VHS (short for Video Home System) is a standard for consumer-level analog video recording on tape cassettes, invented in 1976 by the Victor Company of Japan (JVC). It was the dominant home video format throughout the tape media period in the 1980s and 1990s.

On Cinema guest Gregg Turkington swore by VHS, stating it was the preferred choice of home video format for movie buffs everywhere. His personal video collection was primarily VHS, and was most likely entirely VHS by the end of its existence. In April 2012, Turkington stated that many older films were not released on DVD, and estimated he owned over 1,000 VHS tapes.^[1] This focus on VHS carried over to the collection's successor, the Victorville Film Archives.

According to Gregg, collectors valued the covers of tapes, and the printed graphics were half of the package when it came to collecting.^[2]

Turkington knew a VHS repairman from Canoga Park who would respool VHS tapes from broken cases into blank tape cases, and steam off the tape's label to re-apply to the new case. Turkington had a number of tapes repaired this way, and offered his services to John Aprea.^[2]

As newer movies were beginning to only be released on newer formats, Turkington began taping his own copies of new films, such as The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, to blank tapes, to fit in with the rest of his collection.^[3]