the most important component of D&D is the players, and most specifically the DM. You’d need at least 3 people to play (the game is meant for 5 but I’d say 4 is best for starters). And one of them has to be really experienced and willing to be the DM. This person must know the rules pretty well, have a lot of imagination, patience, and good social skills. He must be fair and make sure to balance every aspect of the game. No wonder good DMs offer their services professionally.
As far as the material components go, a DMs guide for him and just one PH for everyone else should be enough, though the 3-book set seems a good idea (I assume the 3rd book is the Monster Manual). We always play with miniatures (I actually collect them so I have hundreds), but you don’t really have to. It’s good to visualise the situation by using a map and some sort of marker for your players, but these could be anything, from beans to some toy soldier you found in the attic. But of course real miniatures add to the atmosphere :)
oh and I assume you already have dice, right? Might be a good idea to have some extra d4 and d6 for the wizards, as well as several d20 (we all have our own sets).