IN A GALAXY NOT SO FAR, FAR AWAY FORCE STRONG ON OPENING NIGHT.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

HOLLYWOOD - They came dressed as Jedi knights, as Anakin Skywalker, as Princess Leia, and even as R2-D2.

Even those not in elaborate costumes wielded lightsabers and engaged in mock battles as they counted down the hours Wednesday night to the midnight debut of ``Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.''

This group of hard-core fans, nearly 200 in all, had spent parts of the last six weeks camped out on the sidewalk in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre, the historic Hollywood Boulevard venue where the original ``Star Wars'' debuted 28 years ago.

``My mom brought me here in 1977 when I was 5 and I remember the long lines,'' said 32-year-old Luis Lecca. ``I remember hiding under the seat when Darth Vader showed up on the screen.''

Lecca, a martial arts instructor from Glendale, was among those who excitedly gathered in front of Grauman's on Wednesday to be among the first to experience the final film in a movie franchise that has become a pop culture phenomenon and is expected to jump-start the movie industry's flagging summer box office season.

The fans were beside themselves with anticipation as they waited to watch Anakin Skywalker succumb to the dark side and become Darth Vader in this sixth and final ``Star Wars'' movie.

``I haven't slept,'' admitted 24-year-old Nikki Auten, a resident of Granada Hills who was dressed as Princess Leia. ``I've been totally hyper and excited.''

Auten, a student at Santa Monica College, decided to wear the Leia costume she wore for Halloween a few years ago. She also attended opening night for 1999's ``Episode I - The Phantom Menace'' and 2002's ``Episode II - Attack of the Clones.''

``I'm a dork like everybody else,'' she said, laughing. ``Seeing the movie with fans is the best way to see it.''

Playing in nearly 3,700 theaters, ``Sith'' had the widest release of any of the six ``Star Wars'' films. Three years ago, ``Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones'' debuted in 3,161 locations. Showing on as many as five screens at some multiplexes, ``Sith'' bowed at midnight on approximately 9,400 screens, more than any other movies except for last summer's ``Shrek 2'' and ``Spider-Man 2.''

Those who began lining up in front of Grauman's on April 6 initially hoped to have the movie bow there because the previous five installments had opened there. But the box office bomb ``Kingdom of Heaven'' was still booked to play at Grauman's, so ``Sith'' opened at the nearby ArcLight complex on Sunset Boulevard, less than a mile away.

But as a tribute to the fortitude of these fans, director George Lucas' company Lucasfilm arranged to have Darth Vader and a group of stormtroopers escort the group from Grauman's to the ArcLight Wednesday evening.

After all, they had not been camping out just for fun this time around. Each had sponsors and raised money for each hour spent in line for the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation.

``I can't wait to see how everybody reacts,'' said Lecca, who attended a media screening a few weeks ago, making him one of the few fans in line who had already seen the film.

Six years ago, Santa Barbara resident Jill Barnitz accompanied her then 15-year-old son, Brandon Davis, to Grauman's to wait in line to see ``Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace.''

Three years later, she again joined him because he didn't yet have a driver's license and needed a ride. This time, the 55-year-old landscape contractor came along simply because she wanted to.

``I just couldn't pass it up,'' she said. ``We've met so many people here over the years.''

For her now 21-year-old son, who is studying film and history at Santa Barbara City College, the prospect of seeing the final ``Star Wars'' put him in a reflective mood.

``I don't think it's hit me yet,'' Davis said. ``In a lot of ways, it's like the end of my adolescence, sort of a rite of passage. It transcends the film.''

Peter Genovese, 29, had similar sentiments.

``It's almost a melancholy feeling,'' he said. ``This is like the end of an era. For those of us lining up for the last six weeks, it's about the movie, but it's about more. There's a community being created and friendships being forged.''

Genovese was a behind-the-scenes force in this year's line, serving as a liaison with Lucasfilm, which assisted him in getting advance tickets for his fellow fans.

California State University, Northridge, sophomore Bryan Lee, 19, earned the title of ``1,000 Hour Man'' for all the time he spent in the line in front of Grauman's.

```Star Wars' is my life and this is the final 'Star Wars' ever,'' Lee said before joining the march to the ArcLight. ``For the first trilogy, I was either not born yet or not old enough to be in the line. Even if I think the movie is atrocious, it still would have been worth it.''

Greg Hernandez, [phone]

greg.hernandez(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Darth Vader, with stormtroopers in tow, makes his way along Hollywood Boulevard hours before the first showing of ``Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.''

(2) A legion of stormtroopers proceeds up the Walk of Fame to escort the legions of fans lined up outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre to the ArcLight.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer

(3 -- color) Stormtroopers march up Vine Street, preparing to escort ``Star Wars'' fans who had lined up in front of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood to wait for the big night.

(4) ``Star Wars'' fans follow the stormtroopers to the ArcLight complex for the first showing of the sixth and final film.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer