iPhone queue leader exposed

With three days to go before the iPhone arrives, the first of Apple's projected 10 million customers are waiting outside the company's flagship 'glass cube' store on New York's Fifth Avenue.

First in the queue - iLiner No.1, if you will - is Greg Packer, who arrived at the store at 5am on Monday morning, a full 109 hours before the prized mobiles go on sale on Friday. Armed with a camping chair and a coolbox full of soft drinks and food, singleton Greg says he just wants to "take a look at it and see how it works".

Surprisingly, Greg admits to not even owning either an iPod or a Mac, and since he formed the queue, the 43-year-old has told the worldwide media that he only went into Manhattan because the his local Long Island Apple Store wouldn't let him camp outside for the week.

But his appearance at the head of the line is no coincidence. In fact, Greg - a man about as far removed from the ad's smug 'I'm a Mac' character as you could get without being Homer Simpson - is a professional publicity-seeking queuer. And sadly for Apple, he's probably not there for the year's hottest gadget, just to see his name in print. Again.

The 'First-in-line guy' got a taste for publicity back in 1995, when he claimed to have convinced a nun to give him her spare ticket to see the Pope in New York. Since then he's headed the queue to sign the British consulate's Princess Diana condolence book, was 15th in line to pay his respects to Ronald Reagan, and was the first person to see Ground Zero when the viewing platform opened. As if proof were needed of his quest for notoriety, he even waited for seven hours in sub-zero temperatures to go on a double-decker bus ride with R&B singer Brandy.

In short, here is a man who wouldn't just go to the opening of an envelope, he'd take the stamp for his collection.

Packer admits he can always be relied upon to give good man-in-the-street quotes. "I'm the best person to come to — anywhere," he says. "I always give time, and I always have an answer." One of his best came when queuing for tickets to see the New York Yankees play in the World Series for a game played on Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement.

"There's no way the Yankees will lose," he told one scribe, "but if they do, they'll certainly have something to atone for."

Sadly, his iPhone quotes have fallen well short of this mark, and his appearances at public events became so frequent that the Associated Press once circulated a memo instructing its reporters not to quote Packer in any more stories.

But Steve Jobs' disappointment that the iPhone's number-one queuer may not actually register its first sale should be eased as the queue grows later this week. David, number 3 in the queue (number 2 appeared to be taking a prolonged and no doubt much regretted comfort break when the world's media descended) is much more your typical Apple fan. He's just "here for the experience" and to "get a present for his dad" and promised to give an iPhone to charity if he could pick up a second when the doors open at 6pm on Friday. Maybe Greg will let him have his.

As well as depriving themselves of food, drink, sleep and basic sanitary requirements, the queuers will also be missing out on Apple.com's new extended guided tour of the iPhone and its functions. Which is a shame, as the video not only builds on the excitement ahead of Friday's US launch, it could also help pass the time. In fact, they could watch the 20-minute film 327 times before the doors open.

But in Wimbledon week, it's good to see that its not just Britons who can cheerfully camp on a cold pavement just to say "I was there". Lets hope for their sakes that this iPhrenzy delivers on its promises rather more than Henmania ever did.