Card #162 from the yellow (third) series set.
It doesn't look like he's all that worried about being cornered by Greedo.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
TOPPS STAR WARS CARD COUNTDOWN #4
Card #162 from the yellow (third) series set.
It doesn't look like he's all that worried about being cornered by Greedo.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
STAR WARS AT THE GLENWOOD THEATRE OVERLAND PARK KS
Today, Neato Coolville is proud to have Mike Middleton posting his memory of the first time he saw Star Wars. Mike's one of my best friends since our college days.
Take it away Mike!
Like many people my age, life changed for good on May 25, 1977. In my case though, it was one day later that my then six (almost seven) year old self experienced a childhood changing event. Star Wars opened in 32 theaters across the country on May 25, but in the Kansas City area it opened a day later for some reason. As an early birthday (my birthday was the 28th) present, my dad decided to brave the crowds and drive out to the magnificent Glenwood Theatre to see this new movie the night it opened.
The Glenwood was the Kansas City area's crown jewel of movie theaters. Located in the suburb of Overland Park, KS, it opened in 1966 as part of the Glenwood Manor motel and convention complex. Featuring an ornate chandelier in the lobby, the Glenwood had around 800 or so very comfortable seats facing the largest screen in the Kansas City area. The gigantic gold curtain that covered the screen before showtimes just hinted at what was to come.
By the mid 70's, Dickinson Theatres, who owned the Glenwood, added an additional screen right next to the main auditorium. It was very similar to the big theater but held about 500 people. It didn't matter to me where I saw it. I just could not wait. I had seen one of the trailers at another movie about a month earlier and I just could not stop thinking about this great new movie.
Needless to say, I was not disappointed. I sat perfectly still from the 20th Century Fox logo to the tail end of the credits. My dad was amazed because I was a very hyper child and to get me to sit still for two minutes let alone two hours was amazing to him. My favorite characters right off the bat were Darth Vader and Han Solo. That whole blockade runner sequence at the beginning is still my favorite part of the movie 30 years later.
Star Wars stayed exclusively at the Glenwood until Fall. I went back and saw it a couple of more times that summer. Seeing it mutliple times was even more exciting. I couldn't get enough. There will never be a moviegoing experience that will compare to that first night in 1977.
The Glenwood stayed the most popular theater in Kansas City until 2000. They added two more screens in the early 80's that prolonged the financial life of the theater. I saw many movies there through the years and there was always a big crowd. The growing popularity of multiplex theaters marked the end of grand old theaters like the Glenwood. It finally closed in 2000. On one of the last weekends it was open, the esteemed proprietor of this blog and I decided to take a souvenir of this place that meant so much to me. We cut up a small piece of the distinctive carpet and took a rock from the rock garden adjacent to screen #2. Sure it was vandalism but the place was going to be torn down anyway so why not? Now it's a parking lot for a Bob Evans which is a gigantic shame. There will never be a movie theater like the Glenwood in Kansas City again.
For more info on the Glenwood Theatre check out Cinema Treasures and Cinema Tour.
Take it away Mike!
Like many people my age, life changed for good on May 25, 1977. In my case though, it was one day later that my then six (almost seven) year old self experienced a childhood changing event. Star Wars opened in 32 theaters across the country on May 25, but in the Kansas City area it opened a day later for some reason. As an early birthday (my birthday was the 28th) present, my dad decided to brave the crowds and drive out to the magnificent Glenwood Theatre to see this new movie the night it opened.
The Glenwood was the Kansas City area's crown jewel of movie theaters. Located in the suburb of Overland Park, KS, it opened in 1966 as part of the Glenwood Manor motel and convention complex. Featuring an ornate chandelier in the lobby, the Glenwood had around 800 or so very comfortable seats facing the largest screen in the Kansas City area. The gigantic gold curtain that covered the screen before showtimes just hinted at what was to come.
By the mid 70's, Dickinson Theatres, who owned the Glenwood, added an additional screen right next to the main auditorium. It was very similar to the big theater but held about 500 people. It didn't matter to me where I saw it. I just could not wait. I had seen one of the trailers at another movie about a month earlier and I just could not stop thinking about this great new movie.
Needless to say, I was not disappointed. I sat perfectly still from the 20th Century Fox logo to the tail end of the credits. My dad was amazed because I was a very hyper child and to get me to sit still for two minutes let alone two hours was amazing to him. My favorite characters right off the bat were Darth Vader and Han Solo. That whole blockade runner sequence at the beginning is still my favorite part of the movie 30 years later.
Star Wars stayed exclusively at the Glenwood until Fall. I went back and saw it a couple of more times that summer. Seeing it mutliple times was even more exciting. I couldn't get enough. There will never be a moviegoing experience that will compare to that first night in 1977.
The Glenwood stayed the most popular theater in Kansas City until 2000. They added two more screens in the early 80's that prolonged the financial life of the theater. I saw many movies there through the years and there was always a big crowd. The growing popularity of multiplex theaters marked the end of grand old theaters like the Glenwood. It finally closed in 2000. On one of the last weekends it was open, the esteemed proprietor of this blog and I decided to take a souvenir of this place that meant so much to me. We cut up a small piece of the distinctive carpet and took a rock from the rock garden adjacent to screen #2. Sure it was vandalism but the place was going to be torn down anyway so why not? Now it's a parking lot for a Bob Evans which is a gigantic shame. There will never be a movie theater like the Glenwood in Kansas City again.
For more info on the Glenwood Theatre check out Cinema Treasures and Cinema Tour.
1977 STAR WARS TICKET STUBS
Mike has also sent me this first edition Star Wars novelization, that's from his collection and it really is an excellent piece of movie theater history. The original owner kept his ticket stubs from all the theaters he saw Star Wars and even included the dates when he saw it. This is a prime example how Star Wars really captured the imagination of so many people.
Be sure to click on the photos for a closer look.
I decided to scan in a copy of the book's cover that wasn't stapled.
Be sure to click on the photos for a closer look.
I decided to scan in a copy of the book's cover that wasn't stapled.
TOPPS STAR WARS CARD COUNTDOWN #5
Card #283 from the orange (fifth) series set.
As a kid I just couldn't get enough of the cantina and finally some cantina photos started showing up in this fifth series of cards. Since most of the cantina creatures were only on the screen for just a few seconds, these cards were great to look at and study all the monsters.
When you look at this card you can just hear the catchy cantina theme!
Friday, May 25, 2007
HAPPY 30TH BIRTHDAY, STAR WARS
(CLICK FOR A CLOSER LOOK)I was inspired by the "birthday cake" one sheet poster that was sent to theaters in 1978 to celebrate the first anniversary of Star Wars. So here is my version for the 30th anniversary. The original photo for the first anniversary poster was taken by Bob Seideman.
(My wife and I made the cake late Tuesday night, left for a family reunion on Wednesday and got back early this morning. Unfortunately the lettering on the cake didn't hold up for the few days we were gone, and I'm not really happy about how my photo turned out, but hopefully you get the idea. Sorry for the delay with today's posts)
As you're celebrating the 30th anniversary of Star Wars, you might check out some of these sites and articles. First take a look at John Rozum's fine blog , as he's also been doing 30 days of Star Wars and he has some great articles and rare photos.
This next link was sent to me by my good friend Mike Middleton and it's one of the best articles I've ever read about the opening of Star Wars.
Another excellent article is on a Star Wars blog about the Un-Sung Photographers of Star Wars. It has information about Bob Seidemann the man behind the original birthday cake photo poster.
I've mentioned this site before and it's one of my permanent links at the side, but it's worth mentioning again. Go to the Star Wars Collector's Archive, where you can view thousands of Star Wars items from rare toys to movie props to food packaging.
Don't forget to visit Star Wars.com!
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