Video Archives Podcast with Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary launches

by Sebastian · Published July 18, 2022 · Updated July 19, 2022

In their younger years, they worked at Manhattan Beach Video Archives (which is in Los Angeles), the now legendary video store. Contrary to some clickbait headlines you see on the web sometimes, Quentin did not in fact, as he explained numerous times, attain his movie knowledge from working there – he got hired there because of his movie knowledge. There came a point of course when the place closed down. But as Quentin revealed in a podcast some months back, he now owns all their inventory. Click here to check out our article on the Video Archives store in our… archives. He saved hundreds of VHS cassettes along with the shelves, from destruction. Quentin Tarantino went on to become the famous movie director we know and love today. After him and Roger Avary won the Academy Award for Pulp Fiction in 1995, the two long time friends sort of parted ways professionally. Quentin has over the last few years appeared on more and more podcasts – and seems to enjoy it, and thus an idea may have been born that way….

As announced in June, the duo is now reuniting for the Video Archives Podcast, a show that will, every other Tuesday, open the doors to the renowned Video Archives for listeners the world over. The clue: Quentin and Roger will watch movies from the store’s VHS inventory and talk about them. They won’t just watch a movie on that list, they will watch the actual tape and talk about the movies based on that – they may even remember the specific tape’s properties, talk about the cover design and so forth. And because it’s Roger and Quentin, an avalanche of movie trivia and fun will certainly ensue. Some tapes may also be from Eddie Brandt‘s collection, too, as the official tweet reads. Brandt should be known to Angelenos, his memorabilia store was the stuff of legend (see Wikipedia), and when that place went belly up, Quentin bought their stock up to save it, too. The show premiers July 19th on the podcast service Stitcher, you can find it where you find podcasts, e.g. on Spotify or Apple.

Update: The show is now live with episode one on Dark Star and Cocaine Cowboys

We never imagined that 30 years after we worked together behind the counter at Video Archives, we would be together again doing the exact same thing we did back then: talking passionately about movies on VHS. Watching movies was what originally brought us together and made us friends, and it’s our love of movies that still brings us together today. So we surrounded ourselves with the original Video Archives collection, where we both worked before we became celebrated filmmakers, and time-traveled ourselves back to the golden age of VHS. We love to discuss movies, and we want to welcome you into the Video Archives Podcast to hang with us and Archives’ new employee Gala, and discover the hidden VHS gems on our shelves.
Q and Roger

For the pilot episode, Quentin and Roger are watching two movies. And here’s where our recommendation comes in to follow the Video Archives Podcast on social media. As can be seen already, these may offer clues and additional info before and after shows, so it’s well worth connecting. Follow the Podcast on Twitter at https://twitter.com/VideoArchives and on Instagram at instagram.com/video.archives.pod

But don’t take it from me, listen to the two aficionados themselves explaining the concept of the podcast, in the announcement

and play Quentin and Roger’s intro:

Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary invite you to become a customer at Video Archives, the store that started it all. Joined by their announcer Gala Avary, they’ll travel back in time to revisit old classics and discover new favorites, pulled from the actual VHS tapes that Quentin and Roger used to recommend to customers at the original Video Archives store in Manhattan Beach. From controversial James Bond films to surprising exploitation flicks, the duo will expose you to movies you didn’t know you’d love, give awards to their favorites, and of course, rate the quality of the video transfer.

We are excited, are you? Let us know in the comments or the forums.