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Site created 12/15/97.
page created: 7/8/98
Today @ VSDA!
Tuesday, July 7th
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Well folks, here we are in Las Vegas for the 1998 Video Software Dealers Association Convention! For those of you that have never been to Vegas, here's a little something you can do at home to get the feel for what it's like: first, turn on your oven to 500 degrees, and leave the door open so the heat blasts in your face. Next, get about ten of your friends together, and have them all stand around with you in front of the oven. Finally, everybody start shouting "ding, ding, ding, ding..." That's what Vegas is like. Oh, and the buffets are great. You can eat and drink for almost nothing. If you gamble, plan on losing it all. And if you're like me, you can't stand more than a few days of it. Enough said! My wife Sarah and I arrived about 3PM (after an appropriately turbulent plane ride across the desert from L.A.), and we spent most of the afternoon checking in at the convention's Press Room. Sarah does all the administration work here at the Bits, thus allowing me to spend my time investigating, reporting, reviewing and doing all of the web site work. She's kindly volunteered to take many of the pictures you'll see over the next few days. So I wanted to start by saying a nice public word of thanks to her! Now the day before any big convention is usually a hectic time. Exhibitors are rushing to finish setting up their booths, attendees are busy checking into their hotels and setting up meetings for the show. The whole day is a mad scramble to prepare everything. But it wouldn't be Vegas without nightlife, and it wouldn't be VSDA without a flurry of exhibitor parties. So what better a way to start the week, than by dropping in on the Image Entertainment Lounge Party! |
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Image Entertainment recently completed construction of a brand new distribution facility here in Las Vegas, and the party is their way of introducing it to the industry. The facility, located near McCarran Airport, is state of the art, and is 76,000 square feet (nearly twice the size of their Chatsworth facility). Come October, it will be filled with DVD and Laserdisc product - a virtual candy store for home theater buffs. But tonight, a small corner was turned into a vision from the Miramax film Swingers - a hip and happening martini lounge! And after a long day of toiling over booths at the Convention Center, a horde of studio execs, trade press and video retailers descended to relax before the show. |
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Garrett Lee, David Borshell and the rest of the folks at Image did a nice job hosting the shindig. Among those in evidence at the event, were David DelGrosso and company from DTS, and Gary Reber from Widescreen Review, just to name a few. Amid the usual round of food, drink and discussion, I happened to notice something which will be of interest to many Bits readers - a new form of DVD packaging to be used in Region 2. It's a small, thin version of the Polygram jewel case.
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| Region 2 DVD Packaging for Jerry MaGuire | ||
Anyway, as I said before, parties are a Las Vegas staple (and a virtual certainty at VSDA), so I wanted to give you a quick taste of what they're like, before we dive into the show. Virtually every studio has some kind of after-hours event scheduled for this week. Among them are: the Buena Vista Opening Night Gala (to promote the upcoming VHS release of Lion King II: Simba's Pride, Pocahontas II: Journey to the New World, and the re-release of Lady and the Tramp), a New Line Lost in Space party, the MGM Man in the Iron Mask-erade Ball, a Playboy Wet-n-Wild party, Universal's Blues Revival at the Hard Rock Cafe in honor of Blues Brothers 2000 and The Apostle, and an Avengers dance party. Get the picture? VSDA is party-time... big-time. Well, enough fun! Hopefully, there will be lots of interesting news tomorrow at the show, so stay tuned! |
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editor Gary Reber, and Image's V.P. of Operations, David Borshell |
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Wednesday, July 8th
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