+
Sign up for
The Upworthiest
Our top stories of the day delivered straight to your inbox.
upworthy
Pop Culture

Netflix asked people to share DVDs they 'forgot' to return, and the result was pure nostalgia

Getting that red envelope in the mail was coolest thing ever.

netflix 25 years, netflix forgotten dvds, netflix
Photo by Mollie Sivaram on Unsplash, Twitter

To think, this icon was nearly synonomous with a bleating goat sound.

Once upon a time in the late '90s, in the prestreaming days of yore, before binge-watching was even a word, a company called Netflix entered the scene, killing brick-and-mortar movie rental stores like Blockbuster with its promise of entertainment delivered to your doorstep in a crisp red envelope.

Whether it was a tried-and-true title or something on the more adventurous side that was selected from the online “queue”—my choice was usually some kind of French arthouse film because I desperately wanted to be cool—the combination of excitement and convenience (at least for that time) was simply unbeatable.

netflix anniversary, first netflix dvdMovie nights are the best nights.Giphy

Nowadays we have access to content of our choosing 24/7 (thanks in part to Netflix) and that inexplicable feeling of getting a new DVD in the mail is mostly a fond, though distant memory.

To celebrate its 25th anniversary (don’t you feel old now?) Netflix posted a bunch of company fun facts, and they did not disappoint.


For instance, you know that iconic, satisfying “tudum” sound that plays when you enter the platform? The one sort of reminiscent of “Law & Order?” That was almost the sound of a bleating goat instead. Yeah, bullet dodged there.

Also, the very first DVD ever rented was Tim Burton’s “Beetlejuice.” Whoever that first customer was, they obviously had great taste.

Here are a few other gems curated by MovieWeb:

  • The most popular profile icon, used worldwide on 11 million profiles, is the “Boss Baby” icon.
  • Netflix originally had a placeholder name of Kibble—yep, like the dog food.
  • Following the launch of "The Queen’s Gambit," there was a 125% increase in chess board sales.
  • Netflix had its own awards show called "The Flixies."
  • The first Netflix Original was “Lilyhammer.”
  • There was once a campaign for “Netflix socks,” which detected when you fell asleep and paused the show or movie you were watching.
  • “Squid Game” is Netflix’s most popular title ever.

In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s created a Netflix & Chilll’d ice cream flavor, featuring peanut butter ice cream, sweet and salty pretzel swirls, fudge brownie bits and excuse me while I whisk away to the grocery store…

Netflix later posted a follow-up tweet asking folks to share any DVDS they “forgot” to return and still have. Since the company never charged late fees, people simply paid their monthly subscription and could return films whenever they wanted. Or, you know, not at all.

Though the company promised no one would get in trouble, some were lightheartedly suspicious.

But for the most part, people were brave. And their replies were a delightful cruise down memory lane.

Sharing their envelope for the movie “Crimson Tide,” one person wrote “I’ve been holding on to this for years!!! I really like this movie but I lost the DVD in the cabinet and never sent it back.” Relatable.

Another person, showing off their Coen Brothers flick “Burn After Reading,” joked that “finally after 14 years I can get this off my chest."

Others simply shared their nostalgia for a bygone era.

Technology continues to move forward at a lightning fast pace, advancing everything along with it. But one thing always remains the same—humans need comfort and entertainment. The ways we get it might evolve, but the need will always be there. And though Netflix is arguably not without its flaws, it has played a major role in fulfilling that need.

So go ahead, grab a blanket, turn off the lights and celebrate this milestone. What a time to be alive.

From Your Site Articles
nostaliga
Badge
Visit Sweden
Visit Sweden
Education

Sweden’s landmark new proposal will stop the world from mixing it up with Switzerland

Honestly, do you know the difference?

True

After over a thousand years of peaceful relations, European semi-superpowers Sweden and Switzerland may finally address a lingering issue between the two nations. But the problem isn’t either country’s fault. The point is that the rest of the world can’t tell them apart. They simply don’t know their kroppkakor (Swedish potato dumpling) from their birchermüesli (a Swiss breakfast dish).

This confusion on the European continent has played out in countless ways.

Swedish people who move to the United States often complain of being introduced as Swiss. The New York Stock Exchange has fallen victim to the confusion, and a French hockey team once greeted their Swiss opponents, SC Bern, by playing the Swedish National Anthem and raising the Swedish flag.

Skämtar du med mig? (“Are you kidding me?” in Swedish)

Keep ReadingShow less
travel
Family

15 hilarious parenting comics that are almost too real

They're funny because they're true.

via Fowl Language

Fowl Language by Brian Gordon


Brian Gordon is a cartoonist. He's also a dad, which means he's got plenty of inspiration for the parenting comics he creates for his website, Fowl Language (not all of which actually feature profanity).

He covers many topics, but it's his hilarious parenting comics that are resonating with parents everywhere.

"My comics are largely autobiographical," Gordon tells me. "I've got two kids who are 4 and 7, and often, what I'm writing happened as recently as that very same day."

Keep ReadingShow less
comedy
Family

Kid's outpouring of emotion meeting his baby brother for the first time has us wrecked

Love at its purest.

Photo by Hu Chen on Unsplash

Meeting a new sibling can go either way, but this big brother's reaction was the sweetest.

We've all seen our fair share of older-sibling-meets-new-baby videos, which are generally pretty darn adorable. But once in a while, one comes along that socks us square in the heart and has us desperately reaching for a tissue.

Brace yourselves, friends, because this is one video that truly requires a tissue warning.

Shared by @brianaarielle89 on TikTok, the video shows a preschooler dressed up in a dinosaur costume entering a hospital room to meet his newborn sibling for the first time. He asks, "Mommy, where is Hudson?" and is guided over to the cot where his baby brother is bundled.

At first, he walks right past him. But then he turns, sees him and simply stares for a few seconds.

Keep ReadingShow less
sibling love
More

Ever wonder why people 100 years ago died so much younger? It's these 14 reasons.

1796. That's when we invented vaccines. An English doctor named Edward Jenner took incredible risks to try to rid his world of smallpox. Because of his efforts and the efforts of scientists like him, the only thing between deadly diseases like the ones below and extinction are people who refuse to vaccinate their kids. Don't be that parent.

FACT CHECK TIME! This article originally appeared on 11.21.14 and this infographic is based on data from 2012.

Unfortunately, because of the misinformation from the anti-vaccination movement, some of these diseases have trended up in a really bad way over the past several years.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

Owner of plus-size dress shop gifts $700 prom dress to 'shy' teen after watching her light up

Creating moments like these is why she opened her store in the first place.

@juicybodygoddess/TikTok

Elyse Monroe found the perfect dress, then found out it costs nothing.

Adolescence is a harrowing time for body image and self-esteem all around, but few milestones are as universally daunting as finding a prom dress. Whether it’s due to budget constraints, not being able to find a dress that fits, or both, what should be a fun event is often viscerally dreaded.

This was certainly the case for Summer Lucille. Lucille told Today.com that growing up, “if you weren’t skinny, there weren’t many options, and it was devastating for me because I’ve always loved fashion.”

She recalled, “I went to my prom looking like a church lady in a suit dress with a jacket because it was the only thing that fit. It was a very sad period in my life.”

Keep ReadingShow less
tiktok
Family

A fireman’s children wrote him a hilariously honest obituary he would have loved

After reading it, you'll wish you had met the guy.

via ASD / Twitter

The fireman William Ziegler of New Orleans, Louisiana.

After you're gone, people will probably forget the exact things you said to them while you were alive, but they'll never forget how you made them feel.

Unfortunately, when people write obituaries that sum up a person's life they're often just a chronological list of factual details of their lives such as where they lived, where they worked, and how many children they had.

While those facts are important, they don't really explain the type of person the deceased was or how they made people feel. An obituary for fireman William Ziegler of New Orleans, Louisiana has attracted a lot of attention for how it hilariously summed up the life of a man who was a real raconteur.

Keep ReadingShow less
funny obituaries
Health

A comic that debunks myths about asexuality

Sexuality can be really complex.


Asexuality is often misunderstood.

In general, it's believed to be the absence of any romantic interest, but asexual identity actually means that a person is not sexually attracted to anyone. Romantic feelings and the strength of those feelings can vary from person to person.

Currently, about 1% of adults have no interest in sex, though some experts believe that number could be higher. For a long time, information on asexuality was limited, but researchers recently have found information that gives us more knowledge about asexuality.

Being asexual can be tough, though — just ask the artists from Empathize This.

To demonstrate, they put together a comic on asexuality, defining it as a sexual orientation, not a dysfunction:

Keep ReadingShow less
Trending Stories