First time I was about 12 or 13 early 90s and I got the special longer version from the library on vhs.I sat down to watch it on a Saturday afternoon w family, and just as the opening credits rolled my Dad said turn it off, I'm not in the mood for this. I cried as he yelled at me for watching too much trek. Then like an hour later he told me I could turn it back on. I watched the film alone by myself as day turned to night, and the Enterprise plodded along thru the cloud after taking forever to get there. I paused it for dinner just as they were entering the cloud. I was wowed by the effects and music, this is a beautiful film. It really gave me chills and an undescribale feeling as that night watching a film no one else had patience for. I loved the film on first viewing. It was the last Original Series film I saw and it was and still is one of my favorite.
I don't remember the events of the very first time I saw it, but it was in December 1979 when I was 28. It was playing at one of the old ornate and fancy theaters downtown, which had been built back during the 30s or 40s or earlier. I saw the picture 5 times, paying full price each time, because I wanted the picture to make money. It wasn't exactly what I was hoping for in a Star Trek film, but it was still an impressive film on a giant screen. I know they were selling posters and special programs for it, as had happened with Star Wars. The one-sheet poster I used to have had an early tagline on it, "There is no comparison." Wish I still had that and the program book just for the keepsake value, but I don't have any of that stuff anymore.
Somebody posted a still of a massive promotional poster of the Rec Deck scene that I'd never seen before. I would LOVE a copy of that on my wall. A lot of the big promo posters were of Kirk, Spock, Decker, and Ilia in bath robe but I love the promo shots including all the supporting cast as well.
This gave me a little chuckle, and it also illustrated how a film like this can get in your head and never go away! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8X0cfl52sps
I had one of those program books, too, with all funky new aliens we never heard of again. Have no idea what became of it.
I'm sure Trumbull might have kept a few... I wish I had bought the Bandai NX-01 just to get the unused art book inside it.
I saw this film for my birthday (12/29) at the Parkway in Oakland, California, along with 'The Jerk' with a group of friends. It was awesome. Today, I still consider TMP to be my favorite because of its grand scale (which is why I am a fan of the sci-fi film '2001'). And as far as I am concerned, TMP is THE successor to TOS (as far as GR's philosophy is concerned).
I wasn't much of a fan 'way back. I skipped the theatrical showings, and ignored the network broadcasts. I remember first watching it through on Home Box or Cinemax. Must have been 1982, as I had my baby son in my lap at the time. He slept through it, though I enjoyed it. (The kid is a benchmark. When TWOK came out, he was old enough to stay with his aunt while we went to the theater to see it. He was in the car at the drive-in when we saw TSFS, and was old enough to sit through the ensuing films with us in regular theaters.)