Three weeks on the NYLineup

On May 1st, 1999, New York area Star Wars fans began a three week marathon "lineup" for entrance into the premiere showing of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

As a sci-fi and movie fan of many years, I was no stranger to the idea of lining up for a theatrical premiere. In fact, I had already been a "veteran" of overnight movie lineups, having waited overnight on line for several movies following the great experience I had at my very first "overnight" for the opening day show of   Star Wars: Return of the Jedi at the Loews Astor Plaza in 1983.

While many people will never understand the desire to line up overnight for a movie, I can offer many explanations for this phenomenon. Most obvious is the desire to see the movie at the first showing on opening day, which might be driven by having such incredible anticipation for the joys that an upcoming movie may hold so as to make waiting any longer than the moment the movie opens simply unbearable to the fan. Some may simply revel in the excitement of being able to say "I saw it first". To others, the experience of seeing the movie on opening day, along with an audience of fans that share one's own rabid enthusiasm, makes the first showing an exciting, exhilarating experience that is never duplicated during subsequent viewings.

Yet, as "overnights" go, many outsiders do not understand that the actual act of waiting together with a group of serious fans is in itself a fun and rewarding experience. I have made many great friends; some temporary, others everlasting, from my previous "overnight" experiences. Bottom line: whatever motivates an individual's desire to brave a night on the sidewalk for the opening of a movie, the "overnight" experience itself sparks an incredible amount of fun and exhilaration which you can carry into the movie with you; and sometimes far afterward, which inspires you to look forward to the next opportunity to "line up" again.

Times have changed quite a bit since the last time I slept overnight for a movie opening, however. At that time, there was no such thing as advanced ticket sales, no MovieFone, no "reserved seating". Waiting in line for as long as necessary was pretty much the one and only way to get yourself a ticket for opening day, and if you waited long enough, you could reliably ensure that you would get a ticket.. It also pretty much ensured that you were exhausted by the time the movie started (not necessarily a negative point, by the way!). As the buzz for Star Wars: Episode I, undeniably the MOST ANTICIPATED MOVIE PREMIERE OF ALL TIME, started growing, I began to wonder exactly what type of "strategy" I should plan to ensure myself the best chance of getting a ticket for opening day. MovieFone seemed to be a crap shoot for those who felt they might be lucky enough to get through the busy phone lines when tickets went on sale. Would people at the theater box office have a reliable stab at getting tickets while MovieFone was chugging away in the background? Add to that a changing policy from Lucasfilm and Fox as to if and when tickets would go on sale for this event, and my anxiety could be seen growing to unusual proportions.

Luckily, someone came up with a better way.

The original Star Wars: Episode I Lineup event was organized by CountingDown.com at Mann's Theater in Los Angeles as a "sponsored" and theater-approved way to camp out at the box office in order to purchase tickets for the opening day event as soon as the tickets officially went on sale. The concept quickly spread, and was repeated at many theaters across the country,  including, to my delight, the Ziegfeld theater in Manhattan, the "premiere quality" theater where I was most likely to try to attempt to get tickets for myself.

The "NYLineup" began when a group of dedicated volunteers and Star Wars fans in the New York area organized and began negotiations with the Ziegfeld theater. Unlike my own previous experiences with spontaneous lineups, this one would have the approval and cooperation of the theater at which we would lining up, including the property owners of the area we would be occupying. To circumvent any confusion or anxiety as to how and when tickets would be sold, our agreement with the theater guaranteed that a block of choice seats would be reserved for us, for sale to us at the same time that seating in the rest of the theater would be available through MovieFone or the theater box office. Our presence for the duration of the Lineup was constant, with members taking turns in shifts to make sure the line was occupied at all scheduled times, providing safety and publicity for the theater and the movie.

Fans choosing to participate in the lineup as a means of getting themselves a ticket to the premiere would sign up on a form available at the NYLineup website, signing up for particular shift periods. A minimum amount of shift time was required for those desiring a guaranteed ticket, and participants paid the NYLine organizers in advance for their tickets and were required to return a signed waiver to protect the theater and the organizers from any liability. Participation was open to anyone who wished to sign up, but the required insurance coverage for the event limited the total number of participants to 250. If you signed up early enough to get in under the limit, got your money and forms in on time, and showed up to complete the shifts you had signed up for, you were guaranteed a single ticket for yourself to see the very first showing of Star Wars: Episode I, at midnight of opening day. Needless to say, I signed up for several shifts the moment I found the sign-up sheet on the web!

But there was also much more to the event than just getting fans to wait in line for tickets. To take advantage of our fan enthusiasm for a good cause, all of the nationwide Lineup events were associated with the Starlight Children's Foundation, a charity devoted to granting wishes to seriously ill children. Lineup groups everywhere raised money for this charity by having participants get cash sponsors for their Lineup time, and by signing up corporate sponsors and collecting money from interested passersby on the street during our lineup. In addition, our Starlight sponsorship was presented in a highly visible manner to all of the media and people who stopped to see what we were up to; this provided some highly appreciated awareness of the existence and goals of this worthy charity.

The event organizers also had to make sure that everything was properly organized, in coherence with our agreement with the theater, and that all the participants were properly informed, checked in, and accounted for. Media was organized for the event, resulting in what was by far the biggest media frenzy I have ever been a participant in! News, TV crews, photographers, documentary makers, and reporters from all over the globe were with us, some during the entire three weeks of the event. My interviews were seen in European newspapers, on a German website, and one fan who flew in from Sweden to see the movie recognized me at the theater from my "appearance" on Swedish TV. We appeared on local talk shows, all of the major and minor news networks, and on local and nationwide entertainment shows such as Entertainment Tonight. If you caught a glimpse of any of this media circus during the course of the lineup, and if you remember seeing a guy wearing a conspicuous "Yoda" hat, that was me! (One elderly couple who had very little knowledge of the Star Wars universe sort of vaguely recognized my cap and the name Yoda... finally "remembering" that Yoda was the little cat who walked around and talked in that movie. After some careful thought, I realized that they were right, and I was forced to agree with them!)

Many unique sponsors for our Lineup event were also sought out: web service, provided by Voila!, including a 24 hour live "webcam" where internet surfers could get an up to date view of the current state of the lineup; restaurants who supplied free food to all the participants, and games and prizes sponsored by local stores. One of our most interesting sponsors was the Yomega yo-yo company, who not only supplied free yo-yos to all of the NYLineup participants, but came by everyday of the lineup to teach us how to perform tricks and stunts with them, and then provided a contest everyday where the most proficient yo-yo-er could win a set of as yet unreleased Phantom Menace Customizable Card Game sets. The yo-yos quickly infiltrated all aspects of our time on line, in many cases carrying through to the rest of our daily lives, as everyone practiced to get a shot at those rare Star Wars cards! At any given time, several participants could always be seen practicing their yo-yo skills; giving probably the greatest exposure of all to the Yomega company. Better than a spoken endorsement, any televised report of our event was sure to contain at least a few people yo-yo-ing in the background! That must just be what those crazy kids in New York do in their spare time!

Finally, in addition to all of the tremendous work the NYLine staff put in to plan, organize, and run this event, they set out to perform one other goal: that of getting tickets for some of the many international travelers who were planning to come into the USA for the premiere of Star Wars: Episode I, being unwilling to wait the months that it would take for the movie to open in their own countries. Did I mention that this was the most highly anticipated movie of all time? With the exact date that advance tickets were to go on sale up in the air, and the opening date moved from the weekend of May 21st to Wednesday, May 19th, many international travelers were afraid that the time they had taken to plan and pay for a trip to the states would end up in disappointment. The NYLine staff worked out a special deal with many international travelers via the NYLineup web page that enabled us to get a ticket for them within a certain guaranteed time frame (mostly for the weekend following the opening, since that is when many travelers had booked their trips before the movie's premiere date was changed) without their having to put in "shift" time at the lineup. Indeed, several international travelers came out early enough anyway to put in time on the line to get themselves a ticket and join us for the Midnight premiere (Hi, Bart!). Now that's a dedicated fan. But what an incredible effort on the part of the NYLine staff, who, in their spare time (while simultaneously working at their professional, full time jobs) put in whatever it took to get this event off the ground and saw it through to its success. For more info on the NYLine staff and the event, you can check out the official NYLine website, hosted at the Voila! network, at http://events.voila.com/NYline/.

As a NYLine participant, I ended up putting in around 65 hours of total line time for the NYLineup event. The whole thing was great fun, but I can easily pick out three particular days that will forever stand out in my memory:

May 1st, the first Saturday of the Lineup, when we had the greatest number of participants for any single shift, and by far the most media coverage. The whole day was one nonstop media frenzy, with every major and minor segment of the entertainment and news industry from every country completely represented. I was interviewed and photographed so many times that day--and translated into so many languages--that the results were completely overwhelming. After an extended interview for an article for a popular NY newspaper, I found a very large picture of myself in the New York Village Voice!. I also found myself at the beginning of Entertainment Tonight and on several local news broadcasts. Click here to see a scan of a Dutch newspaper containing a story about our lineup in NYC... the photo is of the sign that I made to mark our place in front of the theater in Manhattan! And here is a page from the online version of the German magazine Der Spiegel. To the right of the 4th picture down (of the Toys-R-Us store) you will find my interview, expertly translated into fluent German. At least I can recognize that I am, in fact, a resident of New Jersey.

That was truly one emotional, exciting, and exhausting day.

Yet that day was completely overshadowed on Wednesday, May 12th, the day that Lucasfilm had decided that advance tickets would go on sale to the general public. I started my line shift for that event the night before; as I was attempting to purchase additional tickets for friends to join me for the opening day showing, only a week away. Ticket sales were to commence at 3:00 PM on that Wednesday, and our relatively small NYLineup group would be joined by the general public that day, by everyone who would dare try for tickets for sometime during the opening week or weekend of the movie's run. By the morning of that day the line was already to the end of the block on 54th street, around the corner of 6th Avenue and up to 55th Street, and then down the entire length of the block all the way back to 7th Avenue. For anyone who is at all familiar with the "long block" structure of Manhattan, that was one really long line! The people were all friendly, joining in as little mini-communities, dueling with their light sabers, playing Star Wars card games and board games, some tapping into the bases of street lamps for power to run stereos and TVs. When the ticket booth opened, it was reported that the MovieFone system quickly went down, although some lucky callers were successful in securing tickets for themselves through the MovieFone service. I stayed around for several hours after I managed to purchase my tickets, and it was reported that the ticket booth was selling tickets to people waiting in line until 4:00 in the morning. Seating at the Ziegfeld is reserved by seat number for all movies. I did manage to secure tickets for all of my friends for the opening night event, and was later informed that the NYLineup group had indeed received their block of reserved tickets in the center front section of the theater, my preferred choice for seating in this large, 1300 seat theater. Yipee! Now, with just one week to go, all that was left to do was wait for the lights to dim and that famous, opening scrawl to begin for the first time in 16 years.

And what a day that premiere day was. If I had thought that that first day of the lineup was a well planned media frenzy, then the day the movie opened was an all-bets-are-off circus. With the Sci-Fi channel setting up a tent as a "lounge" with large TV, free YooHoo and pretzels, and games with prizes; all of the local and national TV feeds, including CNN, with their satellite transmitters lining the streets, many fans strolling around in full costume (including myself, in full Yoda garb this time, interviewed on several local TV news shows). Yet all most of us could think about was that after this long, long wait, it was only now mere hours before we would be inside of that beautiful, darkened theater, to witness what we had all been waiting for, taking place a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

Below are the photos I captured during a small part of my time on the NYLineup. Armed with a brand new camera and a heap of enthusiasm, these pictures represent one participant's view of the event preceding the premiere. (Click on a picture to bring up a larger view, then click your browser's "back" button to come back here for more...)

The beautiful Ziegfeld theater in Manhattan will be the focus of our attention for the next three weeks. Seating over 1000 patrons in a single theater, the classic red velvet and chandelier styling of the lobby and theater interior hark back to the stylish movie palaces of times gone. Don't be misled, however: as a premiere movie showcase, the Ziegfeld has a state-of-the-art digital surround sound system to accompany the excellent projection system and large screen. AND they still have a curtain that opens and closes between shows! This is the view from the front of the building that became most familiar to us during our long wait to journey within.

This is Robert, the initiator and leader or the New York Lineup, responsible for getting the event off the ground, overseeing and coordinating all aspects of the Lineup, and keeping it running smoothly from start to end. Thanks, Robert, for being a leader instead of a follower, a doer instead of a talker, and for having the energy, faith, and enthusiasm to make the NYLineup a reality! "Try not. Do! Or do not. There is no try." Robert is seen here relaxing in the popular inflatable Darth Maul chair after having spent over 36 hours straight (and awake!) on the line for one of his shifts. In the background to the left is Matt, another staff member largely responsible for the content on the NYLine official website.

Staff members Noel and Michele try to get some organizational work accomplished during one of their shifts.

Jewels is also a major player on the NYLine Staff, and a big fan of Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth. Also seen here are Matt and Robert, still in a rare moment of relaxation at the end of a 36 hour shift.

Standing opposite of Michele in the back of this photo is Alan Ginsberg. Really! The other two in this picture start a long list of people whom I met on line, but whose names I simply cannot remember or never caught. Really sorry! But I think that is Don to the right...

The weather held fair and well during most of our time on the line, but spending three weeks on the sidewalk cannot possibly be completely exempt from a bit of rain or cold. In the chair on the far right is Abbas, another "high ranking official" of the NYLine staff.

Louis tries to get NYLineup participants' attention to get them rallied up for the next part of the day's activities. In the back, on the right is Jamey, an actor who spent a lot of time giving the NYLine staff a hand wherever he could. To the left of him is Jason, and face popping up over the plastic covered sign belongs to Michelea... the official representative of the Starlight Children's Foundation on the NYLineup.

Jewels and Amit staff a table displaying pamphlets, buttons and stickers for the Starlight Children's Foundation, along with a collection jar. Passers attracted by our sign and by the fans in costume waiting in the lineup were treated to enthusiastic information on the upcoming Star Wars movie as well as to the cause we were sponsoring. A box of dog biscuits was also on hand to lure passing dog-walkers into hopefully contributing a donation!

Steven, after the NYLineup's first "graveyard" shift. The first week of the lineup, the sidewalk was manned only during day and evening hours. Starting on the second weekend, two weeks before the premiere, shifts were scheduled and attended for 24 hours a day. Steven was one of the brave souls who volunteered for the first shift through the night, photographed here by me as I arrived for my weenie Sunday morning shift as the "graveyarders" were departing.

Frank was not one of the NYLine staff of organizers, but became extremely popular as the participant who had signed up for and attended the most shifts. Seemingly there day and night at all times, he managed to keep his normal life in control (I assume!) while becoming the unchallenged leader of accumulated shift points! Note Noel in the background basking in Frank's glory.

"Line Mom," as she came to be known, was also a regular face at many of the NYLine shifts. She brought pizza and news every day to make sure we were well taken care of, and I found her to be a very philosophical, fun-loving, and well spoken fan of George Lucas and the original Star Wars Trilogy. She also entertained us with stories of her career: she was the voice of Cheetara on the animated series "Thundercats!"

Joe is NY based filmmaker who was in for the long haul of the NYLineup. And he loves Meco! He looks a bit tired here after three weeks on the line.

Most of our days on the lineup were filled with sunshine and nice weather in the bustling surroundings of midtown Manhattan.

Much of our time on the line was spent in hyperactive activity and excitement, but during slower periods, we were not devoid of entertainment. Electrical power was supplied to us courtesy of the Ziegfeld theater, and line participants brought TVs, VCRs, DVD players in notebook computers, and large stereo systems. Once we were able to get it all working together, we were able to watch an uninterrupted viewing of (what else) Star Wars out on the sidewalk of Manhattan. Other than Steven in the chair on the far left, I don't know any of these line participants' names... but that might be Miguel in the seat in front of Steven, and Don again on the far right.

As the movie grows closer, line participants can feel the excitement mounting. Here, Noel and Drew catch a break during an evening shift. Although I've been in contact with Noel in the weeks after the premiere, I never got Drew's contact info. If you are out there, Drew, email me!

I am very embarrassed that I cannot remember the name of this gentleman (on the left) who shared several shifts with me (is it Joe? If you see this, drop me a line by email! I'm really sorry to have forgotten your name). A native of Washington (I think), he traveled to Manhattan to participate in the lineup and get a chance to see the premiere in one of the best theaters the United States has to offer.

This group examines some of the free souvenirs that were distributed by the Sci-Fi cable channel during the lineup. Victor, on the left, is joined by Mike, third from the left in the back. Mike was another international visitor, from the UK, come to visit our fair city just to see Episode I.

Will, on the left, put in most oh his time in the early days of the Lineup. Behind him is either Ryan or Brian (not twins, just a name that cannot be confirmed!) He made a great impression on fellow lineup participants during his graveyard shift, but no one has been able to find him or confirm his name since. Many have asked! If you are out there, email me!

Rob, center, sits next to the ever-comfortable, ever-popular inflatable Darth Maul chair. Lineup participants were usually battling over opportunities to relax in Darth Maul's arms; this rare shot of it empty was probably the result of temporary territorial brawl.

Karen diligently practices her yo-yo technique, hoping to hone her skills enough to have a shot at a set of Star Wars collectable cards. By the end of the three week event, many members became quite proficient at the art of yo-yo, thanks to Dan and the other representatives of Yomega who supplied the yo-yos and some valuable instruction each afternoon of the lineup.

Kim, on the far left, and Steven, on the far right, are engaged in an intense Star Wars discussion with two other line members whose names I do not know.

Steven, with his Darth Maul style lightsaber, makes alternate arrangements for those who might not be swayed by his diplomatic skills.

A passing reporter stops to ask some questions of Steven and other participants of the NYLineup. Accompanying her, her young son seems more interested in joining the lineup himself!

Christina and her daughter were among the many lineup members who passed the time honing their Jedi (or Sith!) lightsaber-dueling skills.

"I have placed information vital to the survival of the rebellion into the memory banks of this R2 unit..."

After an intense confrontation with evil, every heroine deserves a bit of loving kindness, even if it comes from a Dark Lord of the Sith (especially if that Dark Lord happens to be your mother...)

Ryan (or Brian) again, on the right, on a typical NYLineup day. The rare NYLine member is to be spotted without his lightsaber!

Here he is again, this time as seen the morning following his all night graveyard shift. At some point during the night, Ryan was transformed into a Super-Star-Wars-Van-Man, courtesy of a Star Wars sleeping bag cape and some plastic bags and duct tape. In this shot, he is once again using his super powers for the good of mankind... in this case explaining to two kindly passersby exactly what it is that we are all doing out on the sidewalk for three weeks in May.

Someone else I don't know... but see how comfortable he is in the Darth Maul chair?

This group asked me to take a snapshot... Although I spent a great deal of time in the Lineup with them, I didn't happen to catch any of their names. They said they would email me for a copy of this picture, but they have not contacted me as of yet. I have copies! Where are you!

Around the corner from the Ziegfeld, the FAO Schwartz toy store was one of the best spots to catch the unveiling of the new line of Phantom Menace toys. In addition to all of the Lineup events for the premiere of the movie, fans across the country were seen lining up in front of toy stores the day the new collectibles went on sale.

The entire front facade of this famous and very visible Manhattan toy store was transformed into "Phantom Menace Central" for the duration of the movie's run.

Robert, the NYLineup originator, directs a segment for the NYLine "webcast," part of a series of line news segments and entertaining updates downloadable from the NYLine's official website hosted by Voila.com.

NY Line TV correspondents rehearse for an update.

The creation and filming of the NY Line TV segments was like a mini production set against the hoopla of the main NYLine event.

On May 18th, 1999, the marquise fronting the Ziegfeld's grand entrance was finally changed to reflect the Midnight premiere of Star Wars: Episode I.

NYLine participants, tired of being overshadowed by the reminder of the moviehouse's previous film, had their hearts set racing by this first piece of solid evidence that the moment of our deepest desire was finally, really, approaching!

And on the day of the Midnight premiere, fans and media descended upon the theater in droves. It was a media and fan driven circus the likes of which I have never seen before. The Sci-Fi channel was one of a number of media related vans lining the street in front of the theater. In addition to all the news crews, Sci-Fi had a fan "lounge" set up under a canopy tent, complete with celebrities, a large screen TV, free food, games, and some excellent prizes.

Although the fans in general seemed to enjoy all of the activity and attention, the scores of people arriving at the Ziegfeld that day were there for one purpose: to see the premiere of Episode I that evening!

In the Sci-Fi "lounge", Sci-Fi channel correspondent Desmond Crisis relaxes with fans viewing one of the Sci-Fi channels current offerings.

After all the hard work the NYLine staff put into getting the event organized and off the ground, and seeing it through three busy weeks of activity, Noel is overjoyed to pose under the newly erected "Episode I" marquise. As sundown of May 18th approaches, the goal of their labors is finally in within reach, and the theater marquise now displays a not-so-trivial reminder of this fact, as a small but adrenaline producing reward.

Rain on the day of the premiere did not stop or slow the masses of people who have been waiting, in some cases a lifetime, to experience the premiere of a new chapter in the Star Wars saga.

Joe (I think!) again, getting ready in the few hours remaining until showtime.

Even with the brass ring in sight, there is still plenty of work to do, complicated by the large volume of people, the excitement, and the rain. Here, Michele and Suzanne of the NYLine staff oversee the distribution of the line participants' personal tickets. One each, only to members who fulfilled their shift requirements, reserved seating, first choice of seating going to participants with the greatest number of shift points... 250 seats to pick and distribute, and, after three weeks of intense work, only several hours to go before the curtain goes up... Amit can be seen in the background helping to keep things under control.

Sci-Fi correspondent Desmond Crisis is seen here with Steve, a young and die-hard Star Wars fan from upstate NJ who would not even consider missing this opportunity to see his first Star Wars premiere in the Ziegfeld theater in Manhattan. Steve signed on for his NYLineup shifts early on, and was accompanied during his time on line by his father who was obviously very willing to indulge him of this chance to experience this event. Steve and his dad were back for the Midnight premiere on May 19th.

Lightsabers, costumes, role-playing, dueling... all were out in full force on the evening of the premiere. While most fans were content dueling with the commonly found plastic light-up lightsaber replicas available at all toy stores, this fan arrived welding his rare custom-made plasma-and-glass lightsaber collectable. Much more realistic and impressive than the majority of toys, and also much more expensive.

All manner of costumed fans were on hand during the lineup and for the premiere. This is one example of a couple of Stormtroopers obviously out to penalize traffic violators on behalf of the Empire.

Many fans choose to express the spirit of fun that fills them with a more casual form of Star Wars attire.

If one photograph could sum up the entire, indescribable experience of the NYLineup, it would be this one. Thank you to all the NYLine staff and participants, those I have befriended and those who I never even formally met, who made this event an exhilarating three week period, and a great, constructive opportunity to channel my Star Wars anxiety and share my excitement in the weeks before the premiere. And, of course, most of all, for the chance to actually be inside the darkened Ziegfeld theater for the first showing at Midnight, May 19th, accompanied by 1200 of the best fans in the universe (and from all over the universe!) for the amazing spectacle of Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Since then, I've seen the movie 13 times, in 6 different theaters in 4 different states. None compare to that first night! Stay in touch! See you for Episode II!

For more pictures of this event, follow the "News and Pictures" link at official NYLineup website at http://events.voila.com/NYline/.

You can see Bart's photos from his days on the line at www.win.tue.nl/cs/tt/bartb/nyline/index.html, posted after he returned to his home in the Netherlands.

British fan Kris has posted photos of his adventure to the USA for the premiere at http://www.funky26.freeserve.co.uk/ny.htm