For many years, the only place Americans could get thousands of films, from recent blockbusters to international classics, was in video stores. If visitors are fortunate, a video store with a wide selection and competent employees will be close by.
The act of going to the video shop, browsing the aisles, analyzing the cover art, and reading narrative summaries developed into their own, can be an outstanding experience. The internet and the ease of supermarket kiosks upended Blockbuster and Hollywood Video's own business when they pushed mom-and-pop shops out of business by displacing them.
The few physical stores that have survived the large chains are now struggling to survive. Seattle is renowned for having a fantastic film community. A fantastic film resource they have here, besides the outstanding Seattle International Film Festival, is Scarecrow Video, which is the biggest independent video store on the globe.
Scarecrow is renowned and acclaimed for its collection of over a hundred thousand video titles, and directors like Quentin Tarantino and Bernardo Bertolucci have been known to stop by. Here are what visitors should know about Scarecrow Video, the largest video rental store in the world.
The Interesting Story Behind Scarecrow Video
George Latsios, who founded Scarecrow Video, had a deep love for movies. Since he was a teenager, he has been amassing movies. He and his wife Rebecca founded Scarecrow in 1986 after first renting out his collection at a record store.
Two years later, they opened their store. Latsios made an effort to acquire as many uncommon and unusual titles as he could. To expand his collection, he traveled to several nations, discovered movies that were unavailable in the United States, and even purchased Japanese animated movies on LaserDisc.
Scarecrow gained a lot of followers quickly; some even traveled from other cities to see the business. It operated a separate LaserDisc store for a while and built a tiny movie theater on the second level of the main store. Latsios increased his film purchases even more quickly after being told that he had brain cancer.
An already tight financial condition was made worse by the cost of his therapy and the rising collection costs. As a result of his unpaid taxes, he was declared bankrupt. He was compelled to sell in 1999.
Customers Mickey McDonough and Carl Tostevin came in and acquired the business. They swiftly increased the collection since they had the requisite cash resources from their employment at Microsoft.
The number of titles increased from 60,000 in 1999 to more than 125,000 in 2014. That year, the proprietors of Scarecrow Video gathered the whole crew to break some sad news. Like video shops throughout the country, this one was having trouble.
Customers rushed to internet streaming services, drastically reducing its sales and rentals. The owners had been writing their own checks to keep the company afloat, but they were no longer able to. One of the world's largest publicly accessible video libraries, including more than 130,000 recordings, appeared to be in danger of having to be given up.
Consequently, the workers gathered to present their own idea. The plan was straightforward: They would continue to operate as a non-profit organization while keeping the collection in place, in the same location, and accessible to the public.
After some discussions over the specifics, the owners decided to give Scarecrow Video, the nonprofit, everything in the business, including the movies and the shelves they were kept on. Additionally, Scarecrow's work as a charity organization has highlighted what may be lost if movie theaters were eliminated in favor of more practical technologies.
The head of Scarecrow Video, Kate Barr, stated that the collections are a cultural treasure. Scarecrow Video has not only endured but also flourished. The crew was able to gather the necessary $100,000 in less than a week, with contributions coming from as far afield as Japan, Bulgaria, and Australia. Moreover, each year when they ask for extra money, a group of devoted customers has been able to provide it.
Why Is Scarecrow Video So Unique?
Scarecrow currently has access to thousands of movies that are unavailable elsewhere. Some items are so uncommon that they can only be seen in the store.
Scarecrow is the largest independent video rental business in the world with over 145,000 titles in total. In contrast, Amazon, Netflix, and Hulu collectively only offer about 36,000 to 40,000 titles. Visitors shall imagine the fact that the entire amount of titles offered on Amazon and Netflix only equals around one-quarter of Scarecrow's library to get an idea of how many they have. Scarecrow also provides customers with access to classic movies, something streaming platforms seldom provide. Half of the movies filmed before 1950 have been lost over time. Scarecrow is working to preserve as many films as it can, particularly obscure vintage favorites from the past. It contains movies from 129 nations in around 126 languages, with the earliest one being from the 1890s.
- Location: 5030 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98105, United States
- Opening schedule: Thursday through Tuesday, from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM; and Wednesday from 12:00 PM to 10:00 PM.