With the latest craze over vintage Disney movies and their VHS tape editions, we couldn’t help but wonder about Fantasia and whether it is also highly in demand. If you’re not familiar with Fantasia, it is a 1940 animated musical film produced by non-other than Walt Disney Productions.
The film is one of the greatest Disney successes, even to this day. The reasons for this lie in the incredible classical musical pieces used in the movie, conducted by the leading conductor of the 20th century, Leopold Stokowski, as well as the phenomenal plotline and an even more breathtaking creative and animated work.
But, we’re not here to discuss the film aspects of Fantasia but rather to check out the recent craze over VHS tapes of popular movies such as this one. In the following paragraphs, we’re going to take a look at the current value of the Fantasia VHS tape and hopefully inform you all about your purchase or sell options. So, without further ado, let’s jump right in!
Fantasia VHS Tape Value: How Much are Your Disney VHS Tapes Worth?
Release and Sales
Fantasia was first released as a theatrical roadshow, and it was held across the country, in 13 different cities in the upcoming year (1941). Because the political and economic situation in the 1940s was heavily dictated by the ongoing World War II, Walt Disney production had to cut ties with the European market.
This has led to a ‘failure to launch’, and Walt Disney Production failed to make a profit. But, The Production didn’t give up and pushed the film to run in theaters across the country even 30 years after it was first released. This time around, Fantasia made a whopping 2.28 million USD profit, and it continued to do so well into the 1990s.
In 1990, Fantasia received four home video releases of a restored theatrical version, on VHS. The original sounds and music from the film were recreated in Dolby Stereo, and this new technology allowed the film to reach its full potential, now with a new audience. In 1992, fantasia became the most successful Disney movie, with over 14.2 million copies being purchased across the country. By 1994, over 21 million copies of Fantasia have been sold worldwide.
Original Value
It is difficult to dig out the original price for the Fantasia VHS tape, but here’s the deal; all of the VHS tapes had around the same price. The difference only lay in the recency of the movie release. For example, if a movie has just been released on VHS tapes, the price would be a bit higher than the ‘older’ movies/tapes. According to this information, we can deduce that the average price ofthe original Fantasia VHS tape in 1991/1992 was anywhere between 2.50 USD and 15 USD.Sometimes, the price went as high as 20 USD, for the first-release editions. Nevertheless, the price nowadays is definitely, and considerably different.
Current Value (in 2023)
For many people, Fantasia was the first introduction to the incredible world of amazing music, plotline, and overall animation. The level of imagination and creativity displayed in Fantasia is unmatched, even to this day. This is probably why, all of a sudden, people became highly interested in re-living the moments from the past.
By purchasing a VHS tape of their favorite childhood movie, they’re taking a trip down memory lane, and with all of the nostalgia, feel even more connected to the ‘good old days’. This is, perhaps, one of the main reasons why the prices for vintage VHS tapes are skyrocketing. The same goes for the Fantasia VHS tape.
We’ve done our research, and gone through all of the popular auction websites. Every single one has listings of old Lion King VHS tapes, and the prices are far from low. To make things more accountable, we’ve decided to see how the prices changes over the course of the past few years.
Up until the past few years, people weren’t as crazy about the VHS editions of Fantasia, yet some listings were made. In 2019, and early 2020, the price for a Fantasia VHS tape was between 200 and 400 USD. This is still a considerable sum, but nothing compared to the prices we’re seeing in the past 2 to 3 years.
Our theory is that, ever since the Covid pandemic started, and people got locked up in their homes, the need to reconnect with themselves was done through the content we consumed in the ‘good old, Covid-free days’. And what better way to spend time indoors than by watching some good, old classics, like Fantasia? The demand became higher than previously, and people took this as a chance to increase the prices; after all, people would pay up for anything that made them feel good and safe in terrible times.
That is why the prices of the Fantasia VHS tape started entering the 4-digit number level. In the past three years, the price for the Fantasia VHS tape started at around 1000 USD, only to reach 3,500, to even 4000 USD. Some people even sell their Fantasia VHS tapes for an incredible price of 20,000 USD.
So, the real question here is; are these tapes really worth so much money? Well, technically, not really. VHS tapes aren’t really durable, and with time, start to disintegrate and become far from functional. Because everything’s made from plastic, including the package, the longevity and durability of a VHS tape are reduced significantly with time.
However, the sentimental value is what people are basically buying when buying such a VHS tape. In that sense, the value is priceless, or whatever the buyer is willing to pay. Unfortunately, many tend to misuse this for profit-related reasons, despite the fact that objectively, the VHS tapes are far from being worth thousands of dollars.
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Where To Buy/Sell Fantasia VHS Tape?
Seeing these price tags, many rush to their basements to search for the vintage Fantasia VHS tape, presumably to sell. If you’re also looking to sell, or purchase a vintage Fantasia tape, make sure to check out some of the following online auction websites;
- EBay– this is currently one of the best places to sell and purchase Fantasia VHS tapes. The listings show tapes in excellent condition, and the prices do reach thousands of dollars. Nevertheless, there is something for everyone’s budget, so if you’re tighter with cash but still want your own Fantasia VHS copy for a price ranging from 7 USD to 600 USD.
- Etsy– alongside eBay, Etsy is one of the best online vintage auction websites where you can find an abundance of Fantasia VHS tapes. The prices range from super affordable to extremely expensive (one Fantasia VHS tape is currently listed for a price of 20,000 USD, which is
- definitely a considerable sum). Make sure to sift through the offers and find what’s best for you. We definitely urge you to not spend thousands of dollars, when you have listings reaching only several hundred dollars.
- Kijiji– this is an excellent online auction website if you want to purchase a Fantasia VH tape for a rather reasonable price. Kijiji is reliable and safe when it comes to purchasing genuine vintage items, so you don’t have to worry about that. The only thing you have to do is sift through the offers and find which one fits your budget the best. The tapes sold are often sealed, in excellent or even mint condition, so hurry up.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, the current value of the Fantasia VHS tape is definitely skyrocketing; and so is the value for almost every single old Disney movie. If you’re looking to purchase one for yourself, we suggest you hurry up and check out the aforementioned online auction websites; they’re the most reliable online places to purchase genuine vintage items. If you’re looking to sell, we know you might be tempted to set a high starting price, but make sure that the price is in line with the condition of the tape you’re selling. We wish you good luck and hopefully, you had fun taking a trip down memory lane.
