After 21st Century Film Corporation acquired most of the catalog of Dimension Pictures after that company’s bankruptcy in 1981, they started to release several of their new catalogue films as part of the brand new home video market.

First, they had their own short-lived label, Planet Video. It only lasted from 1982 to 1983 and released the following handful of VHS movies and one on Betamax.

• The Eerie Midnight Horror Show
• The Student Body
• The Dragon vs. Needles of Death
• Snake Fist Fighter
• Fighting Mad
• The Deadly Spawn
• Challenge the Dragon
• To the Devil a Daughter
• Dragon Force
• Battle Force
• The Slayer
• Nightmare
• Bloodtide
• Cathy’s Curse

Here are some images of those releases:

After a two year break, 21st Century decided to just license their titles. Their deal with Continental Video started in 1985. This company was only a year old and was founded by father and son Jack and Jim Silverman. Jack was famous for being the former president of the largest videocassette distributor/wholesaler in the country at the time, Commtron.

Continental released nearly all of 21st Century’s Dimension catalogue along with some other interesting movies before closing in 1987. Their releases were:

• Tilt
• To the Devil a Daughter
• Battle Force
• The Kidnapping of the President
• Bloodtide
• City of the Walking Dead
• Dragon Lady Ninja
• The Shooting
• Kool Street Videos
• 1984 Summer Olympics Highlights
• Breakin’ New York Style
• The Invincible Six
• Vampire Hookers
• The Affair
• Ride In the Whirlwind
• The Slayer/Scalps
• The Student Body/Jailbait Babysitter
• Terminal Island
• Last Night at the Alamo
• Return of the Aliens: The Deadly Spawn
• The Executioner II/Frozen Scream
• Nightmare
• Sweet Sugar/Escape from Women’s Prison
• Bubba Until It Hurts
• Biohazard
• Class Reunion Massacre
• Poor White Trash
• Women of Iron
• The Muthers
• Cathy’s Curse
• Avenged
• The Eerie Midnight Horror Show
• The Original Ghostbusters Volume 1
• Black Samurai
• Suicide Cult
• My First Wife
• The Emerald Jungle
• Death In the Shadows
• American Beauty Hostages
• Hollywood Vice Squad
• Starlet Screen Test
• I Was a Zombie for the F.B.I.
• Born American
• KGB: The Secret War
• The Body
• Blood Debts
• Something Special
• Witchboard
• Deadtime Stories
• The Mighty Hercules: Volume 5/Speed Racer: Volume 5
• Find the Lady
• Love at First Site
• Deadly Companion
• Blade In Hong Kong
• Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary
• Miami Vendetta
• Deadly Alliance
• Captive
• Lost!
• Paperback Hero

What a magical time to be alive, when VHS labels lined the shelves of mom and pop stores and every week, new films would show up. You had no idea what was next and part of the excitement of each visit was to walk down those aisles and look at the colorful boxes. Sometimes, you had no idea what the movie was and just had to bring it home. If you lived it, you know how magical it was. If you didn’t, I wish that you could have.

Sources

VHSplatter: The VHS Index: Continental Video

VHS Collector

Temple of Schlock: 21st Century Distribution Corporation: The Filmography (1976-1986)