By Pete Vilmur
The night before Star Wars opened on the morning of May 25th, 1977, Hollywood's Mann's Chinese Theatre had celebrated its 50th anniversary with a lavish event presentation of Cecil B. DeMille's King of Kings, the film that opened the historic venue in May of 1927. Though the gala crowd had lingered well into the evening, a different group had gathered on the forecourt this Wednesday morning, responding to insider buzz that a revolutionary new film was about to open. DeMille's spectacle of old Hollywood had been removed from the dual marquees over Hollywood Blvd sometime during the night, and passers-by could only speculate the meaning of the grandiose title that had replaced it: STAR WARS.
Opening on a weekday morning, and with a virtual whisper of promotion, it was unheard of for any film to gather more than a devoted few in its first engagements. But this film had somehow drawn a following from the scraps of pre-release press, so that by the first 10:30 a.m. show, crowds were already snatching up tickets for showtimes well into the afternoon. By mid-day, people were just hoping to squeeze into evening or midnight shows. Passers-by driving home from work witnessed lines stretching around the theater parking lot and into the residential sector. Arriving home, they'd find the spectacle being broadcast on the evening news, covered by incredulous reporters who seemed as dumbfounded as Hollywood itself.
The Chinese Theatre was being reborn, and was bringing the movie industry as a whole along with it. Aside from the presentation of a groundbreaking film, what made the venue such an attraction were its efforts to create a cinematic experience for the moviegoer. Many of the techniques it employed for Star Wars are still emulated by the theater industry today, in spirit if not in practice. The moviegoer would first be treated to the palatial interiors of the lobby and auditorium, eliciting a sense of grandeur and respect for the film they were about to see. Trailers were presented at low screen center, with sound restricted to monophonic hues. The feature presentation was announced by the closing and spreading of the curtains, and the buzz of the 6-track Dolby surround system audibly queued on the speakers. In the case of Star Wars, the 20th Century Fox fanfare logo exploded on the screen to its extreme dimensions, filling the expanse with a sharp 70mm image. The theater's revolutionary Dolby system had only recently been installed, and the expensive 70mm print had been delivered to only 18 of the 32 theaters opening Star Wars across the country. The deluxe presentation so enthralled Los Angeles moviegoers that the common word heard on the street was "you gotta see it at the Chinese."
