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The end of Columbia House


Brock
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Columbia House, the company which introduced Lucy on home video, has filed for bankruptcy.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/columbia-house-parent-files-for-bankruptcy-protection-1.3186168

 

Personally, Columbia House is responsible for one of my most exciting days as a Lucy fan when I was leafing through a TV Guide in the checkout aisle of the drug store when I came across their cardboard insert for their new series set of The Lucy Show. It was a dream come true for this pre-teen, with TLS and HL both hanging tantalizingly out of reach. There was little sleep to be had after I filled out the mail order card and popped it in the mailbox just waiting for the first tape to arrive.

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Columbia House, the company which introduced Lucy on home video, has filed for bankruptcy.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/columbia-house-parent-files-for-bankruptcy-protection-1.3186168

 

Personally, Columbia House is responsible for one of my most exciting days as a Lucy fan when I was leafing through a TV Guide in the checkout aisle of the drug store when I came across their cardboard insert for their new series set of The Lucy Show. It was a dream come true for this pre-teen, with TLS and HL both hanging tantalizingly out of reach. There was little sleep to be had after I filled out the mail order card and popped it in the mailbox just waiting for the first tape to arrive.

 

I still have all 5 of The Lucy Show tapes and am never giving them up. Those were my pride and joys in the days before the official DVD sets. Sad news.

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I still have all 5 of The Lucy Show tapes and am never giving them up. Those were my pride and joys in the days before the official DVD sets.

 

Completely agree. I remember each and every one of them arriving in the mail and tearing open the carton just to devour the goodies inside. It was a good time to be a Lucy fan.

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Columbia House, the company which introduced Lucy on home video, has filed for bankruptcy.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/columbia-house-parent-files-for-bankruptcy-protection-1.3186168

 

Personally, Columbia House is responsible for one of my most exciting days as a Lucy fan when I was leafing through a TV Guide in the checkout aisle of the drug store when I came across their cardboard insert for their new series set of The Lucy Show. It was a dream come true for this pre-teen, with TLS and HL both hanging tantalizingly out of reach. There was little sleep to be had after I filled out the mail order card and popped it in the mailbox just waiting for the first tape to arrive.

 

 

I remember those I Love Lucy inserts in TV GUIDE in issue after issue ("get the first volume and The I Love Lucy Book for only $4.95!!") though I never subscribed to any of the vhs series, I thought the price was outrageously high (wasn't it like $30 or $40 for a three-episode tape?) in an era when many of Lucy's movies could be bought on video for under $20.  I did get a few various tapes on ebay in the last 15 years at bargain prices of I Love Lucy, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Carol Burnett Show, Mr Ed (for the Mae West and Clint Eastwood/Donna Douglas eps) and Rawhide (for a Barbara Stanwyck ep).  I loved those cases, very attracted, some of the tapes have gone bad but I still have the cases.  I would have thought they would have closed years ago given how easy it is to buy seasons on dvd now (and for the last decade), it's not like the 1990's when they were really the only game in town for licensed classic tv on home video. 

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I also remember The CBS Video Library then later Columbia House Video Library.  I still have all 60 I Love Lucy VHS tapes and the 5 Lucy Show VHS tapes.  TV on dvd available at retail stores is what killed Columbia House..Columbia House was the only place at the time to get the entire I Love Lucy show.  It allowed Lucy fans to watch the shows unedited.  In a time of no DVD, Blu Ray or internet streaming Columbia House was the place to get I Love Lucy. VHS was all we had. Who knows what media the show will be available on in say 20 years.

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