What Was The First Movie On VHS? (You'll Never Guess!)

[@SurenDrakensberg]

The first movie I bought on VHS tape was in 1986, I was 15 yrs old. It was Rambo: First Blood Part 2. I had seen the movie 4 times in the theaters and loved the idea of owning it to watch another 50+ times! 😊👍🏼

[@Mr.1.i]

@@SurenDrakensberg E.T. and popeye were the first films on video I saw

[@methonyHolmes-e8p]

The first VHS I ever saw was Debbie Does Dallas at my friend's house ...

[@UncleTermite]

That’s funny the first DVD I got was Debbie Dies Dallas 2000 , and Falling Down with Michael Douglas. Haha

[@moldyapples]

When I turned 21 (in 1980) some coworkers threw me a party & we watched Debbie Does Dallas on rented VHS

[@Mr.1.i]

The first film released on VHS was the South Korean drama The Young Teacher, which was released in 1976. The first VCR, the Victor HR 3300, was also released in 1976.

[@brianinct4631]

Actually, I believe that the first VCR (for sale) was the Sony Betamax which was released in 1975.

[@Mr.1.i]

@brianinct4631 VCR means videocassette recorder, and the first one of those was released for commercial use in 1956.

[@Mr.1.i]

@brianinct4631 I'm on about the 1st film

[@theozank853]

I remember when the original "Top Gun" was released with a low cost due to it having a advert for "Pepsi" before the movie.

[@JazukaiX]

I don't know whether I like your video yet in the middle of a 3 minute segment but when you interrupt it to tell me to subscribe that enjoyment goes down.

[@miamijim5964]

I remember the 1st video shop opening in Benfleet is Essex, you had to pay an upfront membership fee of 35 Pounds, carry your ID and show it each time you took out a film for 1.50 and sign the take out sheet...

[@shan4680]

I didn't know what the first film was (and never would have guessed that) but I do know that the very last film released on VHS was The History of Violence.

[@GabePickles3837]

Actually, that movie was released on VHS. The actual final movie released on VHS was Cars in 2007.

[@robvegas9354]

We got a copy of the last starfighter as a bonus when my dad brought our first VHS player

[@Aeduo]

That movie would've been a great demo for home video. Mixed live action and animation. Futuristic (for the time) computer graphics. Lots of color and motion.

[@madahad9]

It's stunning what VHS tapes were going for back in the day. I remember seeing adds that had them going for as much as 70 dollars. Even though it was not the best format to watch movies it was still fun going to the local video store and perusing the selection. Most stocked mainstream movies and didn't expand too far (if ever) into foreign or independent films. I'll still never forget renting Eraserhead for the first time. Being a time before I could afford my own VCR I had to actually rent both the tape and the machine. I imagine that a modern-day public would find this "inconvenience" unacceptable but I enjoyed it . I bought my first VCR at the local Crazy Eddie's store. Yep, it was that long ago.

[@FIDreams]

Early 80's my father paid $100 for our VHS copy of Star Wars.

[@pinballshawn]

Star Wars was released on VHS in 1982.

[@FIDreams]

@pinballshawn I guess, but it was a first realise. I'll change my original post. Thank you.

[@pinballshawn]

@@FIDreams Before that the only way to see Star Wars was on Super-8 film and those were just condensed versions. However at the time it was amazing to see them. That's why movies would play at theaters for a year and a half lol! As a Star Wars obsessed kid, it was a very long wait to see it again.

[@markmarkofkane8167]

Very interesting! The first movie I saw on VHS was The Searchers with John Wayne back in January 19, 1984. I still have VHS tapes, too many to count or name. I don't play them much anymore. I have a Phillips VCR/DVD combo that worked the last time I used it. Also have an RCA that doesn't rewind. But that's ok. I have a tape rewinder. And a Magnavox DVD recorder, and VCR (The VCR doesn't work, it will eat a tape if I insert it)

[@Scotty-Z70]

the first costly VHS tape we bought was Star Trek IV The Voyage Home for $40 at PACE the K-Mart Warehouse store (like Costco) in the 80s.

[@dono42]

I do not remember the details, but I remember getting the Star Wars trilogy and a number of Disney movies on VHS. Usually VHS tapes were quite expensive so we usually rented them. I remember wanting to buy some movies but they were > $100 which was far too expensive for me as a young kid.

[@deepfakedvds]

I didn't know about this title being the first, very interesting. I guess I would watch it. Since you asked, I do have a small tape collection and about 10 Panasonic Omnivisions from the mid to late 1980s. They're easier to maintain than some of the JVC VCRs I have. Nice video 👍

[@bennetfox]

I never bought movies per se. We had a 12-ft satellite dish in the mid-80s and I recorded a lot of stuff from HBO, Showtime, Skinemax, and The Movie Channel.

[@allanmortensen7238]

My father got Star Wars on VHS back in late 1970s. It should not be possible. But we saw it on our Akai VHS player. Still got the tape, but the movie is no longer present!

[@bubbazep01]

That is fascinating! Did he know someone at 20th Century Fox?

[@gimpygardner3377]

In about 1974-5, I was in Junior High. One of my teachers got the school to buy a video camera (really expensive, then). I remember being interviewed on video back then. My town had a lot of rich people, we even had a computer terminal that could connect to the University with an acoustic phone modem.

[@politefan8141]

In the late 80s every kid had a copy of who framed Roger rabbit, ET and the land before time. The Indiana Jones films were also quite popular around this time because the tapes were included in a McDonald’s promotion.

[@chuckmaddison2924]

" How to use your new video recorder."

[@ChrisCooling]

You're repeating nonsense from a website. There were no movies released on VHS until November 1977 when Magnetic Video released 50 licensed titles from 20th Century Fox. The first 3 catalog titles were Hello, Dolly; Fantastic Voyage; and Von Ryan's Express, catalog numbers 1001, 1002, 1003. No movie cost $1000.

[@tractorgt]

My neighbors had a VCR in 1979 and had superman and star wars taped off of something called "onTv" that they had figured out how to pirate. Cable didn't come to our neighborhood until 81.

[@josephcontreras8930]

Once deçades back i got a hold of some videotapes on how to make great presentations, you and your new rotisserie and microwave gourmet meals, your new mr coffee maker, how to use the hobart 2120 deep oil fryer and how to catch more big fish using the zebco crazy fish lure and get started with aerobics 😅 i recorded over most of thèm when i was tape poor but i wanted to record knight rider magnum Ateam airwolf and Alf cause i worked weeknights during school. But some of those prerecorded tapes were fun to watch nonetheless the early 80s hairstyles the padded shoulders the big eyeglasses the big hair.

[@gimpygardner3377]

My mother took microwave cooking classes back then.🤢 Nothing worse than microwaved chicken. Microwaves are great for reheating, not for cooking.

[@lutello3012]

What was the first precorded VHS movie released in English speqking countries? Or was that it? I heard MASH was one of the first ones, my copy says 1980.

[@gofindfun]

The Sound of Music, Patton, and MASH were the first in 1976 out of fifty 20 Century Fox titles.

[@iansmith9279]

​​@@gofindfunMASH was the first pre-recorded film I ever owned. I also remember watching Vanishing Point; also one of the 20th Century Fox titles - so presumably one of the original 'first 50'..?

[@gofindfun]

@@iansmith9279 I wonder which one was the best seller?

[@iansmith9279]

@@gofindfun As these were pre-Star Wars, my money would be on Sound of Music.

[@nicholasgarratt5646]

Star Wars came out on VHS in 1982 to rent however, a making of star wars came out in 1979 on VHS. I still remember back in the early 80's that it could take years for a film to be released in home formats. ESB didn't come out until 1984 and ROTJ didn't get a release until 1986.

[@peterbumper2769]

The only movie I remember from the first video library I joined, they probably had about 100 titles. The only one I remember was Alien. The first movie I bought on VHS was "The Last Starfighter", and we did wear that tape out

[@MrAvenger1975]

I never heard of ANY VHS tape originally selling for $1000. I vividly remember the going rate in the early 80s was $100, though. That I can confirm. Absurdly expensive back then. That's why everyone was renting VCRs to make their own copies at home.

[@mchenrynick]

When we got our first VCR (at the end of 1982), the first movie, recorded off of HBO, was The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Too expensive to buy original-recorded movies.

[@Derpy1969]

They weren’t $1000. They were like $150 for the rental companies to buy. They were like $2 to rent through.

[@CrowTRobot-ni7zu]

This is why the majority of my Dad's tapes are stuff he recorded off of TV. Until DVD's came along, the majority of his prerecorded movies were on LaserDisc (which oddly enough usually cost about a third of what VHS or Beta movies cost).

[@akfreed6949]

I think he was referring to the cost of the VCR .

[@MrAvenger1975]

@@akfreed6949 THAT would make more sense.

[@Bobby217CPA]

I have a Magnavox VHS/ DVD Combo from the 2000's I would guess it was my Mom's and I got it when she died. I have only a few tapes, I mostly use the DVD Player. Great Video! 👍

[@whophd]

In today’s episode, I learn that (A) we’ve all forgotten how premium & luxury VHS used to be, and (B) low-quality straight-to-video was effectively there at the beginning.

[@DougMcDave]

My family could not afford a VCR until 1984. The first prerecorded tape? I'm not sure. Perhaps for me, it was one of the Star Trek movies. A few years before that my uncle brought, "The Deer Hunter," along with his own Panasonic VCR, that was detachable from its tuner to make it portable for his video camera to be wired into it.

[@trevorbrown6654]

That I did not know. I believe though the last movie released on VHS was A History Of Violence in 2006, which is 30 years later. I was also surprised to find out that the last film released on the Betamax format was Mission: Impossible back in 1996. That amazed me as my parents had a Sony Betamax recorder from the early to mid 1980s and we used to buy ex-rental tapes from the video shop for it in the mid 80s when the format wars resulted in VHS becoming the dominant format and they started selling off their Betamax stock on the cheap. This meant that we were slightly late to this party and got our first VHS recorder around 1986/7. I don't recall the first tape I bought on that format though, possibly The Quiet Man which was one of my Dad's favorite films.

[@michaelturner4457]

First movies I saw on VHS was either Driller Killer or Cannibal Holocaust in 1981, pirated and the quality was awful. Of course this was in the era of video nasties. Our VCR was rented from Granada TV Rentals.

[@MrAvenger1975]

Both violent classics. 😁

[@dorritfredrikaholm3320]

I collected VHS tapes in many years but I do not buy them anymore but I still have them in my childhood home

[@originalsusser]

Our 1st VCR was rented, we were not sure which format would survive. We bought a Hitachi VHS in 84. It lasted till late 90s. They don't make them like that anymore, lol. I copied a ton of tapes but only owned 2 owing to their around $100 cost att. Those were Blues Brothers & A Clockwork Orange, a really rare one here in Australia I bought in 85 from a rental shop that imported many unavailable titles.

[@welshtechie6832]

I just cannot remember - i used to love VHS and converting VHS to DVD when there was no DVD available! All in with Blu Ray and 4k Blu Ray now - streaming is pants!

[@klisher]

My first movie on VHS was young Frankenstein. First film taped from TV was Chariots of fire ((live in UK) first bought VHS was DR Who the Brain of Morbius (£20) i still got over 500 video tapes

[@UncleTermite]

The first memory I have with someone recording a movie was around 1983 my older cousin was taping Animal House I asked him if I could talk while the movie was on and he looked at me like I was an A hole ,I was about 10 . Lol

[@klisher]

@@UncleTermite 😊😊

[@humanvideosponge4529]

I have a good one. The first movie I ever bought on VHS was Die Hard. I bought a used copy from Blockbuster fairly soon after it first came out. And it was really inexpensive considering the tape was in almost perfect condition when I played it. And I played the heck out of it. I never did fully wear it out. I probably still had it when I bought my first DVD player.

[@ThierryRocksTV]

I'm an early 2000s baby and we still had a VHS player and tapes in my house. The first tapes I saw were Thomas the Tank Engine and Brum.

[@Blazcowitz1943]

A well cultured individual, I see.

[@grimTales1]

VHS was invented by JVC, and first released in Japan in 1976 but $1000 still seems incredibly expensive even if the concept was new

[@shaun5552]

The machines cost more than that, they were still a major purchase and seriously expensive even in the late 1980's, but tapes were never anywhere near that so far as I'm aware.

[@MrAvenger1975]

@@shaun5552 I can't see anyone spending such an absurd amount on a single video tape. Even the initial going rate of $100 I thought was stupidly expensive.

[@DavidJCane]

Film studios had a different idea of home viewing back then and most pre-recorded VHS material was intended for rental.

[@skywalkerhunter95]

my first VHS movie is Looney Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie i bought only last year, 2023, along with a new old stock LG DVD/VCR combo player. i wanted to compare the overall experience between watching VHS and VCD,, because VCD was the popular format in my region...

[@politefan8141]

The Bugs Bunny roadrunner movie and a few others were one of the first VHS titles I rented in the 80s. I must’ve watched that tape dozens of times. it was a compilation of the most well-known cartoons

[@kenlompart9905]

I never bought a VHS movie, my buddy and I would just rent movies we liked and hook our VCR's together and make copies.

[@chadbrown748]

Some of the first VHS'es that my family ever had were some 30 minute sports blooper videos, like Pro Football Funnies (1987), Hockey, The Lighter Side (1988) and Pro Sports Bloopers (1990). We also had some actual movies on VHS as well, like Cinderella (1950), Dirty Dancing (1987), and Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988). Over a period of time, throughout the 1990's my family got even more movies on VHS, which soon became my own private collection.

[@ralphreinhardt6020]

For thee algorithm !! 🇨🇦😎👍🇺🇲

[@retrogametech1626]

Debbie does Dallas

[@caeserromero3013]

Debbie Does Dallas?

[@georgeburnham1880]

I remember the Disney studios saying that Fantasia would not be released on video tape. I forget what year this was. Now of course you can get it anywhere. I got rid of my original VCR several years ago, but kept plenty of the tapes. Not too long ago, I got another one at a thrift shop for $5-$10 dollars. I only use it to watch my old tapes because of PPV and DVR, who would use a VCR for that purpose anymore? Laser discs didn’t last very long either.

[@imnoone492]

I bought my first VHS machine with a B/W plug in camera in 1976 for $1500, and my first movie was Day the earth stood still for $100. Blanks were $20. An expensive hobby in those days.

[@BozQ]

Strange how this is a Korean film, but the title shown in this picture is in Chinese.

[@istvanvilmos8400]

This is because Korea also uses Hanja characters which are Chinese.

[@BozQ]

@@istvanvilmos8400 learn something new :-)

[@TonyCrenshawsLatte]

@@istvanvilmos8400 Correct. And in the 70s, Hanja usage was a lot more prevalent in South Korea. It wasn't until the 80s where Korean society collectively went, "Yo, why are we using so much Hanja in our writing?" and Hanja usage dropped significantly since then. (To be precise, Hanja-based _words_ are still being used. They're just no longer written using Hanja.)

[@jamesconroy7030]

How could it be Star Wars??? In 1976 it hadn't even come out in the theater yet!

[@Concreteowl]

The first film I purchased was Raiders of the Lost Ark on PAL Betamax but we had to get rid of our machine as we rented it and the rental shop wanted rid of all their Betamax machines. The first VHS film I purchased was The Fog. Yes I still have a large VHS collection and I still watch them. Once in a while I get an addition to my collection. I still miss the Betamax though.

[@BizzyJ1987]

My grandpa had blank VHS cassettes and had recorded rented movies on those. These days you can't do that.

[@Mrshoujo]

You can if you have a magic fixer box.

[@BizzyJ1987]

@Mrshoujo Never heard of it

[@speedyboishan87]

Basically a Macrovision Scrubber, it can remove any form of Macrovision. In the early days of VHS most rented or borrowed a tape and copied it. It was huge losses for Hollywood and the film distributors. Since tapes are no longer made, feel free to copy any tape you wish as VHS is dead and long gone.​@@BizzyJ1987

[@Aeduo]

Just get one of those HDMI "splitters". :p

[@fiver-hoo]

lol my sweet summer child

[@Bobalicious]

I believe the first movie I purchased on VHS was The Lion King. It was for my daughter, and we watched it daily. Before then, I hadn't purchased any movies for my VCRs because they were strictly for recording. I didn't like the quality, nor the 3x4 format, of VHS recordings. I did make an exception for my children, but we replaced all the tapes as those titles became available on DVD.

[@Eth3realwarrior]

I run my dad's JVC jog dial VCR, the last 2 movies I got where The Long Kiss Goodnight and Romeo and Juliette. Both movies came out in 1996 and I found them in a box on the sidewalk. Romeo and Juliette had a big lipstick smooch mark on it lol.

[@jakem5916]

Not necessarily true, no proof has ever surfaced of The Young Teacher ever receiving a vhs release that early in the format's life likely due to it being an obscure film only released in one country. It's commonly accepted that the first vhs releases were Patton, Mash (the PG rated edit), and The Sound Of Music from Magnetic Video

[@jakem5916]

There's a video from 17 years ago showing that a vhs of the film did come out, but iirc there's no copyright date anywhere on the release

[@dad_jokes_4ever226]

Dang , I was sure it was "Debbie does Dallas "

[@user-yl1xy5eg7b]

I worked in Rank Video Services in the late 80s. I remember that someone stole a copy of a major hit from my inbox. It was all over Soho the next week. The joke? I had no video player and no tapes. I just had a job.

[@electrothecat07]

My favorite vhs movie is the lion king. Even before I could read (my mom said) I could tell it from other movies and operate the vcr. I still have a movie collection and 2 working VCRs

[@FrancisXLord]

The first film I ever bought on VHS was The Goonies - it cost £11.99. Shortly thereafter I bought the first version available for sale in the UK of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Each cost £14.99. I always remember the Star Wars one in particular because it was in one large ugly silver box. £14.99 was the equivalent of 3 weeks lunch money. So I starved myself for nine weeks for the Star Wars trilogy.

[@JamesLawner]

$1000 for a VHS tape?! 😳🤯

[@emurphy42]

I remember Dirty Dancing being advertised on tape for somewhere in the $90 to $100 range, which still seemed pretty absurdly high.

[@solsol1624]

Player I can believe, but tape?

[@MrAvenger1975]

@@solsol1624 I don't remember what my father paid for our first VCR in 1983, but it was at least $200. It even had a corded remote that too short to reach the couch. 😄

[@georgeburnham1880]

Also, I can’t remember which movie I watched on a VCR first.

[@jonothanthrace1530]

I knew the answer wasn't any of those you showed, because they were all in the late 80s onward cardboard slipcases and not the book-style cases most early video cassette releases came in.

[@BanthaPooDoo64]

My very first official movie I purchased on VHS was in 1986 FRIDAY the 13TH set which at that time was 1 through 5

[@jamesslick4790]

My first purchased pre recorded movie was "Airplane!" still one of my favorite comedies!

[@WarrentheGunner]

Classic 👍🏼

[@JustPeasant]

That's surprising. I assumed that the very first pre-recorded VHS cassettes was some Japanese movie. Pre-recorded VHS tapes were not really a thing in the country where I live. The very first movie I've ever watched was Mad Max 2 (The Road Warrior in the USA) when I was six maybe? Back then this movie was the most awesome thing that hit the silver (my TV) screen. It was on the TDK Super Avilyn E-180 (PAL) tape. Currently, I own three VCRs: Hitachi, JVC and combo (LG).

[@afriend9428]

*Dr No*

[@andrewschuricht6748]

Debbie Does Dallas 1978

[@chamonix2602]

Was it "The Poseidon Adventure"?

[@steve26553]

I'm sure that people remember that when home video players/recorders first hit the scene, there was also the Betamax format. Betamax was a superior format in many ways but for some reason, VHS was more popular amongst the buying public and Betamax lost out, disappearing into obscurity

[@80sandretrogubbins25]

Sony apparently were reluctant to licence out their Betamax VCR technology to as wide a variety of video manufacturers as JVC were about VHS. That is why when you search for Betamax players on ebay most of them will be Sony or Sanyo.

[@DavidJCane]

I think the first home video I saw was _The Blues Brothers_ at a friend's house, though I think that was on Betamax rather than VHS.

[@tzgardner]

Star Wars was my first VHS as well.

[@UncleStevie8er]

I was into BETA. Superior to VHS. My first movie was Star Wars in '78-79ish. Paid $120.00 for it. Still watch it today. While my VHS tapes quality has degraded and can't hold a candle to my BETA tapes.

[@lucywillis4174]

My first VHS was Ghostbusters 1 and 2 on one tape....

[@3DJapan]

My guess was a famous adult film from 1972.

[@anonUK]

Starring Linda Lovelace?

[@UncleTermite]

I actually guessed Gone with the wind bf watching this , first VHS movie I got was Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes I was about 11 in 1984 .

[@killjoy4862]

Alien (1979) Ofc, I'm much younger than that, watching Alien when I was 8 years old and that was in 1994.

[@DaisyLynn-xm1pl]

So what was the first American movie on VHS?

[@dqan7372]

Rented plenty from Blockbuster. Only one I remember owning was Strange Brew. Have an XR-1000 by NEC (apparently) that my dad inherited from work.

[@leepowell6754]

Huh. I can't remember. Weird that I can remember my first CD (soundtrack from Memphis Belle played on a Mac II w/Apple CDRom)... first VHS tape... no idea.

[@TSDT]

Huh, thought it was Robot Holocaust with its WATCH WHAT YOU WANT, WHEN YOU WANT sticker, but I guess I didnt think globally enough.

[@will_it_work]

What was the first Western movie put on VHS in the U.S.? That's the only question.

[@wisteela]

I've never even heard of it.

[@romad275]

The title should be: "What was the first non-porn movie on VHS"

[@georgej8254]

That cover is not in Korean. It's in Chinese.

[@lanceyt9982]

The first one I bought for myself was Rambo at Walmart

[@lanceyt9982]

I don't collect VHS anymore just DVD and Blu Ray.

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

So what was the first AMERICAN movie to be released on VHS?

[@Blaqjaqshellaq]

It turns out to be the porn classic THE DEVIL IN MISS JONES later in 1976. But the first three mainstream US movies were THE SOUND OF MUSIC, PATTON and M*A*S*H, all released on the same day in 1977.

[@Terry.W]

Mine was Blade Runner ...however I would have said the the first VHS was probably a porn movie..

[@xdario10]

I'm going to guess it was an adult film of some sort

[@FloweredUp-n4t]

I know. It's hard to believe the first title released on an Asian format launched in Asia was an Asia movie. Who'd have thunk it? FFS

[@junepaul7843]

my guess... the exorcist

[@gyaniadmi2347]

First VCR we own was NATIONAL G-10, first movie we watched was Star Wars and first VIdeo Tape we owned was the show ' Thats Incredible ' from 1985 , and few WWE videos.

[@Gemini22-v4w]

Mine was E.T.

[@ekahnoman7331]

Oh, come on. That doesn't count. Some random Korean movie nobody's heard of.

[@user-rx7dc7qn9v]

You meant beta tapes they were the first ones then VHS came out

[@picklerick4944]

Wrong. Porn was the first VHS release, and it's why VHS beat out Betamax

[@mofojones1]

We had betamax

[@jamesmoss3424]

That movie is new to me. 😀👍📼

[@lucianacchia1088]

Why was Pirates of the Caribbean made under Disney despite being rated PG 13?

[@DavidMander-rs4uk]

Who cares as VHS tapes suck in 2024!!

[@audiogus2651]

Yup, along with everything else!