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What was your first experience with Star Wars?

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 (Edited)

I think for many people in this forum their first Star Wars experience must have been a special moment. No matter if it was the OTs, the SEs or the prequels. I think it could be interesting to share some of these moments.

I was a ten years old boy, very much interested in Sci-Fi films, when Star Wars (later renamed A New Hope) was shown on the big screen.

For me the SW-experience started with a evening broadcast on TV. It was a monthly broadcast that featured scenes from new films to be shown in the cinema the following weeks. I was less than excited on this broadcast as there were rarely shown any films of interest for a small boy. But suddenly my world changed. A young man and a woman swung on a rope over a gap behind them guys in white protectionsuits shooting with laser weapons. Then starships flew around a big space station, firing their lasers and two guys, one in black the other in brown fighted against each other with some weapons that looked like swords made of light. A big hairy alien shouted “uuuuuaaaaaaarrrrrrrr” and some other aliens with bandages around their head and some metal parts between these bandages were seen. It was unbelievable and seemed so realistic. I had to see this movie.

I went to see it a week later. Never before I had seen such a queue in front of the cinema. I was between the lucky ones who got a ticket (I think my father was with me but I’m not to sure about this.)

The film started with a strange sequence:

A written narration that explained what was happening in the SW universe. That there was a bad bad empire and a rebellion against it. The writing disappeared and the camera angle changed, the magic started.
a yellowish planet came into sight and suddenly two spaceships appeared. Laserbeams. War in Space: Star Wars.
I remember, being puzzled about the good and the bad guys in the beginning. For a ten years old boy it is clear. Good guys: White. Bad guys: Black. Are these white guys, storming the ship, the good or the bad guys?
then suddenly there was silence and out of some mist a dark figure entered the ship and made clear who’s good and who is bad.

Dart Vader was so impressive. His height. This aura of evil…
I could continue and explain my every feeling during the film but this would be too much for the forum. Let’s stay to the key scenes. Scenes that followed me for the rest of my life.
The scene were Ben explains to Luke what the force is all about. That was pure magic underlayed with a wonderful discrete music. It got me goose bumps.

Mos Eisley. Not the cantina… no. The cantina was very special too. But it was the introducing sequence that was so special for me the first time I saw this movie:
Ben saying: “Mos Eisley space port. Nowhere you will find more scum assembled than here.” (This is a direct translation from german. I don’t know the exact words in English.)
Then the cantina scene and of course the alien who looses an arm. For a ten years old boy this was hard stuff.

This was followed by the introduction of Han . When today I see this movie, Han is my favourite character from the moment he appears. He was not at this first time. It was Luke I wanted to be.
Next big thing was the millenium falcon. Ohh man how I wanted to have this ship. To own it, to fly it and to have a buddy named Chewbacca.

Then one climax was followed by the next. The destroying of aldebaran, the first appearence of the Death Star, the fight on the death star with its humorous moments, and then Ben’s death. “The circle closes.” said Vader in the german version. “Once I was your student. Now I’m the master.” “Only a master of evil.” Ben said. “When you beat me, I will get more might than you can ever imagine.” And Vader hits him and Ben disappears. Ben was dead but he was not dead. Magic again.

Until then there had been more action, more magic, more anything than in every other film I had ever seen. And the big final was still to come. The fight on the Death Star was very close to a roller-coaster experience. It was not Luke or Red-5 or Biggs, who flew these X-Wings, it was me. “Trust to your feelings.” And at the end again goose bumps: “Luke, the force will always be with you.”

When I left the cinema I was completely exhausted and excited at the same time. When I came home I tried to get the force work for me. I closed my eyes and tried to trust my feelings. It never really worked, but it was always fascinating to try. I saw the movie four more times, before it was cancelled at the cinemas in my town. I bought the comic and the book and the radio play. I had some of the action figures, a light saber and Han’s pistol as well as a stormtrooper weapon. Most time of my childhood there existed two worlds. The real world and a Star Wars universe. I was living in both of them. Until today Star wArs A New Hope is the film I have seen most in my live. At least 14 times on the big screen (including the SE). And though my age has changed, the magic of this movie never did. I will be a lucky man if my children will have the chance to get a similar experience of magic in their live.

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My first memory is of getting R2D2 and C3P0 and taking them with me when my mother went to the bank. The woman at the desk looked at my figures and said "Oh, Ar-too-dee-too" and I looked at her like "That's not how it's pronounced". I was only 5 in 77, so I don't remember seeing Star Wars, but my parents said I did.

I do remember seeing The Empire Strikes Back and sitting in my parents wagon on the ride home asking why they didn't show Han Solo getting rescued. My father, always the cynic, said "That's so you'll come back and spend more money to see the next movie".

I remember spending a loooong time waiting in line for ROTJ with my uncle- this was before my area had a theatre with more than 3 screens. We got very close to the door and heard the announcement that it was sold out and they'd have another showing in 3 hours.
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I was only 4 in 1977 so I was too young see it when it first came out. My first experienece was when my parents got me that 45 record that you were supposed to read along with in the booklet. When Empire came out was old enough then and that was the first stars wars movie I saw. I think because of the release of Empire they rereleased Star Wars and I saw Star Wars then. The movies blew me away. I still remember all the debates I had at school as to whether or not Vader was Luke's father. It seemed like it took 50 years until Jedi came out. I still have all three of the 45 records made for the OT. As far as I know they can still play(which is a miracle concidering how many times I must have played them growing up) althought I haven't played them in years because I'm affraid of the damage it might do to them. I still remember sitting there in the movie theaters wide eyed watching each one for the first time, and then playing them over and over againg when they came out on VHS. Unless you grew up during the release of these movies I don't think you can understand what the OT means to us
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Y'know, after thinking about it it's kinda funny, but I became a Star Wars fan by accident.

When Star Wars first came out I guess I was around 5 or 6, and had no idea what Star Wars was. My first SW memory was of walking around downtown with my mom and we walking past a familiar theatre. In those days they had not just the poster up, but lots of little photos pinned up around it outside, and I remember seeing the cockpit shot of them all in the Millennium Falcon and I thought it was really cool that an ape (Chewie) was one of them (I was a big fan of King Kong and other monster movies). I asked my mom to take me to see whatever movie it was and she said sure.

But after shopping for the rest of the day, we went home. Mom! You promised to take me to the movie (yeah, kinda bratty I know, but that's what kids are)! When your dad gets home from work, he'll take you. Really?! I was so excited that I remember getting dressed early (I loved going to the movies, who didn't?) and hand-washed my own T-shirt, and laid it out to dry on the living room sofa (yeah, that's a whole other story). So my poor dad came home from a long day at work only to get roped into taking me out.

It was dark that night and really late, that's all I remember, but at least we got into see it. Like I said, I didn't know what Star Wars was and I had no idea what to expect. I was literally blown away. My dad slept through most of it (and started a tradition while he was at it) of course. I may not have known what Star Wars was before I went in, but I definitely knew after I came out. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before.

I went home, grabbed a ball and stuck two pieces of card board to it and made my own tie-fighter! It was my second or third attempt at deliberate creativity, something that has lasted me my whole life. The rest of the story is pretty much the usual fanboy stuff, buying up as many toys as I could get (and wasting all my parents money while I was at it) and playing SW with the other kids at school. Star Wars became a huge part of my childhood, and I didn't even really know what it was about. Ya see my English was so bad that I had no idea what any of the dialogue was about, but I got the story visually, and that was more than enough.

I suppose if we hadn't walked by the theatre that day, and saw that SW photo, and then got my dad to take me that night, I might never have seen Star Wars in the theatre. I probably would have went to school and wondered what that 'Star Wars' thing was all the other kids were talking about.
The original Star Wars trilogy: Our cultural history deserves to be preserved and should be available to the public like all great works of art!
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Like my twin counterpart, I was only 5 in 1977. I had the action figures, the posters, etc.. I didn't really own any of the movies themselves until 1995 when the trilogy pack was released for the last time in it's original version. I've since bought a used copy of the 1992 Special Letterbox Collector's Edition. Like you guys, the magic of Star Wars withstood the tests of time.
"May the force be with you!"
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I had VHS tapes when I was five. They were pan scan but I loved um anyway. I wasn't alive in 1977. I was born in 1987 ten years later. I still have always loved them. Don't know where those tapes are now I haven't watched them since 1997.
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My first set was Pan & Scan. I never knew what Widescreen was till much later. I think around the time the Faces edition came out. I just kinda assumed that when the Hoth trooper looked through his binoculars at the AT-ATs, that the binoculars made them look really tall and thin. Never realized that it was because the entire screen was squeezed in from the sides to 4:3 aspect ratio to keep from cutting off anything on the side. Silly, young me.
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Originally posted by: Bossk
My first set was Pan & Scan. I never knew what Widescreen was till much later. I think around the time the Faces edition came out. I just kinda assumed that when the Hoth trooper looked through his binoculars at the AT-ATs, that the binoculars made them look really tall and thin. Never realized that it was because the entire screen was squeezed in from the sides to 4:3 aspect ratio to keep from cutting off anything on the side. Silly, young me.


Yea, its a horror what pan and scam does to widescreen movies. I'd like to find the guys responsible, get a light saber and cut their sides off and see how they like it!

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Funny I agree Pan Scanning sucks. The Star Wars movies look especially bad in pan scan. All five look horrendus. Hell in Pan Scan you can't even read the beginning writing.
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My fisrt experiance was watching Star Wars in 77 at the Odeon Leicester square, London, with my Uncle when I was 6 or 7 and falling asleep, coz I thought it was "boring"

Then It came to my local cinema, and for some reason I watched it about 7 times , coz I thought it was "Brilliant"

Then the figures came out....Well put it this way, I can't imagine my life without having Star Wars in it!!




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I have so many fond memories of Star Wars...

But I think the best has to be when Jedi first came to our cinema.

But thats another story, which I don't have time to tell right now!!!!!!!!!

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seeing ANH in 1977 in the theatre, with my mom, being 1 year old.
"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent."
Qui-Gon Jinn (R.I.P.)
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Originally posted by: motti_soL
seeing ANH in 1977 in the theatre, with my mom, being 1 year old.


One year old?

The force must be strong in you, that you still can remember. :-)
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stronger than you think...

my mom told me...
"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent."
Qui-Gon Jinn (R.I.P.)
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Myfirst memory of starwars was when i was about five. Then after that i have had a star wars birthday every year.
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my first real memory that noone told me about is from when i was about 4 years old and my brothers and me were walking around geneva and then we went in to see ESB...
"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent."
Qui-Gon Jinn (R.I.P.)