1. Krull Video Game – One of my favorite places to go as a kid in the ’80s was the video store. Video stores were a different thing before the Blockbusters and Hollywood Videos of the world homogenized the industry with their “sterile interiors” and “cleanliness”. Before that, video stores were little holes in strip malls whose walls were plastered with posters for things that weren’t the big blockbuster movie of the month. The lighting was poor and the stock was not guaranteed, but the variety of titles available was pretty impressive. I loved going, not just for the movie that my parents would allow me to rent, but also because I had a chance to look at the covers for movies that I had no chance of going home with. As I grew up some of these movies had a special place in my heart just because I had held their covers for years, and I took some of them home as soon as I was able. Krull was one of these movies.
I’m not sure what my parents’ specific hesitation with this movie was other than it looked more sinister on the box than it actually was. Here’s an alternate cover, maybe to better sell it to my parents?
Or maybe Krull sounded like “cruel” and that was all it took? Either way, the day I brought that home was a proud one. But this isn’t about the day I was finally able to rent Krull, it’s about the Krull video game. The link is the artwork – Krull’s poster and VHS box-art are fantastic and that great art translated to the marketing for the video game. Here’s the arcade cabinet:
And here’s the Atari art:
…and here’s some of the arcade gameplay. Pretty good, especially for 1983!
(for more fun VHS covers from the video store’s golden age, check out this post by Robert over at Tor.com.)
2. Odyssey 2 Commercial – While we’re talking about old games, here’s a commercial for Magnavox’s doomed-yet-awesome Odyssey 2.
I love the handle that these cartridges have!
3. Kevin Kelly – Dreams of Space has a post about Kevin Kelly, one of several forgotten junior astronauts who helped pave the way for our landing on the moon. The layout of this magazine is as impressive as the content:
4. Cushioncraft – An awesome illustration of a “Cushioncraft” from a 1962 textbook, courtesy of Mondorama 2000:
5. Dimitri From Paris: Sacrebleu – It is difficult for me to accept that Sacrebleu is 17 years old.
Here’s a song from the album set to some great French footage:
-ds