European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 6, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Monday january 6, 19b6 the stars and stripes Page 17 children s cassettes they Call it kid Vid by Aljean Harmetz new York times bugs Bunny and she Raha Princess of Power Heathc Llyl the cat Karmell the Iron a Alderman Tao Tchlo and such esoteric creatures As Thunder cals mirth Worms Rainbow Brile scrabble people thu Darr the barbarian and Bun Nicula Hie Vampire Rabbit Are the newest things in video cassettes. They Call it kid  feature films Are still the bread and Butler of the video cassette Industry bringing in the lion s share o1 the revenues. At a video software dealers convention in Hollywood 4,000 store owners wont wild with excitement when Ria Columba announced that it would release ghost users. Gross busters and Beverly Hills cop bring customers into . Video stores once inside however those customers were Likely to buy a cassette for their children. The new baby Boom the emphasis on Early education the comparatively Low Cost of children s cassettes the desire by children to listen to the same Story again and again and the entry of video cassettes into Book and toy stores have combined to make kid Vid the fastest growing segment of the cassette Market. Cafes Europe is into the Market also including a Good selection of children s cassettes in its Overall video Stock. There is a consensus among video retailers that kid old products currently represent 15 percent of their Gross revenues and is building momentum said Gene Secunda professor of marketing at new York University. At Vetron one of the top live video cassette suppliers programming aimed at children has increased to 14 percent of the sales As compared to More than 70 percent for feature films end 4 percent Lor music videos. Two years ago it was expected that music cassettes which sell for roughly the same $19.95 to $39.95 Price As children s videos would be the Best Opportunity Lor expansion beyond feature pornographic dims which were an Industry be Belore diversified programming became available now account Lor Only 10percent of sales according to Steven Rosenberg an analyst with Paul Kagan associates considered the Industry s primary research firm. New feature dims which usually Cost 179.95, Are Moat often bought by video stores and Ihen rented to Consumers. Parents can be persuaded to buy programs for their children because of the relatively Low Cost and because kids watch differently from  said Bill Mechanic senior vice president of Wall Disney Home video. They Don t look at a program once. They watch the same thing Over and Over and  this stability of children s cassettes was the first impetus for manufacturers who do not gel any of the Money when a cassette is rented. Now. Said . Kettler head of vast Ron s children s video Library the key to the increasing emphasis on children s programming is a new ability to move cassettes for children into bookstores toy stores and department stores. Wesleyn publishing the publisher of Lettla Golden books is spending $ 1 million advertising a women s magazines Tor its first eight Golden Book  marketed As to offs on video Lor 3 to 8-year-Olds and sold at such stores As Macy a . Woolworth and Barnes & Noble Lor As Little As 19.95, each 30-Mlnute tape features three Little Golden Book Best Sellers. Including Scuffy the tugboat. The Price can be kept Low because children s programming is inexpensive 10 produce. Two other booksellers in the United Stales Are currently entering the Market. Random House is Selling a $24.95 tape narrated by meryl Streep of Marjorie Williams s storybook the velveteen Rabbit. In november Simon & schuster will release at $59.95 tie Box of delights a British children s film about a 13-year-old boy and 8 magic Box. Morality As a party game by Lisa Belkin new York time Sou have a serious Long distance Romance. To relieve loneliness you Start a romantic Friendship locally. Do you mention your commitment in the supermarket you Send a dozen packages tumbling into the aisle. No one sees you. Do you walk away a Friend asks you to write a letter of reference. You feel he s poorly qualified Tor the Job do you refuse on a cold Winter Day you notice a derelict passed out on the sidewalk no one else is around. Do you try to help him morality it seems is now a party game and those Are among the 245 questions americans Are using to entertain themselves lately As they pay a question o scruples. The game created in Canada was introduced in the United slates four months ago. Its manufacturers Are already comparing sales of the product to those of trivial Pursuit in its Early Days and expected to sail a million copies by Christmas. It s one of the last great subjects to come out of the  said Henry Makow. Inventor of the game. The Little moral Dilem Mas we have every Day but Don l talk  Makow a freelance journal isl and a Parl Elma professor at the University of Manitoba did not plan to create a game when he first began compiling ethical questions three years ago. Instead he intended to write an article about the ethics of the baby Boom generation. So he presented a questionnaire of major and minor ethical problems to several of his irl ends. This group was so sell righteous in the 1960s," Makow said but now they conveniently forget to pay Back their student Loans or they Don t mention that visa never charged them for their Var or they keep exercising at they alter their membership  Makow never wrote is article. Everyone who saw the questions spent hours discussing them tie said. I decided forget the Story i la make a  there is no Board in a question of scruples no right and wrong answers and very  rules. The Winner is not the most moral person in the group but the one who can Best predict the other players answers. The real Point of the game is the conversation sparked by the questions. Players olten learn More than they might like about one another. Alter t played it with my  said cad Elsan Berg vice president of Maruca industries which distributes the s16 same in the United Stales i told him i Don i think i want to do business Wilh you anymore. The game is not yet available at cafes Erma Bombeck is on vacation. He is a repent of. One other favorite columns.  ate really weird people. Who Els would pick a pastime in which Mucsi inaccessible place in the country ins. A��0 through the worst weather in its list o treacherous Days getting there. B1�p p a"k�., ii Popery Wood on your feet ride to the top of a Moun tainted try to gel Down without the help of the ambulance at the Bottom of the Hill Money is exchanged Lor this. Before t select a doctor lawyer & Somas it they Are skiers. I Don t care if a Haw 1""p on the Wall and graduated at age 16.1 a Fol no emr any part of my future to a person who thinks the ground is softer if it is covered with Snow. There May have been a time when skiing was a seasonal sport. When the Snow fell everyone strapped the two tree trunks to his Leel and took off. That is no longer True. Skiing is every bit As demanding on a Dally basis As jogging. When Snow is falling nowhere in the United states enthusiasts ski in their living rooms Wilh warm  and exercises that keep their legs in shape. Note if you re going to marry a skier marry tall because you will have a Man or woman who will walk with Knees Bent 11 months out of the year then they Start on Vitamin a which gives them breath that smells like that of a thousand camels who have us eaten sardines. As soon As the Furnace is turned on. They Start to get their equipment into shape waxing the skis and Check Ino the bindings on their boots. This is followed by the Vigil of the Snow. Where is it falling and How can you get there when it does i am married to a sul person who has astounded me with his ambivalence. He will ski Lor eight hours until his feet Are numb his mind is confused and the hairs in his nose break off. Only 10 come Back to the Lodge and complain to the manager that there is no heat in his room. I have seen skiers hobbling around on crutches and spotting a cast like a medal of Honor and crazies gelling in one last run before the blizzard closes the Chal Rutt. Recently in California skiers were told there possibly was an Active Volcano under the slopes. The reply was hey. Well Lake our chances. Where else can you gel a 55-Inch base i la be honest Wilh you. I would t want my daughter to marry a skier. In lot Angelot a Send jct