On May 25, 1977, ‘Star Wars’ Premiered at These 32 Theaters

It’s amazing to think about it now, but in 1977, Star Wars opened in only 32 theaters in the United States. Sci-fi films in general were not big money-makers, so expectations for George Lucas’ space opera were pretty low – so low, in fact, that few theaters wanted to use a screen during the busy summer season to show it.

In fact, Twentieth Century Fox had to bribe theaters (in a way) to show it. At the time, theaters that wanted to screen the highly-anticipated film The Other Side of Midnight also had to screen Star Wars as well. Based on the best-selling book, The Other Side of Midnight was expected to be a big hit that summer, and Fox hoped Star Wars could ride its’ coattails to box office success.

As we now know, The Other Side of Midnight was a terrible film that flopped, while Star Wars became a cultural phenomenon.

Actually, Star Wars played in 43 theaters its opening weekend, but when the film opened on May 25 (a Wednesday), only 32 theaters actually screened the film on day one. In the days that followed, however, more theaters added Star Wars to their marquee.

Here is a restored version of the original trailer that teased audiences of what was coming.

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Several websites, including In70mm.com, have compiled a list of the theaters that screened the film on Wednesday, May 25, 1977, at its opening. Here is that list, and a notation is included if the film was shown in 70mm or with Dolby Stereo sound.

Note also that the city listed applies to the market the theater is in. Several of those theaters are in suburbs or a nearby town from the city listed. For example, #33, the Glenwood Theater, is in Overland Park, Kansas. However, it is listed as the Kansas City market.

1. Boston, MA: Charles 1-2-3 [Dolby]
2. Cincinnati, OH: Showcase Springdale [Dolby]
3. Denver, CO: Cooper [Dolby]
4. Detroit, MI: Americana [Dolby]
5. Indianapolis, IN: Eastwood [Dolby]
6. Los Angeles, CA (Hollywood): Chinese [70mm-Dolby]
7. Los Angeles, CA (Orange): City Center [70mm-Dolby]
8. Los Angeles, CA (Westwood): Avco Center [70mm-Dolby]
9. Louisville, KY: Showcase [Dolby]
10. Minneapolis, MN: Park
11. New York, NY (Hicksville): Twin South [70mm-Dolby]
12. New York, NY (Manhattan): Astor Plaza [70mm-Dolby]
13. New York, NY (Manhattan): Orpheum [70mm-Dolby]
14. New York, NY (Menlo Park, NJ): Menlo Park
15. New York, NY (Paramus, NJ): Triplex Paramus [70mm-Dolby]
16. Philadelphia, PA: Eric’s Place
17. Philadelphia, PA (Claymont, DE): Twin Tri-State Mall
18. Philadelphia, PA (Fairless Hills): Twin Fairless Hills
19. Philadelphia, PA (Pennsauken, NJ): Twin Pennsauken
20. Philadelphia, PA (Trenton, NJ): Twin Lawrenceville
21. Phoenix, AZ: Cine Capri
22. Pittsburgh, PA: Showcase East [Dolby]
23. Portland, OR: Westgate [Dolby]
24. Rock Island, IL: Showcase [Dolby]
25. Sacramento, CA: Century 25
26. Salt Lake City, UT: Centre
27. San Diego, CA: Valley Circle
28. San Francisco, CA: Coronet [70mm-Dolby]
29. San Jose, CA: Century 22
30. Seattle, WA: Cinema 150 [Dolby]
31. St. Paul, MN: Roseville 4 [Dolby]
32. Washington, D.C.: Uptown [Dolby]

The film opened at one additional theater on Thursday, May 26, 1977:

33. Kansas City, MO: Glenwood [Dolby]

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Finally, an additional ten theaters added the film on Friday, May 27, 1977.

34. Chicago, IL: Esquire [Dolby]
35. Chicago, IL (Calumet City): River Oaks
36. Chicago, IL (Lombard): Yorktown
37. Chicago, IL (Northbrook): Edens [Dolby]
38. Dallas, TX: Northpark I & II
39. Dayton, OH: Dayton Mall [Dolby]
40. Des Moines, IA: River Hills [Dolby]
41. Houston, TX: Galleria
42. Omaha, NE: Cinema Center [Dolby]
43. St. Louis, MO: CreveCoeurCiné [Dolby]