A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…

Thirty years ago those words first appeared on movie screens and began a saga that became so popular and so iconic, it became a part of our personal history.

And now it’s 30 and so are we. Those of us born in the late ‘70s grew up alongside the trilogy. I played “Star Wars” with the kids on my street. When I was the only girl, I got to be Princess Leia by default. Later, when another girl moved in, I was demoted to Chewbacca. I was not happy about that.

To this day, I still remember the gift I brought to Geof Newcomb’s birthday party. It was the orange two-seater space vehicle seen flying around Bespin’s Cloud City in “The Empire Strikes Back.” It was made by Kenner and came with one or two figurines – Lando Calrissian and maybe Lobot, too. I remember it because I wished I had one.

“Return of the Jedi” was the first movie of the trilogy I saw at the theater. I watched the other two movies on cable. “Jedi” is my favorite movie mostly because I can still remember the feeling I had sitting next to my dad in the theater and being completely absorbed into this galaxy far, far away of exotic planets, bizarre creatures, mystical powers and swash-buckling heroes. Most vividly, I remember watching the credits roll while listening to John Williams’ soundtrack and being sad that it was the last movie.

Freshmen year of high school, my friends would come over to my house after school and we would play my copy of the trilogy in the VCR ad nauseam. We played it so much, my tapes started to wear out. By the time we finally moved on to something else, we had memorized each scene and every word of dialogue. We liked to comment and make fun of the movies as we watched them together. I can still picture the four of us sitting on my daybed in my room being outrageously silly, burning off some of that energy that had built up while we spent the whole day sitting in class.

One of these friends told me about a new “Star Wars” book that continued the story of our favorite characters past the movies. It was called “Heir to the Empire” and it was written by Timothy Zahn. She let me borrow her copy. I was hooked. As I read it, I found myself picturing the novel’s plot unfolding on the big screen. I could almost hear John Williams’ soundtrack playing in the background of my mind. Zahn’s three-part series was just the beginning and I eagerly awaited the newest “Star Wars” book all through high school and college.

The Special Edition versions of the films were released while I was attending college at the University of Missouri at Columbia. It was January, February and March of my junior year and my friends and I couldn’t wait to see the updated versions that included never before seen footage, enhanced special effects and a digital THX soundtrack. We were also looking forward to the new movies. Lucas was finally getting around to making the prequels he had always planned. Finally, the saga was going to be completed and we would be drawn into that galaxy far, far away once again.

The special edition of “Return of the Jedi” opened three weeks before my 21st birthday. My friends decided to take me to see my favorite “Star Wars” movie for my birthday. That night we drove separate cars to the theater because one of my friends would be meeting us there straight from work. The friend I rode with told me we were supposed to wait for her in the lobby. She never showed and my friend suggested that we go ahead and take our seats and save her one. She led me down the aisle and stepped away at the last minute to reveal my former boyfriend sitting next to the friend we were supposed to be waiting for. My eyes opened wide and I exclaimed, “What are you doing here?!”

He attended the University of Missouri at Rolla and I had invited him to come up to Columbia for my birthday, but he had told me that he had a big test on Monday and had to stay in Rolla to study. He made that up so I would be surprised when I saw him. I remember sitting next to him and my friends as we watched the movie together. Even though I had seen the movie so many times before, it was still magical to watch it once again on the big screen. It really made my 21st birthday special.

When Attack of the Clones opened in May of 2002, I was working nights at KMOV-TV. One of the best parts about working nights is that all the managers go home around 6 p.m. and it’s just you and the rest of the crew. Putting a show together every night bonds everyone together. Working at a newspaper wasn’t anything like the way you see it depicted in the movies, but occasionally, working at a TV station could be very much like “Network” or “Broadcast News.” Most of the technical crew – directors, the sound man, the font operator, the ENG supervisor, editors, a production assistant -- and me, the Web site editor, decided to attend an 11:30 showing at the West Olive Theater in Creve Coeur. We left downtown for the show at the conclusion of the 10 o’clock news. Our group was so big; we occupied the first two rows of stadium seating. I remember sitting next to my co-workers socializing and joking around as we waited for the movie to start.

I saw “Revenge of the Sith” with the same friend who introduced me to the Timothy Zahn books. She was part of the group that sat in my room after school freshmen year watching the original trilogy on tape. We also grew up on the same street and she may have played “Star Wars” with the rest of us, my memory of those times is a little foggy. It seemed fitting. The saga had come full circle and so had we. After all, 30 years was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.