Super 8 sound film prices back in the 1970's.

[Lee Mannering]

Been making ready for the weekends Super 8 show and was pondering film prices I used to pay in the 1970's and so started looking at the old Derann boxes which I got new back then.

This 200ft issue was £7.50 purchased from a fairly new Dudley shop. Anyone else have 1970's releases with the original price stickers on?

[Maurice Leakey]

Just been looking at Walton's 1969 catalogue and checking the Super 8 sound prices. The black & white 200ft "A" titles were £6.00, and the colour cartoons ("B" titles) were £7.15.0. in old money, this is £7.75 in new money.

[Steve Klare]

Hi Lee,

Every so often I open up a film box and find the original owners kept the receipt in with the film.
b

The film is a Blackhawk Sound 200 Footer: Bored of Education. It's a classic Our Gang! -Alfalfa sings!

This is $14.88 US in April 1978. I found the exchange rate for April '78 ($1.86 US/GBP) and this would have been equivalent to £8.02.

It's a sign of the volume companies like Derann or Blackhawk did. My very first commercial print was a silent 220 footer from a little railroad film company in Massachusetts for $26.25.

I started collecting film right around that time myself, but as a low-budget high school kid: all silent and maybe a reel every couple of months. (I really appreciated each and every one!).

The idea of having sound was like the idea of owning a helicopter or Summering on the Riviera: exotic, out of reach!

I knew a number of people "with movies", but until I bought a S8 sound projector of my own after the turn of the century, I never saw one in person.

[Douglas Meltzer]

While I don't have any films from the 70's with price stickers, I do have a few of the original receipts.



In February 1975 I bought my first sound film, Castle's Pardon My Sarong, for $16.15 (including tax) at Willoughby/Peerless. They billed themselves as the "World's Largest Camera Store" and had a huge film department. Another receipt I kept was for the Ken Films 400' The Poseiden Adventure. That came to $48.55.

Here's what the back of the receipt looks like.



Doug

[Carter Bradley]

Wow, Doug, you keep everything! You motivated me to check my Ken Films catalogs, and their retail pricing from 1976 - 1979 is as follows:
1976: 200' b&w silent, $7.95, 200' b&w sound, $15.95, 200' color/sound, $24.95, 400' b&w sound, $29.95, 400' color/sound, $44.95.
1977: 200' b&w silent, $8.95, 200' b&w sound, $17.95, 200' color/sound, $29.95, 400' b&w sound, $34.95, 400' color/sound, $49.95.
1978: 200' b&w silent, $9.95, 200' b&w sound, $17.95, 200' color/sound, $29.95, 400' b&w sound, $34.95, 400' color/sound,
$49.95, and the short-lived "K" series, used only for four Elvis digests with a slightly longer running time of 18 minutes, 400' color/sound, $54.95.
1979: Silent films were being phased out of Ken's inventory by this time, and even though they were still available in their current catalog, prices were no longer listed in their 1979 catalog nor the 10" X 10" folded insert which was included with each film. 200' color/sound, $34.95, 400' b&w sound and 400' color/sound, $59.95. Notice the sizeable increase for 400' b&w sound from 1978 ($34.95) to 1979 ($59.95) due to the world's shortage of silver.
I sure am glad that my high school after-school job was in the camera department of K-Mart, and the manager bestowed upon me a 40% discount on all films! Plus, I happened to visit the store in 1980 when all Super 8 digests were discontinued from most retail stores, and I scored a few 400' color/sound titles at $12.88!!

[Osi Osgood]

I had only one from a few years back, but can't find it anymore. It was for "The Jolson Story" and brand new, it was 49.99. It was a 400ft digest. That was one of those titles, however, that certainly doesn't sell for the same amount today.

[Mark Williams]

I used to pay around 30 quid for a new Super 8mm 400ft digest from Perry’s Movies Wimbledon..a lot of money back in 1979!

30 weeks pocket money in reality

[Lee Mannering]

And in Feb 1971 you could join COLLECTORS CLUB and get your first 200ft film for just 99 pence as I did
It was exciting waiting on the film of the month to arrive thru my letter box which you could enjoy and if you didn't like it send it back and pay nothing. The two guys who ran CC were great to deal with and I quickly switched to Super 8 once the legendary Eumig arrived in 72 bringing me the best of both worlds, Standard 8 and Super 8 with sound all in one machine. As a boy I use to look at that projector amazed at its versatility. I'm even more amazed it still works!

[Brian Fretwell]

I think Stepping on the Gas was my first from them at 99p, for use in a Eumig 510D. If it had been a year before it would have been 19/11d. :-) But of course these were silent.

[Douglas Meltzer]

I've been looking through my collection for boxes with price tags....this is standard 8mm, so likely from the 60's . What I like here is that this 400' silent Republic release was sold in a drug store chain. This is an eBay pickup, not originally store bought by me.



Doug