system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Before VCRs/video rental, if you missed a movie while it was in theater, did that mean you just never got to see it?

If you missed a movie while it was in theaters in, for example, the 50's, were you just SOL?
gpt
Back in the day, movies used to be shown for a long time at the theater. Theaters didn't just play the new movies; they played a large variety of movies. Some movies would end up being played for years at a time.

The popular ones also eventually ended up getting shown on TV.