L.A. Law taped off KING-5/NBC 1/30/1992 with commercials. Fuji HQ T-120
Church Sale
Tape 4 - 'Born Free' (1966) taped off unknown channel, no commercials; partial broadcast of 'Extreme Prejudice' (1987) taped off Encore 7/14/1991 with a Free Preview segment afterwards. Master T-120
Tape 5 - 'Barbarians at the Gate' (1993) taped off HBO 3/20/1993 with several minutes of promos afterwards. Gold Master T-120
Tape 6 - 'Gordy' (1995), 'Homer & Eddie' (1989) and 'Black Sheep' (1996) copied from rentals; last 10 minutes of 'Bio-Dome' (1996) copied from rental; last hour of Texas Justice part 2 and about 15 minutes of Northstate News Final Edition taped off KRCR-7 Redding/ABC 2/13/1995 with commercials (first ever content from Redding/Chico!)
Tape 7 - Season premiere of CSI: Miami taped off KEPR-19 Pasco/CBS 9/24/2007 with commercials; season premiere of CSI: NY taped off KEPR/CBS 9/26/2007 with commercials
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