More evidence collectors are willing to spend big on old VHS tapes: 'Rocky' cassettes fetch over $53,000 at auction

To some Americans, the VHS cassettes gathering dust in the attic or in the garage may be nothing more than magnetic tape and plastic, but to collectors and auctioneers, they're as good as gold.

A set of factory-sealed "Rocky" tapes — originally purchased for $60 in 1982 — sold at auction for $53,750 in February.

WKBW-TV reported that James Kroeger had stashed some magazines and films into a time capsule on Christmas Day in 1982, the day his son Bubba was born. Among the memorabilia jammed into the crate: the "Rocky" trilogy.

According to the auction house that sold the tapes, James loved the trilogy and wanted to save it for his son because "it was typical Americana, the success story of the underdog."

He learned in 2022, however, precisely what some people might be willing to pay for just a few of the items in his steamer trunk — particularly for the only known factory-sealed copies of the first "Rocky" releases.

Kroeger indicated ahead of the auction that he would give the money raised at auction to his young granddaughters, Bubba's kids, and then hide the time capsule until his son's 50th birthday.

Despite the knock-out $53,750 bid, "Rocky" didn't ultimately win in the bout for the most expensive VHS set sold at auction.

In June 2022, a near-mint condition 1986 VHS tape of "Back to the Future" sold at auction for $75,000. The item was apparently more valuable because it was owned by actor Tom Wilson, who played Biff Tannen in the film. This was allegedly "the highest price ever paid at auction for a sealed, graded VHS tape," reported CNN.

Antique Trader reported that in 2021, a sealed, never-opened VHS copy of "Star Wars: A New Hope" sold at auction for $57,600.

Tape collector and enthusiast Jay Carlson told the New York Times that a man who paid a quarter for a first release VHS copy of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" at Goodwill will likely fetch $20,000 for the film at auction.

There may be similar treasures buried in bargain bins and junk stores across the United States.

Nostalgia for cultural artifacts, particularly from the 1980s, has proved lucrative for collectors like Carlson, now a consignment director of home entertainment for Heritage Auctions, a multi-national auction house based in Dallas.

Carlson, who used to work a corporate job dealing with credit card fraud, told the Times he began hoarding VHS cassettes when they had come to be regarded as "plastic trash." This perception drove down the cost of mint copies of "Back to the Future," "The Goonies," "Blade Runner," and other such classics, which he was able to pick up for about $20 each on eBay. They are now worth many orders of magnitude more at auction.

The Times noted that auction houses have seen a sudden demand for VHS tapes. Heritage Auctions is no exception.

At the turn of the century, Heritage was primarily dealing in coins, comics, movie posters, and sports memorabilia. It now deals in over 50 categories of collectibles, which together generated revenue of $1.4 billion in 2022.

While Carlson recounted fond memories of riding his bike to the movie rental store, perusing its selection of films, and marveling at the box art and descriptions, he told Antique Trader that for collectors like himself, "it’s less about the actual movie because I’m not watching the movies on VHS. It’s about what the movie represents. It’s about an object."

"I know there is a devoted group of people who love watching movies on VHS," said Carlson. "I’m not one of them. I love watching movies in 4K. The bigger the better for me. VHS is more about having that tangible piece of history for me."

Josh Benesh, Heritage’s chief strategy officer, suggested that it is not the role of auctioneers to project value, but rather to let the market decide.

“We don’t question the value or legitimacy of a particular subject matter relative to outmoded norms," Mr. Benesh told the Times. "We’re not here to tell you what’s worthwhile. The marketplace will tell you. The bidders ... will tell you."

The Times indicated that Heritage has roughly 1.6 million bidders who will ultimately determine a given item's value.

For instance, a bidder determined a mint condition 1980 Beta WCI Home Video release of "Superman: The Movie" was worth $40,000, buying it at auction on Feb. 17.

Robb Report, a luxury-lifestyle magazine, reported that adventure films from the 1980s are not the only hot items. Video game kitsch and devices from the era are similarly highly prized at auction.

A sealed, never-played-before copy of the video game "Super Mario 64" sold for $1.56 million in July 2021. The Nintendo game "The Legend of Zelda" sold for $870,000 just two days earlier at the same auction.

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