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Weeks after die-hard fans started lining up outside theaters in Los Angeles, "Phantom Menace" fever finally has come to Washington. Rego, who started camping out at 7 p.m. Sunday, was all alone until Monday afternoon, when he was joined by two seniors from Sidwell Friends School. By yesterday afternoon, there were more than 200 people strung along the sidewalk on the west side of Connecticut Avenue NW. Like Rego, 29, they all had the spirit of a Jedi master – or whatever it is that possesses a sane person to spend three days living on the street to see a movie. "It's 'Star Wars,' plain and simple," explains Rego, patient with those who don't understand the passion. Each person in line will be allowed to buy 12 tickets when they go on sale beginning at 3 p.m. today. The first show is at 10 a.m. May 19. Neighboring businesses are being hospitable. Starbucks is letting line-sitters use its bathrooms. Vie de France is providing some free sandwiches. Rego even made a friend in line who allowed him to shower at his nearby apartment. But what if, after all this, the movie stinks? "It's not a critics' movie. It's a people's movie," Rego says. He won't be disappointed. "I've been waiting 16 years for this." But even after Rego gets his allotted tickets, the adventure doesn't end. Come Sunday he'll be back again with his folding chair and Redskins blanket, waiting patiently. This time to get a prime seat, of course.
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