"Back in Time For Only a Dime" was my alternate title for this entry, as it's about a book I picked up for only 10 cents at a local thrift store that chronicles how far we've come with technology since the early 1980s. The work is The Media Room by Howard J. Blumenthal, a serious work published in 1983 to help confused consumers decide what electronics they need to decorate their domiciles. Blumenthal had already written the 1981 book The Complete Guide to Electronic Games, a review of the handheld games like Simon and video game cartridges available at the time that serves as the best flashback to what is was like to be an elementary-school-age male in the early '80s short of finding an old Sears toy catalog. (Of course I own this book in my library.) Blumenthal himself was no stranger to technology and media. His father produced the classic TV contest Concentration, and Howard himself co-founded the Qube cable network that birthed MTV and Nickelodeon and would later co-develop the early '90s game show Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? for PBS. So, without further ado, here are some excerpts from the book showing how far we've come. For people my age and older, it's a nostalgic and humorous look back. For the "kids" out there, this is a history lesson that will be even more laughable to you as you examine devices that probably seem Neanderthal by your standards. Blumenthal: "Once you've bought your first videodisc player or videogame, you have begun a process...The author hereby warns every reader of this book that a videogame wil almost lead to habit-forming activities (both in playing the game itself and in checking with your local store to see if any new games have arrived)...A media room is the embodiment of electronic addiction." Sound familiar, kids? Now you're actually identifying with this, aren't you? But that's not all you'll have to worry about. There's the LEGALITY ISSUE! Blumenthal: "When you first buy your VCR, you will no doubt try recording programs off the air. Strictly speaking, this is against the law. All television programs (and commercials) are protected by copyright and cannot be duplicated for any reason without the written permission of the copyright holder...Since this law is virtually unenforceable, it's best to let your conscience guide your recording activities." Boy, weren't we a lawless buncha rebels back then, recording TV shows like we were dem Duke boys or sumtin'. Could you imagine if they rounded everybody up who recorded a TV show in 1983 and threw them in prison? Think our jails are crowded now? HA! There's a helpful list inside the book of cable channels available then. This was back when Bravo showed culture, not Californian housewives. Here's his description of MTV: "A 24-hour pop-music channel, with a video disc jockey playing video tapes of the top songs." And here's the thrilling alternative to that: "UPI NEWSTIME: This service shows black-and-white newspaper photos, while a radio-style reporter reads news stories 24 hours a day." CNN must've been petrified. This was gone by the time I got cable in '85, so I guess we know who won that battle. And here's Blumenthal's choices for the best "Instructional" videodiscs to buy: "The Touch of Love - Massage. A straightforward demonstration of sensual message (Performed by a nude couple)." and "Aerobicise. Ron Harris made quite a splash hit on Showtime with his between-the-movies tapes of shapely women exercising to bouncy music. A blend of video art, erotica, and exercise instruction..." This above is what we used to connect with whatever was the Internet in 1983, as prehistorically preserved in this book and the film WarGames. By the time I got on the Web in the late '80s, I was using a black eight-track-cartridge-like unit that I shoved into the back of my Commodore 64. "In 1970 there was no such thing as VHS tape, Home Box Office, a videogame, or a personal computer," Blumenthal wrote near the end of the book, and it's obviously noted inside, often humorously, how for we've come since then. He did predict one trend of today when he noted that "Comp-U-Card is another futuristic service which, for instance, makes it possible to use a personal computer and modem to shop for discounted merchandise."
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Walburgh's BlogMostly retro, mainly music, but generally whatever's on my mind. Archives
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