Kate Barr recounts her time spent working as the current Executive Director at the Scarecrow video rental store in Seattle,WA. She explains that Scarecrow became a nonprofit organization in 2014 and has one of the largest film collections in the United States. Some of the conversation depicts the difficulty Scarecrow and Howard Hughes/Main Street had with storage strategies. Highlights also include the transition from VHS to DVD as well as laserdisc.

Beau Newsome: Okay, all right Hello i'm Bo newsome and i'm here with Kate bar from scarecrow video and we're here on behalf of the University of Idaho archives and special collections department.

Beau Newsome: And we're doing this is for an oral History project on Howard Hughes video and mainstream video co op in Moscow Idaho.

Beau Newsome: Kate if you wouldn't mind just let me know what you do with your co video and i'll let people know that scarecrow video is an awesome video store in Seattle and working at Howard Hughes video We always knew scarecrow video being this mythological.

Beau Newsome: amazing video store five five hours away base.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: My name is Kate bar and I am the executive director at scarecrow video and we began in 1988 as a local video store, as so many of video stores did begin kind of in the 80s and the 90s now i'm.

Beau Newsome: 34 I think.

Kate Barr: you're at all right.

Kate Barr: Oh really oh my gosh Okay, you have a speed by four.

Beau Newsome: Times yeah.

Kate Barr: And we we existed as a video store up until 2014 when we formed a nonprofit and then owner donated the entire collection and everything you can see all the shelves.

Kate Barr: All the movies everything they just donated it to our nonprofit and we have.

Kate Barr: become the stewards of this collection and part of the reason why we formed a nonprofit is because over the years.

Kate Barr: The scarecrow collection just grew and grew and grew and grew and grew until now it's one of the largest collections in the United States it's definitely one of the only well the largest collections, that is fully accessible to the public.

Beau Newsome: which really.

Kate Barr: Something oh yes yeah, which is something we continue to strive for so normally collections of the sides are held by universities, because they're the ones that have the capacity to be able to manage it, and you know which is wonderful, because it allows for preservation.

Kate Barr: Right that's the upside.

Kate Barr: The downside is that for the average person.

Kate Barr: You can't have access to that.

Kate Barr: You know you'd have to be.

Kate Barr: A student or you know connected with the universe, whereas in for our collection anybody who walks through the door can set up a free rental account um and our entire collection is available for browsing and for checking out.

Beau Newsome: So notice here have a really good online presence right can.

Kate Barr: Well we're working on it okay it's not great it's okay um it's a little bit nine 20th century it needs to get modernized just a little bit.

Kate Barr: Okay um and that's that's actually we're in the midst right now doing a really big fundraising campaign in order to raise money to update our infrastructure.

Kate Barr: and get a get a much more modern.

Kate Barr: Much more modern.

Kate Barr: architecture for our database to live, which can then interact online in a in a more seamless more 21st century kind of way, I guess, I I usually tell people if they're going to go on to the website to search our catalog online while you know get ready to get in a time machine and.

Kate Barr: 1990s.

Kate Barr: It was built.

Beau Newsome: In the most year catalog online.

Beau Newsome: Your title.

Kate Barr: Most of it yeah yeah it's there it's just it's just very limited and how you can search for it.

Kate Barr: it's a you know, like, if you think about.

Kate Barr: The average library, and if you search for a title of the library.

Kate Barr: The interconnections that you could find like you know you find the title and it says it's directed by so, and so, and then you could click on on you know it's directed by Martin scorsese and so you could click click on Martin scorsese's name and see his you know other works by him.

Kate Barr: Right ours doesn't have that capacity it's very rudimentary.

Beau Newsome: Just kind of fight title basically and.

Kate Barr: By title, you can put directors in there, but um you know again it's just it's just very limited and it's yeah it's.

Kate Barr: it's served as well, now I can't I can't besmirch it too much because it has served as well, since the mid 90s.

Kate Barr: But um it's just time it's time for something you know if we're if we're going to be serious about continuing to exist into the 21st century, then we need to, we need to be able to interact and 21st century kind of way.

: sure.

Beau Newsome: The so you mentioned that it opened in 1988.

Beau Newsome: And then became a nonprofit in 2014 yes.

Beau Newsome: that's correct when it started, could you give a rough estimate of what size, a video store was.

Kate Barr: yeah um so it was it was started by a Greek immigrants and His name was George last ios and he opened it up with 600 vhs tapes of his very own.

Kate Barr: And it was actually in the back of a record store on it was like a record store friend of his own and he had he gave them a little corner that he could put these 600 video vhs tapes to rent.

Kate Barr: But that that began the you know they began expanding pretty quickly and moved into their own space on and and then in 92 they moved to the location where we're at now.

Beau Newsome: you're kind of in the U district.

Kate Barr: area are in the district yep.

Beau Newsome: Okay yeah.

Kate Barr: um and we you know so we've been we've been in the same location.

Beau Newsome: Since.

Kate Barr: The 1990s and it's funny because when they moved into that location and it's it's large it's you know, like 8500 square feet.

Kate Barr: We have.

Kate Barr: The main floor and a mezzanine level so you're looking at the photo behind me.

Kate Barr: You can see the railings for the mezzanine level.

Kate Barr: And each of those all around there, there are little rooms that you go into and all of those rooms are are filled with with videos.

Beau Newsome: And their first each room is like a different category of some sort.

Beau Newsome: Right right right so genre or something like.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah, so I think i'm trying to see Okay, so if you're if you're looking over kind of a way you know above where the counter.

Beau Newsome: Is hey.

Kate Barr: that's that would be well what you're seeing in the hallway is classic comedy but then like right behind that would be the comedy room the drama room, we have a literature room a documentary room murder mystery suspense.

Kate Barr: animation room psychotropic exploitation obviously has to be in its own room.

Kate Barr: Because your monitor that and then there's all these little outposts awesome and they're not they're also not just like simple little rooms, they have these kind of labyrinth of shelves that you go in.

Beau Newsome: So.

Kate Barr: You walk into a room and you're like oh my gosh there's even more packed in here.

Kate Barr: So when they first moved in they they were like wow you know we we will never fill the space and everything you see photos from the time every single shelf had the vhs faced outward.

Beau Newsome: Yes, that's how our old store was to.

Kate Barr: And now, if you look at the if you can see the shelves in the photo behind me it's all spines.

Beau Newsome: All spines yeah that's how we were to unfortunately we moved from a bigger store and they got sold.

Beau Newsome: Because it almost went out of business once before.

Beau Newsome: About 14 years ago and then.

Beau Newsome: We moved into a smaller location, because person who bought it on that building.

Beau Newsome: Okay, and so we went from.

Beau Newsome: half the size.

Beau Newsome: So it was just everything was everything was spines by that point and.

Beau Newsome: yeah vhs we sold everything we had on DVD on vhs.

Beau Newsome: and put the vhs.

Beau Newsome: In the back that we couldn't find anywhere else you know.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah.

Beau Newsome: looks like you have you some being this size of you had to worry about running out of room.

Kate Barr: Every day.

Kate Barr: Every single day.

Beau Newsome: million times yeah.

Kate Barr: We are we are collection is currently at about 140,000 titles and we bring in between three and 4000 titles every year.

Kate Barr: So.

Kate Barr: we're already bursting at the seams and and yet we keep bringing in more and more, and you know we've got to make room for all of that.

Kate Barr: During during lockdown and coven one of our staff members wanted to keep busy, and so he started coming up with ways to sneak in other shelves, you know, like partial shelves so we've gotten a little bit more shelf space, but that actually.

Kate Barr: hasn't changed too much, because what was happening was we had started pulling out all of the vhs and putting it up on top of the the shelves, so the shelves, you see behind me, we would have we would have rows of vhs boxes up there just to make room for the DVD and BLU Ray.

Kate Barr: That were on your shelf below and that's not ideal, because I mean yes they're still there, and yes, people can still see them but they're harder to see, and you know if they're not part of.

Kate Barr: If they're if they're segregated out people aren't going to necessarily know that they're there and pay attention to them and.

Kate Barr: You know there's some really interesting content on some of these so it's so we're trying to figure out ways in which to just add so so the project, he did over the summer last year.

Kate Barr: Was it added enough shelf space that we could re integrate all of the vhs.

Kate Barr: back down but.

Kate Barr: Then we're back to where we were yes, you know we're bringing in more stuff and how are we going to fit it on the show.

Kate Barr: So it was only kind of a temporary pause and say you know free the inbreed that sigh of relief and then you know it starts all over again and we're going to have to figure it out.

Kate Barr: We already in battle.

Kate Barr: Oh, always.

Kate Barr: Constant constant.

Kate Barr: um we already have.

Kate Barr: One part of the upper hallway is probably like right behind where i'm in the image that i'm at right.

Beau Newsome: behind.

Kate Barr: The brown thing there on and that actually is like a display case where the the vhs and DVD covers are in plastic sleeves and you flip through them like you would vinyl you know.

Beau Newsome: or elbow yeah.

Kate Barr: And that's the way to save space live video when right before about a year before they went out of business when they were condensing down.

Kate Barr: On that's what they did they put everything that they had into those kind of sleeves and so the entire video browsing experience was like flipping through sleeves up all of these you.

Kate Barr: Know it's not terrible um and it is a huge space.

Kate Barr: A huge space saver.

Beau Newsome: We thought about that to doing those like like a video game stores, so you would go.

Beau Newsome: Through and have those like.

Beau Newsome: yeah like thanks you could flip through and.

Beau Newsome: yep stuff like that.

Kate Barr: We never got so.

Kate Barr: So we have cases for that, and then we do also have you can actually see in the image down there at the counter there's somebody bending over the counter and right.

Kate Barr: Next to him, there are some white.

Kate Barr: you're actually spines have binders, and so we do have that's for the children section on and then also in the.

Kate Barr: In the documentary room, we have some binders where we've just pulled some stuff off the shelves and put them into binders so like, for example, over there.

Kate Barr: On one of the binders is the olsen twins so it's everything we have on the olsen twins and you know I think one of the binders is like the Arthur movies, I don't know if you're familiar with any of these children's.

: picture.

Kate Barr: But you know it just to give you an idea and then like in the documentary room, we have like one binder that's called trains and it's so it's every documentary we have on trains in that binder and again it's just a way for us to kind of save on space.

Kate Barr: A little bit.

Beau Newsome: Let me ask you this, do you are, you say the DVDs and BLU rays, are they in the case.

Beau Newsome: Now, or is there a separate case that goes home with the customer.

Kate Barr: Correct.

Kate Barr: yeah okay yeah we do not have live inventory at all if we did half of our collection would have walked out the door by now.

Beau Newsome: Sure yeah yes us too we.

Beau Newsome: I mean that's you know one thing with doing these interviews as we've talked to people on the board of the co op and stuff like that they were just like well we don't know what we could have done.

Beau Newsome: And if we could have moved it somewhere and i'm like well you really have to work there to know how much space, all this stuff really does take up.

Kate Barr: And it really, really does.

Beau Newsome: it's not like a piece of fruit that you somebody buys one and you replace it it's just a growing growing growing.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah exactly exactly.

Beau Newsome: So it's good to hear this even a problem for you.

Kate Barr: Oh absolutely absolutely and so we we have what you were mentioning earlier about the vhs that you guys got rid of your your duplicate vhs so we currently have over 15,000 titles still on vhs planned on we.

Kate Barr: When we bring.

Kate Barr: The movie in in a newer format, we retire vhs so that is all stuff that has never it either it's never migrated over to DVD or BLU Ray.

Kate Barr: or there is unique content on it so sometimes when it came out on vhs sometimes they had a different cut on sometimes they kind of.

Kate Barr: near the end of the heyday of vhs when DVD laser discs actually were coming out on the scene and they were they introduced extra features vhs also tried to replicate that not.

Kate Barr: yeah well.

Beau Newsome: At the very end.

Kate Barr: A lot I mean it's not like every vhs by any stretch, no, no.

Kate Barr: They were they were starting to try and do that.

Beau Newsome: Remember, you had to watch through the end of the credits.

Kate Barr: yep.

Beau Newsome: And then just play.

Kate Barr: With play yep exactly cheers or something like that.

Kate Barr: So some of those special features um when they created the DVD they just created new special features and so those aren't didn't migrate over, and so we consider that unique content.

Kate Barr: And that's and so, for that reason we would we even if we have it in on DVD we would still keep the vhs but if it's an apples to apples if it's like this is the exact same movie vhs DVD.

Kate Barr: You know they're they're either no features on the vhs and they're on the DVD DVD or they transfer transfer did all over.

Kate Barr: Then we would retire vhs so I mean that really just gives you an example of how much stuff you know people seem to think like at one point, it was like oh everything's on DVD now and now it's like everything's on the Internet and the answer is no, that doesn't work like that.

Beau Newsome: doesn't know there's.

Beau Newsome: yeah cuz it was hard for us in the beginning to be like Okay, if we have it on DVD let's sell the vhs.

Beau Newsome: Like That was a hard decision, but we just didn't.

Beau Newsome: Have we didn't have a choice and we kept about five to 700 vhs titles, that you can only get.

Kate Barr: You know.

Beau Newsome: There were only available on.

Beau Newsome: vhs and I think there's a whole bunch of them that are still that way you just.

Beau Newsome: You can't stream it you can't find it.

Kate Barr: yeah oh absolutely absolutely like I I know for a fact that we have things because we we did so we have.

Kate Barr: We have about 5000 titles that are currently on our rare list, which is our rental by approval list so rental by approval is for some of our more rare things that would be harder for us to replace, if not impossible.

Kate Barr: We asked people to pay an extra deposit and that can range anywhere from $150 to 1500 dollars.

Kate Barr: Okay um so you know I mean I guess somebody could argue that there's a barrier for full access, but the reality is is we're not sequestering any of these things.

Kate Barr: So that was our.

Beau Newsome: it's funny you bring that up because I remember.

Beau Newsome: Back in the day when I was just an employee to video store, we would always say yes care Do you remember the movie eraserhead.

Beau Newsome: Oh yes, lynch.

Beau Newsome: yeah you couldn't find it anywhere but we always like I heard scarecrow has two copies of it on vhs.

Beau Newsome: And you have to pay like $100 deposit to rent it out.

Beau Newsome: Is that true yeah.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah yeah well, and you know that, and this these things you know change Evan flow and in fact we have on the in the last year we've had two interns from U dub who have been going through chunks of our vhs collection, because what we realized is that.

Kate Barr: there's probably a lot more of our vhs collection that should be on the rba list, you know that should be on the rare list just because you know it's harder and harder to find these things.

Kate Barr: And so they've been going through and and you're marking ones that that need to go on to it, but we so it taken just that 5000 that that we kind of that's the main chunk, at least for the moment on a few years ago we started.

Kate Barr: Because you know we always say oh yeah that's a really special collection oh yeah we have really rare stuff and people always say, well, like what and it's your life and then you're put on the spot and you're like.

Kate Barr: Okay, I you know, give me a few minutes that all come up with something, but what we did so that we would be able to actually respond to that question is, we started.

Kate Barr: Cross checking the rare list and we only got we're not even halfway through it, I think we're only a couple hundred into it, because it.

Kate Barr: takes time, but we cross we've been cross checking it against UCLA UCLA film and television archive.

Kate Barr: The paley Center for television and the robie collection Michigan state.

Kate Barr: library Congress and the world cat database, which is, I mean you work at a university you're probably familiar with it the world cat database is kind of aggregates all public and private, public library and private.

Kate Barr: So it's in the in the public sphere and then also college and university library, it puts it into an aggregate database.

Kate Barr: And so we did that we just started saying okay well let's say you know we're saying this thing is really rare well how rare, is it.

Kate Barr: and have so just to give you an example of the top 100 that were sort of the rarest at eight of those titles are not held by the library of Congress and 44 of them, we may have the only known copy of it.

: I mean.

Kate Barr: It could be that some collector has it in their basement somewhere, but you know there's no way of being able to know that you know just in terms of what we searched.

Beau Newsome: Is there stuff that you just won't you have, and you just won't rent out.

Kate Barr: I mean we use we just use the the deposit as a deterrent.

Kate Barr: I mean the thing that's 1500 dollars I don't know that anybody's rented it and.

Kate Barr: ages and it's interesting because what it is, is it's an episode of.

Kate Barr: The Danny kaye show I think it's an.

Kate Barr: TV show.

Kate Barr: One episode.

Kate Barr: I mean it's part it's part of a collection, but this one episode didn't even show up in the paley centers.

Kate Barr: archive so you know and they're they're the ones that are housing all of television.

Kate Barr: History for it, you know, so I think it was one of those things where it got released on vhs in the 80s and then disappeared off the face of the earth and stuff like that happen, you know when.

Kate Barr: Prior to licensing laws catching up with the technology.

Kate Barr: The home video technology, there was just a huge dump of stuff on to vhs you know this big scramble is people are like trying to get stuff on the vhs and get it out there and get it into people's hands and get it circulating, and then the lawyers caught up with everybody and it.

Kate Barr: got clamped down, and you know it all became a lot more regulated but up until that point they're just there's things that that people wouldn't expect to be on vhs that are.

Kate Barr: Only because there's so many other rights issues and that happened also you know some of that is things related to music, you know that there have been issues with releasing on certain titles, because they can't get the music licensing clear.

Kate Barr: Well, again in the Wild West days of of home video they were just dumping.

Kate Barr: Everything on to it, because nobody knew what to do and knew how to pay attention.

Kate Barr: Yes, so when you find those things.

Beau Newsome: yeah.

Beau Newsome: jams yeah true.

Beau Newsome: Who would have known just one episode of this Danny kaye show.

Kate Barr: yeah rare find.

Beau Newsome: yeah How long have you been.

Kate Barr: There i've been there since 2013 so i'm real baby it when it comes to scarecrow our average tenure is about 12 to 13 years.

Kate Barr: So on yeah so the the folks that have been there are core staff has been there for a very long time, our longest tenured person has been there since 95 I think.

Kate Barr: Oh i'm and then the bulk of the people that are there who've been there for 14 1516 years.

Beau Newsome: wow.

Kate Barr: So yeah yeah people will come in and bring their resume and i'm like well take it might be another 10 years before there's an opening.

Beau Newsome: yeah we'll keep it around for 10 years or so.

Beau Newsome: If we get an opening this pretty funny.

Beau Newsome: Do you remember, if there was pushed back.

Beau Newsome: On.

Beau Newsome: I guess you probably weren't there back when this happened, but vhs versus DVD.

Kate Barr: Yes, I and i've heard stories about that absolutely and and you know the other thing that I should also mention is that we still have 250 about 250 titles on laserdisc.

Kate Barr: Oh on.

Kate Barr: Because again because of unique content.

Kate Barr: that's on their.

Beau Newsome: players that you rent out.

Kate Barr: Oh yeah yeah so anything that we have, we have a player that will we will rent a player that will play.

Beau Newsome: Oh good.

Kate Barr: um and, yes, so we rented vhs players and the laser discs DVD BLU Ray and one of the things the other things that makes our collection unique is we bring in things from all over the world, irrespective of the region cody.

Kate Barr: Okay, so.

Kate Barr: yeah and both of that the laser discs and the region, you know all regions.

Kate Barr: On both of this go back to the same point which I think you were were sort of asking about which is the pushback so George last year's the Greek immigrants that started scare core video.

Kate Barr: very, very, very, very, very unbelievably passionate about film and about trying to connect people with film and I but.

Kate Barr: trouble businessman terrible businessman, so he would hear like somebody would come into the store and tell them about some really super rare laser disc that was available in Japan, and he would just fly off to Japan.

Kate Barr: And you know go on a buying spree over there and then come back and none of the staff would get paid for, like a month because.

Beau Newsome: He just close the store and go.

Kate Barr: No, no, no, the store was still running it's just like nobody was getting paid like it, I mean how we didn't have a complete mutiny I don't know but um.

Kate Barr: yeah I mean I mean they did eventually get paid, but it would be you know it would take a month or you know so for him to get caught back up.

Kate Barr: And then he jumped off to.

Kate Barr: Europe on a buying spree and you know, the whole thing but start all over again, so you know not not the best business sense, which is why in the mid 90s, they were going bankrupt.

Kate Barr: And and but, but so passionate about film, and that is why so of those 250 laserdisc I suspect that a large chunk of those were from.

Kate Barr: Some Georges.

Kate Barr: Georges legendary buying trips abroad and on some in some of them it's very specific things so i'm sure you're familiar with Disney song of the South.

Kate Barr: Yes, yeah so we have a Japanese laser disc of that and we also have a European coded vhs.

Beau Newsome: Oh well, because that's as far as I was ever known it's rare you can't find it anywhere.

Kate Barr: It was never released in the United States because they're because it's super racist.

Kate Barr: They never should have made it in the first.

Kate Barr: place.

Kate Barr: But then, once they did, and there was so much backlash about it, they.

Kate Barr: They they they've suppressed it, you know and it's it's kind of like the dirty secret in their closet that they don't want to admit that they've ever that they ever did but.

Kate Barr: They also have no problem, making money off of it in other countries where there isn't going to be as much of a problem, which is why they did in fact release it outside of the United States outside.

Kate Barr: um and so yeah so we you can find I mean i've been i've been told this I haven't tracked it down, but you can find the entire movie online like on YouTube.

Kate Barr: Or you know other kind of.

Kate Barr: Great sites.

Kate Barr: Sure, but in terms of like actual legitimate releases on it never happened in the United States and so that's an example of a laser discs that we would have and why it's so important that we continue.

Beau Newsome: To keep that in our collection.

Beau Newsome: and not to prevent so you do carry reaching to visit.

Beau Newsome: Other region.

Kate Barr: yeah from all over the world.

Beau Newsome: All over the world, and you rent those.

Beau Newsome: players as well.

Kate Barr: We do we rent region free players on we also sell region free players both DVD and BLU Ray um and.

Kate Barr: And then we also if we kind of talked through with people when they come up and they bring something that's region coded.

Kate Barr: will come up and explain to them, you know, like if you have a PC there is free software, you can get and we'll you know we'll walk you through the paces on how to download it if you got a MAC you're screwed you're going to have to find out another whole way.

Kate Barr: um but yeah so we, we want to make it, you know we're not trying to make things accessible, but we also don't want to limit ourselves to just what gets released in the United States, because what we want to have.

Kate Barr: Is a truly representative global collection, which we feel like we do have we have we have things from 129 countries.

Kate Barr: We have 126 languages other than English.

Kate Barr: So you know I mean this was the first place, I had ever been where like we have a couple of things from Eritrea and we have a couple of things from Fiji and you know, like places that you're like they make movies.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: I didn't know that.

Beau Newsome: You have a big Bollywood section.

Kate Barr: on it, I mean our India section is huge.

Kate Barr: Okay, Hong Kong section is even bigger.

Kate Barr: yeah but.

Kate Barr: You know, once we became a nonprofit like we we had somebody that donated two to 50 count boxes, so it was it was at least 100 it may have been over 100 movies from Kenya Ghana and Nigeria.

Kate Barr: And our inventory manager is still going through them and processing them, you know, like trying to figure out, we, the one thing we won't do.

Kate Barr: We won't bring into the collection is bootlegs.

Beau Newsome: Okay, that was a question I was gonna because i've been burned a few times when you order something or you order, a region to DVD and you didn't realize it but.

Beau Newsome: yeah been burned on a couple bootlegs before.

Kate Barr: yeah.

Beau Newsome: yeah we never rented those either you just would have to well, we had to eat that one so.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah our buyers pretty good at at Smith, I mean he are the buyers, the one who's been here since 95 so he's he's pretty good at smithy now when something's a bootleg and now that said.

Kate Barr: Back in the George days they didn't have quite those same scruples so i'm not saying that there aren't any bootlegs in the collection.

Kate Barr: or i'm just saying that it.

Kate Barr: Like in the last 20 something years there we haven't been bringing any.

Beau Newsome: Some can squeak through you'll be watching a.

Beau Newsome: DVD and you'll see the tracking lines of the vhs.

Kate Barr: or something right exactly.

Beau Newsome: yeah that was yeah to rare ones that come to mind was as barfly.

Beau Newsome: Like that was just one we had on vhs but we could never, ever, and I think it was has to do with the cow ski rights and stuff.

Kate Barr: huh yeah but yeah and but you know there's there are things that it's so fluid, because there are things that at one moment you know they're super rare so, for example in talking about are rare list we had one title on there, the documentary doa.

Kate Barr: On and you know, which is about the punk rock.

Kate Barr: group um and.

Kate Barr: That was on our super rare lists and then like last year, I think it was it got released on BLU Ray so now all of a sudden it went from being on our rare list to being taken off of our lives.

Kate Barr: yeah because it's not rare.

Kate Barr: So you know those things happen, where there are ones where people will realize yeah we should release this.

Kate Barr: And then it changes and also the other way around, you know which is harder for us to track, you know, which is the things are slowly becoming more.

Kate Barr: And more difficult to find like we have we have some anime stuff that really probably should be on our rare list but somebody, we need to just get somebody to go through.

Kate Barr: and check it, which is an enormous undertaking.

Kate Barr: Sure um we have we have some we have some hip hop and.

Kate Barr: rap and DVDs and and and also some vhs that also probably should be on or where was, but you know, again, I mean how, how do you begin to tackle that and by the time you would finish an entire room you'd have to start all over again because everything's.

Kate Barr: So you know we just you know we try to.

Kate Barr: Everybody who works there has their own particular interest, so I think that they're paying closer attention to what's happening with you know.

Kate Barr: Like we have one guy who particularly loves rap music, so I think he's paying closer attention to what's you know what's we have and what's becoming rare and what we need to yes so.

Beau Newsome: we've talked about in past interviews about an ongoing list of stuff the video store needs to get.

Beau Newsome: Are you do, you find yourself with 140 titles still writing out a list of.

Beau Newsome: To get stuff again.

Kate Barr: Yes.

Beau Newsome: Oh yes, amazing huh.

Kate Barr: Well, you know, and especially in the last year, because.

Kate Barr: Last year I told our buyer i'm like I cut his budget in half, for two reasons, one is because our doors were closed, and so, nobody was really coming in.

Kate Barr: On and then to you know we just didn't know what the future was going to hold, and so I was like we need to be really conservative about.

Kate Barr: How much we bring in this year on, so what he did was is he he brought in what his budget would allow and then he started a whole separate spreadsheet of these are all the things if our budget have been normal, these are all the things that I would have wanted to bring in so that.

Kate Barr: As as things get a little bit more restored, will you know slowly every week, maybe take five or 10 titles off of that list and and start to bring them in.

Beau Newsome: So that was always kind of.

Beau Newsome: he'd covered this one vhs or DVD and then all of a sudden, they come out with a new one and you're like oh yeah well.

Beau Newsome: I guess.

Kate Barr: I.

Beau Newsome: guess no big deal.

Beau Newsome: So.

Beau Newsome: You mentioned that like it almost went bankrupt in the 90s.

Beau Newsome: yeah do you think that it becoming a nonprofit have anything to do with it still being in business.

Kate Barr: or so in the mid 90s when it when George was filing for bankruptcy on eBay basically like in addition to not paying, and all this in public records so i'm not telling you anything that you can't find.

Kate Barr: You know, through an Internet search um but in in in addition to not paying payroll in a timely manner, he wasn't paying payroll taxes at all.

Kate Barr: And that finally just all caught up with him, I mean the irs just eventually came after him, and there was no way they were going to be able to pay.

Kate Barr: All of those payroll taxes back so on, they filed for bankruptcy and that was the MID 90s, and to to to Microsoft guys who were regular customers bought.

Kate Barr: bought the store and bought the collection and so then from like the MID 90s through to 2014 it was basically own by one of those two guys to the Microsoft guys bought one of those guys kind of bowed out a few years into it, and so it was the one guy who kind of kept it going.

: I have.

Beau Newsome: The means to do this, and if it was in the red or the black did it matter.

Kate Barr: Well, so it was in it was in the black up until about 2010 2009 2010.

Beau Newsome: It sounds about how we were to yeah.

Kate Barr: yeah and and so up to that point, you know it's always good and and really.

Kate Barr: Because I mean he had a full time job at Microsoft so.

Kate Barr: He wasn't a boots on the ground owner.

Kate Barr: He kind of left it to the devices of the folks running the place um but you know, one of the things that he really was he didn't give the buyer a budget, he was just like just buy whatever you want to buy, and so our buyer didn't.

Kate Barr: Mark just button button button bought.

Kate Barr: yeah and and that's when in that period is when the collection really exploded.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: They just kept buying and buying and buying to build the collection, you know i'm.

Kate Barr: yeah i'm not.

Beau Newsome: Sorry, I remember that to working at Howard Hughes video before I came manager myself and the other man and the manager to time.

Beau Newsome: kind of had didn't nobody like pull the reins on the budget.

Beau Newsome: we're just like we got to get this on DVD we got to get this we gotta get this we got to get this get this.

Beau Newsome: And then, once we moved to the new location, the smaller stores and I took over his manager.

Beau Newsome: I didn't really have a the reins pulled on me for the budget, either.

Beau Newsome: till they told me to stop.

Beau Newsome: bye bye bye bye.

Kate Barr: yeah well i'll tell you what it's been a really steep learning curve for our poor buyer because he went from an environment where it was just like whatever you want just buy it.

Kate Barr: to having a budget and having to stay in budget and having to learn like how that works, and you know paying attention so yeah the last few years have been a real challenge for him in that regard, but it so so.

Kate Barr: So for basically like four years.

Kate Barr: 2009 to 2013 they were just they were making up the deficit like out of pocket personally out of pocket the owners were just making up the deficit.

Kate Barr: And after about four years of it, they were like you know we're not we're not going to keep this going like this is not this isn't what we want to be doing and.

Kate Barr: And and beyond that they realize that if the collection was going to stay together it they really needed to form a nonprofit and they were not interested in being the ones that created the nonprofit.

Kate Barr: So that was the point at which they said Okay, you know we're done They sat us all down at a staff meeting and, and this is like the end of 2000 no, it was February 2014 They sat us all down and they were like we're done and we are going to start taking proposals for.

Kate Barr: For somebody to take over the collection and there's really three criteria we're looking for one is that the collection stay together.

Kate Barr: To is, we would love to see a public accessibility and then three is ideally they wanted it to stay in Seattle, I mean I.

Kate Barr: I don't know that any of those were deal breakers for them, but that those were sort of that was their hope and they said at the meeting they were like if you guys and staff members want to put together a proposal, we will consider it along with any other proposals, yet so.

Kate Barr: So we did we put together proposal, a group of us staff members, they received.

Kate Barr: Two three other proposals to were from universities and one was from a local film school um and and they said that we had a strong enough a strong enough proposal that they were willing to go forward with it so.

Beau Newsome: What was it like as far as the nonprofit goes, is it important, or is it.

Kate Barr: yeah it's yeah it's I mean we're a full full fledged 501 C three so we have a full board and they don't the board does not is not involved in day to day operations, because.

Kate Barr: sure that.

Kate Barr: would absolutely paralyze us if we had to you know, in order to make a decision about what movies were bought, this week we had to convene the entire board.

Kate Barr: We would get nowhere.

Kate Barr: yeah so it was sort of baked into the um the board language that they're there the board's job is sort of.

Kate Barr: big picture governance so any major decisions that need to be made any major expenditures that would need to happen, the Board has to be involved in and has to really guide that but in terms of like day to day.

Kate Barr: You know.

Kate Barr: The hba see needs to be repaired well you know we're going to just go and repair it, I think, is what is the board going to say no.

Beau Newsome: Right.

Kate Barr: You know I mean so that kind of stuff it's not worth anybody's time to do that and I, and so I think that allowed us the ability to be nimble and deal with.

Kate Barr: react to situations quickly um but the Board is very much involved in in the bigger picture.

Beau Newsome: So you because kind of how power to use mainstream video co opted it they hired me they had a manager.

Beau Newsome: Who kind of took care of the day to day in the ordering and all that.

Beau Newsome: Do you have a minute one manager of the store.

Kate Barr: Multiple no um I mean, I guess, I we have.

Kate Barr: Well it's sort of strange, so we all have different roles on and i'm the executive director, we have a development director.

Kate Barr: We have a buyer we have an inventory manager, which is sort of like a collections manager on, and then we have floor managers.

Kate Barr: On but you know, and so there are some of us who have a we do have an operations manager, there are some of us who have varying degrees of responsibility, but i'm.

Kate Barr: Because this is how I am, and this is what I really believe in is that it's a pretty egalitarian environment and for a few reasons one keep in mind, again, the majority of people that work there have been together for 15 years right and i'm 15 years or more, and so.

Kate Barr: They they have a certain way of working with each other right, and you know if all of a sudden somebody were to step in and say okay now i'm your boss.

Kate Barr: That that just might not work out so well, and you know and the way we look at it, is that all of our staff members are assets, as much as much as all of the movies, that are on the shelves are our assets, so our staff members.

Kate Barr: And the wealth of information that exists.

Kate Barr: In their minds about movies, in general, but also our collection, in particular, I mean to have somebody and not just one person, but a handful of people who have had 15 years of experience with this collection.

Kate Barr: Right they're going to know it better than anybody who would just walk in off the street.

Kate Barr: Okay, so you know, so our our whole perspective on it, is that we want to get them, you know we want everybody to be engaged we're all part of a team, we all have our job to do as part of that team, and so we should all be involved in.

Kate Barr: How things happen now again that's not going to go down to the my new show.

Kate Barr: Every time there's a decision to make we're not going to get everybody together and say what do you think what do you think but i'm kind of some of the bigger.

Kate Barr: bigger picture things which, in the last year have been pretty big deals, you know, like talking.

Kate Barr: We collectively made decisions about.

Kate Barr: When is it safe for us to open up our pickup window what is it safe for us to start letting people come in by appointment in our June meeting.

Kate Barr: All staff meeting next week we're going to be talking about okay collectively when do we feel like we're ready to open the doors.

Kate Barr: And you know collectively let's agree on what is our mask policy, going to be things like that that affect people that work there on a day to day basis, they should have a voice and what's happening.

Kate Barr: And so we have meetings, a meeting like an all staff meeting every month, where we address some of these bigger issues.

Kate Barr: So.

Beau Newsome: How as because the video sort of finally close to that mainstream video co op find the closest stores during the lockdown.

Beau Newsome: And there was discussion.

Beau Newsome: in hindsight, about the walk up window.

Beau Newsome: And an appointment only.

Beau Newsome: Type our those worked out for you.

Kate Barr: Oh very well, we, I mean they've.

Kate Barr: they've been part of what's kept us afloat, I mean our Rentals and our sales.

Kate Barr: Are down from less from.

Kate Barr: they're down there not as much but they're much more than they would have been if we didn't have that at all, you know I mean we're still.

Kate Barr: You know, we still have people coming to the pickup window every day, our appointments are not always all fully booked out, but you know they.

Kate Barr: were at least having the majority of the day, where people are showing up in the appointment so yeah it was absolutely.

Kate Barr: worth doing and and I i'm looking forward to having the doors open again and having people come in, but you know it has to be when we feel like it's safe for us to be able to do so, so.

Beau Newsome: We don't have to do we kind of wonder if if the video store mainstream video COP would have stayed open during the lockdown.

Beau Newsome: By appointment or walk up window if maybe that would have helped, but I we've all kind of come to the conclusion that, overall, it just was was hard to find everybody on the right page and.

Kate Barr: write stuff like right.

: But.

Beau Newsome: How how important so.

Beau Newsome: Is scarecrow to the Community and university of Washington.

Kate Barr: University Washington.

Kate Barr: I don't know you know I mean, yes, we get some students, yes, we get some for professors, but.

Kate Barr: I don't they you know you know University of Washington actually has a pretty phenomenal video collection in their library.

Kate Barr: So you know I don't I don't know that.

: it's.

Kate Barr: yeah I don't know that they're they're not reliant on us in any way the students and the professors aren't necessarily relying on us i'm sure they take advantage of some of the things that we have that they don't have but um but.

Kate Barr: yeah and there are other schools that will come, we have some film schools that we had relationships with that would bring their students and they do tours on.

Kate Barr: Cornish or college used to come pretty regularly with their students we've had professors that have held classes, we have a little screening room up the front they've held classes there um so.

Kate Barr: I but I mean in terms of the just the community in general I wouldn't be around today if it weren't for such a supportive community and not specifically the district, I mean kind of the greater Seattle community of film lovers.

: A lot of people.

Beau Newsome: I guess drive in from other areas of Seattle and.

Kate Barr: yeah I mean, now that the rental by mail program is is kind of more in high gear.

Beau Newsome: yeah on your website yeah.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah We well we started a pilot program we had already been thinking about it in 2019.

Kate Barr: And our concerns are the concerns that we have and actually doing it, which is our infrastructure can't handle it, which is part of why we're doing this fundraising effort.

Kate Barr: To raise the money to have a more modern one is to be able to do rental by mail more seamlessly so we we started with a pilot program at the end of.

Kate Barr: Where we were we had like 40 people living kind of locally that were willing to participate in the program and you know we were like wow we don't know what we're doing and we're still kind of feeling our way, but could you would you be willing to help out.

Kate Barr: On, and so we just started that it wasn't going so great, having you know, like people would try it once and then be like No, this is this is too much trouble.

Kate Barr: And then coven head and we you know we went into lockdown and it was like well okay So either we just do nothing for the next you know for the foreseeable future, or we try and expand our rental by mail program and you know as flawed, as it is.

Kate Barr: To see if there are people who want to use it just because of what the circumstances are, and so we did then open it up, and when I was onboarding people.

Kate Barr: I was telling them, this is not perfect, like, I was saying exactly what I said to you before i'm like you just need to hop get ready to hop in your time machine back to the 20th century, because this is not going to be a 21st 21st century experience at all.

Kate Barr: So I you know just kind of warning people about it and i'm sure they discovered on their own how flawed was.

Beau Newsome: Already in a static right So yes, exactly exactly.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: So we went we went from having 40 people at the end of.

Kate Barr: on our list to now it's.

Kate Barr: Probably over 600 that are signed up and we're shipping to.

Kate Barr: 25 states i'm think i'm so you know we we opened it up and then opened it like nationwide um.

Beau Newsome: I think you'll continue to do that.

Kate Barr: yeah and that's that's kind of the whole point of the again the infrastructure upgrade is that we want it, we want to continue it into the future, but we want it to be a much better experience for.

Beau Newsome: People.

Kate Barr: We actually think we could probably get more people on board if it wasn't so clunky you know if it wasn't such a you know I mean yeah it feels like it's like chewing gum and duct tape to make it work, and you know you're just.

Kate Barr: And everybody's been very good and very patient, and we have been able to get movies to people all over the country at a time when.

Kate Barr: You know I it's interesting because you would think that lockdown would have been the thing that showed people how amazing streaming can be.

Kate Barr: except for the fact that what it did was that lasted like maybe a month, maybe, and then they realized i've just watched everything that I actually wanted to watch from the streaming service and now, and now what.

Kate Barr: Now what am I supposed to do so, we actually had quite a few people i'm not right off the BAT but a couple months into it, you know, two, three months into it we're like i'm just fed up with the stuff that's on there there's nothing new and I want something different.

Kate Barr: yeah, and so we really felt like the pandemic highlighted how limited the online streaming services are.

Beau Newsome: Right and I remember.

Beau Newsome: When I was still managing the video store back in 2012 2013.

Beau Newsome: netflix streaming was becoming available.

Beau Newsome: But yet people still.

Beau Newsome: They did, both because they know they could find something that netflix didn't have.

Beau Newsome: Right or any other kind of streaming service, so they would have us have netflix so.

Kate Barr: yeah.

Beau Newsome: It wasn't working.

Beau Newsome: Right off the BAT like netflix has taken us out of business kind of a thing.

Kate Barr: yeah well, and you know I I when we became a nonprofit I, we very deliberately said okay we're not going to turn this discussion into an either or.

Kate Barr: You know what we're saying is is there's room for both, and I know for a fact that there is not one person who works at scarecrow who doesn't also stream to a certain extent.

Kate Barr: sure you know, I mean it's just part of our reality and there's nothing wrong with that you know again we're not trying to we're not trying to.

Kate Barr: To say well you know this is inferior, this is flawed it's it's a different way of doing it, and what we're saying is there's room for both and what's.

Kate Barr: Our frustration is that that the discussion, you know that the thing that netflix has done the best is sell the idea.

Kate Barr: The idea that everything is available online, because in reality it's just not.

Kate Barr: Even close and normally what I do like when i'm taught going someplace and talking about scarecrow is all usually started off by by asking the audience, how many titles, do you think netflix has available for streaming in the US.

Kate Barr: And it's so interesting to hear people give their responses like I had I had one person who told me that they thought that they had 500,000 titles available for streaming.

Kate Barr: You know and usually it's in the hundreds of thousands they're like oh it's you know, like hundreds of thousands of times and i'm like well try like.

Kate Barr: Three to 4000 titles, is how many netflix has and then, if you take netflix Amazon and hulu collections and you put them all together it's about 36,000 titles and we have over 140,000.

Beau Newsome: Right 36,000 titles, is what we have.

: here.

Beau Newsome: Well, and and you know I don't even get into this with people you know because i'm usually doing like you know my.

Kate Barr: Little spiel about scarecrow so I keep it as simple as possible, but what I don't get into is it that's not even an apples to oranges comparison so, for example, all the streaming services netflix Amazon, all of them, they count one episode of a TV show is one title.

Kate Barr: So, for example.

Kate Barr: A season of madmen they would say each episode is one title we count this the entire season.

Beau Newsome: As one type well since we would say, have mad men season one and we'd split it up into six individual Rentals.

Beau Newsome: Okay.

Kate Barr: And that would.

Beau Newsome: put it in our that would be six titles, you know so that's that's impressive but.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: If we actually started going through all the TV shows we had, and all of the compilations that we have you know you think about like Disney collections, where you have all of these Disney animated shorts the animation room alone.

Kate Barr: would probably like double the number of Titles that we would say we have because there's so many of the videos in there, that our DVDs all of it that are that have multiple titles on a single collection.

Kate Barr: And you know if we started to go through and that and then you think about extra features and sometimes those extra features are complete extra documentaries.

Kate Barr: or other movies, I mean we've had some where they've tapped on another movie on to the movie the gifting you not build it as a double feature.

Beau Newsome: Right.

Kate Barr: It seems strange to me they don't feel it as a double feature, they just include it in the extra features, so if if we had the capacity to like go through, and actually list out all of those I suspect that our total count would probably quadruple.

Kate Barr: that's my that's My guess.

Beau Newsome: Do you break up your season ones are.

Kate Barr: So what we what we usually do is we have.

Kate Barr: We have the entire season as as as one Rentals so that you could come in, you could rent the entire season, it costs more, but you could get it all and just power watch it if I wanted, and then we will also break it apart, will have a second set that then gets broken apart by disk.

Beau Newsome: Oh wow okay.

Kate Barr: Well we'd still only counted as one.

Beau Newsome: sure.

Kate Barr: It will work we're doing our accounting we're still saying.

Kate Barr: it's one that's just yeah that's one title.

Beau Newsome: So yeah that gives the customer, the ability to.

Beau Newsome: read this to that's all they want, yes or something.

Kate Barr: Exactly exactly and and we don't do that we don't do that for absolutely everything I mean we had to talk about space earlier.

Kate Barr: So we can't.

Kate Barr: We can't do that for absolutely everything, but things that we know are very popular that we know are going to rent a lot that we know you know those are the ones where we do, we will bring in two copies and one is hole and one is broken apart.

Beau Newsome: Okay okay well that's That was a novel concept I don't think the video store ever had the means to buy to have something like that.

Beau Newsome: But that's a great idea somebody can just buy one set of something and binge watch it.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah.

Beau Newsome: When things got liquidated, I was a huge our TV land section is when we called it.

Beau Newsome: was a big issue, because what we did was we would tear apart like season one of mad men make our own little display case.

Beau Newsome: yeah put the other, the desk in the back yeah So then, when it was liquidated, and it was all given to the kenworthy performing arts theater.

Beau Newsome: They had season one a madman disks but they had nowhere to put them because we are.

Beau Newsome: Our cases were all chopped up.

Kate Barr: Oh no, no, no, no.

Beau Newsome: TV land out of.

Beau Newsome: Everything really took a hit because it was hard to disk one wasn't in the collection and.

Kate Barr: Oh wow oh no like in hindsight that was a.

Beau Newsome: You know, we were just making display cases and.

Kate Barr: Right.

Beau Newsome: Right you think about it.

Kate Barr: So wow okay huh yeah I know right hindsight it's a wonderful thing.

Beau Newsome: um do you know how many we've talked about this past interviews, do you know how many video stores are left in the country.

Kate Barr: Ah, I don't I do know them.

Beau Newsome: I think I just saw.

Beau Newsome: monique just sent me an article just doing the interviews with me there was another video store in Seattle that just closed.

Kate Barr: yeah yep.

Kate Barr: uh yeah reckless video just closed, so there is.

Kate Barr: A there is somebody in La can put together a list of video stores and they have 88 on it to that I added I added.

Kate Barr: 234 more.

Kate Barr: um so you know I would say, and that's not that's not that's not national that's worldwide actually.

Beau Newsome: Oh wow.

Kate Barr: um and you know I don't know that it's fully comprehensive, I mean she did a wonderful job, and I can share the list with you, she did a wonderful job of of trying to really research what is out there and put it together in a spreadsheet and um.

Kate Barr: But you know I mean actually not i'm looking at it, because I think I love videos on there they closed last year.

Beau Newsome: yeah.

Beau Newsome: We I think eventually we'd like to just figure out.

Beau Newsome: Where Howard Hughes video mainstream co op was on that list you know how far did we make it where we top under or.

Beau Newsome: You know.

Kate Barr: yeah so they're really I mean it's it's.

Kate Barr: The playing fields getting smaller and smaller.

Beau Newsome: And you said that you do have the biggest collection right.

Kate Barr: On that is our plane yes.

Beau Newsome: sticking with it, I mean.

Kate Barr: When we were a video store, you know when we were for profit, video store, we could absolutely say where the biggest video store.

Kate Barr: In the United States, if not the world but on now that we're now that we're in the nonprofit realm and we're also being compared with universities.

Kate Barr: library of Congress it's a harder claim to make you know, like I we had somebody from the New York Times that was fact checking us and they were like you can't say that because UCLA film and television archive is larger than you are, and I was like well.

Kate Barr: I don't want to get into it, but it's the thing with UCLA film and TV archive is exactly what I was telling you about with netflix they do the same thing they catalog each episode as a title.

Kate Barr: Right, so you go to their website and it says they have I don't know what it is 250,000 titles, but they're counting each episode so.

Kate Barr: i'm like Okay, you know I but it's just it's too it's too hard, I would love I would love to have the bandwidth to be able to hire people to just go through.

Kate Barr: Each room and say Okay, you know you're you're going to do this section you're going to do that section and be able to actually document, all of this, and maybe it's a dream project for the next decade.

Kate Barr: But it's it's not going to happen anytime.

Beau Newsome: Soon, have you ever been approached by documentarians to do anything on scarecrow.

Kate Barr: On yes we had and people have done like short documentaries about us and we've been a part of other documentaries that have been about video stores.

Kate Barr: um but, and when we were transitioning over to becoming a nonprofit we had a local guy who had done a short video his name's David Chen and his videos actually up on YouTube.

Kate Barr: He had done a short video about scarecrow and when he heard we're transitioning over to a nonprofit he said, could he come and film.

Kate Barr: Do a documentary on us, and so we were contemplating it and he was like you know i'll be there all the time, this will be kind of fly on the wall on, but what he wanted was.

Kate Barr: To also like follow some of our staff into the private you know, like he kind of wanted to get not just behind the scenes, but into people's personal lives, and that was sort of a deal breaker I mean a lot of the folks that work they're very private and they're very camera shy.

Kate Barr: And they were like now.

Beau Newsome: I don't.

Kate Barr: I don't want somebody in my living room filming me.

Beau Newsome: I just want to watch movies, and I.

Kate Barr: want it yeah exactly exactly.

Beau Newsome: that's cool so there was always kind of rumors that a lot of celebrities rented it that's care co video is that.

Beau Newsome: Is that true.

Beau Newsome: yeah john woo and Quinn tarantino being two of them.

Kate Barr: Right right So yes, well, so in the 90s, in addition to building the catalog one of the other big things that happened in the 90s, is that there were a lot of events that were going on.

Kate Barr: And one of the events which was an animation festival was actually the final nail in the coffin for the George years he put together his on believable animation festival, where he.

Kate Barr: flew in animators.

Kate Barr: from all over the world Japanese animators and European animators and it was just like when you see the list of who he had and what was going on.

Kate Barr: It was just absolutely mind blowing but you know, then when you think about it and you're like yeah but.

Kate Barr: You know that's because he was financially irresponsible that's how he was able to do things like that, like because that you know when I first saw it, I was like we need to do something like this, we need to like replicate this.

Kate Barr: But I was like yeah but I mean I I couldn't not pay the staff like I that I.

Kate Barr: Myself um so I was like well let's let's see if we can eventually figure out a way to do the this tonight fiscally responsible way.

Kate Barr: But yeah we had.

Kate Barr: There were some people that were working here who had ties in La and so David lynch came kids in the hall john woo.

Kate Barr: verna hertzog.

: um.

Kate Barr: yeah i'm blanking on on some of them, but I know that I know those for sure um yeah and I, you know I mean it's it's a while and then so quentin tarantino was something completely different, he was in town, for he was screening one of his movies, except the Seattle international film festival.

Kate Barr: And he had always heard about scarecrow and so.

Kate Barr: He walked from the downtown area to scarecrow which.

Kate Barr: doesn't seem like a big deal.

Kate Barr: But it first of all, he got lost it was the hottest day of the year and it's it's he probably ended up walking about five miles, if I had to guess to get to get there and then yeah he showed up and was just kind of wandering around and.

Kate Barr: I mean I don't think you've rented anything that I think he bought some things, and you know just just.

Kate Barr: You know we're actually the state of Washington we're actually classified as a museum and a lot of ways yeah in a lot of ways I think that's pretty accurate, you know I tell people i'm like.

Kate Barr: If you're the type of person that when you're on a trip is like oh my gosh this place has the biggest ball of string we've got to go see it on like that's what we are.

Kate Barr: The biggest video collection.

Kate Barr: Company and come see what that looks like.

Beau Newsome: yeah I think I may have mentioned this to you when we weren't recording but.

Beau Newsome: What we've found out a lot of these interviews is people were like.

Beau Newsome: I would ask, do you were you renting towards the end of its the video stores life, maybe like well no not not really not as much as I should have and and yeah and it was like.

Beau Newsome: People are glad it was there, but they even though they didn't use it, but it was yeah it's that library that's intact.

Beau Newsome: Is yeah like you said a ball a big ball of twine you know.

Kate Barr: Well, the other example that I give is is that.

Kate Barr: If the smithsonian museum was wanting money I would give money to the smithsonian because I think it's an important museum that is there now.

Kate Barr: I mean I haven't been to the smithsonian and like 20 some odd years, but I still think it's an important institution that exists.

Kate Barr: And so, in some ways that's that's how we need to help people look at us, which is.

Kate Barr: yeah you know, maybe your viewing habits have changed and you're not going to use this on a day to day basis, maybe you don't even live in Seattle, and so you wouldn't have that ability.

Kate Barr: That we have rental by mail now so that ability on but it's still that idea of an important institution remaining around, not just for our immediate needs, but for future generations.

Kate Barr: And that's one of the things i've told people almost since we first became a nonprofit which is we're playing a long game here.

Kate Barr: This isn't just about what preserving this for today, you know, or you know even the next five years, this is about trying to preserve this.

Kate Barr: piece of our cultural history for the next 50 years or Hundred Years sure, and the story that I tell is about.

Kate Barr: The silent era and in the silent year well right when talkies came about and people realized that filmmakers realized that this was the future of film talking films for the feature film.

Kate Barr: There were quite a few production companies that turned around and looked in their basements and saw stacks and stacks of reels.

Kate Barr: That of movies, that they thought were completely useless and just went and drop them off the edge of the Santa Monica Pier and the Pacific Ocean and as a film lover there's a little part of me that dies inside here that.

Kate Barr: You know, when I think.

Kate Barr: Oh, my God what what did we lose in terms of our cultural history by the fact that people at that point did not have the vision into how this would.

Kate Barr: How this would be still important 100 years later.

Kate Barr: And so, here we are again we're at yet another turning of technology, another big milestone in technology, but we have the ability to learn from our past mistake.

Kate Barr: And I don't want to be that person on the end of the Pier.

Kate Barr: Dumping all of this into the ocean, because nobody cares about it.

Kate Barr: Right, we all have to care about.

Beau Newsome: yeah I think we've gotten really good reception for.

Beau Newsome: You know interviewing old employees managers and customers.

Beau Newsome: You know, but I think.

Beau Newsome: It is.

Beau Newsome: Now that it's gone it's like people are like.

Beau Newsome: Like yeah yeah that we didn't that collection was, I mean we're talking 35,000 versus you know hundred and 40 but for Moscow Idaho That was a great great collection of movies.

Kate Barr: yeah because that's 35,000 titles that were carefully curated by film lovers over time.

Beau Newsome: Over time yeah.

Kate Barr: And that's an important that's a very, very important distinction this isn't about computer algorithms that are making decisions about what's here, based on viewing habits, this is about a handcrafted collection and that you know, because this isn't.

Kate Barr: I mean, yes, we pull out this our size, because um because it's something that gets people's attention but it's not actually the thing that's important the size isn't as important as the curation.

Kate Barr: Ultra collection itself and and so when the the reckless video that's just up the street from us that yeah and was it to bless set last Saturday two Saturdays ago announced that they were closing and.

Kate Barr: It breaks our heart.

Kate Barr: Like we take absolutely no pleasure in that at all, you know and and I love video in Austin Texas closing that's heartbreaking to us.

Kate Barr: We want all of these collections to remain available because they're serving their community, you know and and what I hear when I hear that it's closing is I hear.

Kate Barr: The loss of a Community space in which people could be passionate about movies, with other people that are passionate about movies.

Kate Barr: yeah and that.

Kate Barr: there's there's there's not there's nothing good about that.

Beau Newsome: Right.

Beau Newsome: I don't that's what i've mentioned, is what I missed the most is being ensconced in movies and talking with people yeah all day every day.

Kate Barr: movies, you know.

Kate Barr: Like yeah.

Beau Newsome: That was that was why I was there, you know, and I can't it's hard to fill that void now you know.

Beau Newsome: yeah I don't have it readily available to talk to somebody about about movies.

Kate Barr: yeah and it's a weird thing because I mean yeah I guess you can do it online, but it's just different.

Kate Barr: it's not it's not the same as actually being.

Kate Barr: face to face with somebody and you're both getting all passionate and excited about an Oh, have you seen this.

Kate Barr: yeah but have you seen this.

Kate Barr: Oh, my gosh, but you have to check this.

Beau Newsome: out after check, you know that just getting caught up in that that.

Kate Barr: Energy in that passion and that joy, I mean there's there's yet you can't replicate that you just can't and so that's that's why I mean, I know that smaller places have struggled and some have gone away, but you know what there have also been new places that have sprung up so.

Kate Barr: You know I mean you just you never know what's gonna happen.

Beau Newsome: Right when.

Beau Newsome: The liquidation spawned this whole project because.

Beau Newsome: Right, the University of Idaho library got some of the catalog and the kenworthy performing arts theater got a lot of the criterion collection all of our French films.

Beau Newsome: A lot of our critics choice which is funny because I know a longtime customer that I interviewed speaking of curating these movies, he goes, by the way, whose idea who decided what was a cult classic and what was the critics choice, and I said, well, we did.

Beau Newsome: that's what I thought.

Beau Newsome: We decided that.

Beau Newsome: Having.

Beau Newsome: mchenry kenworthy performing arts theater doesn't want to rent rent them out so they're not going to do that, because they would hate to see him be lost and stolen, but they are you able to rent them and watch them on the big screen that.

Kate Barr: Wonderful oh that's great.

Beau Newsome: yeah that was.

Beau Newsome: I was really worried about our criterion collection, because I was kind of our biggest well least renting most expensive section in the store but it.

Beau Newsome: was talking about archives.

Beau Newsome: yeah it was full of them.

Beau Newsome: and full of great movies and titles and stuff but.

Beau Newsome: But it's still intact and.

Beau Newsome: apparently going to stay that way.

Kate Barr: Oh good that is really good to hear yeah really, really good to hear.

Beau Newsome: That, so the fundraising you said you're really busy with fundraising right now.

Beau Newsome: what's what's the aspect to that.

Kate Barr: This campaign is specifically about raising money for us to be able to upgrade our infrastructure and by infrastructure, I mean our.

Kate Barr: Or the point of sale system, the database that houses our our collection and what it has the capacity to do and what it has the capacity to do in terms of a user interface online.

Beau Newsome: you're not on a DAS system.

Kate Barr: No, but I do know a video stores that are.

Beau Newsome: Where you.

Beau Newsome: work towards the end we we did move on to my windows based.

Beau Newsome: I was gone at that point, but the whole time I was there was a DAS system.

Kate Barr: So in the in the mid 90s when when they were going bankrupt, the Microsoft guys that took over actually built a database to then migrate, what was the DAS face system into into you know this so that was like a big technological leap forward, but that was in the mid 90s, you know and.

Kate Barr: Then so it's it's time it's time for it to to join the 21st century and, and I mean I say that it's done its job.

Kate Barr: And it's done his job very well for what it was doing, but now we're asking it and wanting it to do more and that's the point at which it's just it's just doesn't really have the capacity to do it and.

Kate Barr: So um yeah so so that's what this campaign is about this is actually the biggest fundraising campaign we've ever had on because it's it's going to have to be a custom built system for us to be able to do it, you know.

Kate Barr: If we were just full on a library, we could probably just go and get a ready made library software program and it's inserted but.

Kate Barr: On but we're not, because actually I at least prior to cove it I don't know how things are going to be postcode but prior to cove it on our we were generating about the same amount of money and rental and sales.

Kate Barr: um you know we, we have to have the capacity to be able to sell things and those library programs they they're not set up for that you know they they and so needing to integrate a sale system and kind of a library system on just means it's going to be custom built.

Kate Barr: Okay, which is expensive.

Beau Newsome: And a couple of different times it is expensive yeah.

Kate Barr: Once we have it, we have had other video stores expressed an interest in maybe.

Kate Barr: Being able to utilize that software so The hope is that once we we have it might become a template for other places to us so that they can get out of their their doss based system.

Beau Newsome: yeah I remember wanting to call scarecrow back when I was managing and because we were still on the DAS system and asking somebody like what like.

Beau Newsome: what's your software, what are you using.

Beau Newsome: Can we, is there a way we could get it.

Beau Newsome: or something you know.

: yeah.

Beau Newsome: That was towards the end of my tenure there so.

Beau Newsome: yeah we're.

Beau Newsome: never quite called got Ahold of anybody or talked about it.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah well and we've gotten calls about that, and we always just say it's a custom built system yeah so you know there's really there's not there's nothing you know it's it's not helpful oh it's not like, we can say Oh, you know contact, this company it's.

Kate Barr: Right, you know.

Beau Newsome: yeah I think yeah that's kind of what I figured and.

Beau Newsome: yeah I may have talked to somebody actually.

Beau Newsome: Maybe you told me that a long time ago, but yeah knows.

Beau Newsome: But you know one reason I wanted to do this and you've touched on a lot of this is because people are like well why, why do you want to interview the video store that's thriving and.

Beau Newsome: doing well, when you guys went out of business, and I was like well it's for one it's neat to see that there are nonprofit and they're still thriving and you know I try not to look at it as a negative for the video our video store.

Beau Newsome: mm hmm but just kind of it's neat to see that there's still something out there and there's you know, like a museum like you said of movies.

: yeah yeah.

Kate Barr: Well it's a thank you for for asking us to be a part of this oral history.

Beau Newsome: yeah well, thank you for doing.

Beau Newsome: This is really cool it was just kind of a.

Beau Newsome: spontaneous thing I was like well call, let me just.

: yeah.

Beau Newsome: Any kind of interest whatsoever.

Kate Barr: Well, you know I mean that's The thing is that we every every single person that works at scarecrow loves talking about movies, you know and loves talking about the world of movies and videos and you know it's not hard to process them to talk.

Beau Newsome: Well that's one of the first questions you asked me you're like well, what are your questions because that's who i'm going to direct you to if you want to do it if you want to just talk movies.

Beau Newsome: yeah right yeah.

Beau Newsome: You want to talk about nonprofit fundraising history of the store I talked to you so.

Kate Barr: yeah absolutely yeah we all, we all have our kind of areas of specialty where when when people just all they want to do is kind of geek out on movies, unlike you want to talk to matt.

: that's funny yeah.

Beau Newsome: Well hey I think I think unless there's anything you haven't touched on that you would like to know.

Kate Barr: i'm just yeah I, this was a lot of fun man again thank you so much for for inviting us to be a part of this.

Kate Barr: Please keep us posted on how it progresses.

Beau Newsome: i'd love to well.

Kate Barr: yeah when you end up doing with all these interviews and.

Beau Newsome: play, you know how you can some of it, I imagine will be online through the ui web website.

Kate Barr: Oh gosh yeah yeah yeah.

Beau Newsome: yeah i'll definitely keep you posted on all that.

Beau Newsome: Please do because, if it is available on on the website and it's up in the public domain.

Kate Barr: We could definitely you know share that on our through our social media and let folks know that that's fair.

Beau Newsome: yeah yeah and, if anything, if did you ever know about Howard Hughes video in Moscow.

Kate Barr: I didn't I didn't I was asking.

Kate Barr: was telling somebody was one of our board members, and I was telling him that was going to be talking to you and.

Kate Barr: And he was saying well had anybody from scarecrow been there and I think there was one person who had been but I was like ah, you know the things you guys wanted to talk about I was like I don't I don't know if that's but.

Kate Barr: No, I didn't get to go i've never been to Moscow I don't know i'd love to go.

Beau Newsome: Yes, great little town yeah awesome little university town yeah.

Kate Barr: Very cool yeah it's on it's on my list on my to do list.

Beau Newsome: i'm gonna have to I don't i've never been into scarecrow video so.

Beau Newsome: friend over there and.

Beau Newsome: so next time I go visit and where we're going to add it up so.

Kate Barr: Please, please do please let us know when you come, because then we can give you a tour, and we can take you behind the scenes.

Beau Newsome: Oh cool that'd be nice I bring my documentary crew yeah.

: yeah.

Kate Barr: We can show you how we have one guy and scarecrow is particularly good at django django.

Kate Barr: And he a guy who helps us figure out how to get pack more things into less space, so we he's the one that helped us figure out like don't hold back in the House area is all him and just this this.

Kate Barr: magic of well if we do this, and this, and this we're going to get X amount more shelf space and.

Kate Barr: So.

Beau Newsome: It was it was it was it was a constant.

Beau Newsome: Okay, how are we gonna let's take a couple steps back and say how are we going to reconfigure this yeah.

Kate Barr: yeah yeah.

Beau Newsome: it's glad to see it wasn't just us that had been.

Kate Barr: Probably.

Beau Newsome: Every video yeah every video store every library.

Beau Newsome: yeah.

Beau Newsome: Well that's awesome.

Kate Barr: Thank you, if anything else comes up just let me know otherwise, please do let me know when you get the videos up online.

Beau Newsome: yeah we will we will do that.

Beau Newsome: I think they're gonna work on it, this summer and excellent i'll keep you posted for sure.

Beau Newsome: Again, really do appreciate you.

Beau Newsome: Well, look yeah.

Beau Newsome: that's.

Kate Barr: Okay, please do alright have a good evening.

Beau Newsome: You too, thanks good night.