ORIGINAL Star Wars Opening (1977) - 16mm Film Preservation
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- ORIGINAL Star Wars Opening (1977) - 16mm Film Preservation
This is the original opening scene for Star Wars as seen in the original release. This clip came from Puggo Grande, a 16mm print of the film. It was scanned and then uploaded to archive.org by a user named Puggo. You can watch this version for yourself here: archive.org/de...
For those not aware, better versions of the Theatrical Releases exist and I talk about them in my video here: • A Brief Review of all ...
I do not own the rights to or to distribute Star Wars. That ability belongs to the Disney Corporation. This video is purely for preservation purposes. The music in this video belongs to John Williams, and therefore Disney. - Фільми й анімація
I Transferred the 35mm print with mag sound for VHS duplication
Q: Do films sound and look better 1st gen before the transfer or is DVD Blue ray pretty good?
I was hope with film.
@@sammencia7945 That is a very good question. The theatrical versions that were limitedly released on DVD were the Laserdisc transfers (and in the same resolution they were already in). VHS tapes of course, they wear down.
Now, to be on DVD, it had to be re-encoded as MPEG-2, bringing up the question: Side-by-Side, would, in this case, the Laserdisc look slightly superior? Because, MPEG-2 is lossy, and I'm being presented with the same non-animorphic resolution.
The remastered versions are FARRR superior when it comes to picture and sound, but as we all know, they contain edits.
How did you do that? I've been wondering how to make new VHS tapes for a while.
Am I the only one that gets chills hearing the 20th Century Fox fanfare from this era of film?
I'm so glad I still have the dvd copies of the originals. Its always gives me goosebumps to hear that intro
No your not alone.
For me, can't say for others; **"It Ain't STAR WARS CANON unless it's opens with fanfare!"**
.....all but Rogue One, Solo and The Mandalorian series.
For a long time I didn't even realize the 20th Century fanfare was separate from the movie. It was all one experience for me. It still gives me chills!
It gets me every time
That opening scene is a seminal moment in my life. We sat in that theater in 1977 with our jaws hanging. We had NO idea what we were in for.
Boy, ain't that the truth. My brother just grinned at my reaction...THEN came Close Encounters....and my jaw hung open again....
@Vaderd2k yes I sat in back row master forcing so exciting it was with the force in the odeon cinema that had Overhead surrounds Oh yes Overhead surrounds have some of that disney
I was 9 years old and upon seeing this movie I knew my life would never be the same. I'm 53 now, and still obsessed.
I was 6 yrs old and had only seen disney movies up until May 1977...my mind was blown! I believed it was real 😂😂😂
Midnight Matinee.....myself & the girls from work.... Forced to sit in the very front row, which is my least favorite..... But for this movie, was the equivalent of IMAX, with the crawler opening and that humongous battlecruiser looming overhead.... It would have been good from anywhere in the house but from those seats, we were "right there" for the entire movie....
Just imagine sitting in a theater with no idea of what was about to happen & then seeing that Star destroyer filling the screen. It sent my little 7 year old mind off into a world of imagination. This is why over 40 years later i still love this movie.
I am 65 and I will *never* forget that. It was absolutely stunning ... still is, in fact.
It was awesome!
I still remember, seeing that Star Destroyer entering the screen in 1977. It enters, it enters.., it enters..., and finally it enters.
Right there with ya, man. I was 7, too, and like so many other people, had the creative borders of my mind forever flung wide open after seeing this picture. John Williams remains one of my two biggest heroes to this day.
@@mnirwin5112 53 here and what a series of amazing Saturdays I had in my local twin cinema seeing this repetitively over several months each week! I wonder if my grandkids will ever experience the same awe as we did?
I'm 58. I saw the original Star Wars in 1977 when I was 12 at a theater in the mall.
Two hours later, I walked out of the mall, and it was if every dream I ever had was possible! Man, I loved those days. And it's still with me. I just finished a 3 foot Star Distroyer that sits proudly on my desk. Thanks for the memories.
I'm 57, saw it in 1979 in Hungary, when I was 13 years old, fortunately it was subtitled. In the coming weeks I watched it 9 times. The opening sequence still has an effect on me.
@jamesedwards5702 the world as I knew it (also 12 in 1977) changed after I saw this movie. Small town Texas movie theater with a 12-foot screen and semi-stereo sound. Personally, I could not wait to see more of the adventure. Space battles, walking-talking robots, Darth Vader, the music, and princess Leia; total awesomness.
I remember that day as well.... never saw a preview (TV just was not that important) and when those Stormtroopers came busting thru my eyeballs were glued. Coolest day ever. Still remember the song that was playing in the car on the way to the Theatre. 'Feels So Good" by Chuck Mangione.
Me too! I'd heard a top of the hour news report while riding in a car with my mom, that it was the top movie and when I heard the title "Star Wars", it was so mysterious and attractive, I could not wait to find out what the movie could possibly be about. It was so imaginative and I was about 12.
i was eleven. they ran the movie in only 2 big screen theaters in kansas city. We went when it was first released before sell outs and long waits to get tickets. that opening scene with the massive destroyer in pursuit blew me away. We had no idea this was an epic movie.
My grandmother took me to see it when I was 10. The Tusken scared the heck out of her, but despite that she fell asleep somewhere during the rescue of Leia and I had to wake her up at the end. That's one of my favorite memories of her...she took me to see Star Wars. RIP Grannie.
I'm sorry for your loss.
I remember the first time I ever fell asleep at the movies, it was during "The Dark Knight". I didn't like the movie. I thought it was plain boring. But also it was one of the best naps I ever had, hope your grandma felt the same that I did lol 😂
My Granny took me to see the original "Alien" when it came out. I was 12. She had no idea what the hell was going on through the whole movie. She said if there were boobs, we were leaving. 🤣
♥
LOL that reminded me of my grandma . She took me to see ESB . I was about 9 . She loved the taun tauns and Yoda . She passed away last year, she was 101 . The force was definitely strong with her. .
A lot of people probably didn’t know that it wasn’t called A New Hope in 1977 it was just called Star Wars
Yeah, it’s rather unfortunate. I personally prefer no title, but it makes sense why it was added.
It was so confusing when the second movie came out and started with “Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back”
That's how us 8 year olds knew it back in the day.
@@KevyNova I was 10 years old when Ep4 came out and I wasn't confused at all. I guess by the time Empire was released most of the Star Wars fans were aware of Lucas plans for a trilogy and maybe someday, a prequel trilogy.
I still call it Star Wars and then the next one I call The Empire Strikes Back or simply Empire.
Thanks for posting. I could watch the entire film this way!
You can! Check the link in the description. If you like this, then Project 4K77 is definitely something you should check out!
Me too. I love the artifacts and scratches, it reminds me of my childhood seeing Star Wars on it's second run after it had already been run through projectors 300 times.
Ditto!!!! Vintage at it's best. No restoration, just pure vintage. Oh man, just the crackling sound alone makes me want to see the whole film like this.
@@SG10FilmArchive thanks for the link
Can you find ESB and ROJ original 👍
Here you are, these are the 16mm scans: archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Puggo%22 :)
For a 22 year old in 1977, that opening shot, seen for the first time, of the star destroyer coming over the top of the screen and filling it, was truly thrilling in away that nothing else in the movies had been-or has been since.
My Dad was also 22 in 1977, and this is how he's always described it... and, even better, that was the first movie he ever saw with my Mom.
Mate, I was 20 in 1977 and what you said is exactly what I was thinking. I was in awe of such realistic looking planets and spacecraft. And that Star Destroyer flying in from overhead just seemed to go on and on and on. Truly massive. All this is the first few minutes. Few movie experiences have matched this for me over the decades. Cheers.
Wow, I too was born in 1955. After leaving the theater, for a second, my Datsun pickup became an X-wing flying down the death star trench, I mean freeway.
I can't wrap my head around just how good that opening shot still looks. The planets, the lighting, the scale. It all feels so real. Absolutely insane.
And the music - which makes the whole film work!
My same thoughts, like there were nothing out there like this at the time, nothing that could immediately immerse you in this different world so convincingly. The practical effects absolutely hold up, especially when masked by the quality of projectors back then.
I was 4. I started to feel warm so my dad took me outside and we walked around in front of the stores at the plaza. Never saw the original in the theater until 1997.
@@MopBucket1014 I was 4 too. TBH I can't actually remember if I got taken to see it or not. Maybe, because I was certainly a fan by the time TESB came out. That one I do remember going to see. I remember missing the first 10 or 20 minutes because my brother got us there late! 😠
The only memory I have from 1977 is attending a street party for the Silver Jubilee.
First saw this at the local cinema age 11. Queued round the block with my Dad. An amazing experience, life changing!
I was 5, this was the first movie I ever saw... I woke up and my sister was excited, getting ready and my brother and my sister told me, "Get up! We're going to a movie!"... My mom came in and helped me tie my shoes and I asked her where we were going?... and she said... "We're going to see a movie.. you'll see what we're talking about." So, I had already heard of Star Wars and was excited about it, but I had NEVER been to a movie... so we went to the 7 Eleven and got a newspaper to check showtimes, and I remember my dad running in to get the paper... we get to the theater and I see all these kids there and these huge Star Wars posters and I was excited but also confused, I had never been to a movie... we walked in after my mom paid for the tickets... My dad says..."Do you want some popcorn and a soda?" I said... "They have that here?" It smelled so good!... so we got a medium Coke and a medium popcorn and to me they were huge... we walked through the corridor to the theater... I held my Coke in one arm and held my mom's hand... my dad held my popcorn... I turned around and saw my brother and sister walking behind us, and they had these huge smiles on their faces (They're older than I am.) My sister nodded her head at me and smiled... we sat down and the theater wasn't very dark, kids were laughing, and talking I sat right between my parents... My mother kept trying to set me back into my seat but I saw this "HUGE TV"... So... the lights went down, all the kids were excited and talking and I could hear people going .... "SHHHHH!"... My mother set me back in my seat, with my soda in her hand holding it for me to drink and my popcorn between my legs lol... then I remember the movie starts... I don't remember the trailers... or if there were any, I didn't pay much attention to them... I was sort of shocked at what I saw... but didn't know exactly what I was seeing.... then THIS starts... My mom read to me the scrolling texts....and I see the two ships and lasers... my mouth dropped open.... my life changed forever...
That is an amazing story. Im glad you remember your first SW experience
This reminds me of my last jedi screening. It left a big impact on me. I remember what I did before it. Thought during it and talking (and yelling) about it with my brother on the way home. I remember so much of it.
It was one of those theater experiences ill always hold to me and will be special. Prob cause I got intrigued into everything going on and then the way they got paid off was... odd to me and leaving me disappointed and confused. Took me a while to appreciate the film and its lived in my head rent free for a long ass time. And it still does. It prob isn't the best one imo (3rd prob) but is my personal favorite. It gave me a memorable and special theater experience and actually felt like, holy shit im watching a new star wars movie.
7 had its moments but had little impact on me. Hell I said a few weeks later the film was overrated
"my life changed forever..." You and me both, my friend. You and me both.
Wow, that's so amazing! It's incredible how vividly you remember this experience!
@@Z-Mikes00 I have to say I didn’t like TLJ when I saw it in the theater, but a year later after seeing it again made me love it. It’s the best of the Disney era films.
I was 11, my parents didn't have any money, so I got a job at the store next door, taking out trash and other odd jobs for 50 cents a week for the elderly lady that owned it. I saved my money until I finally had enough to go see Star Wars, and I was blown away. It was the greatest movie my 11 year old mind had seen up to that time. I still remember the look and smell of the theater, and the excitement I felt as the movie filled my heart with a sense for adventure.
Your not alone in that experience, I used to catch the before 6 pm shows for around $1.25, did a lot of chores , saw it about 5 times that summer.
I was 11 as well when this came out, my aunt took my brother and i to the movie with my cousin!
we Saw Star wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind on the same day :)
What a Day in History :)
@@expfighter5112
George Lucas thought that Close Encounters of the Third Kind would be more popular and traded 2% of gross with Spielberg.
I was 12 about sounds about the same as what I did.
@@RickW-HGWT Yep.. the'walk-ins' were a buck twenty-five for us kids at that time and about a whopping $3.50 for our folks as I recall. One of the walk-in theaters in my CA neighborhood would show double (and occasionally TRIPLE) features. I lived in a small cul de sac and each house had boys and brothers where my brother and I were all the same age range and all walked to elementary school and played little league together. On Saturdays, we would all meet in our backyard fort, have a very important 'official' meeting, make sure we each had our buck twenty-five plus concession money, and then proceed to walk about 2-3 miles to the theater. My fondest memory of that is when all of us walked to the movies in our little league caps and took up the entire back row to watch our new 'same age' heroes.. The Bad News Bears! Three our four of us were on the same team that year and our uniforms were identical to the Bears.. (minus the Chicos Bail Bonds endorsement.. haha). 😎
As a guy in his 30s growing up in the Prequels era, I am thrilled to see the Episodic title missing in this one.
That three minutes took me back forty-three years.
What an impactful comment.
Yep, I remember the first time I saw it in the theatre, and that massive underside of the star destroyer passed over... I was hooked. I saw it 24 more times in the initial and extended runs over the next year.
A long time ago...
44 years later, the special effects here STILL look good.
Old school rules when it was done right.
And CGI from 4 years ago is obvious and dated...
Jar Jar Binks CGI got old 1 second after I saw it.
@@davedogge2280 the Special Editions look older then the Originals.
The Music is still perfect.
That opening scene changed so many lives...and changed cinema forever...
I can still remember the audible gasps and "whoas" in the theater.
I'll never forget the opening of that movie, simply jaw dropping compared to anything seen or heard before. It was a quatum leap in terms of special efffects and sound quality. Cannot begin to describe how good it was seeing that movie for the first time in 1977.
Quantum means smallest possible.
Remember that close encounters of the 3rd kind came out too in 77.
All the arcades within a few years was all space themed stuff. Miss the old arcade rooms. The sights and sounds.
@@planomathandscience But a "quantum leap" means a sudden and dramatic change and a significant advance.
Agreed, I was 12 and I was utterly blown away! No words can describe it, it totally awesome!
I was eleven and my jaw did drop in the front row
There’s something magical about seeing this in the lower res, and original sounds and such, with all the “flaws” included. I am not old enough to have seen this originally in the theater, but I appreciate this a lot.
Star Wars was insanely epic for its time.
If it’s lower res it’s due to the nature of how this was recorded. It was shot and replicated on film, so even in 1977 it was very “high definition”.
@@thomasharris9059 film was always hi definition. We just got used to low resolution from television, vcr, and dvd. I don’t think todays digital HD even compares to film
@@RageTVHTX
No, you just dont know nothing about resolution
@@HolaMundoTheMisteriousAG well, 35mm film is equivalent to between 4K and 5K resolution. 70mm film is even higher so I’d say he does know what he’s talking about
My wife and friends saw this with me in theaters in 1977. Believe me, it was life changing, cinema wise. Like nothing anyone had seen before. I drove very fast on the way home, making pew pew sounds.
lol
At the age of 12, as I exited the theatre, I ran down the dark exit hallways as if they were the Death Star's trench and I was in an X-Wing.
I think the only movie that maybe tops this visually was 2001 a space odyssey. The effects for that movie in 1968 was and the accuracy of space for that time when we hadn’t even been to the moon was genius.
@@Wailwulf that's awesome cosplay.
When you look at sci-fi movies made around the same time, the visual FX and overall presentation of Star Wars must have blown people's minds back in 1977
It blows my mind today.
I'm so unimpressed with modern graphics and CGI, everything doesn't look real, just like watching a video game.
it did
Yup
it did ... i was there ...
I was in high school, starved for good sci-fi and this was amazing.
That opening scene of the star destroyer chasing the corvette was like nothing we had ever seen before in ‘77. From that moment on, the sold out theater (for two years, BTW) was glued to the screen. The whole audience cheered for Luke, applauded when Leia kissed him, booed Vader, and erupted when the DeathStar blew up. A magical experience. It just doesn’t happen any more.
What corvette?
I agree. Films today do not spark such emotion.
Americans.
I was too young for the original, but had seen them countless times on VHS. The '97 Special Edition was probably a close second to that, as being able to see it in the theater for the first time drummed up alot of hype. Went to the midnight showing for that, it was packed and very, VERY loud, audience and the movie! Best movie experience for me was then!
@@jwbogacki well it's certainly more than just a "transport ship" considering it's armed.
Yep, I was there in '77. Not only the visual of the Destroyer sailing overhead but really the first time Dolby Surround took hold. Never had you heard something coming at you from behind like that destroyer did. It was mindblowing and the audience sat there stunned at what they just saw and heard.
You could almost feel that gigantic ship fly overhead!
Yea I bet u have
Ditto - Cordova Mall, Pensacola, Florida. Mom, me and a friend who lived down the street. We walked out of the theater and not one of us had the slightest idea of what we had just seen. Fairly sure we only had the Mono Mix, not the Dolby or 70mm 6-track, but it didn't matter. The experience wasn't simply entertaining - it was Transformational.
That star destroyer just kept going and going... one of the best opening shots of any movie, ever. The experience of seeing that in the theater for the first time was really something.
It just *rumbled* . And I saw it in the same theater that a couple years before had hosted "SenSurround" films like _Earthquake_ and _Midway_ . I think they kept the bass drivers from that project...
These 3 minutes alone are more enjoyable than 7, 8 and 9
You got that right.
Absolutely!
a 3 hour Jar Jar Binks movie is better than 7, 8, and 9.
Easily.
And 1 and 2
Greatest start to a film EVER!!
I was 8 in '77. Man, I remember seeing this opening sequence & my eye were like saucers as I gripped the seat.
Me too, on both counts.
I was 6 in 77. My mom took me to see it and this opening scene and several others from the film I remember so vividly to this day. She also took me to see Superman The Movie and Star Trek The Motion Picture.
@@Vampiracho Make it 3 ! (I was 9 , close enough !)
Same here as well on both counts. All Disney has to do to take my money is release all 3 EXACTLY like it shown in the theaters. No "episode 4" junk and especially none of Lucas's later "additions".
My parents told me how everyone was blown away by the opening of this movie. I've seen it many times but I got to say I can try to imagine it. Sadly, I don't think we'll ever have something like this again.
Unfortunately, we only got the special edition from Star Wars trilogy on Disney +.
It is indeed hard to convey. It's like trying to explain to someone how amazing it is tasting ice cream for the first time, to someone who has eaten quality ice cream their whole life. They just cannot fathom, 'life before knowing what ice cream tastes like".
Thanks to George Lucas! lol. Kind of Ironic that the man and the franchise that revolutionized film making has done so much now that the "Awe and wonder" part of it will be gone forever. My 3 year old watches kids programs that are now easily made with special effects that would have blown our minds back in the 70s and 80s, but it's all common now. Special effects are no longer special.
It was a perfect storm of visuals, sound effects and the epic music of John Williams. I saw it in the theater and it changed the play lives of all the guys (and probably some girls) in my school. During recess, we talked about it, acted it out. If you had the Star Wars toys everybody wanted to come over to your house and play. It really changed so much.
It really was an awesome experience. The Tantive IV (the Corellian corvette) looked great enough on its own as a spaceship, but that star destroyer just kept going, and going, and going. I still get chills watching it.
I hope we see an official re-release of the original 1977 film at some point. That would be pretty awesome.
Check out Harmys Restauration Project of the Original Trilogy. It is a little complicated but that man and others did an amazing Job restoring the Original Cut of the Original Trilogy
@@spikeyfied That would be great to see! The differences in the original films to what we see now are lost to the recesses of my memory. Just as I didn't realize The Emperor was an entirely different actor with a different look when we first saw him... not until I saw the clip here on youtube!
If you can find it one of the DVD box sets has the originals on it.
Maybe when George Lucas dies, then we will get a remastered scratchy film called Star Wars, maybe. Then they will have a 16k remastered version called the Special Edition.
Official re release would just give Disney the money.
And there's not a lot different.
I was there, aged 9. I can't describe to you the moment that great battle cruiser stretched across the cinema. The entire audience was awestruck. This film left a lasting impression. Thankyou for posting.
I was there .....it was larger than life...looked so good ..sounded amazing.... We were watching Star Trek before...with people rocking their chairs on the bridge....this was so much more real, larger, mighty!!!
I remember seeing this at the age of 13 in 1977. My father told me we were going to see this new movie that "everybody's talking about it. It's the biggest thing in movies anybody's ever seen. I was impressed, of course, but I left the theater thinking, "Mark Hamill? Harrison Ford? Carrie Fischer? Who the hell ARE these people? Where were Captain Kirk and Mister Spock? What a gyp!!!" (in those days, I had the idea that anything sci-fi HAD to have Captain Kirk and Mister Spock in it, or it wasn't authentic).
Reading these comments about people, and their experiences witnessing this for the first time in the theaters in 77 brings a sort of curious yet joyous emotion to me, it makes it more immersive. Glad this version exists. Thank you for sharing this with us all.
It changed my life. I was 10 years old. I became a Computer Programmer because there were "Computers" in Star Wars.
I think most of us who experienced that first cinema viewing as a child in late 77 will confirm and say that their lives were never the same again.
it's true
Exactly
Still one of the best opening scenes for any movie ever made. If you didn't see it in a theater in 1977, you missed something very special. Cinematics would never be the same.
Born in 83, never saw the original 3 in the movies but it still is magical watching it on tape
Imagine being a 13-year-old sci-fi and comics nut in 1977, and you get this......that was me. Ah, to go back.
@Tektoniks Architects Star Wars isn’t Sci-Fi. And it pisses me off that people are STILL making that mistake.
@@thomaskilroy4573 Back then genres weren't as pointlessly nuanced
Grow up.
On May 25, 1977, history was made.
Should have been 3 weeks earlier...
I remember the day we saw it for the first time. It was 1977, we had just stood in line for 5 hours waiting to see this new movie that was so hyped. We saw it at Grauman's Chinese Theater, & that very opening just as was shown right now, still gives me the chills that I felt the first time we saw it. No movie I had ever seen had ever started like that. During the scene of the death star chasing the rebel ship, the entire theater gasped as it kept going & going & going as it turned out to be FAR MORE MASSIVE than anything our imaginations could wrap our minds around. It might seem old & outdated as it was just shown in this clip, but it was far more impactful in its approach to no nonsense seriousness of a story that promised to be grand in scope, depth & content like no story ever was shown. It was the greatest movie I had ever seen in my life, & that year, I & an entire generation competed to see Star Wars as many times as we could. I saw Star Wars exactly 47 times in 1977. My father was just as impressed as it was him that took us each time. . .
Thank you for sharing this amazing story
Grauman's Chinese Theatre?! What a way to see it FOR THE FIRST TIME! I can't even imagine what that could have been like!
What I really loved was that this film grew so fast by word of mouth.
....that's one hell of a Dad you had there 👍🏼 You Won the Mega Million and PoweBall lottery with that pick 😊
My dad, love him, barely understood any of it, he was from a different era, and wasn't very sophisticated when it came to themes, or science fiction, or technology.
Up until that time Sci-fi was done with cheap, cardboardy sets and tiny models that LOOKED like tiny models (2001 notwithstanding). This movie was a quantum leap in quality and visual excitement.
I remember seeing this in the mall cinema, and me and many other people have their lives changed forever. It was something like we never saw before. It was just called "Star Wars" back then. We had no idea what we were in for.
The theatrical versions of the original trilogy are canon to the star wars timeline, I don't care what George Lucas and Disney say.
Edit: As pointed out in the replies, George Lucas said that the Special Editions are canon, not Disney (I said Disney because unfortunately they currently own the rights to the Star Wars franchise and put the Special Editions on Disney+ so they obviously consider the SEs canon) so I added George Lucas as well.
Han shot first!
@@rbbecker73 More than that: Greedo does not shoot at all. Han is a scoundrel
It wasn't Disney that changed them, or that refeused to give the original film stock to be preserved.
The only way to watch Star Wars, ESB, & ROTJ are with the unaltered original theatrical versions!
And Obi Wan is a bloody liar in any version!
I was on leave from the Army when a friend came and got me, " I just saw this movie, man you got to see it". We went at the midnight showing. WOW, never forgot how was that feeling, I can go on, but...anyway thank.
Nobody at that time knew this movie would be the phenomenon it still is. This intro alone is so powerfull. I still feel the magic through out the years.
I saw the first showing on opening day. There was only 10 people in the entire theater! Told all my friends. It was so awesome. We went back a week later to see it again. It was standing room only!!!!
I was 9 and my dad brought me to watch it in the biggest cinema at that time (Emperial cinema in Copenhagen, Denmark). I will never forget the size of that stardestroyer. It just kept on going forever! Or Darth Vader, the laserguns, the millennium falcon, the light sabers, the death Star, C3P0 and R2D2, the desert people, Chewbacca, X-wing fighters and every detail and second of that masterpiece of a movie! R.I.P. dad❤️
C3PO and R2D2 at the time reminded me of Laurel and Hardy. I think Star Wars represented the power of the imagination. It was space, the future, yet it happened in a galaxy a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away …
Subconsciously, a film like this was something consolatory after the debacle of the Vietnam War, in the middle of the Cold War. Perhaps it hinted, at the time, of the benefits of Western Civilisation.
Was the film in Danish or English?
I wonder what were people of 1977 thinking when they found this was only Episode 4 a few years later?
This brings back memories when I went to see this movie back in 1977. It will never be the same. It will be an event I will never forget.
Will it be "a day long remembered"? (boom tish).....I'll see myself out.....
Me too...just like yesterday...I remember how I felt....where I sat....
For anyone wondering, films shown in theaters were 35 mm, so much better quality than this 16 mm print. They had surround sound too, so really the theater presentation in 1977 wasn’t significantly different than today’s digital projection. Except the 35 mm prints could get scratches and dirt after dozens of showings, or if you were really unlucky the film could break. Then we’d have to wait while the projectionist spliced it.
There were 70 mm projectors too at some theaters - they were the IMAX of their day.
Thank you for stating this for others to see. I was afraid that people may have thought that the 16mm version is what they saw in theaters.
The first release of star wars in theaters was not surround sound.
@@txdraw That's correct. Most theaters had "Rushed released" prints of the movie which were monaural sound only. The "Showcase" Theaters that had 70mm projectors got a print with 6 track magnetic soundtrack and later 35mm versions of the film used a Dolby Stereo 'matrixed" sound track from the 70mm prints. So there were really 3 versions of the sound track in existence when the movie was released in 1977.
Some good films both in sound and picture are made in 16mm...Top Gun for example.
Nothing like focusing in on that hair dragging on the bottom of the viewer while watching ‘Any Which Way But Loose’ for the fiftieth time that summer. Right turn Clyde! ✌️
This movie opening still looks and sounds incredible
Notice that without the Episode title, the crawl is synced with the music. The Star Wars theme was written to narrate the crawl.
I was 13 at the time and heard a friend talking about the movie his dad took him too. When he said 'Star Wars' a few of us said, at the same time, "Whats a Star Wars?" After we went to see it, the rest is history. Cheers for this post. You brought back a lot of memories.
No problem my man
I had heard they trademarked it way ahead of time. Imagine if ABC had trademarked "Star Wars" in anticipation of their show that would be called _Battle of the Network Stars!_
my brother and i were 14 and i still remember the excitement when this move started , and the first scenes of the battle cruisers and rebel space ship , we had never seen anything like it before, we ended up seeing it 6 times in theatre before it ended its run , how can it be 45 years already
I was 14 when that movie hit the theaters . We would buy matinea seats and watch it over and over again.
Just goosebumps, I remember how great this was... before the dark times, before Disney.
pointless Disney bashing... after 1-3 crap from Lucas, they saved it and brought stories out I always dreamt of as a kiddo in the 80ies.
so save your pointless Disney hating
@@Greetling Sorry, you sound like a shill. Do you work for Disney? I watched SW in '77, was thrilled by the following 2 shows. The prequels were visually stunning, had a few problems that should not have been introduced, but otherwise OK. The sequels were, admitted by Disney, not thought out, and as about everyone knows, filled with too much nonsensical idiocy as to constantly suspend belief. If you enjoyed them, more power to you. I watch and enjoy many movies that are shot down by the 'critics'. As to Disney bashing, they make it so easy now. Hard not to when one simply talks about any one of the movies being released in the last few years.
@@Greetling the disney movies are soulless.
@@Greetling Be prepared for the next one thousand years of Disney Bashing.
Before the dark times...before the Prequels (midinonsense, Jar Jar, Jake "Yippie" Lloyd, Roger Roger Droids, I hate Sand, I Love You So Much, Welcome to Blue Screen)
So this is what time traveling looks like... Neat.
For me, there is only the original trilogy, with its original titles: STAR WARS, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and THE RETURN OF THE JEDI. AND THAT is still MY original opening, which gave me chills when I watched this classic in the theatre in 1977.
Who cares?
Same here. It's STAR WARS, not Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope even though later versions of the title crawl show that
@@Ajidam People who watched it back in 1977, of course.
Yep, that's exactly how us 'old timers' remember it.
No "Episode IV".
No "A New Hope".
Just this incredible music, a mysterious opening title crawl, and a F/X shot that absolutely blew our collective minds.
No one had seen anything remotely close to what we experienced when this shot first hit our eyeballs. It is impossible to articulate to modern movie-going audiences just how much this cinematic moment changed the game forever back in '77.
I love it. Its so honest. It was the one and only and no one, including Lucas, had any idea about any other installments.
His ego got the better of him and he inserted IV A New Hope so he could let us all know that he knew all along that he had the entire Star Wars universe created on day one.
I saw it on it’s opening day, and then again several times in ‘77 while it remained in theaters. You are absolutely correct, it was a total game changer. I always think of movies… any genre really, in terms of “before Star Wars” and “after Star Wars”. It completely upped the ante in almost every way in the film industry.
People ask me "What was it like?!" (I saw it on the 28th, 25th was 'a school night', and the closest theater was a 1/2 hour away. So to make it up to me, Mom took us both to the Valley Circle in San Diego.) She really liked it, (which was high praise from my non-sci fi mom), the thing changed my life, my career, my spouse, all "Star Wars". What was it like?
Imagine that you bought your tickets for the 5 p.m. show, went and ate and when you got back you walked right in. The next day, I dragged my Drama Club Geek Buddy to it, walked right in, and were never the same again, we LIVED in theaters all summer. Lines started about a week/10 days later, and one of the local news stations had a field reporter named Kathy Kennedy. She flipped when ... after some years had passed ... I told her we'd met before, at the Valley Circle when she interviewed some of us in the first Star Wars costumes ever made. "You interviewed me, when I got home my mom said, 'YOU were ALL on the NEWS!" I got a very big hug and a "I can NOT believe this! I'm so happy to see you here!" from Kathleen Kennedy, and I was writing for "Star Wars Insider". (It IS "True, All of it. Let it happen.)
Totally agree. Saw it seven times in the theater.
Hoping that one day they will finally release the original theatrical version.
i dont. i remember seeing it on a small tv in saudi arabia about 18 inches in a copy betamax. you lucky gurrr that wass in 1979. i got to see the origionAL STAR WARS MOVIE BUT WITH THE HORRIBLE CHANGES MANY YEARS LATER IN UK. I STILL THINK EMPIRE THE DIGITAL REMASTERED VERSION WAS THE BEST AS THE EXTRA SCEENS IN HOTH AND THE BLUE OR GREEN SCREEN ENHANCED THE BATTLE AND SAME WITH THE WINDOWS IN CLOUD CITY.
The only shame about this is that nobody nowadays will ever understand the awe and excitement this had when we saw it for the first time. Wonderful beyond measure to see it like this again - heartfelt thanks ❤
I never get tired of watching that opening. It's still the best one of all of the films.
You can see how the anamorphic lens for the 16mm print creates a sort of 'softening' of vertical details. It's especially apparent in the STAR WARS title as it recedes into the distance and fades out; the horizontal lines in it remain distinct far longer than the vertical and diagonal lines.
Saw this in the theater when I was maybe 3 or 4. This left an _indelible_ imprint on my very impressionable mind, and to this day I vividly remember witnessing that opening crawl, immediately followed by a deadly pursuit.. explosive and _loud,_ it bombarded your senses. Had no idea this might be the first of a series; to me this WAS Star Wars: A young hero’s journey, a mysterious & sage guide, a hired rogue and a princess in peril... on its own, this movie was massive and epic.
Even for a 36 year old in 2024, having seen the movie many times, this opening is a mind-blowing spectacle!
thanks for this, folks that weren't around back then This is how it was prior to tacking on that ridiculous subtitle; "Episode IV: A New Hope." I was 16 and it was just "Star Wars". When it hit big Fox greenlit Empire Strikes Back when it was rereleased in '78 that's when the subtitle came about.
A question: Did the subtitle already say "Episode 4" when it was added then? I know George had been planning multiple trilogies for a while before work on the prequels started.
I believe that the subtitle was added in 1981 or '82 and I know that the VHS always had that title, even though they came out before the Special Edition. I'm pretty sure that it always said "Episode IV: A New Hope" after it's re-release.
@@SG10FilmArchive I was there in 77 and 78 and know for a fact the subtitle was added in 78 on its rerelease. Yes I saw Star Wars first run. I'm 59 now.
@@aussienick4520 The 4 was there from '78 onwards. But it started more like an inside joke, instead of an allusion to him planning to shoot Episode I to III at some point.
Back then he explained that it was influenced by the Flash Gordon serials which you would get to see when you went to the cinema at the Saturday Matinee just to see a different movie.
You would end up getting shown an episode of Flash Gordon, very much like turning on the the TV and finding a random episode of some show you were not familiar with.
So you would sit in the theater and it would say Episode XIV because you weren't there when they were showing the earlier episodes.
And that is why he gave the first Star Wars movie the number 4, to allude to that feeling of watching a serial and having missed the first episodes.
Even though it originally didn't say it was the fourth episode, it was, and those of us who researched before watching (and/or read the book prior to seeing the film) already knew it was the fourth of a nine-part series.
I was 9 years old. I biked 4 miles to the theater every week with my weekly allowance to see it over and over. My grade school reserved a showing for my class. A theatre full of young kids with their parents. My father snuck an old cassette tape recorder under his coat into the theater and recorded the audio on two tapes. I then spent my weeks listening to the movie over and over while re-enacting it with my Kenner action figures. All the kids laughing so hard when the Jawas came running out to collect R2-D2 and when they made their Burp sounds. I listened to it so much that when it was pulled from the theater for a short time to improve the sound quality... when it re-released the soundtrack had differences to my ear. Changes to Aunt Beru's inflection in her voice when she answered Uncle Owen's question if she'd seen Luke that morning. Her reply was a caring "I think so!" Not a question. The re-release changed her inflection and today she says "I think so?". Upward inflection turned it into a question. I couldn't get over it. This Puggo 16mm is the first I've seen where the original soundtrack is still there! Jump ahead to the 27min mark to hear how Beru used to answer! I'm so happy!
My grandfather recorded the 13-part _Star Wars: The Original Radio Drama_ off public radio, so I could listen to that over and over until I was done with Star Wars a couple years later.
Even on old 16mm film, the glory of the Empire is incredible!
I was 17 when I first saw this. As a science-fiction aficionado I had never seen anything like this before in my life! As a man in his 60s no one believes me when I tell them “Star Wars” was originally a standalone movie.
A-Ha! I remember my Dad telling me when I was a kid that the original never said "Part IV, a New Hope" on it. I told kids in college that (that was around the time of the "remastering" rereleases) , and they told me I was wrong. I'm feeling very vindicated right now 😂.
Haha, it must be hard for kids to grasp that it was originally just STAR WARS, no episode title, no decades of world-building!
I’m 38 and so the first trilogy was already out and the second trilogy was still years away when my parents were trying to explain it to me as a little kid circa 1992 or so.
“But it was the FIRST Star Wars movie, right?”
“Yes.”
“(Thinking I’ve really caught them in an inconsistency) Then. HOW. Is it. Episode FOUR?!”
They were like “because he started the story in the middle and no one knew it would be such a success, now he can go back and write the beginning of the story before Luke and Leia are even born.”
I thought about that. But I was still like,
“But how come it’s not episode ONE if it came out first? Terminator 1 came out before Terminator 2!”
I don’t know how they finally got through to me. I think at that time they expected an Episode One release or maybe 1996-97 or so. It was on the horizon for sure.
But I do remember exclaiming excitedly,
“Well when are episodes seven, eight and nine coming out?!”
They were like, “years and years from now, maybe never.” 😂
“So once they do episodes 1,2 and 3, then the movies will go in order again?” Good thing kid me didn’t know about Rogue One, Solo, The Mandalorian, The Obi-Wan series, and all the other stuff that doesn’t exactly “go in order” 😂
Now I have Exhibit A for all my young friends who claim "but it was always Episode 4: A New Hope." Nah, children. It was Star Wars. Pure and simple. We came out of that movie theater jazzed but had no clue we'd be getting sequels. Back then, that wasn't the norm!
Even if it had remained a stand alone film, it still would have been perfect.
@@carolynhotchkiss4760 Sequels were rare - sequels that were even better than the original masterpiece were almost unheard of (though many point to The God Father, but I don't). Empire made me feel like Star Wars was just a warm up!
44 years later and this opening still touches my sense of wonder
I remember seeing this in the theatre in 1977. Absolutely EPIC! If you did not see Star Wars in 1977 in the theatre, you missed out on the most epic movie theatre experience ever.
And, I was born in 1997.
I was born on 2011 :( I WANTED TO BE BORN ON 1954!
@@TheRealZeliusX oddly specific
I didn't see it in 1977 (my parents maintained that it was "inappropriate"), but I did see it when they brought it back to the theaters in 1978. Indeed, it was epic.
I didn't see it until second release. Even then it had ticket scalpers and got a standing ovation three weeks in at a sold out matinee.
I saw Star Wars the day it opened in May of 1977. I saw it 15 time over a course of a year, on an ultra big screen the way it should be seen. I will never know why Lucas thought it was necessary to changes some of the dialog when so many Star wars fanatics like myself practicably had the script memorized. I am glad I have a copy the the original version on dvd . The movie won several Oscars that all have the name Star Wars engraved on them . What is this thing I hear called A New Hope ? I never heard of it .
How much you willing to sell for that DVD?? 🤔🤔🤑🤑 Where can I get an original copy
@@-that_one_smxlly-1810 there’s a version of the 2006 DVD that has the “GOUT” version, called George’s Own Unaltered Trilogy. They have the original versions of the whole OT.
Lucas has been doing it since the very beginning. Even the "original" version of Star Wars in 1977 had 3 different versions out in the theatres at the same time. You could go and watch it in 70mm, then drive to a different theatre and watch a 35mm stereo print, then drive to yet another theatre showing the 35mm mono print, and all 3 versions had unique sound and dialog differences. Even the original VHS release had yet more differences from the original theatrical versions, as it was a completely new sound mix. If the DVDs you have are the bonus discs from the 2006 special edition movies, then it is not the same as *any* of the original 1977 versions, as it's a transfer of the 1993 Laser Disc version, which incorporates some elements from all 3 1977 theatrical versions. Hell, Empire Strikes Back got a different ending while it was still in theatres. After it was released in 70mm in the theatre, Lucas thought the ending was a bit confusing, so he went and built new models, shot some new effects shots of the fleet, the falcon, and modified the score and the dialog and had a new ending ready in 3 weeks, in time for it to be put in the 35mm version of the movie, and that's the ending that we all know now. He even managed to squeeze in some improved special effects, different optical wipes, alternate takes and dialog. There were quite a few fairly big differences between the original 70mm release and the 35mm version that is the one that we all know now.
I watched Rise of Sky Walker on a 1080p laptop on Disney+ and I say 'watched' very losely, I skipped large chunks of it. UNTHINKABLE to do that 40+ / 35+ years ago for New Hope and Empire, nothing was skipped, every second of the movie was precious.
@@davedogge2280 I find it better to just skip Rise of Skywalker altogether!
5 years old when I saw this at a drive in, 1977. It's still my earliest memory.
My Grandpa had a VHS labelled "Star Wars" and I was so eager to watch it on my own time. Once I put it in, though, the first thing I saw was "Episode IV: A New Hope" and I immediately popped it back out because I didn't want spoilers...
(senate voice) Ironic
But the first version of it was called Star Wars
That actually ruined a lot of the experience for me the first time I saw Star Wars. When we rented it on video we said we wanted the first movie (back then I had no idea how many movies there were), and when I saw the movie it said it was number four. This stayed in the back of my head though the whole movie.
Maybe it was because I saw it on a TV-screen, but I don't remember being blown away by it. For me it was just another adventure and science fiction movie amongst several others.
I first saw ANH around 1986 (when I was 6) and I couldn't understand why the video store didn't have Episodes 1-3.
I saw SW for the first time back in 1980 as a double bill with Empire - aged 7 - you can NEVER know what thats like unless you have experienced it - no feeling like it!!
When you realise that this was made before 1977 you understand that every frame is brilliant
I just love the scratches and graininess of the film and the hiss-and-pop of the audio. Gives everything so much texture and character.
My brother, my mother and I saw Star Wars during the August’77 school holidays at the Astra Theatre in Parramatta in Western Sydney. I was 12 and it changed the way I looked at cinema, science and science-fiction; for me it was a profound experience. When the title rolled the whole theatre erupted in cheers. It affected my mum too: she said as we came out she said that it was the noisiest film she ever been to and in future we could now take ourselves to the movies, which we did.
Yeah, baby, 1977 release! Saw it two days in a row in July of 77!
I know it's crazy but there's something about a 16mm print that just sends me.
Thanks for posting.
I remember seeing the opening back in 1977. Everyone in the theater cheered.😂It was awesome.
My brother and I saw it the weekend it opened in a nearly empty theater. It was far beyond anything that had come before in so many ways that it's hard to register. The very next weekend there were lines around the building to get in.
2001: a space odyssey did the same to me at a theatre. It was a downtown Cinerama theatre, super wide curved screen. There was no picture, but the soundtrack was playing, the prologue music. Then the theme plays, titles, and planets lined up. It blows my mind every time I watch!
I didn't see 2001 until the actual year 2001 in a special screening at the cinema. It left a big impression on me.
I was born in ‘95. Watching this made me feel like I was a kid in ‘77.
That's not the theatrical cut though which is 32 mm and looked tack sharp and had surround sound too
In 1977, I had read about Star Wars in Time magazine. I had the paperback (unread) with the original artwork. But when I saw the spaceships in battle, I was blown away. "I've waited my entire life to see a scene like this" came to mind. Star Trek had space battles but never like this. My first viewing was on a Thursday, and on Saturday I went to see it again.
I think everyone was waiting for a descent movie and couldn't believe that they actually made one.
That was really neat. Especially the Scripture tag at the end. I love that! Thanks for posting!
I was 12 years old when I first saw Star Wars. All I can tell you is EVERYTHING changed when this movie hit the theaters, and I mean EVERYTHING! Everything has the trademark of Star Wars from clothing, music, fast food, lunch boxes toys and the list goes on …
I remember like it was yesterday. I was 16 and said “this is incredible” as the star destroyer entered the scene. Still my favorite movie.
For those wanting to watch this version check the links in the description! Also, be sure to check out other Theatrical Fan Preservations like Project 4K77 or Harmy's Despecialized Editions!
I don't know the exact model number or version number, but I do have the despecialized trilogy bluray pack of all three star wars films from 77 to 83.
But that's not good enough. Why can't Lucas just release the original unedited versions.
Who was watching and reading the opening credits while remembering the events at the end of Rogue One 🥂
Omg this is how I watched it in 1979 for my first time..it was already 2 years away from premiere ..but still shown in many tv channels
As it should be seen ! I have an original first release copy on VHS that was from our local grocery store that rented them out when it was first released . Never understood why George Lucas doesn’t want us to have the originals on DVD
As a 600 year old evil warlock, I've seen a lot of things, but the premier of Star Wars was my favorite.
I was 7 when I saw this for the first time in 77. Magic. That was before suburban cinemas and I remember the line going out onto the city street and around the corner.
I was seven too Nathan. Saw it in my local cinema in Ireland. I remember being in the queue for The Empire Strikes Back in 1980 too. The Cinema was three flights of stairs up and the line of people waiting went from there, down the stairs...out the front doors and two streets away! I saw The Rise of Skywalker on opening night....There were 7 people in a 200 seat room!
First movie I ever saw! Some theater in South Jersey. I’m told I fell asleep at the end. It was a Saturday night showing and I was 4.
Now here I am at 48 and playing with Star Wars Legos. My gosh they are way more complex then they were back in the day.
As I said in my comment, I had to wait until Labor Day to see it. Even then, we stood in line for hours for tickets. They didn’t sell advance tickets back then, you had to stand in line and hope when the previous showing let out. Then you had to hope the next wouldn’t sell out before you got to the box office. If it did, you had to keep standing there until the next showing’s tickets went on sale. I firmly believe Star Wars is singularly caused the creation of advance ticket sales.
I was 11, but after a few minutes I somehow knew I'd love it til the end of days
I remember the lines too but the matinees in the middle of the day were easy to get into, at least where I lived. They only had about 400 prints of the movie in circulation so most theaters that had one kept it for months... It brought in the crowds... Saw it in Leominster mass... we were stationed at Fort Devens... found memories.
On the original versions of the first three Star Wars films when my brother and I used to watch them as young kids, when the text at 0:20 came up, my brother used to say “green letters”
I saw this in the movie theater, I have not been the same since this opening scene!
Exactly the same here!!!! So any people say this....we are all touched the same way. ..that's something...
Good times, miss when movies were like this.
Still get goosebumps when I see this. I was eight when I saw the movie it was a mind-blowing experience
Arguably the best opening sequence of any movie ever made…
Watching this on the cinemas during 1977 must be an amazing experience
This took me back to 1977 and my 13 year old self more than old school pictures! Thanks!
I love this! The very first Star Wars Movie ever! :) May the force be with you, always...
This film was still in theaters 2 years later, till August of 1979. That is how long films stuck around. This is classic footage. I saw it like this on the big screen 3 times in July of 1977.
Feel like I'm 10 again...seeing this for the first time
I have the original version of Star Wars on VHS and A New Hope on Blu Ray, I got the VHS after the Blu Ray and I never knew how different the two versions are in terms of VFX and such.
I've still got the original Star Wars trilogy on laserdisc. I remember it was pretty pricey for each movie back then.
Simply epic. So glad there's somebody there who cares enough to preserve, love and restore this masterpiece in the way it should be. Mike Verta doing what Disney should, and what what every true fan wants x
That opening scene with the cruiser passing overhead was amazing for the time. Everyone in the theater was awed.
2:16 When this scene appeared for the first time on screen you had the feeling we were now moving into a new age. The future finally arrived in 1977 and it was George Lucas who brought us there. Thank you for this wonderful posting (it brought back some great exciting memories), and thank you George for such a wonderful trip. The young fans of today will never experience the thrills their parents and grandparents did all those years ago.
All the special effects you see in movies, TV shows and even TV commercials nowadays can be traced back to this one movie.
Indeed. As I had written in another comment, the state of Hollywood and special effects are in a sorry state. Nowadays we are presented with CGI-heavy drivel, and younger audiences have become so cynical as to be blind to the wonder seen in this film.
Or, to put it simply, the "Marvel" format has conditioned the masses. Yet many still eat it up, compelled to "consooom product!"
I was born in December 1974, meaning I was too young to have seen Star Wars in the cinema in May 1977... And being raised in a single-mum-with-two-kids household meant money was tight, and I didn't see a cinema screening of ANY movie until about 1982. I saw Star Wars for the first time when it was shown on TV here, which would have been some time in the early eighties, and I was never aware of the hype until MUCH later than that.
I am today though a huge fan of film in general. I watch a movie a day, on average (no exaggeration) and I am a devoted fan of Star Wars!
My point with this little tirade:
I wasn't there to see it in 1977, but that really doesn't matter! Through seeing thousands of movies from every possible decade, I can easily imagine what it would have been like, sitting in a movie theatre in 1977, watching this unbelievable thing unfold on the screen! There is NOTHING like Star Wars from that time period! Nothing that comes even CLOSE! It is, for lack of a better way to put it, an entirely new kind of film that was invented right there. And watching it for the first time in 1977 must have felt like stepping through a portal into another time!
The only three real life movie experiences I have had that comes close (but still could not possibly be the same) are:
1) Toy Story. Something that is taken for granted now, but back in 1995 it looked so incredibly bizarre! It was like animated claymation, but 1000 times smoother.
2) Terminator 2. I saw this with ZERO pre-knowledge, which of course made for a great twist with the good guy/bad guy switch. But also made my eyes almost pop out of my head when the T-1000 walked through those bars. That was something I had never seen before!!
3) Jurassic Park. My all time most memorable cinematic experience. As a kid I loved dinosaurs (what kid didn't, right!?) so I was eagerly looking forward to a Spielberg movie with DINOS!! Again, zero pre-knowledge, I hadn't even seen a trailer! About 20 minutes in, when everyone climbs out of the jeeps and the camera pans around to show.....a REAL LIVE DINOSAUR walking across the field.... I swear I almost started crying. My mouth hung open for such a long time I actually drooled on myself before remembering to close it.
-Still.... Star Wars must have been something even MORE special than that!
Im couple years older , and I can assure you it was like u said. I couldn't sleep for 2 days....reenacted everything for months......I was trampling in my seat... The only time I had a similar experience was with Terminator 2 like you said after which I started running in the parking lot like crazy and then recently with Avengers... I started trampling from Joy.... That whole movie just gave me the exact same feeling as a kid ..and a almost at same level was Endgame...trampling in my seat....I'm just a kid ...
The fact that the opening theme starts at the same energy level and roughly same notes as the 20th century fox fanfare feels special
I remember the line wrapped around the UA Cinema in Spokane WA, and the first showing of the day was already playing, and the next showing (same screen) played and ended before we got close enough to buy tickets and get inside. Back then we were young and standing for 3 hours wasn't a problem....IT WAS WORTH THE WAIT!!
I've had arguments with people who were adamant that the 1977 theatrical release had "Episode IV" in the text crawl...
Uh no. In 1977, this was just "Star Wars" -- and probably most of us who saw it in the theater, in the original version, still think of it this way.
The title “Episode IV: A New Hope” was added in 1981 for its theatrical rerelease.
Lol
Just like Dolly had braces, eh?
I wasn't even born in 1977 and I knew it did not have episode 4 labeled on it... people are STUPID Lucas didn't know if he had a hit on his hands yet so there was no way to guarantee a triligy especially if "star wars" bombed
I gotta show my dad this. This must've been exactly how he saw it in 1977. Incredible.
Thank you for posting. This is fantastic. What a ride back in time. Fox-Logo, Lucasfilm just in green Helvetica font, no episode number. Just the plain thing. Got tears in my eyes. Love it. Thank you again.
I'm 57 and was 11 when I went and saw it, with my two brothers and three neighbors, at the movie theater at our mall. It was unlike ANYTHING we had ever seen and we were all mesmerized. The beginning was completely amazing! We had bought our tickets in the morning for a late afternoon show. A month later, the lines were still wrapped around the building to see it. No idea how many times I saw the movie, but it was over 15 times. I worked, scrimped, saved, and did whatever I could to earn money to see it again.
This is - TOO GOOD - i want the original versions on DVD. Way back in 1977 this movie blew the cinema
going audience away ! No one had seen anything like it. Back then you could stay in the cinema and watch the same movie again, i watched this twice in a row.
I did the same thing. I went to a matinee in Atlanta, GA about 2 to 3 weeks after it opened. I was by myself and was so blown away, I thought to myself, "I'm not moving. There's just too much to see and it's so good, I've got to see this again." And I did. Later that Summer, I saw it again at a packed midnight movie in a Dolby stereo theater with surround sound. I was knocked out by the sound. "Those in the know" said the best way to see Star Wars was in a Dolby stereo theater. They weren't lying.
I went every Tuesday night (it was $1 night) and sat through it twice. I saw it 32 times that way!
The original versions are on DVD, I own them. But they were a limited edition special that came with both the special editions of the films as well as the original theatrical cuts on DVD. I’m sure you can them on eBay somewhere.
I believe the versions you are talking about were in the 2006 DVD release. They're called GOUT DVD's and are only standard definition Laserdisc transfers from 1995. I've heard people say that this "Puggo Grande" actually rivals the quality on those DVD's, and I kinda agree with them. Its all preference though, no wrong answers.
as my baby came telling me they did another STAR WARS Episode in '15 and SHE GOT TICKETS for the movies ! ! ! ! I felt like been thrown back in time to an era far far away. We went to the show and . . . hell, I've been waiting for this since nearly 40 yrs. . . . I really couldn't enjoy the movie cause of high blood preasure and sweat all around and kinda being pushed to a dimension I did not know.
OK, we had to look it twice or 3 times in a row for me to realise this is the truth. We both were 3 or 4 years apart in age and she had grown up in the so called german democratic republic (ha !) - but she knew what STAR WARS was about and she loved it - from 77 on too.
Being a fan from the beginning on it will be deep inside me F.O.R.E.V.E.R. even if Disney raped Ep. 8 and 9 and I hope there will be NO Episode X !