25 Photos Remembering the Golden Age of Video Stores When the Dirty Stuff Was Behind a Curtain

Daniel Bonfiglio Published 12/06/2024 in wow

Picture this:

It's the early '90s, you just got done with high school for the week, and you're looking for something fun to do with your friends. It's too cold to be outside, but you don't want to go home just yet. Where do you go? The video store of course!

No '80s or '90s childhood was complete without the video store experience, and there is something uniquely nostalgic about the essential, but short-lived business model.

Here are 25 photos to remind you of the golden age of video stores.

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1.
Tower Video store, New York City, 1986.
2.
Renting movies at "MovieQuik," a short-lived video rental venture of 7-Eleven, circa 1985.
3.
4.
Video rental ads at ShopRight, 1991.
5.
Blockbuster video store in Lexington, 1999.
6.
7.
VideoConcepts was eventually sold to Radio Shack, before they all went under.
8.
Store in 1988.
9.
Quentin Tarantino working at a video rental store in California during the 80's.
10.
Hollywood video store in 1999 with Sega Dreamcast console.
11.
A selection of Atari video games at a Gold Circle discount department store, 1983.
12.
Ad for an early 80s store.
13.
Video store in Cincinnati, OH, 1988.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
A Chicago Blockbuster in 1991.
19.
20.
“My Aunt running her own video store in the late 80s.”
21.
Wegmans "Video Rental Store" in the 90's. This was a store within a store at Wegmans supermarkets.
22.
23.
24.
25.
A video rental store in Spain, mid to late 80s.

1.
Tower Video store, New York City, 1986.
2.
Renting movies at "MovieQuik," a short-lived video rental venture of 7-Eleven, circa 1985.
3.
4.
Video rental ads at ShopRight, 1991.
5.
Blockbuster video store in Lexington, 1999.
6.
7.
VideoConcepts was eventually sold to Radio Shack, before they all went under.
8.
Store in 1988.
9.
Quentin Tarantino working at a video rental store in California during the 80's.
10.
Hollywood video store in 1999 with Sega Dreamcast console.
11.
A selection of Atari video games at a Gold Circle discount department store, 1983.
12.
Ad for an early 80s store.
13.
Video store in Cincinnati, OH, 1988.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
A Chicago Blockbuster in 1991.
19.
20.
“My Aunt running her own video store in the late 80s.”
21.
Wegmans "Video Rental Store" in the 90's. This was a store within a store at Wegmans supermarkets.
22.
23.
24.
25.
A video rental store in Spain, mid to late 80s.