original vhs worth any $$$?

[QueenRahel]

i have a collection from when i was a little girl with original LAUNCH vhs disney movies such as little mermaid (with the interesting/controversial art cover), petes dragon, rescuers, beauty and the beast, great mouse detective, cinderella etc...i dont know if im wanting to sell them but are they even worth much more than a collectable oop dvd???

[Luke]

...i dont know if im wanting to sell them but are they even worth much more than a collectable oop dvd???

Judging from eBay, it looks like they're worth much less than collectible out of print DVDs. I suspect videocassettes will be worth something down the line, but we're talking WAY down the line. For now, I'm willing to bet that whatever sentimental value you place on them exceeds the chump change you could get from selling them.

[QueenRahel]

i guess i should just display them with my other collectibles and never give them up until im like 90 or so...

[slave2moonlight]

I have a hard time letting go of stuff myself, but I eventually sold half my VHS collection for next to nothing, just because they take up so much space and I would prefer to use what little money I got to get more DVDs. Much of it I had on DVD already, but a lot I sold anyway figuring I'd get it on DVD EVENTUALLY. What I kept was stuff I couldn't part UNTIL I get it on DVD, or stuff that isn't available on DVD yet. I also kept a few that I might keep forever, like the Little Mermaid with the controversial cover and Roger Rabbit when it still had certain frames intact.

[QueenRahel]

i have roger rabbit with only a cardboard cover sleeve...is that how all of them were or did it ever come with the big poofy cover like the others??

[slave2moonlight]

I don't think Roger Rabbit ever came out in a clamshell, AKA big, poofy cover. I have hung on to my cardboard boxed VHS because it has that scene of Baby Herman in the beginning with all the frames (showing him doing something naughty with his finger). Supposedly, there is also a scene of Jessica Rabbit's no-no, but I'm not sure that is true. I think it looked the same as it does today. Just a quick pink panty flash. Haven't watched the VHS in a long time though. I got the first DVD release, and when the 2-disc one came out, I got that and gave my little sister the single disc one.

[Jungleprince_55]

Jessica's Flash is on the VHS, On the Single Disc DVD it has been altered so that she has on Black Underwear and on the 2-Disc DVD that part has been reanimated to not show up her dress.

[QueenRahel]

yes i remember the pink underwear ... jessica is one of my favs...the sexiest disney character as of yet next to tink...when i get 50 posts jess will be my avatar as she deserves to rep me not that disney is all about sexy characters...but she deserves the credit to be the hottie of them all

[Beastboyravenz]

I personally always thought of Who Framed Roger Rabbit as an adult/mature audience film for some reason. I never really imagine children watching this movie. It's a shame they re-animated scenes.

[QueenRahel]

yes i agree it was a bit graphic at times esp since i remember being scared when the bad guy...cant remember his name ...gets ran over and is screaming with the roller! cant imagine lil kids loving that movie either...but when i was young i loved anything disney even if it sucked

[slave2moonlight]

Wow, so much trouble over something that was never anything to begin with. Sad to hear about the alteration, as it remains my favorite film of all time. I remember checking out the VHS when I first heard about this stuff, but it was clear to me that there were panties there, contrary to the rumors. I don't remember how the single disc version was and I guess I never noticed the difference in the new DVD.

As for Jessica, I wanted to be way into her, but I'm afraid she doesn't come close to being one of the hottest Disney or cartoon characters in general to me for 4 reasons. One, her voice. Totally not into low or raspy voices on females. Two, her boobs look fake, ha. Weird to say about a cartoon, but they look inflated. Three, she's too tall for me, and four, though I love 40s girls, the half shut Veronica Lake eyes are not my style. Compare Jessica to another Disney redhead, Ariel, and though they are both widely considered "hot," they are so very different. Well, Ariel is the one who is tied with Tink as far as I'm concerned. However, I have to admit that, while I wouldn't change a thing myself, if Jessica had a more typical Disney girl's voice, I would probably be waaaay more attracted to her. Not tha I'm not attracted to her, but she doesn't measure up to the other Disney girls for me. I do have a statuette of her on my shelf though, and a doll of her, a beanie, and various other stuff, because, as I said, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" is my all time favorite film.

[dvdjunkie]

Here we go again. Why do you use eBay as the end all of whether something is collectible or not? They are collectible dealers, they are resale dealers, trying to get a couple of extra bucks out of an unsuspecting public and you fall right into their open hands.

Most cities have collector stores, or have people that can rate and evaluate a collection of things. Look in your newspaper under collectibles and see who and what is listed there. Take it to a person who knows the value of things, and can show you in writing what your videos are worth.

I can tell you right now, that your "Little Mermaid" with the "questionable cover" is worth more money than you will ever get from eBay. I am talking in the $2-$300 range or even more. If your "Sleeping Beauty" is the widescreen version it is worth less than the pan&scan version, and so on. I have been dealing with reputable collectors for many years, and I know that there are people out there who are looking for these particular titles and pay good money for them.

Don't be a loser and throw them away just because eBay says that they are only worth a couple of dollars. They are worth more than that.........way more than that.

Go to Walden Books, or Barnes and Nobles, or even Borders Books, and look under the collectible section. Spend some time reading the books having to do with records and movies and you will see exactly what your videos are worth. Then you can sell them yourself through a newspaper ad or something like that.

Please, don't listen to these people here that tell you that "eBay sells them" for this price or that price. Ebay is not a collector's corner.

[QueenRahel]

thanks for your advice as i have no idea how much any of my older collection is worth but will take what you said...i have lots of vhs launch and will now have to go and do some research!

[Poody]

My mom buys and sells a whole bunch of them... they usually go for a few bucks....

[Prudence]

Personally, I'd save them.

[UncleEd]

If videos are going for almost nothing on ebay what makes anyone want to pay hundreds of dollars for a title when they can get it on ebay for a few bucks? I have the 1990 Little Mermaid video cover. Were they changed at that run after people complained? I also heard that some copies of the VHS feature MIckey Donald & Goofy carved in the ornaments of Triton's THrone room with guns or something -- and no, I'm not talking about their cameo in theconcert hall. I once read that this was hidden in a scene but once people caught it on VHS it was edited out. Is this true?


Anyway, why is the widescreen Sleeping Beauty worth less than the full screen? I had to really hunt to get the widescreen VHS and I ultimately paid 30.00 on EBay. Little did I know I'd be buying it again on DVD almost 10 years later. I have the letter box VHS of Lady & the Tramp too.



What about Beta tapes? Are these worth anything? I have a couple of those too. How about Laserdiscs? I"ve been snatching those up really cheaply on ebay for a few years now. Since you seem to know about this I thought I'd ask.

[dvdjunkie]

Uncle Ed, thanks for your inquiries. I am not the swami of collectibles, but I do read a lot of magazines and go to a lot of collectibles conventions, and I can't explain why the Pan& Scan version of "Sleeping Beauty" is worth more than the letterbox VHS, but it is.

Just cruise on down to one of your local book stores (Barnes & Noble, Border's, or Waldens, or whomever) and look into any of the collector's books that have listings for VHS, Beta, and Laserdisc movies. A couple of the books still list the controversial "Little Mermaid" VHS for just over $250, and the "Sleeping Beauty" VHS is listed at $125 for the letterbox, and $175 for the Pan & Scan versions.

Most all of the collector's conventions that I attend, have people there that are license collectors, and appraisers, and when you buy something there from one of these people you will get a certificate guaranteeing the authenticity of the product, something you don't get from eBay.

The controversial scene involving Jessica Rabbitt in "Who Framed RR" is available on the LaserDisc release, and to my knowledge that has never been changed. That is why the LaserDisc version of WFRR is still listed at almost $1,000. They are rare and very hard to find. That scene was "cleaned" up for the VHS tape, thus the pink panties in the VHS issue, but there is a lot less 'protective' clothing on the LaserDisc version.

Collector's conventions are usually held two to three times a year in most major cities. I travel to Kansas City, Dallas, Denver, and Springfield, Missouri, whenever I can. They come to Wichita once or twice a year. Goldmine Magazine is an excellent place to look for where the next convention is going to be held. It usually lists all the conventions for the year in each issue. Goldmine is a great source for collectibles to buy, sell and trade.

[msadrakula]

I guess I should be buying up all the VHS tapes on ebay if they are worth $100 - $300; especially since I can buy them up for $2-3 each. <p>
The collectible magazines are a joke. Unless it is something that is truely rare then their suggested price is a far cry from what any sane person would pay. Nothing is better then reading thru those baseball card books and trying to find someone willing to pay half of what it says in those books. <p> Ebay does water the price down because it gathers all those collectibles into one spot. Ebay prices are driven by supply and demand, but they are very short-sighted. Prices on the same video will fluctuate based on the time of year (holidays, if kids are in school etc... )<p>
As far holding on to them for a long time hoping that the price will rise again... I don't know about that. Beta tapes have long been out of circulation and you can't give them away on ebay; and I mean rare ones that would fetch $20+ on VHS. Some old reel 16MM tapes go for good money but I think that has more to do with supply. The number of 16MM tapes for those movies vs. Beta or VHS produce is astronical.<p> Just my 2 cents worth. I've been a collector and re-seller of Disney movies for years and have sold over 10,000 Disney movies and have tons of movies that I've held onto for my own collection.<p> As with most stuff, if you hold on to something long enough it will probably gain value, but keep in mind that gain may be minimal and the tape may not work in 20 years!

[dvdjunkie]

The big question is: DOES EBAY GIVE YOU A CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICITY WITH EACH PURCHASE GUARANTEEING THAT IT IS NOT A BOOTLEG OR A SECOND GENERATION COPY?

That is the big question that always gets answered NO!!!!

There are collector's who shop on eBay to get those titles, and if they are for sure an original, then you will see them complete with a Certificate of Authenticity at Collector's conventions or in ads in Collector's magazines.

If you don't care about it being authentic, or you question whether it is a second-generation copy or a bootleg, then shop on eBay and take your chances.

[Big Disney Fan]

I created my own thread on the subject: http://www.ultimatedisney.com/forum/vie ... 77&start=0.

Any way we can merge the two threads?