Blade Runner

Storing information on transparent discs is not that new a technology. The idea was conceived in the late 50's by David Paul Gregg and patented in 1961. MCA bought out Gregg in the late 60's and combined with pioneering efforts by Phillips developed the Laserdisc by 1978. The idea was that MCA would pump out the discs and Phillips the players. MCA called the product Disco-Vision (oh my) and came out competing head to head with the big kid on the block, VHS tapes. MCA's first release on this format was Jaws in 1978.

Oddly enough, the format was pushed in the Japanese market with players and discs being sold at near VHS like prices. The result was a large customer base with lots of players in homes and a good selection of discs. Major releases continued until 2001.

Laser discs were typically 30cm in diameter (12 inches) and were 2 sided like LP's. The video portion of the show was analog, while the audio was often digital. This was a weird combo because the video took so much space in analog format that the whole movie had to be on both sides of the disc, and yes, you had to flip it, unless you had one of the fancy machines with a head that would migrate to the other side. Either way there was a pause while you changed sides. Later versions doubled the capacity of the disc so most movies fit.

As for the audio, no one had CD's yet, so this was the only source for digital music. The soundtracks outshined what was heard on VHS. Some versions of discs had analog and digital audio tracks and supported surround sound. Star wars Episode 1 released on Laser Disc in Japan in 1999 was the first in 6.1 Dolby surround sound.

Laser discs remain collectable with many videophiles preferring the quality, selection and features to those on DVD.