If you lived in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and you saw Star Wars in the the theatre before July 15, 1977 you went to a different county to do it because Star Wars didn't arrive at the Cinema_One until this date 43 years ago. It debuted in Nashville on June 17, 1977 at Cinema North and South and was one of the movies which played the Hermitage Four's grand opening. I didn't see Star Wars during the first week or so at the Cinema. It was probably a couple of weeks later when I went with my mother to view it. The theater was packed and we sat in the very last row. It was quite thrilling and really perfect viewing for a 10 year old boy who was already mad for outer space thanks to the Apollo missions and a steady diet of Asimov's science fiction and non-fiction books from the library. I'm not going to write about the film itself as I believe everyone is either familiar with it or will become familiar with it. Pop culture wise the movie was a behemoth dominating mass media and the public imagination that year. You really had to be there to truly understand it. I ended up with a few Star Wars figures later that year, but never snagged one of those sweet Millennium Falcon toys. I played Star Wars with friends, but I actually liked my Micronauts figures more and would often incorporate them into our own imaginary Star Wars saga. Baron Karza fit right in with Darth Vader. One thing I do remember well is that nobody ever wanted to play as Luke. He was much too immature in the movie and he came across as whiney at times (which was the point of course). We all wanted to be Han Solo. After all, he shot first and I will never forgive Lucas for tampering with his own damn movie when it was perfect the way it was originally in 1977.
Trivia: The Woody Guthrie biopic Bound For Glory was the movie that played the Cinema_One right before the Star Wars run. The Other Side of Midnight was the movie that played after the first almost 6 week run ended. Star Wars was the Cinema_One's greatest box office hit at this point in time which makes sense. You could see the movie for just a $1 on the last night it ran August 25, 1977 per the ad ran in the Daily News Journal.
Trivia: The Woody Guthrie biopic Bound For Glory was the movie that played the Cinema_One right before the Star Wars run. The Other Side of Midnight was the movie that played after the first almost 6 week run ended. Star Wars was the Cinema_One's greatest box office hit at this point in time which makes sense. You could see the movie for just a $1 on the last night it ran August 25, 1977 per the ad ran in the Daily News Journal.
Nashville ad from June 12, 1977 Sunday Showcase
Original trailer
August 25, 1977 Ad
Star Wars toy commercial
Across town at Jackson Heights Plaza the Martin Twin was offering Smokey and the Bandit and Greased Lightning. I've written about Smokey and the Bandit before as it played several times in various theaters in 1977 and 1978. When it played on HBO later on I would watch it over and over. I watched the horribly edited version on network television when it premiered. It was and still is one of my favorite movies of all time and, luckily, Hal Needham never went back to tinker with it like Lucas did with Star Wars.
I didn't see Greased Lightning at the theater. Even though it was rated PG, Richard Pryor was well known to my parents as being a foul mouthed comedian so my parents weren't going to let me see that one. Which is a shame as it would have nice to see on the big screen. It's the story of NASCAR's first black racer Wendell Scott and the film also features Pam Grier. It's no Star Wars or Smokey and the Bandit, but it's pretty good.
TV spots 1977
Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper: The Ballad of Wendell Scott
Marbro Drive-In has couple of movies. One is the 1975 William Castle production Bug all about mutant cockroaches which can start fires. The tagline's for this bonkers film are great:
They Look Like Rocks...Possess A High Intelligence...Have No Eyes...And Eat Ashes...They Travel In Your Car Exhaust...They Make Fire...They Kill.
You may be their next meal!
They kill...
The Picture You See With Your Eyes Closed.
Out of the worst nightmare!
The other movie playing there is the 1976 remake of King Kong. I wanted to see this one in the theatre, but had to wait to see it on network television years later. My friend K.D. had a poster of Kong standing atop the World Trade Center Twin Towers in his bedroom. I thought that was pretty cool. It's not a bad remake, but the 1933 original is still mind blowing to this day.
William Castle was something else
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