My home away from home, Big Lots, has recently been flooded with previously viewed DVDs for $3 each. I don't buy movies very often, but I am always on the lookout for a copy of Willow or some other Fantastic Fantasy Film to add to my small collection. I didn't think about where all these DVDs were coming from till we wandered into Glenmark Center the other day and saw that Video Warehouse is going out of business. It reminded me that Video World is also gone - the shop in Clarksburg was the last holdout as far as I know and Mom says they're gone too.
I really missed Video World when it went away. When Keith and I were first married and living on meager means, a rented movie was a date! I remember going to the Video World and talking to Henry, the Video Store Guy. Henry worked at the store in Clarksburg when we lived there, and then after we moved to Morgantown he magically appeared in the Video World up here. He knew about the kind of movies we liked. If I heard of a movie that I wanted to see, Henry could tell me whether or not it was in the store or if he thought he could get it. He could usually tell which of our rental choices would appeal to both of us, and he sometimes steered us away from films he suspected we'd hate. Nine times out of ten, he was right too.
Having a Redbox nearby is kind of nice, but they only have a certain number of movies. Netflix is pretty nice too, especially since I figured out how to stream movies and shows instantly. But neither one has Henry. This is what we lose in the name of progress. We lose the human connection. I don't know whatever happened to Henry, but I sincerely hope he found another job that allowed him to share his movie knowledge. If you see him, tell him the Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Horror/Action Adventure family says hi.
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