Artist: Regina Spektor
Released: 2009
Lyrical relic: Blockbuster card
Remember the blue and yellow Blockbuster Card? I used to pretend mine wasn’t just a video rental store membership, but rather my access to some clandestine Swedish club (pronounced blook-booster).
In Regina’s song, Blockbuster is more than just a video store. It’s the agent for reuniting a man with his wallet. When Regina finds a stranger’s wallet containing a Blockbuster card, she decides to be a good Samaritan and bring the wallet to her local Blockbuster.
They'll find your number In their computer You'll never know me I'll never know you But you'll be so happy When they call you up
This song was released in 2009. One year later, Blockbuster would file for bankruptcy. At the height of its popularity, Blockbuster boasted more than 9000 stores. Poor leadership and the impact of the Great Recession have been cited as the major factors leading to Blockbuster going bust. Movie watchers also began to have more options: Netflix had come out with its mail-order service, video on demand became a thing, and Redbox offered automated movie rental kiosks .
With this tough new competition, people would soon realize that they could take a lazier route to home entertainment. Consider all the steps involved to “make it a Blockbuster night”:
- Getting yourself to the store
- Browsing the selections
- Making a decision (usually more difficult and time consuming if you’re with someone else!)
- Waiting your turn in line to pay
- Paying for your selection
- Getting yourself home
- Loading the tape/disc into your machine
- Making a commitment to watching this particular movie in its entirity (because you’d be damned if you threw out money on a movie even if turns out to be a dud).
- Get yourself back to the store to return the rental. And you better get it back on time, or you’ll get slapped with a late fee!
Fast forward to the home entertainment scene of today (i.e. streaming services). Other than step 2 or 3, all those steps are virtually eliminated. Your butt can remain firmly planted on the sofa after making a decision to watch a movie. A few clicks later and voila – there’s our movie. If we don’t like it, a few more guiltless clicks will find you something else to watch.
Some people may argue that in eliminating all those steps, you’re also eliminating a lot of fun. The kind of fun that was akin to what people loved about going to record stores to get their music. It was an experience, an outing to be had. The possibility of discovering something new and different was always there.
If you’re really itching for some Blockbuster cards, head to eBay. Last time I checked you could buy 2000 new, unused cards for $1000 USD. Unless you are opening up an imaginary Blockbuster, not sure what use anyone would have for these.
It’s also still possible to get a real working Blockbuster card for free. There’s one remaining store using the brand, located in Bend, Oregon. The store is the subject of a 2020 documentary, aptly titled “The Last Blockbuster”. And yes, it’s on Netflix : )
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