THE REAL STORY BEHIND THE STAR WARS OPENING WEEKEND 43 YEARS AGO:

Among the 100 top-grossing domestic movie releases, there have been three occasions when two of those films opened on the same weekend.

“Dr. Zhivago” and “Thunderball” shared Christmas 1965; “The Exorcist” and “The Sting” were Christmas 1973. And on Memorial Day Weekend 1977 there was “Smokey and the Bandit”… and “Star Wars.”

Read the whole thing. For all of the talk of the dark, European-influenced auteur-driven “Easy Riders, Raging Bulls” Hollywood of the ‘70s, the industry could still turn out far more entertaining movies than today’s product. If only that Hollywood still existed.