Avid/1 was released in 1989. And there were others before it, although I think often on more proprietary or niche hardware (Avid/1 was Mac already).

Things like that: https://www.lucasfilm.com/news/lucasfilm-originals-the-editd...

I think Media Composer always had a lead in feature film / TV. It's possible Premiere Pro had a lead in other markets.

Even if they were the oldest NLE, that does not automatically make them “the gold standard.”