MovieChat Forums > Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) Discussion > I saw this at the theaters 40 years ago ...

I saw this at the theaters 40 years ago tonight!

posted 5 years ago by ebhaynz (3688)
10 replies | jump to latest

Star Trek TMP premiered 40 years ago today December 7, 1979. I was there opening night with my friends Allan and Anthony..it was a wild night hanging around the theater as we had to wait in line for tickets, then wait about 3 hours because it was mostly sold out.
It was a crazy cold night at the Blue Ridge Theater on the outskirts of Kansas City, MO. I remember getting into an argument with Anthony, almost calling my parents to pick me up, then going over to Winchells(or waffle house)in the freezing cold and grabbing something to eat during our long wait.
Funny, the last thing I remember was falling asleep while the enterprise was taking that long trek through the cloud..woke up just in time to see the real identity of V-Ger. Wow, can't believe it's been 40 freakin' years!

[–] liscarkat (18429) 5 years ago

My brother and I also saw it forty years ago tonight, at the huge Edwards Theater at Fashion Island in Newport Beach, California. Everybody in the audience cheered when the music started and the names "Roddenberry", "Shatner", and "Nimoy" came up on the screen, but by a couple of hours later, most people were kind of disappointed.

[–] ebhaynz (3688) 5 years ago

that's great your audience cheered and you must've been in a lot better weather than Missouri in December. I'm pretty sure we walked out that theater and got a windy, cold blast in our face as we scampered to my dad's car. We probably said the movie was 'alright' as we struggled to warm back up again lol.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

You fell asleep to Gene Roddenberry's vision of Star Trek, his IDEAL version of it, totally like 2001: A Space Odyssey. He would not have called you a fan. Then again, Roddenberry's vision of Star Trek SUCKS, but I love the spin-offs all the same.

[–] ebhaynz (3688) 5 years ago

I remember they fast-tracked the sequel less than 18 months later and wisely dumped Roddenberry back to TV, which he was best suited for.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

Yes, and then kicked him upstairs out of the way after the first two disastrous seasons of Next Generation.

[–] ebhaynz (3688) 5 years ago

True, Roddenberry failed/fell upwards.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

[deleted]

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

"woke up just in time to see the real identity of V-Ger"

Probably mostly what you really needed to see.

[–] [deleted] 5 years ago

I saw this at the theaters 40 years ago tonight!

My condolences, LOL!

[–] trevorh321 (5495) 4 years ago

I would like to see this on the big screen.