The summer of 1977: when the world changed.

[Alcuin]

WARNING: Incoming old man reminicing!

For me, my childhood timeline is divided into two; much like the whole BC/AD   thing (or BCE/CE  for those of you who grew up with History texts in the age of political correctness).

For me, it's BSW/ASW:  Before Star Wars and After Star Wars.

I can still remember the first time I saw Episode IV in my small town local theater.  We didn't go on opening day and I distinctly remember not wanting to go.  I simply didn't know what Star Wras was.  Back then in a lot of small towns, movies stayed in the theater for months at a time.  For us, there was only one screen and one movie playing at any given time.    We went to the movies once a summer and this was our annual outing for the summer of '77.

It's hard to say what was the most impressive thing about Episode IV (back then, we used to just call it 'Star Wars').  From the opening shot with the long slow scrolling of the Star Destroyer chasing down the Tantive V to the Howling of Chewbacca at the awards ceremony, it was the perfect story. 

What an impact!  I spent the rest of the summer drawing Stormtroopers, pretending to be Luke or Han and begging Mom to take me back to the theaters to see Star Wars again.   The movie shaped my playing experiences, my Christmas and birthday wish lists, what I wrote about in school, what I talked about.  It is a modern mythology.  Remember the disco song with R2D2 and blaster fire in the mix?  I annoyed the hell out of my older sister with that.

Anyway, I am as excited as I can be to be playing out my childhood fantasies starting this week!  It's like 1977 all over again!

[Askari]

Bricks were shat.

I was 9 years old in '77, which is a pretty perfect age for something so iconic to arrive in popular culture.

And I was already a sci-fi/fantasy geek. At age 9, my favorite books were ones like McCaffrey's Dragonrider of Pern books, Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber, Herbert's Dune... in other words, sci-fi stories with a fantasy flair.

Star Wars fit right into that niche for me, with its sci-fi setting and "sword and sorcery" feel.
Trading cards? Yes.
Action figures? Dozens.
Models, ships, coloring books, story books, soundtrack.

The special effects, the scope, the sound, the score... it was all so much more epic than any movie I had ever seen.

It's weird to watch it today, because it seems so "quaint"... as opposed to so huge and high tech and awesome.

But I don't think any movie will ever affect me as much as Star Wars did when I was 9 years old.

[RavenMiles]

Sadly i was two when A New Hope came out. But i did get to see The Empire Strikes Back in theaters. It was one of the first movies i went to see with my dad. I did not get to spend a lot of time, with my dad. He worked very hard. To support a family of four. So, going to a move with dad, was the greatest thing in the world. So, every time any thing Star Wars comes up. I think of my dad. With him one with the Force now. My memories are all i got. So, i will always have a place in my heart for Star Wars. Because any time I do any thing Star Wars. I feel my dad their. Telling me "Use the Force son."

[Lyrima]

So, i will always have a place in my heart for Star Wars. Because any time I do any thing Star Wars. I feel my dad their. Telling me "Use the Force son."

/verklempt

Yeah. I feel that way when I hear Beethoven.  My dad loved classical music, particularly Beethoven.  He's been gone almost 20 years now. /wow

And I was already a sci-fi/fantasy geek. At age 9, my favorite books were ones like McCaffrey's Dragonrider of Pern books, Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber, Herbert's Dune... in other words, sci-fi stories with a fantasy flair.

ME TOO.

Love Dune still and happily indoctrinating my children into Pern, Piers Anthony, etc.

I was 10 in 1977.  I remember Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back as movies and loving them.  In fact, now that we've placed my age, I'm remembering it more and more...and itching to watch them! I know it won't help for SW:TOR, but it would still be fun.

I wonder --gasp!-- if my two children have ever watched these movies?!

[Mixxi]

I was 16.

My sister and I drove to San Francisco for the May 25 opening at the Coronet. We waited in line for hours in the chilly San Francisco fog. It was one of my finest moments of geekdom.

We were the last two tickets sold for the first show, and we missed the opening minutes. For me the movie started on Tatooine with R2 wandering along a dried-out streambed. The audience cheered, hissed, and clapped its way through the movie, and when it was over, we turned to the total strangers around us and talked about it until the ushers made everyone leave.

I wore this magazine ragged: http://fantasticflashbacks.blogspot.com/2009/06/1977-time-star-wars-article.html

My younger son's girlfriend has never seen Star Wars. This Christmas vacation, she's coming over to watch A New
Hope. I can't wait!

Seeing Star Wars for the first time was wonderful and magical. But I've got to say that I suspect that playing SWTOR with you folks may rival it! 

[Alcuin]

I wore this magazine ragged: http://fantasticflashbacks.blogspot.com/2009/06/1977-time-star-wars-article.html

Thank you for that link!  I was too young and in too small a town to have access to that.   I love the Lucas quote:

"My main reason for making [Star Wars] was to give people an honest, wholesome fantasy life, the kind my generation had.  We had westerns, pirate movies, all kinds of great things.  [...]  Where are the romance, the adventure, and the fun that used to be in practcally every movie made?"

Oh my gosh!  Francis Ford Coppalla, 38?  Martin Scorcese, 34?  Steven Speilberg, 30? 

@RavenMiles, you and I have similar father experiences.  I remember mine pulling me out of school to go see The Empire Stirkes Back, a surprise I'll never forget.

@Askari, action figures? Dozens.  Oh yes.  But why did Mom never understand that I needed more and more stormtroopers?  One was not enough!

[Mixxi]

  But why did Mom never understand that I needed more and more stormtroopers?  One was not enough!