Editing To Fly! (section)

=== Box office ===

''To Fly!'' is regarded as the first [[Blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbuster]] IMAX film.{{Efn-la|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|227}}<ref name=":7" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Champlin |first=Charles |author-link=Charles Champlin |date=February 7, 1985 |title=IMAX brings you larger than life |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-02-07-ca-5450-story.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=July 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230725094629/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-02-07-ca-5450-story.html |archive-date=July 25, 2023|quote=They made the first notable IMAX film, "To Fly," which premiered at the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum in 1976 and is still playing.}}</ref>}} Over one million people watched it during its first year at the NASM, with approximately 80% of its 485 seats occupied.<ref name=":44" /><ref name=":4" /> Initially, Collins had projected three and a half NASM visitors to view it.<ref name=":35" /> By 1980, it amassed more than 6.3 million viewers, with an average seat occupation of 77%,<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|226}} growing to 6.5 million by 1983.<ref>{{Cite news |date=March 1983 |title=Flying high at the Smithsonian |volume=37 |page=12 |work=[[Changing Times (magazine)|Changing Times]] |publisher=[[Kiplinger]] |issue=3 |id=[[ProQuest]] [https://www.proquest.com/docview/199075388/6C286CF4B4974773PQ/1 199075388]}}</ref> Over 15 million people have watched it at the museum;<ref name=":3" /> 4 million of which were in its three years,<ref name="Globe">{{Cite news|last=Arnold|first=Gary|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1979/04/05/graceful-globe-trotting/a58c5fb1-051e-4221-8f3d-6ed549f6e5bf/|title=Graceful Globe-trotting|date=April 5, 1979|access-date=August 22, 2023|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|archive-date=August 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230822074717/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1979/04/05/graceful-globe-trotting/a58c5fb1-051e-4221-8f3d-6ed549f6e5bf/|url-status=live}}</ref> then 4.5 million the following year.<ref name=":18" /> By 1982, around 100 million audiences were recorded across the US.<ref name=":16" />{{Rp|226}} By 1991, over 100 million people have viewed ''To Fly!'' at schools and on television.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Weybret|first=Marty|date=June 27, 1991|title=For movie crew, Lodi a Dutch treat|page=3|work=[[Lodi News-Sentinel]]|publisher=Horizon Publications|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19910627&id=5JszAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wTIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=929,535893|url-status=live|access-date=July 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721094632/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19910627&id=5JszAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wTIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=929%2C535893|archive-date=July 21, 2021|via=[[Google News]]}}</ref> In 1996, ''[[CBS This Morning]]'' dubbed ''To Fly!'' "the longest-running ticketed film in one location in history" and reported that it accumulated over 300 million views worldwide.<ref name=":14" /> From 2000 to 2012, there was an audience addition of 1.5 million at the NASM.<ref name=":1" /> Overall, the film is the longest-exhibited documentary and [[sponsored film]] in the world.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6" />

Museums like the NASM and NMPFT used early earnings of the film to underwrite expenses,<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Third Five Years of the 8th AF News, 1985-1989|year=1990|page=173|publisher=8AFPX Division of the [[Eighth Air Force]] Historical Society|editor-last=Woolnough|editor-first=John H.|location=[[Strasburg, Pennsylvania]]|oclc=23660412}}</ref> maintain theaters, and/or fund IMAX films.<ref name=":35" /><ref name=":27" /> It grew from $20&nbsp;million in 1993—thus being the 14th highest-grossing independently distributed film in the US and Canada (excluding erotic films)—<ref>{{Cite web |date=August 17, 1993 |title=In winner's circle |url=https://variety.com/1993/film/news/in-winner-s-circle-109686/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208233646/https://variety.com/1993/film/news/in-winner-s-circle-109686/ |archive-date=February 8, 2023 |access-date=August 30, 2023 |website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |publisher=[[Penske Media]]}}</ref> to $100&nbsp;million in 1999.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Olson |first=Eric J. |date=January 4, 1999 |title=Giant screens poised for big impact |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |volume=373 |issue=7 |page=9 |issn=0042-2738}}</ref> Up to 2000, it earned $50 million in the NASM alone.<ref name=":22" /> ''To Fly!'' was the third highest-grossing IMAX documentary as of 2002, earning $113&nbsp;million, behind ''[[The Dream Is Alive|The Dream is Alive]]'' (1985, $150&nbsp;million) and MFF's ''[[Everest (1998 film)|Everest]]'' (1998, $114&nbsp;million).<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Nicole |first=Sperling |date=April 23, 2002 |title=Imax's hopes for DMR loom large: Technology could help boost selection of giant-screen films. (Money) |magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |publisher=[[MRC (company)|MRC]] |volume=373 |issue=2 |page=13 |issn=0018-3660}}</ref> It gained a net addition of $2.7&nbsp;million up to early 2003,<ref name="Voyages" /> then a gross $900,000 throughout the year,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chautard |first=Andre |date=January 4, 2004 |title=Nature's movie mogul |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jan-04-ca-chautard4-story.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831100301/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jan-04-ca-chautard4-story.html |archive-date=August 31, 2023 |access-date=August 31, 2023 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> and another $11.3&nbsp;million up to 2011.<ref name=":36">{{Cite web|last=Rose|first=Michael|date=June 19, 2011|title=Taking IMAX to the Max: Greg MacGillivray Is the Grandmaster of the Giant Screen|url=https://www.documentary.org/feature/taking-imax-max-greg-macgillivray-grandmaster-giant-screen|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122064121/https://www.documentary.org/feature/taking-imax-max-greg-macgillivray-grandmaster-giant-screen|archive-date=November 22, 2021|access-date=November 22, 2021|publisher=[[International Documentary Association]]|location=[[Los Angeles]]}}</ref> In between that, ''[[The Numbers (website)|The Numbers]]'' reported over $86.6&nbsp;million within the US and Canada and $34.1&nbsp;million elsewhere, totaling at $120.7&nbsp;million. This meant the film became the second-highest-grossing 1976 film behind ''[[Rocky]]'', which earned $117.2&nbsp;million, and above ''[[A Star Is Born (1976 film)|A Star is Born]]'', which earned $63.1&nbsp;million.<ref>{{Cite The Numbers|id=To-Fly|title=To Fly!|access-date=December 19, 2021|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208234051/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/To-Fly#tab=summary|archive-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref> MFF reported an overall $135&nbsp;million gross as of December 2019,<ref name=":9" />{{Rp|page=3}} thus being the company's second highest-grossing documentary film after ''Everest''.<ref name=":3" />