Editing Star Wars (film) (section)

=== Premiere and initial release ===
[[File:The queue outside Leicester Square Theatre.jpg|thumb|A crowd outside Leicester Square Theatre in London, the day after the film's UK premiere]]
Lucas wanted the film released in May, on the [[Memorial Day]] weekend. According to Fox executive Gareth Wigan, "Nobody had ever opened a summer film before school was out." Lucas, however, hoped the school-term release would build word-of-mouth publicity among children.{{sfn|Rinzler|2008|p=310}} Fox ultimately decided on a release date of May 25, the Wednesday before the holiday weekend. Very few theaters, however, wanted to show ''Star Wars''. To encourage exhibitors to purchase the film, Fox packaged it with [[The Other Side of Midnight (film)|''The Other Side of Midnight'']], a film based on a bestselling book. If a theater wanted to show ''Midnight,'' it was required to show ''Star Wars'' as well.<ref name="Dreams" />

Lucas's film debuted on Wednesday, May 25, 1977, in 32 theaters. Another theater was added on Thursday, and ten more began showing the film on Friday.{{sfn|Rinzler|2008|p=319}} On Wednesday, Lucas was so absorbed in work—approving advertising campaigns and mixing sound for the film's wider-release version—that he forgot the film was opening that day.{{r|Biskind}} His first glimpse of its success occurred that evening, when he and Marcia went out for dinner on [[Hollywood Boulevard]]. Across the street, crowds were lining up outside [[Grauman's Chinese Theatre|Mann's Chinese Theatre]], waiting to see ''Star Wars''.<ref name="Heritage" />{{Sfn|Rinzler|2008|pp=319-320}}

Two weeks after its release, Lucas's film was replaced by William Friedkin's ''[[Sorcerer (film)|Sorcerer]]'' at Mann's because of contractual obligations. The theater owner moved ''Star Wars'' to a less-prestigious location after quickly renovating it.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McClintock |first=Pamela |date=December 9, 2015 |title='Star Wars' Flashback: When No Theater Wanted to Show the Movie in 1977 |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/star-wars-flashback-no-theater-wanted-show-movie-1977-846864/ |access-date=March 14, 2024 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US |archive-date=October 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231018190802/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/star-wars-flashback-no-theater-wanted-show-movie-1977-846864/ |url-status=live }}</ref> After ''Sorcerer'' failed to meet expectations, Lucas's film was given a second opening at Mann's on August 3. Thousands of people attended a ceremony in which C-3PO, R2-D2 and Darth Vader placed their footprints in the theater's forecourt.<ref name="coate20040921" /><ref name="Dreams" /> By this time, ''Star Wars'' was playing in 1,096 theaters in the United States.<ref>{{cite web |title=''Star Wars'' (1977) – Weekly Box Office Results |url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekly&id=starwars4.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219051904/http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=weekly&id=starwars4.htm |archive-date=December 19, 2014 |access-date=December 19, 2014 |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]]}}</ref> Approximately 60 theaters played the film continuously for over a year. In May 1978, Lucasfilm distributed "Birthday Cake" posters to those theaters for special events on the one-year anniversary of the film's release.<ref>{{cite web |last=Zoldessy |first=Michael |date=May 25, 2012 |title=Celebrating the Original STAR WARS on its 35th Anniversary |url=http://cinematreasures.org/blog/2012/5/25/celebrating-the-original-star-wars-on-its-35th-anniversary |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141224033818/http://cinematreasures.org/blog/2012/5/25/celebrating-the-original-star-wars-on-its-35th-anniversary |archive-date=December 24, 2014 |access-date=December 22, 2014 |publisher=CinemaTreasures.org}}</ref><ref name="BirthdayPoster">{{cite web |author=Staff |title=Authentication Star Wars Birthday Cake/First Anniversary One Sheet Movie Poster |url=http://moviepostercollectors.com/MPC_Authentication_Star_Wars_Birthday_Cake.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140512223515/http://moviepostercollectors.com/MPC_Authentication_Star_Wars_Birthday_Cake.html |archive-date=May 12, 2014 |access-date=May 10, 2014 |publisher=MoviePosterCollectors.com}}</ref> ''Star Wars'' premiered in the UK on December 27, 1977. News reports of the film's popularity in America caused long lines to form at the two London theaters that first offered the film; it became available in 12 large cities in January 1978, and additional London theaters in February.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Newbold |first1=Mark |date=December 16, 2013 |title=Star Wars in the UK: 1977, the First Star Wars Christmas |url=https://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-in-ihe-uk-1977-the-first-star-wars-christmas |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150926230831/http://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-in-ihe-uk-1977-the-first-star-wars-christmas |archive-date=September 26, 2015 |access-date=October 18, 2015 |website=StarWars.com}}</ref>{{quote box
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| quote = On opening day I{{nbsp}}... did a radio call-in show{{nbsp}}... this caller, was really enthusiastic and talking about the movie in really deep detail. I said, "You know a lot about the film." He said, "Yeah, yeah, I've seen it four times already."
| source = —Gary Kurtz, on when he realized ''Star Wars'' had become a cultural phenomenon<ref>{{cite news|url=http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/star-wars-was-born-a-long-time-ago-but-not-all-that-far-far-away-in-1972-filmmakers-george-lucas-and-gary-kurtz-wer/|title=Did ''Star Wars'' become a toy story? Producer Gary Kurtz looks back|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=August 12, 2010 |access-date=May 25, 2011|author=Boucher, Geoff | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517065204/http://herocomplex.latimes.com/movies/star-wars-was-born-a-long-time-ago-but-not-all-that-far-far-away-in-1972-filmmakers-george-lucas-and-gary-kurtz-wer/ | archive-date=May 17, 2013 | url-status=live}}</ref>
}}

The film immediately broke box office records.<ref name="coate20040921">{{cite web|author=Coate, Michael|title=May 25, 1977: A Day Long Remembered|publisher=The Screening Room|date=September 21, 2004|url=http://www.fromscripttodvd.com/star_wars_a_day_long_remembered.htm |access-date=May 11, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070505131324/http://www.fromscripttodvd.com/star_wars_a_day_long_remembered.htm |archive-date=May 5, 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> Three weeks after it opened, Fox's stock price had doubled to a record high. Prior to 1977, the studio's highest annual profit was $37 million. In 1977, it posted a profit of $79 million.<ref name="Dreams" /> Lucas had instantly become very wealthy. His friend, director Francis Ford Coppola, sent a telegram to his hotel asking for money to finish his film ''[[Apocalypse Now]]''.{{r|Biskind}} Cast members became instant household names, and even technical crew members, such as model makers, were asked for autographs.<ref name="Dreams" /> When Harrison Ford visited a record store to buy an album, enthusiastic fans tore half his shirt off.{{r|Biskind}}

Lucas had been certain Spielberg's ''[[Close Encounters of the Third Kind]]'' would outperform his space opera at the box office. Before ''Star Wars'' opened, Lucas proposed to Spielberg that they trade 2.5% of the profit on each other's films. Spielberg accepted, believing Lucas's film would be the bigger hit. Spielberg still receives 2.5% of the profits from ''Star Wars''.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=How Steven Spielberg Made Millions Off 'Star Wars' After A 1977 Bet With George Lucas |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/george-lucas-star-wars-bet-made-steven-spielberg-millions-2014-3?op=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131235102/http://www.businessinsider.com/george-lucas-star-wars-bet-made-steven-spielberg-millions-2014-3 |archive-date=January 31, 2018 |access-date=March 18, 2018 |magazine=Business Insider}}</ref>