MANATEE — As if they were vampires themselves, area “Twilight” fans of all ages were up into the wee hours this morning to get the first taste of “The Twilight Saga: New Moon.”
Bradenton resident Milla Von Borstel, 13 — decked out in a “New Moon” T-shirt with a “New Moon” cup and book in hand at Carmike’s Royal Palm 20 — had been anxiously waiting for this moment.
“I was so excited, I cried,” Von Borstel said Thursday while fellow friend Kelsey Hamilton, 14, stood by her side for vampire support. “I love (actor) Robert Pattinson.”
They, like several area moonstruck fans, showed up four hours early to see the midnight release of “New Moon” in all its glory. Von Borstel said she bought tickets two months in advance.
The midnight screening was one of the biggest, bloodthirsty openings in box office history. As of last week, thousands of midnight shows around the country hit the sold-out mark, according to Fandango, a popular movie ticket Web site.
Locally, many theaters began selling out Thursday afternoon.
As of 10:30 p.m., Royal Palm was slammed with approximately 1,500 moviegoers. It already had sold out five theaters, opened up two more and, according to general manager Thomas Bauer, was in position to open more if necessary.
It’s amazing what a juicy love story can do.
Fandango said the obsessive teen tale reaped the biggest advance ticket sales of the company’s 10-year history, soaring past “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith” and this summer’s blockbuster “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” “New Moon” even beat the first installment of the Stephenie Meyer’s vampire saga, “Twilight” — a film Von Borstel said she’s seen 1,004 times.
In the weeks leading up to the “New Moon” release, the “Twilight” series has been all the rage at the local Books-A-Million on Cortez Road, said manager Teresa Nunez.
Nunez doesn’t know why the vampire books have become the latest pop culture addiction — like blood to vampires. It’s so popular, its bite has reached beyond the target demographic.
“We have more adults than teenagers reading the books,” Nunez said. “The moms get it for their daughters and then end up reading it. They come back for more.”
And they also attend late-night movies.
Bradenton resident Joy Johnson, 52, came to Royal Palm with Caroline Peara, 48, to see an early screening of “Twilight,” before watching “New Moon.”
Johnson said many moms are secretly into the series and its lead character Edward, played by Pattinson. She said there’s nothing wrong with that. After all, Edward was born in 1901.
“He seems like he’s a teenager, but he’s older,” said Johnson, wearing a shirt that read “Twilight Mom.”
“He has wisdom, and he sparkles.”
January Holmes, features writer, can be reached at 745-7057.
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