Last revised: October, 1996.
This list is maintained at the University of Alabama's .
A2O ENTERTAINMENT
Provides: Sales of laserdiscs.
Address: 700 Sleater-Kinney Rd. SE, Suite B-286, Lacey, WA 98501
Phone: (800) 261-0150 (orders) or (360) 534-0150 (information)
Fax: (360) 534-0139
E-mail: A2oent@halcyon.com [that's an OH, not a ZERO]
Web: www.halcyon.com/a2oent/index.html
Coverage: Laserdiscs, including used and imported.
Orders: Hours are 11 am - 6 pm, Pacific time, Monday to Friday.
Shipping is free by UPS, or priority mail, with a handling
charge of $1.75 per shipment. Most preorders come with a
20% discount, and unopened titles (even if not defective)
can be returned within 30 days for an 80% refund.
Comments: Prompt and knowledgeable service.
BEST VIDEO
Provides: Sales and rentals of videotapes and discs, and audio
books; search service; format conversions.
Address: 1697 Whitney Avenue, Hamden, CT 06517
Phone: (800) 727-3843 or (203) 287-9286
Fax: (203) 248-4910
E-mail: bestvid@aol.com
Web: www.bestvideo.com
Coverage: A wide variety of selected films and audio. Call for
their catalog ($3.95, applied to first purchase or rental).
Orders: By phone, 10 am - 9 pm Eastern time, seven days/week; by
fax, any time; or order from the Web site. Check the
catalog for their rental and purchase prices and options.
Shipping is $4 for the first title, then $2/title.
Comments: An interesting catalog, with films grouped into categories.
This is useful for browsing; unfortunately, there's no
combined title index. Try their Web site instead, which
provides a search feature and many interesting reviews and
comments. One caution: both in the printed catalog and on
the Web site, film descriptions are brief, and it's
sometimes hard to tell which version of a title is being
offered.
CINEMA CLASSICS
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes and laserdics.
Address: P.O. Box 174 Village Station, New York, NY 10014
Phone: (212) 675-6692
Fax: (212) 675-6594
E-mail: Cclassics@aol.com
Coverage: A large, well-selected collection of videos of all sorts
(except hard adult). Call for their catalog, which is
grouped by category, with a good index. The current
(1996) catalog is free, but they'll start to charge with
the next edition.
Orders: Fax (or leave a phone message) at any time, or speak with
a representative from 11:30 am - 7:30 pm, Monday through
Friday, or 1:00 pm to 7 pm Saturdays (all Eastern time).
Shipping starts at $4 for one item, up to $7 for four or
more; second-day air is $7.50 for the first film, $1.50 for
each additional item. Overseas airmail is available, the
cost dependent on quantity and destination, and Cinema
Classics will provide PAL or SECAM conversions for overseas
customers.
Comments: An excellent collection, and prompt service. Cinema
Classics has good versions of some problematic early
classics, including conversions from PAL editions.
CONTINENTAL SHOP
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes.
Address: 1619 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90403
Phone: (310) 453-8655
Fax: (310) 453-5093
Coverage: British and some Commonwealth films and television
programs, both recent and retrospective. Call for free
catalog, and ask about titles not listed.
Orders: Hours are 8:30 am - 6 pm Pacific time, Monday to Saturday,
and 10 am - 4 pm Sunday. Catalog prices include conversion
to NTSC. Shipping is $5 for the first tape, $2 for each
additional tape.
Comments: An outstanding list of British films and TV, including many
items not found in any other of the sources listed here.
However, some of the PAL to NTSC conversions have video or
audio distortions, so save your receipts.
KEN CRANE'S LASERDISC
Provides: On-site and remote sales of laserdiscs.
Address: 15251 Beach Blvd., Westminster, CA 92683
Phone: (800) 624-3078 or (714) 892-2283
Fax: (714) 892-8369
E-mail: discs@kencranes.com
Web: www.kencranes.com/laserdiscs
Coverage: Keeps most laserdiscs in stock, including movies,
children's, adult, music, many imports. Will take
preorders for discs not yet released. Call for free
catalog.
Orders: Will take phone orders with credit card. Will keep
customer info. on file, indexed by phone number; will also
keep credit card number on file; will backorder. Usually
gives 10% discount; shipping (UPS Ground) is free at
present. Extra charges for COD and expedited shipping.
Phone hours: 7 am - 9 pm, Pacific time, Monday to Friday;
10 - 6 Saturday; 12 - 5 Sunday.
Comments: Excellent stock, very fast handling. Not all of the people
taking phone orders know the stock (or films in general)
well, so you may need to spell out the titles, or call
back. If you live in the area, you can sometimes find
videos in the store that the phone people don't know they
have.
CRITICS' CHOICE VIDEO
Provides: Sales of tapes and laserdiscs; search service.
Address: P.O. Box 749, Itasca, IL 60143-0749
Phone: (800) 367-7765; (800) 544-9852 for inquiries (9 am - 5 pm,
Central time)
TDD: (800) 272-2900, Monday - Friday, 7 am - 7 pm Central time
Fax: (708) 437-7298
E-mail: vcatalog@ccvideo.com
Searches: (900) 370-6500 ($1.95 first minute, then $.95/minute)
Coverage: Excellent list of videos of all types except hard adult.
Limited selection of laserdiscs and 8mm. Will order films
not stocked. Call for free catalog (which says "$2.00" on
the cover).
Orders: Call 24 hours/day, or write or fax. Shipping: $5.50/order.
FedEx shipping options: 2-day air, $5 extra (HI, AK:
$15); overnight, $8, if you call before 2 pm, Central time
("some exceptions apply").
Comments: Outstanding selective, general-purpose list, titles almost
always in stock, fast handling. The catalog is reissued
every month or so, with both new and reduced-price titles
flagged, which is handy.
FACETS MULTIMEDIA
Provides: On-site and remote tape rentals and sales; sales of discs.
Address: 1517 West Fullerton Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614
Phone: (800) 331-6197 (ask for "rental" or "personal sales");
(312) 281-9075 for customer service
Fax: (312) 929-5437
Coverage: Comprehensive VHS coverage (English or with English sub-
titles), except adult; and a large selection of laserdiscs.
Call for their enormous catalog ($11.95, including
shipping), which is supplemented free every other month.
Facets' foreign coverage is superior to that of Movies
Unlimited.
Orders: Membership fee is $25/year, which includes two free
rentals; after that rentals are $10 each, or a block of 12
can be purchased in advance for $100. Rental fee includes
postage to you, and return carton & label. Rental period
is very brief (see "due back" date on packing slip), but
can be safely stretched a bit. Shipping for purchases is
$4 for the first tape, $1.25 for each added tape. Tapes
can be purchased by phone or mail; phone hours are 9 am -
8 pm, Central time, Monday to Friday (until 9:30 pm for
rentals), 10 am - 6 pm Saturday. You'll be given separate
customer numbers for rentals and sales.
Comments: The Facets staff knows their stock well. Catalog info.
on availability for purchase may be out of date. Note that
laserdiscs may be available even when Facets' catalog cites
only a VHS version; try any of the laser sources mentioned,
e.g. Ken Crane's. Will backorder. Some films are rental
only. For rentals, prefer Home Film Festival when it also
has the film (see note under that entry).
FUSION VIDEO
Provides: Sales of selected tapes.
Address: 17311 Fusion Way, Country Club Hills, IL 60478
Phone: (800) 959-0061 (including Canada)
Coverage: Selected titles announced through thematic catalogs issued
from time to time (e.g. British, science fiction, PBS
programs). Call to get on their mailing list; ask for
recent catalogs.
Orders: Call 24 hours/day, or write. The shipping charge is $3.95
- $6.95, depending on amount of order (more to Canada).
Comments: Fusion sometimes has some hard-to-find items, including
NTSC versions of British releases not listed by Movies
Unlimited or Facets.
GRAPEVINE VIDEO
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes.
Address: P.O. Box 46161, Phoenix, AZ 85063
Phone: (602) 973-3661
Fax: (602) 973-2973
Coverage: Silent and early talking movies, including many rare films,
and many not listed by (e.g.) Movies Unlimited. Call for
free catalog, but ask about other titles not listed, of
which they have a lot in stock.
Order: By phone during business hours, or by mail; no fax.
Shipping: $3 USPS, $4 UPS for first tape; $ .50/tape
thereafter. $4 charge for COD.
Comments: An excellent list of high-quality transfers, though some of
them are from significantly deteriorated originals.
1/2" HEAVEN
Provides: Rentals and sales of selected, generally older films and
homemade compilations of many sorts; also free video search
service for films not stocked.
Address: 4590 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90029
Phone: (800) 788-7858
Fax: (213) 660-5571
Coverage: "Features, shorts, cartoons, musicals, westerns, comedies
and other special stuff from the archives of Budget Films,
the largest privately held film archive in the U.S.A."
Send a check for $3.50 for their fascinating catalog.
Orders: Phone hours are 9 am - 5 pm Pacific time, Monday - Friday.
For $50, you can get a lifetime membership, which allows
you to rent films by mail (return postage prepaid by them);
members also receive a 10% discount on purchases. Most of
the membership fee is refundable if you quit in good
standing. One-week rentals are $10, $15, or $24 for 1,
2, or 3 tapes; the first two tapes rented are free for
members. Postage on purchases is free within the U.S.
Comments: Intriguing collection of mainly older films, both main-
stream and bizarre, with a staff that knows and loves the
stock.
HOME FILM FESTIVAL
Provides: Rentals and sales of tapes.
Address: P.O. Box 2032, Scranton, PA 18501
Phone: (800) 258-3456
Fax: (717) 344-3810
E-mail: homefilm@lydian.scranton.com
Web: www.homefilmfestival.com
Coverage: Feature films in VHS, concentrating on foreign and art
titles. Call for free info. packet with list of films; you
must join to get the full catalog. They will special-order
tapes not listed.
Orders: Hours: 8 am - 7 pm, Eastern time, Monday to Friday, noon
to 6 pm Saturday. Membership is $15 for the first year,
then $10/year, which gets you a catalog and a free
rental. Rentals are $6, $11, $16 for 1, 2, or 3 tapes
shipped at the same time. Rental period: 3 nights from
receipt, with an added fee of $1.50/tape/night if late.
Shipping both ways is added to the charge, and varies
according to your location and choice of shipping method.
HFF also sells any commercially available tapes, with a 10%
discount for orders of $50 or more.
Comments: An excellent selection of over 2,700 high-quality films,
with a very useful catalog. Returns are easy: each film
comes in a one-use return box with peel-off sealing tapes
and an address label with prepaid postage printed on it, so
you can drop the film in any mailbox instead of waiting in
line at the Post Office. For this reason, and also the
lower rental price, HFF is preferable to Facets for rentals
when both stock the desired film.
LASER CRAZE
Provides: On-site and remote sales of laserdiscs.
Address: 329 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02115
Phone: (800) 828-3472
Fax: (617) 867-7820
Coverage: Large stock of laserdiscs, including Japanese imports and
adult; will pre- or backorder items not in stock. They
also give credit for used discs. Call to get on mailing
list for their free occasional magazine, Picture Plus.
Orders: By phone (9 am - 7 pm, Eastern time), fax, or GEnie
online. Shipping is by UPS 2-Day @ $2.95 per shipment (but
$5.95 if the shipment contains a boxed set). Will keep
customer info. and credit card number on file.
Comments: Prompt and reliable service from a knowledgeable and
helpful staff. Unfortunately, Laser Craze has recently
implemented a truly obnoxious voice-mail system; you can
try to get around it by pressing zero when the recording
begins, but this may just lead to another recording telling
you to try again later.
LASERLAND
Provides: Sales of laserdiscs and CDs.
Address: 1685 S. Colorado Blvd., #L, Denver, CO 80222
Phone: (800) 783-3472
Fax: (303) 757-4338
Coverage: Claims for stock 5,000 titles of all types, including
adult. Call to get on mailing list for quarterly
announcements. Adult catalog is separate, and costs $4.
Orders: By phone, 9 am - 6 pm Mountain time, Monday -Friday; or fax
at any time. 10% discount on most laserdiscs, 15% on CDs.
Free shipping (UPS Ground); 2nd day air is available for $5
for the 1st disc, $1/disc thereafter. $1.50 handling fee
on each order.
Comments: Fast service, and the order-takers usually know the stock
well (though not always).
LOONIC VIDEO
Provides: Sales of selected tapes.
Address: 2022 Taraval St., Suite 6427, San Francisco, CA 94116
Phone: (510) 526-5681
Coverage: Modest-sized list of cult films and TV shows. Send $1 for
catalog.
Orders: Hours: 9 am - 5 pm, Pacific time, Monday to Friday; but
this is somewhat irregular -- the earlier you call after
9 am, the more likely you are to get through. Most films
are $15.95; shipping is $3.25 for the first film, then
$1/film.
Comments: Some weird but good stuff.
MOVIES UNLIMITED
Provides: On-site and remote mail and phone sales of tapes and
laserdiscs.
Address: 6736 Castor Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19149
Phone: (800) 523-0823 for orders; (215) 722-8398 for inquiries
(9 am -5 pm, Eastern time)
Fax: (215) 725-3683
Coverage: Comprehensive coverage of English and subtitled VHS,
including "soft" adult, and a good selection of laserdiscs.
Lots of foreign (though not as extensive a list as Facets).
Call for huge catalog ($10.95, including shipping; $2.00
extra for laser catalog; free supplements quarterly).
Orders: Call 24 hours/day to order; give customer number (assigned
at time of first order) and credit card info. They have a
bewildering variety of shipment and payment methods and
charges; regular UPS is $4.00 base charge + $.50/item to a
$9.00 maximum total.
Comments: Catalog generally accurate, service excellent. Will
backorder.
PICTURE PALACE
Provides: Web-based sales of a wide variety of tapes and discs.
Address: P.O. Box 1051, Kearny, NJ 07032
Fax: (201) 955-9109
E-mail: picpal@ids.net
Web: www.ids.net/picpal/index.html
Coverage: Picture Palace can supply any in-print tape, and most
laserdiscs. Their Web pages feature topical lists of
recommended films, and catalogs for several sources (e.g.
SinisterCinema).
Orders: Use the Web site to order, or fax them; correspond about
orders via the Web site, or c/o their e-mail address
as given above. Shipping if $4.95 for one item, $5.95 for
two, then $ .50/item.
Comments: A recent addition, serving individuals and libraries via
the World Wide Web. This is an interesting approach, still
being developed and worth following. Their page would be
greatly improved by the addition of a cumulative title
index, or a title search capability.
[PUBLIC AND BRITISH TELEVISION]
In addition to the other sources listed here (of which The Continental
Shop and Fusion Video are the strongest for these programs), the following
often have PBS or BBC (or other British) films of various kinds, many of
which are not available from regular outlets; call for catalogs.
PACIFIC ARTS (a.k.a. PBS Home Video)
11858 La Grange Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(800) 538-5856
(310) 826-9351 (fax)
PBS Online
E-mail: video@pbs.org
Web store: www.pbs.org/store-cgi/store
THE VIDEO CATALOG (which sells the videos marketed by SIGNALS)
P.O. Box 64267
Saint Paul, MN 55164-0267
(800) 733-2232 for orders, 24 hours
(612) 659-4320 (fax)
(800) 733-6656 for Customer Service (from outside US: 01-612-659-4312)
(800) 718-4336 for title searches
VIDEO COLLECTIBLES (a.k.a. BFS Limited)
350 Newkirk Road North
Richmond Hill, Ontario
Canada L4C 3G7
(800) 268-3891 (U.S.)
(800) 387-5758 (Canada)
(905) 884-1433 (local)
(905) 884-8292 (fax)
For a large catalog of British tapes available in the PAL format, which
must be converted to NTSC before viewing on American equipment, contact:
FAST FORWARD
Units 9/10
Sutherland Court
Moor Park Industrial Estate
Tolpits Lane
Watford, Herts. WD1 8SP
England
(0923) 897080
(0923) 896263 (fax)
(For format conversion, see the Yellow Pages under "Video Production
Services"; expect to pay around $20 - $35 to convert a feature-length
tape.)
SIGHT & SOUND
Provides: Sales of U.S. and imported laserdiscs.
Address: 27 Jones Road, Waltham, MA 02154
Phone: (617) 894-8633
Fax: (617) 894-9329
Coverage: Large list of U.S. and foreign laserdiscs, with a speciali-
zation in Japanese imports. Call for free catalog (which
says "$1.95" on the cover).
Orders: Hours are 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. Eastern time, Monday - Saturday.
10% discount on most titles. Shipping is $3 for first
disc, $1.50/disc thereafter, for UPS Ground; other options
are available.
Comments: No 800 number, but the first place to go for laserdisc
phone orders. Sight & Sound continues to stock out-of-
print and other hard-to-get titles which other sources
can't supply.
SINISTER CINEMA
Provides: Sales of selected tapes.
Address: P.O. Box 4369, Medford, OR 97501-0168
Phone: (503) 773-6860
Fax: (503) 779-8650
Coverage: Horror, science fiction, mystery, spaghetti westerns,
exploitation, and schlock in VHS. Call or write for free
catalog; send $2 if you want it mailed first class (stamps
are OK). See The Picture Palace's listing of Sinister
Cinema's films on the Web at www.ids.net/picpal/sinmastr.
Orders: Hours: 9am - 5 pm, Pacific time, Monday to Friday, but
irregular. Most tapes are $16.95, plus $2.05/title for
shipping; $1 surcharge for credit card orders.
Comments: Fairly large and good selection; has some hard-to-find
older and British films, and a fascinating collection of
trashy movies of all genres and periods.
TLA VIDEO MGT., INC.
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes, on-site rentals.
Address: 332 South Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147
Phone: (800) 333-8521, 10 am - 6 pm, Monday - Friday
Fax: (215) 922-1681 (same hours)
Coverage: Large collection of U.S. and foreign videos in all cate-
gories except adult. Call for catalog ($7.95 including
shipping); or to subscribe to their bi-monthly newsletter,
Rewind.
Orders: Catalog implies they accept phone orders only from
institutions, but this is not so; see phone information
above. Shipping: $3 for the first title, then $2/title;
discount for 10 or more. Overseas rates available. No
shipping to P.O. boxes.
Comments: Excellent list but less inclusive than those of Facets or
Movies Unlimited.
VIDEO YESTERYEAR
Provides: Sales of tapes of older material.
Address: Box C, Sandy Hook, CT 06482
Phone: (800) 243-0987
Fax: (203) 797-0819
Coverage: Large collection of old movies, TV shows, serials,
propaganda, documentaries, and homemade compilations.
Includes features, shorts, silents -- about 1200 in all,
all in VHS, Beta, and 8mm. The silents are at the
"correct" projection speed and many have new organ scores
composed and performed by Rosa Rio. "Video Yesteryear" is
one of several imprints sharing a corporate identity;
others sell vintage audio recordings or adult videos. Call
for a catalog ($2.95); adult catalog is separate and extra.
Any purchase entitles you to receive one of their catalogs
free (by returning a certificate which comes with the
tape).
Orders: Hours: "business hours in the Eastern time zone," or fax
with credit card info. If you order ten or more films at
once, deduct 10% Shipping is $3.95 per order (FedEx:
$5.50/order).
Comments: Catalog includes many items unique to this source. Some
are of reduced quality, but the catalog usually warns of
this (though not always).
VIDEOFLICKS
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes.
Address: 1654 Avenue Road, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5M 3Y1
Phone: (416) 782-4438
Fax: (416) 782-4430
E-mail: orders@videoflicks.com
Web: www.videoflicks.com
Coverage: A large collection of videos in NTSC format, with PAL and
SECAM possibly in their future.
Orders: By phone, Monday - Friday, 9 am - 5 pm Eastern time; or by
Web, e-mail, or fax. Shipping varies according to
destination and size of order; the minimum is $3 to the US,
$6 (Can.) to Ontario, $14 to other provinces. U.S. shipping
is UPS for up to six tapes, parcel mail for more.
Comments: A handy Web store, with a good selection. Videoflicks also
operates a large group of retail stores, mainly in Ontario.
VIEWFINDERS
Provides: Sales of VHS tapes.
Address: P.O. Box 1665, Evanston, IL 60204-1665
Phone: (800) 342-3342
Fax: (708) 847-1710
Coverage: Selected list of over 5500 VHS tapes in the arts, feature
films, documentaries, mysteries, music, nature, etc.
Call for free catalog; they will order titles they don't
list.
Orders: Hours are 8 am - 5 pm, Central time, Monday to Friday,
though they will often answer the phone outside of those
hours. Shipping: they prefer UPS, but this is negotiable;
UPS is $5 minimum per order, $1 per tape over five tapes.
Comments: An excellent collection of the best in arts and features.