Calgary Home Video--On the Way

Suffering withdrawal symptoms after watching those hours and hours of the 1988 Winter Olympics? Home video is racing to your rescue.

For sports fans who want to savor the Calgary experience, CBS/Fox is rush-releasing one of those strike-while-the-iron-is-hot highlights tapes March 31. Selling for $24.98, the as-yet-untitled tape will chiefly feature footage aired during ABC-TV’s exclusive coverage. A team of ABC editors has been working around the clock to beat a Monday deadline to finish the video, which will run at least 90 minutes.

CBS/Fox plans to ship about 50,000-60,000 copies to retailers and distributors. They’ll be heavily marketed both in areas where winter sports are most popular and in the hometowns of medal winners. That means the company is expecting fans to line up in communities such as Champaign, Ill., the home of speed-skating champion Bonnie Blair.

Remember all the commercials during the ABC coverage? Get ready for another one. According to ABC spokesman Bob Apter, the tape may include an ad. “We’re talking to people now but nothing has been settled yet,” he said. “But the tape will come out, with or without a sponsor.”

For at least 90 days after the release of the Calgary tape, CBS/Fox is offering a bargain. For another $10, buyers can also purchase another tape that includes highlights of the 1980 and 1984 Winter Olympics.