A Tribute To The VHS Tapes Of The '80s [12 Drawings]

I can still remember the day that our family got a VCR when I was young. My little sisters and I were so excited that we would actually be able to watch a movie at home instead of in the theater. The year was 1988, and we were so fascinated with that brand new device that we watched our VHS tapes over and over again. I feel very blessed to be part of the generation that got to witness our transformation into the modern technology lifestyle that we know now. Kids born today will never know what it is like to rent a movie or get charged an extra 50 cents if you return a movie rental without rewinding it.

The quality on those VHS tapes was so bad, but we didn’t know any better back then. My sisters and I watched movies on our 13-inch TV, and we thought it couldn’t get any better than that. If you grew up in the ’80s too, you probably know exactly what I’m talking about. It was a very special time, and I’ll always treasure those memories. VHS tapes aren’t the only thing that make that wave of nostalgia rush over me, the games back then were also legendary, and they’ve become the classics that still inspire us today.

These VHS tapes and games, drawn by Hollis Brown Thornton, will take you on a walk down memory lane. He created each of these with Sharpies on regular paper. On Infectious, Hollis compared passing technologies to the Big Bang Theory in an interesting way. He pointed out that each time we get a new form of technology, our entire belief system changes since our eyes are opened to new truths.

This is so true, and I know exactly what he means. Just as I thought as a kid that nothing could be better than a VCR and those VHS tapes, now I think nothing could be better than my iPhone 5. It’s just all one huge lifelong experience of personal growth expressed through new technology which changes how we view our lives and how we relate to each other on a daily basis. Okay, enough of all this jibber-jabber, sit back and let these VHS tapes take you back to your own childhood. It’s a fun ride. You can see more of this collection on Flickr.