TV/VCR Combos Hit With Public, Retailers
Want to see an electronics retailer’s eyes light up? Just mention TV/VCR combination units.
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Retailers love the hot-selling hybrids of a TV and a VCR. The sales figures, from the Electronic Industries Assn., tell the story. The number of TV/VCR combinations shipped to retailers has jumped, from 600,000 in 1991 to 950,000 in 1992. Last year’s figures aren’t in yet, but the projection was a growth of 55% over 1992.
Since the markets for other video products aren’t growing nearly as fast, new companies continue to board the TV/VCR bandwagon. For instance, at the Consumer Electronics Show that opened Thursday in Las Vegas, Aiwa America is introducing 13- and 20-inch models.
Gerald Calabrese, vice president of marketing at Emerson, a major player in the market since these combinations surfaced in 1988, said, “A television with VCR already built in is attractive to consumers who don’t like to set up electronics equipment. These combinations also are great space-savers.”
Generally the TV/VCRs don’t have many frills and are limited to mid-size and smaller screens. Emerson has three models--9-, 13- and 19-inch--and none are available with stereo. “When you think of stereo you think of big screens,” Calabrese pointed out. “This isn’t a product that’s suited to larger screen sizes. It might make some sense to have stereo in a 19- or 20-inch combination unit, but there’s not that much consumer interest.”
The big drawback to these units is price. For instance, Emerson’s cheapest unit is the 13-inch (VT1322), which retails for $650. Its 19-inch (VT1922) is $750. In many cases it’s cheaper to buy a TV and a VCR separately.
“That’s one of the hurdles in this market,” Calabrese explained. “Production complexities create that price. That’s another problem with big-screen TV/VCR units. As the screen size gets close to 30 inches, the cost gets to be too high to interest most consumers. But none of these hurdles is hurting the market right now.”
Bring on the Stooges
Attention, Three Stooges fanatics: Mark Feb. 16 on your calendar--that’s when Columbia TriStar will release eight new-to-video collections, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the zany trio. Each tape, running about 50 minutes, includes three short films and will sell for $15.
True Stooge fans are wild about the Moe-Larry-Curly movies and steer clear of any featuring Shemp instead of Curly. The best of the packages: “So Long Chumps,” including “Even as I.O.U” (1941), set in a race track, highlighted by Curly’s encounters with a talking horse.
The tape titled “A Plumbing We Will Go” is even better, featuring “Violent Is the Word for Curly” (1938) and “Punch Drunks” (1934), arguably Curly’s funniest movie. In this one, he’s a boxer who goes berserk when he hears the “Pop Goes the Weasel” melody.
What’s New on Video:
“Hot Shots! Part Deux” (FoxVideo, no set price). In the loony tradition of the “Airplane” and “Naked Gun” parody series, this one, spoofing “Rambo” movies, sprays jokes scattergun-style. Many are well wide of the mark, but some are hilariously on target. Worth wading through the silliness for the few gems. Charlie Sheen stars.
“True Romance” (Warner, no set price). Often intriguing, excessively violent, fairly original movie, directed by Tony Scott, about newlyweds (Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette) on the run from mobsters searching for a fortune in cocaine. What really keeps this offbeat movie interesting is all the brilliant supporting performances--especially those by Dennis Hopper and Christopher Walken.
“Hocus Pocus” (Buena Vista, no set price). What is Bette Midler doing in this mindless kid-oriented mess of a comedy? It’s beneath her talents and those of co-stars Kathy Najimy and Sarah Jessica Parker, too. In the free-wheeling style of the Three Stooges, the trio play wacky witches who prey on youngsters on Halloween. Kids 10-and-under may get a kick out of the actresses’ mugging and the special effects. For real Midler fans, though, it’s painful to watch.
