Did you know that Star Wars was released on VHS, Betamax, and laserdisc in 1982? In addition, you can find pictures of the Star Wars videotape at robotGEEK’s Cult Cinema. But back in 1982, videotape rental was king. If you wanted to own the film, you’d have to wait until the videotape became available for purchase. To avoid this situation, many people began tape-off-air to obtain it.
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Revenge of the Sith was released on vhs in 1984
The original Star Wars film was first released on VHS in May of 1984. Although it was only released in limited numbers, fans still wanted a VHS copy. Then, in 1984, the prequel trilogy was released on VHS. But, with the popularity of DVD growing, more movies were moving to DVD. Ultimately, Revenge of the Sith became the last major Star Wars movie released on VHS.
The video release was a huge improvement over the original film, and features a remastered stereo sound mix by Ben Burtt, which was used for all subsequent releases until 1993. The video release of the original was cropped, so viewers only saw half the picture in the cinema. However, today, the video version of Revenge of the Sith is released in letterbox format, which makes it possible to view the full cinematic picture.
Star Wars was released on vhs in 1982
The first VHS releases of Star Wars took place in 1982. Although VCRs were available as early as 1975, only half a million people had them in 1982. The VHS versions of the original 1977 film are not exact copies of those released on home video. But these VHS releases still are valuable in their own right. Let’s take a look at these differences to understand why they are so valuable.
While the first film, Star Wars, was released in theaters in 1977, the VHS release only came out in 1982. The first official release of the film was made by CBS and came in a clamshell case with the company’s logo. In 1982, videotape rental dominated the market. The first home video release of the original Star Wars was sold at auction for a whopping $57,600.
Star Wars IV: A New Hope was released on vhs in 1992
The original trilogy was released on VHS in 1992. The original trilogy included all three movies, except for Episode IV. The original trilogy was also released in letterbox format. The release included an original version and two remastered versions. The pre-1992 release included a THX version with cleaned video and remixed audio. The post-1992 versions were referred to as SE Editions and are not the original releases.
Despite being out of print for a couple of decades, this movie has a high value. Many people collect it, mainly due to nostalgia. There are many collectors of VHS editions who pay more than $76 for the VHS rental of “Episode IV: A New Hope.” If you want to see the original movie without special effects, this is the best choice.
Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace was released on vhs in 1977
The original 1977 release of Star Wars was subtitled Episode IV: A New Hope and was the first StarWars film released on video. The film was later released on LaserDisc in the U.S., and on VHS in Japan and most of Asia. The film was not available for purchase, so many people acquired it through videotape rental. Luckily, many collectors managed to get their hands on it and relive the era of the original Star Wars movies.
When the original film was released on VHS, it received a new stereo sound mix by Ben Burtt, which would be used for future releases of the films until 1993. While the film was initially released in a mono sound mix, it retained its half-strength cinematic picture, which was cropped to fit a 4:3 television set. However, later versions of the movie featured full-length cinematic images in letterbox format.
