I'm sure it was just as you suggested - fewer people placing orders with them. They just didn't make the transition into the internet age all too well. Their website was always clunky and hard to search for what you wanted. It seemed like they didn't list everything on the site and thus I must admit I did less and less business with them for that reason.

I loved this place back in the pre-internet days. I remember spending hours and hours going through their catalogs trying to decide what to buy next.

piano632, January 11, 2008; 12:53 AM

Aron's Records in Los Angeles closed a couple of years ago. Found some great recordings through their website. That place had several of the older Cinevox LP's at a price I could afford. Kept it a secret while doing business with them although I'm sure many people were aware anyway. In business for years. I'm surprised I never visited their store while living out west. Probably because there were so many places to buy music at that time.

victoravalentine, January 11, 2008; 1:26 PM

I started dealing with STAR back when it was a three person operation over ten years ago. Since I live in central PA, I would go down to their location four or five times a year. I could trade stuff in and pick up new (and older) stuff up for reasonable prices. They didn't have a storefront per se, but would allow me to come in and look over the shelves to search for stuff to buy. When the original owner retired, Kathy bought it and closed that location. She moved the operation to her basement. She was still kind enough to let me visit to look for my latest purchases. She eventually went from a two person operation to it just being her. She told me that the costs for taxes, unemployment insurance, etc. for having an employee had become cost prohibitive. She continued to run it alone for several years but I was surprised as everyone else when she decided to sell all the inventory to Screen Archives Entertainment and close things. I have no idea what caused her to do that but I am sure she had a good reason.

STAR will be missed.

A.

akwarner, January 11, 2008; 10:00 PM

I'm surprised I never found that place. And this is a person who spends hours searching for places to purchase recordings. You guys sound like you feel like I felt when Tower stopped selling vinyl.

victoravalentine, January 11, 2008; 10:52 PM

To anyone who is still following this string: STAR closed because its owner and founder died in an automobile accident in 1987 and the subsequent owner couldnt duplicate James Reed's successful operation of the business. I know because he was my father and I helped him throughouth my childhood by putting his mail-order catalogues in the mail for years. He and his business are sorely missed!!

joereed1967, November 27, 2010; 1:50 PM

I was a regular customer of S.T.A.R. from about 1985 to 1993 - during the years 1987-1992 I was primarily a college student and I had a weekly radio show on WRST 90.3 FM - Oshkosh, WI - we featured movie review and soundtrack music. A lot of my collection of soundtracks was stored in my dorm room and I used them regularly. I was buying albums on LP exclusively up until 1989 or so - then switched to CD - ( the first CD I ever bought was ALIENS - the James Horner score from Varese Sarabande, purchased through S.T.A.R.) I did not even know they had a website. In my poor post college days I had to cut back on costs and I did not have a radio show any longer, I had to cut back expenses somewhere so I quit buying so many soundtracks and sorted of drifted away from them. I loved getting their printed catalogs, I spent hours poring over them and highlighting what I wanted to buy next. I will miss them I had no idea they went out of business, but the comments here seem to explain well what likely occurred. What a great and unique business it was.

tntweber, March 25, 2011; 10:47 AM

I remember Jim Reed well, in fact it was he who got me interested in soundtrack album collecting when I was a teen. This is when he had his mail order and small walk in shop in Oceano, California. He even lent me some of his cassette tapes of some of his favorites, which included some Italian composers and at that time his favorite film music composer, Richard Rodney Bennett. I notice his son posted in here, and I'd like him to know on his desk in the shop were photos of his kids, which included you, of course. I still have many of the records I bought from him, though to this day I still haven't figured out the handwritten codes he used to label and categorize the records :) The experience I had dealing with STAR at that time isn't possible these days, unfortunately.

tpao, October 6, 2011; 8:46 PM

@ TPAO:

I would sincerely appreciate communicating with you if possible. I just read your post about my dad dated 2011(?)

Please email me at joereed at maine.rr.com

I'd love to hear more about your visits and experiences with my dad.

joereed, August 23, 2012; 2:22 AM

One thing I remember well was being able to purchase Japanese soundtracks that were not available anywhere else and at astonishing prices. I still have these today and as far as I am able to determine they have never been re-released in any format. Where they accessed these gems from I have no idea but they remain sounding as good as the day I received them. I am sorry STAR now no longer exists.

reticuli, September 17, 2014; 10:54 PM

I remember hearing about STAR in a newspaper called the GOLDMINE, I think that what the name was but anyways they dealt business selling albums and cassettes from all over the U.S., well I saw and AD for STAR and gave them a call and they sent me thru the mail there white catalog that was about maybe 10 pages of soundtracks they had on album and CD that they where selling, this was roughly 1987 when I heard about STAR, I remember getting Goblin LP's from them of the different soundtracks like "Tenebrae", "Profondo Rosso", Keith Emerson's "Inferno" on LP, I remember getting "One Million Years B.C." on LP also.
I bought so many soundtracks from them, I live in Colorado and I remember that they where only opened Monday thru Friday and they where 2 hours ahead from Colorado time and when I'd be at work my 1st break wouldn't be until roughly 10:00AM and I would have to run down about a block to the liquor store to use the pay phone to place an order and pray to God the still had what I was looking at in there catalog before it was sold out.
I remember sending them money orders for orders and they where really nice to hold a product for me until they received payment, I think the lady's name was Wendy I think.
Times sure have changed now, I don't download music, I still buy CD's and LP's.
STAR was definitely a soundtrack in my life and will be sadly missed.

John Tetley

panzerbass, June 13, 2015; 4:33 AM