Slashdot Mirror
One Last Campout for Star Wars Fans
theodp writes "27-year-old graphic artist Jeff Tweiten lives on a periwinkle blue, fold-out futon on the sidewalk in front of the Cinerama Theatre in downtown Seattle. He is not homeless, but camping out for 139 days. Waiting. For what, you wonder? Tweiten is waiting for Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, which opens May 19. And yes, he's keeping a blog. 14 days down. 125 to go." In other Star Wars news: dbottaro writes "Who wants a JL421 Badonkadonk? NAO Design has built a functional Sandcrawler, ala Star Wars Episode IV. Complete with blaster-deflecting sidewalls, full interior carpeting, seating for five and a 400 watt stereo system." Reader dankinit writes "For all you Star Wars fans, a Darth Tater Mr. Potato Head will be released in February by Hasbro Inc. The new covers for the Episode III books due out a month before the movie were also posted today."
According to the friendly article, his life is not one big homage to "Star Wars," he says, and he has plenty of other interests, including classical music, modern dance, fine dining, dive bars, working out and reading about contemporary art.
Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
Just to let every one know i should have some nice tee shirts up online in a few day.
From the Seattle PI article...
To pass the time, he writes in a journal, posts to his blog, chats on the phone and touches up old stories from past "Star Wars" campouts, in hopes that, perhaps, a book deal will be extended one day.
He truly has the SW spirit of making a buck anywhere possible. George would be proud.
I think he is unemployed
did you forget to take your meds?
Here is a great letter I just got.
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to you in regards to, arguably, the world's greatest Star Wars fan, Jeff Tweiten. This name may not mean anything to you, but you may recall his exploits: Jeff was one of the guys who waited in line for over three and a half months outside Seattle's Cinerama for Star Wars Episode II.
Well now Jeff is at it again. As of January 1st, Jeff set his ass down on the concrete, and he's been there ever since. He will be there, in fact, for over five months until 'Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith' is released. I believe he allows himself ten-fifteen minutes a day to shower across the street at a Hotel (someone saves his space in "line"), but other than that, Jeff is Seattle's latest fixture: an odd mix of devotion, philosophy, and human spectacle. Most people, of course, think of this stunt as ridiculous, and the knee-jerk reaction is always to write him off as some type of lunatic fanatic.
I am writing to you because this is not the case, and someone with prominence in the science-fiction/fantasy community needs to take notice of him. Briefly: Jeff is not an attention-seeker or a local media hound, he will continue his wait with or without any recognition from the wider world; rather, Jeff is someone who, as odd as it may seem to conventional society, feels deeply motivated by the idea of "waiting" for things of value, and in a consumer driven, materialistic culture he sees as spiritually drained, this is where he's putting his time and energy down as a worthy investment. All Star Wars fans are moved by how these films capture mythic themes of heroism, discipline, and inner strength, but I would wager that very few of them have been as thoroughly transformed by these ideals as Jeff Tweiten.
I can tell you this: I have had the pleasure of meeting many astounding and impressive spiritual 'masters' in my time - I have my Masters of Divinity from Columbia's Union Theological Seminary, and I worked for many years with the Venerable Lama Pema Wangdak here in New York City and throughout India, but until the day I die, Jeff will be in my own personal top 5 list of the most creative and uniquely powerful individuals I have ever met. A successful artist from Bainbridge Island, Jeff's genius comes not only from his talent, but from that unique ability to truly transcend the opinions of contemporary society in his path to let imagination re-create him. I recognize that this still sounds like a raving fanboy at best, and a complete lunatic at worst, but here's the proof that Jeff's the real thing. Are you ready? JEFF WAITED OUTSIDE IN LINE FOR A MOVIE FOR OVER FOUR MONTHS! And now he's at it again!! I don't think any of us can really have an accurate idea of what this entails. The elements, the mental and physical demands alone would surely weed out anyone who was simply crazy or posturing. Jeff is neither, and maintains his vigil with grace, compassion, and humor.
Remember: while I'm writing this, Jeff is out on the street. He's out on the street while you're reading this, too, and while you go for lunch, forget about all of this for a few hours, and then revisit it again in your mind, Jeff is still out there, right now, on the street, waiting for Star Wars. You may very well forget about this for months, and > it won't be until April that you'll think about it again, but Jeff will still be there, constant, disciplined, a mad hatter bodhisattva manifesting as the one thing all the stuffed shirts out there will be sure to mock and look over: a sci-fi fanboy on crusade, a modern Don Quixote who is unimpressed by the siren appeals of modern culture, and instead has chosen to wait for something of true value and excitement. Whatever any of us - or him - feels about the Star Wars films, (I know his favorite is still 'Empire Strikes Back') is irrelevant, it is the ideals behind these images that moves him, and it is to these timeless and unpopular ideals that he has committed himself. Jeff is not without a sense
Reply or e-mail; don't vaguely moderate. Ex-O'Reilly/MIT employee, now a full-time Google employee.
This person is an A-1 loser.
Hasn't he seen the first two?
Unfortunately, I am not Wil Wheaton
...TWENTY YEARS AGO, when these movies were actually good! Now look at them. He's waiting for THAT?
hmeh!
Wow, everyone saying news is slow on slashdot at the moment is right, now people are just sitting waiting for Star Wars III?!?
lol what a loser
Usually we make fun of these extremist geeks by saying they'll never get laid. In this case, I think it's a given. Public indecency laws....
If he wants to be brave, he should camp out wearing a Jar Jar mask during the whole time. Chances are he'll succumb to injuries from being kicked to death by the 43rd day.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Agile Artisans
Star Wars Episode III delayed for a year, hurricanes and blizzards expected in Seatlle soon.
He needs a life.
Time is Nature's way of keeping everything from happening at once... the bitch.
...not just engineering rejects but industrial design rejects too.
Beep beep.
I'll be honored to watch his shaky Divx version!
In Gothenburg, Sweden, the homeless started camping outside movie theatres too, as a way of protesting. Only place where no one told them to leave...
I think this is just a publicity stunt and he'll be gone in a few days once he gets his name in all the papers.
What a loser....
100% Insightful
Nothing more to be said. That first sentence covers it all.
At least he's not living in his parent's basement. For the time being anyway.
"For God's sake people, get a life... I bet you've never even kissed a girl".
looks like it could be a part of the burning man festival
This is not the greatest
Reworded to something more like reality: According to the friendly article, his life is not one big homage to "Star Wars," he says, and he has plenty of other interests, including classical music [johnwilliamsmoviethemes.com], modern dance [jedifightingschool.org], fine dining [starwarscantina.com], dive bars [see previous entry], working out [see jedifightingschool again] and reading about contemporary art [starwarsasciiart.com]
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
I walk by Jeff everyday when I get off the bus at the Cinerama, headed to class (Art Institute of Seattle). I usually say hi to him if he's awake. He naps a lot, probably to help stay warm, since it's been something like 30 degrees for the last couple of weeks. My understanding is that he's doing this for charity, and I think that's damn decent of him. But even if he wasn't, somebody who's willing to sit in the cold and the noise and the smog and put up with ridicule for something they love has my respect.
I don't get it.. can't he reserve tickets or see it a week later? Infact scrap that, why doesnt he just turn up the night before it opens when all the other hardcore star-wars geeks will show up - he would still get to the front of the line? am I missing the point??
This comment does not represent the views or opinions of the user.
Complete with blaster-deflecting sidewalls
I'm sure he did extensive testing with those blasters he bought from Toys 'R Us.
the second person joins the line.... Seriously, why 5 months before the opening? Just to get in the news me thinks. I'm thinking it will be 4 months before someone joins that line with him :/
Anyone want to teach this geek a lesson?
If we all club together, we could raise funds to pay-off the cinema to NOT show the film on its opening night?
Yeah great toy to buy your kids. Look at that thing, it is EVIL. If I was 5 years old and that thing was in the same room as me with the lights off...
...movie that I can think of that would be worse for waiting in line that long for would be the Titanic. But then again at least you get to see some T&A.
In today's world of online ticket sales, they can wait online for the Star Wars movie, dressed in Vader mask and underwear, without ever having to leave mom's basement.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Come ON guys, it's a movie. And not even a great one.
no taxation without representation!
"I think 'Star Wars' is the quintessential modern myth," says Tweiten. "It's the hero story, the breaking away from home and family and proving yourself in the world."
Hence Tweiten decides to prove himself in the world by setting up a couch near a cinema and waiting half a year for a stinkin movie... Way to go, philosopher!
I guess it's for those that can't get a real one: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Bad onkadonk&r=f
Been past him a couple times now walking from downtown to belltown and back, and the whole things just smacks of stupid stunt, even more than it comes off in the article. Its not like for episode 1, when there were all these idealistic star-wars fans either too young to have had the true theater experience on eps. 4-6, or convinced that eps. 1-3 would actually carry on the earlier tradition. This guy just seems pretty pleased with himself for being THE camper at Cinerama.
Come read my stupid blagablog. Rants and Giggles
Hasn't this boy heard of torrents?
He can watch the movie at home the night it opens..
Doh!
I think his mind is camped out in the 70's.
See title for what the increasingly-angry jedigeek says about 20 minutes into the "Trek" movie.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
I remember some people camping out at a mall to be first in line to get the DVD of "The Phantom Menace". In actuality this is patheticness squared, not only was this person camping out for a crappy movie, but the fact that this is a product for a work that was probably already seen, and are multiple copies of and can be viewed at your leisure. There are no coolness points for being the first to watch a DVD. It's not like being the first to watch a film in the theatre, before the film gets scratched and stuff.
What a ridiculous waste of time. At least he could go play a video game with some friends...
Maybe he's hoping to have a vision of Ben right before he passes out, so he can become a Jedi (in the afterlife).
Geez. All he needs to do is spend the amount of time he would have spent in line at a gym, and by the time the movie comes out, he'll be so buff and fearsome to all the ubernerds, he can just walk up to the front of the line, announce cutsies, and voila. Also he will probably be healthier, and far more attractive to the opposite sex thereafter, albeit still with the geekiness and the sabers and leia in the bikini glayven.
All those grungy "graphic artists" I see sleeping on the Seattle streets are just waiting for Star Wars 9? Now I'm really glad it's finally opening - and even more glad when it finally closes, and those hardcore fans can finally go home somewhere.
--
make install -not war
When you hear about someone like this, who feeds them? How the hell can you take 139 days out of your life and still have a house? Or insurance? Or a job?
Yes, I know the standard /. answer is that he lives in his mom's basement and she takes care of him...but is that actually true?
How the @#@##% do you go on a 139 day hiatus and return to your life afterwards???
Weaselmancer
rediculous.
Follow me, Jeff Tweiten, as I wait in line for 5 months in front of the Seattle Cinerama theatre for the opening of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.
Thanks Jeff, that's a really kind offer and all, but I'll just stay here, indoors with central heating, away from the snow. And you.
He's been called a loser, a geek, a Peter Pan who refuses to grow up and get a life. A few days ago, someone called him a "bum" for the first time.
"I don't really care how people label me," Tweiten says. "If they are so narrow-minded and can only see that one aspect of me, I kind of pity them."
I'm not narrowminded. My mind is so wide, I can't decide wether to label him a loser, a geek, a Peter Pan or a bum. Hey, I think I'll label him every single one of those, right at the same time. he!
This is definitly some publicity stunt, no one would even wait 10 days for episode 3. Why 139 days?
Like the saying goes, never underestimate the bandwidth of a station wagon full of tapes. -Pyrotic
Who will protect his parents' basement???
He's quoted at the end of the article:
"But I don't want to regret not doing this. If I end up not making it, and my will is broken, and I go home, at least I'll have tried."
But yet earlier in the article:
"Probably the most elemental meaning he derives from the movies' various editions is Yoda's, "Do or do not. There is no try."
It fits in with his approach to life: "If you're going to do something, do it right. Don't half-ass it.""
The worst thing about this guy is are his attempts to describe himself as an intelligent, articulate normal person.
He does such a good job of looking reasonable, and so it makes his folly all the more ridiculous.
Si tacuisses philosophus mansisses. If you had kept quiet, you would have remained a philosopher.
when these movies were actually good! Now look at them. He's waiting for THAT?
Dude! Haven't you heard? In this one, they're gonna surf on lava!
And now I'm late for the head of the line... I gotta get my tent!
You can't take the sky from me...
in the worst natural disaster since 11/9 and he wastes his precious minutes on this earth waiting in line for a stupid movie!! I have but one thing to say to you, Tweitin: GET SOME PRIORITIES.
Imagine if this amount of slack could be used for good...
Disclaimer: I work for a company, but I don't speak for them.
Darth: Luke, I am your tater tots.
Luke: Nooooooooooooooooo! Could you pass the catsup?
goes to where he is camped, steals his shit then jumps on the couch and steals his spot in line ^^
...the Cinerama is a good place to do it. My favorite theater in Seattle. I lived on the opposite corner of that block for 3 years, so I was of course a regular.
By the time the last campout there ended, the guys had a van, a tent, a generator, cots, wifi and all the comforts of home.
He needs to get laid...and fast...oh, wait, this is Slashdot...wrong site...
This is one sad, sad motherfucker.
"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free." -- Goethe
Actually I'm quite jealous - imagine being in the position where you can devote yourself to something dotty like this without worrying about the financial consequences (I'm assuming this much).
He coule be unemployed, but maybe he has a business like these guys who work in a coffee shop?
... should kick in about a day before the opening, just a couple days in jail would really make the news.
I'm gonna try to cut in line when he's taking a shower and see what he does....hope he doesn't go jar-jar on me!
5 months or almost half a year. If he's an average guy, he'll live to be around 75 years old. So, he'll be spending almost 1/125th of his life waiting in line for a star wars movie, probably much more than that since he saw the other two barf fests.
They can get together and chat about the joys of publicity-seeking through doing corporate fan-boy stunts that get them on the front page of Slashdot.
However, in private, Lucas remarked, "I really just hired him because he's the only guy who actually *liked* the freakin' prequels."
Many Bothans died to bring you this sig.
Only because he thinks Mr. Starbucks fought the Cylons with Apollo back in the 1970s.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
I'm sure there'll be a torrent of the movie before he gets to see it.
Maybe we can send Jeff a hooker??
Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.
He's waiting in SEATTLE?
Now I'm no American but isn't Seattle like 3 hours behind New York?
Someone could conceivably see the movie in NY and phone him to tell him the ending and have an hour to spare.
Better yet, if it's a worldwide simultaneous opening day then he should make his way to Tokyo or something is he really wants to see it first. Idiot.
Is the best thing you can find to do with your life to spend 139 days sitting in front of a theatre. Where do people get the money for doing these types of things. If you have that kind of money, why are you spending it sitting in the middle of downtown instead of sitting on a beach somewhere.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
from the meesa-love-you-long-time dept.
The thought I get when I read this is so wrong.
If this man is allowed to reproduce, it will be a Darwinian tragedy. If any of my fellow women even think of touching him, I will bludgeon them to death, for great justice.
I'm only thinking about preservation of the species.
A friend got a t-shirt with Darth Tater on it ages ago. His mom bought them and he gave me one. I wish I had a photo to show.
Jory
I worked at a movie theatre .... we had people sleeping in front of the theatre for over a week.... they got pretty pissed off me walking in about 10 minutes before tix went on sale and walking out with a handful of them... :)
OK, we all agree the guy is a loser, but no one has commented on Darth-tater yet: An action figure worthy of my cubicle.
I'm a little surprised (but,not that surprised) that Lucas would allow it to be licensed, as it does not seem to take the Star Wars thing very serious. But it reaffirms the general consensus that its all about the money.
"Kittens give Morbo gas!"
Now I'm the one who could be taking his kids out of school... but I no longer feel it's something amazing. Perhaps I'm just old and disillusioned now, but I only see the marketing angels. For me, the magic from this series has all been spent.
I'll be taking my kids out of school to see the next Harry Potter, they can have that dream for their childhood instead.
A steaming cup of soykaf would be real wiz right now.
Wouldn't it be much more impressive if he actually tried to live out the themes in Star Wars that he admires? Sitting on a coach on a sidewalk for months isn't very heroic. Oh and in the article he talks about how he sees the growth from childhood to adult- looks like this guy still hasn't taken that to heart.
"I hate quotations. Tell me what you know." -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ok, so we're mostly geeks here, and I figure geeks with massive math training and coding skills should be able to think logically.
So what's the purpose of this? It can't be being the first one in the theater, there's something called "internet pre-order" for that. Besides, the first people to see it will be invited VIPs at the official premiere anyways.
So what's it?
Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
I'm as sympathetic as any fellow Slashdot reader (however much that may be)...but if you're spending 139 days sitting on the pavement, sacrificing every other aspect of life, aren't you begging to be labeled one-dimensionally?
I'd rather he lay on a sidewalk like a bum for 5 months instead of doing something more active.... like building an X-wing replica out of shipping cartons and ducktape, attaching it to his 10-speed, and repeatedly crashing into the fence of the local nuclear power plant (which he thinks is the Death Star)
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
...if they didn't let him in? :)
Quid festinatio swallonis est aetherfuga inonusti?
Africus aut Europaeus?
I sent the poor git a G-mail account, he'll need the space for the trolling.
I like muppets.
That thing that you start out with 3 of, and when you run out of them it's a game over.
I hate pointing this out, but....
:)
That's actually based on Jabba's sail barge from Return of the Jedi. It looks like this
To be a sandcrawler, it would have to look a little something like this
No actually, I love pointing this out
This may be the first time we can all agree that someone would be far less geeky if they were in their parents' basement, and not outside.
G
he doesn't have a girlfriend or if he'll start getting promotions from lucas films to do ads or whatever/
... to get laid?
In his profile he lists his favorite movies as: Cool Hand Luke, Fight Club, Free Enterprise Not one of the first five Star Wars movies made his top three, and he is going to sit outside in Seattle for 5 months!
...will he stop this silly stunt?
;)
Hmmm... that brings up an idea... maybe
I'll do a crazy stunt and see if people
offer me jobs to get me to stop.
Geeky modern art T-shirts
"As a younger kid, I was into the whole medieval knight thing..."
:)
You don't say
RP
I'm doing this too, only in Los Angeles. We're camping out for 6 weeks, raising money for charity while doing so, and we plan to have a great time. Feel free to make fun of us if you'd like, but we're going to be having fun and doing good things for sick kids, and we don't really mind that you think we're silly.
For those who are genuinely interested: the six weeks I spent (off and on) on the streets of LA in 2002 were definitely worth it -- and were superior to the three hours or so I spent in the theatre for Ep. II, to say nothing of the time I spent watching Ep. I. I made a bunch of friends, and now have about thirty-five "war stories" to tell my kids someday. It's a lot like working at Disneyland, except you don't have to slave yourself out to a mouse to participate. Also, unlike working at Disneyland, I want to do it again.
For those who are repulsed or baffled: you don't have to like it for us to enjoy ourselves. And you don't have to help, because we're already increasing our charitable donation: the last two LA lines together gathered $72,000 for the Starlight Children's Foundation, and we're already getting more for this event. We'd love to have you join us, but your approval or participation is in no way required.
(full disclosure: I am on the Media Team for the LiningUp.Net group... moreover, I was 11th in line in 2002, and I was employed part-time [by choice] throughout the event)
And if his boss finds out and he's fired? Oh well - such are the hazards of only paying your workers minimum wage.
Yeah, right.
You know, if he were 700 years old, this revelation would be kind of impressive.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Other than the obvious, campouts are stupid because Tickets for the opening showing on opening day are not at all and will not become hard to come by. This guy is supposed to be a nerd, and yet he's doing something so obsolete as to wait in line for a physical ticket.
Lines are for the past. Have fun when you can't even get in once the place is open because everyone smarter than you went to Fandango.
-- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
Couldn't he be kicked out for loitering?
Yeah, right.
It's been a cold and rainy winter here in Seattle, so I kind of have to applaud him for his bravery. Likewise, its daring for someone to put aside their life temporarily to do something entirely different (for the sake of adventure, or their beliefs, for example).
I understand this guy is really taking a huge risk because he hopes to profit in the long run (book deal, notoriety, etc), but...how does he pay his bills? Just because you drop out of "normal" society doesn't mean your appartment/house/family/job/car and normal life really go away -- what do you live on? If he isn't going to work currently, then how does he plan to re-enter the work force when this adventure is done -- maybe he's so good that it isn't a worry, but there are a lot of "graphic designers" here on the market in Seattle.
Again, I applaud people who look at the world differently, but am I the only one who doesn't quite "get" it? (or how to get away with it?)
Homer - "Second in line and I only had to miss 8 days of work."
Guy behind him - "With the money you would have earned working you could have bough tickets from a scalper."
Seriously, he's posted like a dozen replies in this article, defending himself -- always AC. Look for yourself. So much for remaining above the fray. Fuckin' pathetic.
Natalie Portman's character gets knocked-up. Anakin is turned to the dark side. The Jedis are almost all killed off. The Empire takes over.
that this guy is still a virgin?
LK
"Hi. This is my friend, Jack Shit, and you don't know him." - Lord Kano
... take out a portable DVD player and show him the first two movies; he obviously hasn't seen them and doesn't know what he's getting into.
Weren't they babbling about movies that would be set after "Return of the Jedi"?
139 days on a futon ?, in the street ?
How's he going to get lai..
Never mind, he's a Star Wars geek, he probably isn't going to notice the lack.
"I don't really care how people label me," Tweiten says. "If they are so narrow-minded and can only see that one aspect of me, I kind of pity them."
And this guy is complaining about other people being narrow-minded?
He should get a real life and grow up. Its really stupid what he is doing. Ill also watch the film and until then Ill do lots of useful and/or funny things.
I can see it now...
After five months of waiting, the movie finally arrives! He walks in, presents his ticket, and enters the theater. He quickly finds the perfect seat. Sitting down, he smiles, knowing his moment is finally here.
Then, about 15 minutes into the movie, he realizes something horrible. The older gentleman behind him is breathing REALLY loud out of his nose. For the remainder of the movie, he can do nothing but focus on the slow inhale and exhale as this mans nostrals create that perfect sleepy-time-nose-wheezing sound.
Crap.
Everybody knows that, silly. The only question remaining, the only puzzle unsolved, the only reason to go and see that darn thing is: "What kind of horrible death is Jar-Jar Binks gonna die?" Since we have not seen him in Episode IV and later.
If programs would be read like poetry, most programmers would be Vogons.
"What kind of horrible death is Jar-Jar Binks gonna die?" Since we have not seen him in Episode IV and later.
Yet. Just wait till Lucas finishes his next round of revisions.
Loser
I could understand camping out for Star Trek but this???
There are no stupid products. Only the stupid people that buy them.
You're a loser too. I find it humorous to note that your profile says you're looking for a job. Actually, you're not.
The strangest part of this story is that the last two Star Wars movies sucked. It's no longer waiting for the culmination of a great trilogy, but rather, the last desperate hope that something can be salvaged from the ruins of a mediocre, derivative series.
What's wrong with seeing movies the day after they open? Twenty-four hours too much for you?
Visit the
i say a group gets together, gets drunk, puts on masks of various starwars characters, and in the middle of the cold seattle night, and pisses all over him and his couch while he is asleep.
NAO Design has built a functional Sandcrawler, ala Star Wars Episode IV. Complete with blaster-deflecting sidewalls, full interior carpeting, seating for five and a 400 watt stereo system.
NAO design has built a vehicle, a "Land Cruiser/Tank", not a sandcrawler. The vehicle they built has absolutely nothing to do with Star Wars so far as I can tell, nor does it have anything to do with sandcrawlers. It doesn't even look remotely like one.
Just because you have a brown metal vehicle doesn't make it a sandcrawler. If anything it looks more like Jabba's sandspeeders from Episode VI.
1. He states that his occupation is as a graphic artist. Well, unless he is doing sidewalk art for change I say he is unemployed. 2. (This is the good one) Star Wars is not even listed as one of his favorite movies! This guy is sad.
He should only have to wait 10 or 20 years.
They say the first thing to go is your penis. Well, it's either that or your brain. I forget which...
I mean, wouldn't she be lonely? BAHAHAHABAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Thank you, I'll be here all week.
139 days? I wouldn't even wait that long to get a girl friend! And he is doing it for a movie? To be frank, GET A LIFE! /note to self: Get a life
Drew Crampsie - Software Developer
Open Source Business : The Tec
Unemployed derelict.
He's not doing this for the Star Wars flick, he's doing this for the 15min of fame that it'll bring him. quota -v tells me his 15min are about to be used up...
I live in Seattle and am an avid listener to BJ Shae, a radio talkshow host. He heard about Jeff's stint yet again and decided to have a phone interview with him.
Turns out, he wasn't the only one. Infact a rival radio show actually went down to see Jeff and talk with him about the camp. Jeff wasn't there. In his place was a dummy in a sleeping bag. The rival radio show waited for over 30min before giving up.
Jeff admitted to the need to take a bathroom break at a nearby cafe but, that doesn't explain the 30min of absence. He was unable to comment any further.
Just thought I would let you all know.
Now this is funny -- even us nerds on Slashdot think this guy is off his rocker. Who else is going to sympathize with him now? :^)
Slashdot's first reaction to VMware
Is it really the last campout?
Why did Lucas have employees sign non-disclosure agreements about movies 7, 8, and 9 if he's not going to make them?
Let's make fun of him being a huuuge dork while we READ SLASHOT..
:-P
Dorks.
I'm not here. This isn't happening.
I think I'll drop by tonight to say hi.
With his parents.
-G
Slashdot, would a spell-checker for posting be too much to ask? It's not rocket science!
Well, I've got to wonder about anybody who spends 4 months camping out in front of a movie theater. Is any movie that good?
I think that:
A) He likes attention, and
B) He hopes to make piles of money from this (T-shirts and a "potential book deal")
Sig cancelled due to lack of interest
This is the smartest thing I've read since I read something smarter. I just can't remember when that was.
The reason girls and Windows users don't understand UNIX is because all the documentation is in Man files.
Simple answer, maybe he is smart enough not to accumulate a shitton of debt and has stashed away enough money to live comfortable for two-three months, like a smart person should. Even if it requires sacrifice, like not get that new nVidia card or hot new AMD64 processor as soon as it hits the shelfs. Therefore, he can afford to take some time off to fuck around waiting for a movie he hopes will be worth it, maybe he was smart and invested in some Mutual Funds, bought some I-Bonds, and has a few grand in a savings account or two. But those are just my thoughts.
Is a Sig really an expression of the person behind the post or just random nonsense?
between leaving your job to travel for several months(which I've also done) and leaving your job so you can go wait in line for several months.
but these people are utterly vaccuous morons. Waiting in line for any length of time over an hour for a movie that will open simutaneously in 3000 theatres is the hallmark of some kind of dementia.
Fiat Homos et Pereat Theos
BTW, The Badonkadonk is disappointingly small. More Davros' (the creator of the Daleks) wheelchair, then a massive Jawa transport.
Who wants to read a blog of someone who obviously has no life...
This is a very geeky thing to do. And, since I am also a geek, I am very envious.
some people "pursue their dreams" of ... drinking 15 beers without passing out. Those aren't things that deserve anyone's respect or admiration.
I agree. 15 beers is easy. It only takes minor training time. Anybody who sets their goals so low isn't deserving of anyone's respect or admiration.
Up that to around 50-60 beers, and then you're talking.
- Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set him on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
He would paint different versions of the same scene. Sort of mass production for his time.
"sweet dreams are made of this..."
... when I say: Get a life.
In the unstable world in which we live in, struggling with issues of hunger, war, disease and nature, you have chosen to make your life's aim: "Star Wars". Impressive.
meh
>This is the smartest thing I've read since I read something smarter.
I agree, but that was the dumbest thing ive read since... ah forget it. I know what you meant.
... or would it have been more pragmatic to RESERVE the tickets rather than wait for 4-5 months outside the theatre?
And what's up with waiting that period of time for the fortune of seeing the movie, possibly, 2 hours earlier?
Only plausible explanation I can think of is that this guy actually *likes* to queue and wait! Different strokes and all that..
Yoda turns out to be a traitor, then regrets his actions, leading to a life of atonement, exile, and speech impediments. Obi-Wan is indicted for training a Sith lord against the will of the council and the mysterious circumstances around the death of his master. In a dark twist, Amidala is forced to keep her children by a desperate light side, whose lightsaber-cesarian results in her death. Luke, Leia, and Wedge are born. Luke is promply dropped on his face. Jar Jar binks falls for an ewok, and gives birth to a boy named "Chewie." A working jetpack and cutting torch in an acid-proof pouch is accidently dropped into the stomach of the Sarlacc Pit Monster. All of the empire's superweapons-related construction activities are subcontracted out to Jabba's Worker's Union of Punishable Evil.
In addition to all of this, there will be a series of loosely connected fight scenes drawn together by some severely thin plot strands. A new sport involving extreme speeds and force powers will be discovered just in time for the videogame version to be released. Either Jar Jar or Lucas will survive, but not both. Memories will be stomped on. Illusions of youth, shattered.
The ______ Agenda
Well I guess he beats my 62 day camp out for a bugs life tickets.
just because your a schizophrenic doesn't mean people arn't really out to get you
I didn't drink 15 beers without passing out for the "respect" or the "admiration".
I did it for the only reason worth drinking 15 beers. Because they're there man.
Appended to the end of comments you post. 120 chars.
I don't think that's what FA means...
No comment.
or maybe his parents needed some time alone.
This will end your innocence...I swear.
"Darth Vader, fuckin shit up with your lightsaber"
And I quote: Meesa free!
Not Buzzword 2.0 compliant. Please speak english.
They said they got you by your balls and demand their owed profits.
What the @#&^@! do these people do for an income? If he's drawing unemployment, I think we should all go down there and kick his ass.
-- If we don't stand up for our rights, now, there will be no right to stand up for them later.
Big mistake. Didn't sell out even on day one. No lines. Bored security guards. Bored moviegoers.
"80 Billion Tons of Jar Jar Merchandise Now 70 Percent Off" - remember last time?
I guess not. What about litter? That couch looks kind of sketchy to me...
This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
But if anyone shows up for SECOND place to camp out the whole time, now that would be pathetic.
As it is I take my hat off to him.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
After all the publicity he'll manage to gather he might as well pull a stunt like that just to piss George off.
Preserve old classics: copy your collection onto all hard drives.
kinda like that chick that lived in a tree for a year or something...
Get... A... Life!
Of course, mark hamil and harrison ford are currently under NDA to discuss Star Wars epsiodes 7-9....
"Champagne for my real friends - and real pain for my sham friends!" http://ericblade.postalboard.com/
What happens if someone steals his laptop? Does he stay or end the campout?
Given his Poor Record?
How much is the guy earning for doing this? And does he call it art?
If you get paid AND call it art, it is art.
Paint spatter, not art.
Paint spatter that I call art but nobody will pay for, not art.
Paint spatter sold for big pile of cash, art.
Painted wall paid for at minimum wage and not described as art, not art.
Ditto light bulbs flashing, pile of car tyres, animal carcasses etc.
They whose government reduces their essential liberties for temporary security, receive neither liberty nor security.
Currently 43 degrees Fahrenheit, light rain.
5 day forecast rain showers highs in the 50's lows in the 40's.
Cool Hand Luke, Fight Club, and Free Enterprise.
So "Star Wars" isBG
I work about 1 block from the Cinerama and have been walking past this guy during lunch (usually go to Ralph's - excellent sandwiches) for a while now.
I don't expect to see this guy leave anytime before May 19th.
About a week and a half a go someone decided to commit suicide by jumping off the building right in front of this guy around noon.
Police quarantined off the area with him inside. Looked like he kept reading whatever he had in his hand.
I don't even think he got up off his couch...
Here is an example of his blog:
"So I heared today that it was going to snow. If that happens i was thinking about making a snow man. If that is the case what kind of snow man would you guys like to see post it up!"
He has also posted a letter written by one of his mates which says he is the second coming but that entry posted above is the most interesting one in his blog so far.
Maybe he has better glasses than a lot of us here ? I find it hard to see any evidence of any other kind of vision in that blog.
wow. that makes me see him in a whole new light. To have taken so many cherished memories and p1ssed all over them just so that people could live real lives? That really shows dedication.
I'm filling up.
---
We spoke for about a half an hour. I don't recall a thing we said. - Colorblind James Experience
Yes, it would have been cool twenty years ago, when we were younger. The point is that such movies are not any worse than they used to be "back in my days," but that we no longer enjoy primitive storytelling, which we would have otherwised loved as kids, and which we would now remember as the coolest thing ever, just like our first sexual intercourse or car chase, which--let's face it--was an utterly laughable softcore by our current standards. So, I must disagree with you. Those movies (and their fans) are just as cool (if not cooler) as they used to be back in our days. The problem is that we are adults now and we have much important things to do than watching fairy tales.
Sincerely,
Pan Tarhei Hosé, PhD.
"Homo sum et cogito ergo odi profanum vulgus et libido."
Where on earth did you leave the question marks.!
the theatre had him removed for loitering the day before.
At the theater I worked, we had a reserve of 30 seats out of a total capacity of 1,341. Even if we were "sold out," 30 more people could potentially get in.
Yeah, right.
He could get a job at the theater for the next 139 days or whatever and then get to see the movie a couple days in advance like I did when I worked at a Regal Cinema.
I hate to say We told you so, but we did. Now will the Apple/Mac Heads finally admit PCs are going somewhere where Macs are left in the stone ages? :P
Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that all of the message IDs in this thread start with 1138 (that magic number that the article claims Lucas sticks in all of his films)?
//Information does not want to be free; it wants to breed.
That's no moon, that's a space station.
I meant to say, that's no Sandcrawler, that's a one-man desert sail skiff as seen in the Saarlac pit section of ROTJ.
No, I'm not camping out somewhere..
Dear Jeff, Get a life. Your's Truly, http101
-- Game Developers: Stop porting badly-textured games from crappy console systems!
HAsnt he heard of moviephone or ticketmaster? Its not 1977 anymore.
I'm camping out for tickets for this bomb of a movie also. Only I'm camping out on the movietickets.com web site. That other guy is so old school...physical tickets, ha!
:(
Oh crap, I left to make this post...I've lost my place in line.
I guess he's gonna be mega pissed when someone who went to the Fandango site a day before the movie comes out gets a ticket before he does...
to win the title of KING of GEEKs!! Now he just needs about 2 more years without concentual sex with a female and he's got it!!!!
If this dude has four months to kill, why can't he contribute to make the world a better place by helping with the tsunami recovery or getting involved with any number of other worthy causes out there in the world. This is incredibly selfish and just plain freakin' stupid. What a complete jackass . Don't get me wrong, I saw Episode IV 27 times in the theater when it first came out, but I WAS SEVEN YEARS OLD. Grow up people, it's just a goddamn movie.
So for you art is defined entirely by money. You're both depressing, and an utter moron -- or just trolling bitterly.
Go find out how many artists we now consider the greatest and most influential died in abject poverty with their work unsold, and come back when you've grown up.
I wish I could afford to take 139 days off to camp out for a movie.
The Dork side of the Force
If I was trolling, I would have posted as AC. Thanks for calling me a moron, come back when you have a point/clue/sense of perspective.
They whose government reduces their essential liberties for temporary security, receive neither liberty nor security.
I have all three. You're just missing them all.
But don't worry, go spend some money -- it is, after all, the only measure that means anything (apparently).
Can I take it you are a frustrated artist?
They whose government reduces their essential liberties for temporary security, receive neither liberty nor security.