(Interestingly enough, the term "home theater" was copyrighted by Sam Runco, president of Runco, in the 1970s.) Although some older films had experimented with different sound technologies (notably Disney with "Fantasia") the modern-day beginnings of home theater started back in 1977 with a small movie called "Star Wars."

Looking for a more dynamic audio presentation, George Lucas, sound designer Gary Rydstrom and Dolby Laboratories created a way to immerse the audience in sound. This "surround sound" added speakers behind the audience, and anyone who saw "Star Wars" in the theater will remember the opening shot where the Imperial Cruiser flew overhead!

A surround sound system typically consists of 5 speakers and a subwoofer, often referred to as 5.1. There are three speakers in the front, a left, center and right channel and then at least two surround channels.

Newer systems add additional speaker channels including surround back (directly behind the listening position), height (well above the front channels) and width (positioned further left and right than the front channels).

Surround systems can be used not only for movie viewing, but also for TV and music listening.