Saturday, December 31, 2016

Four by Three: Noodle Soup

Four by Three: Coffee Missing

Four by Three: He Saw What?

Suspect Video and Culture (1991-2017)

I first heard about Suspect Video and Culture in September of 1991, a month after the store first opened.

Included in the news given to me by a friend was the prompt to go there since Suspect has an eclectic collection. (I like films off the beaten tape path.)

Toronto's home-video scene was changed forever by the opening of this outstanding store.

Soon after I met Suspect's owners, two personable and knowledgeable guys who I would get to know over years of regular visits: Luis Ceriz and Merrill Shapiro. One of my fondest memories is from 1993: I brought the guys a box of donuts one day; Luis held an extra powdery baked treat as he showed me the store's biker-gang video selection.

I popped in to see the store today. It will close for good in about two weeks. (Honest Ed's, the building which Suspect rents space in, closed today.)

Twenty-five years.


Honest Ed's (1948-2016)

My first visit to Toronto's famous discount store Honest Ed's was in 1984. Soon after moving to the city, I made a trip as a starving student. It made some sense.

Today, thirty-two years later, Honest Ed's opened for the last time. (A stinky condo complex will probably be erected in its place.)