In case you haven’t checked a calendar, been on Twitter today, or haven’t come out of your Star Wars’ chilling air conditioned nerd cave in a week, it is #MayThe4th. We celebrate all things Star Wars.
While this is not a novel concept for a film franchise that has been around since the later 1970s, it’s always nice to brush up on trivia found only in a galaxy far, far away.
Here are 15 points of trivia for all things Star Wars.
May the Fun Facts Be With You!
Ewok? What’s an Ewok?!
In 1983, the world got all the feels in Wicket W. Warrick, played by the great Warwick Davis (Willow, Harry Potter, Leprechaun, Labyrinth). But did you know the word “Ewok” is never mentioned in Return of the Jedi. That species name is all a wonder of modern-day marketing (and closing credits). And, apparently, they were Asian because the Ewok language transpired from a mix of Tibetan and Nepalese. So, there’s that.
From a Text Crawl (Really) Far, Far Away
The wonder of cinema. It’s two minutes of historic cinema. Fans love reading it. The team loves making it. Except of course for the original Star Wars crew. This gem took more than three hours to create. What is now typing on a teleprompter was in 1977 placing 2-foot-wide yellow letters over a 6-foot-long black paper background. Then, a camera s-l-o-w-l-y recorded it.
May the 4th is All About the Fans
Star Wars fans spend life savings to make it to ‘Celebration.’ However, “May the 4th” was a fan-made day because puns are real. LucasFilm had nothing to do with it. Much like another pun has embodied May the 5th, or “Revenge of the Fifth,” a day to celebrate the dark side of fandom.
Who’s Your Daddy?
One of the most iconic lines in film history couldn’t have happened in today’s troll-laden days of spoilers. Tom Holland is known for having a big mouth and the Russo Brothers wrote fake scripts to throw him off. Turns out George Lucas was the forefather of spoiler-free secrets too. Durign taping, David Prowse yelled “Obi-Wan killed your father!”
Only Mark Hamill knew the secret no one else in the galaxy knew, not even Prowse. In post-production, James Earl Jones told us all the secret. Even the actors found out during the premiere. Awesome.
Yoda Lost Appendages
Poor Nonacentarian Jedi Grandmaster. The Muppet Man was found in the Dagobah system festering in the swamp waters. It’s hard to get around and do stuff, mainly since he was made with only four toes and four fingers. Then came The Phantom Menace. Hard out there for a Jedi pimp it is because, in a note of lack of artistic consistency, he lost a toe and a finger. (The Force grew them back in Revenge of the Sith.)
R2D2 and C3P0 are Eternals
Due respect to Thanos and his ilk, there are only two Eternals in the Skywalker saga — C3P0 (Anthony Daniels) and R2D2 (Kenny Baker) have appeared in every single movie, and yes, they’ll be back for the 9th and final edition. After that, happy trails droids.
What a “Wise” Ass, He Is
Yoda has inspired many Jedi masters in the galaxy, but even he was inspired–by Albert Einstein. Although Yoda was voiced by the incomparable Frank Oz, it was make-up artist Stuart Freeborn who made the intergalactic genius come to life. And he used the mind behind E=MC2 to create his face.
Jabba: Six Men and a Ton of Fur?
He eats people and slimy green things for breakfast. He must smell like ass and crackers. And he has a hankering for fetching slaves. But did you know there are six people in his outfit making him work?
Two people were in his head, including the guy who operated his left arm. One guy was his right arm, tongue, and voice. One moved his tail. Another is smothered below him using an air pump to show him breathing. Two more guys worked his eyes via remote control and his mouth via real strings. And, did you know he was supposed to be covered in fur?!
May the Trans-Force Be With You
If you know the B-sides of Star Wars you know George Lucas was interested in Girl Power. There he is, pining away on this script entitled “Adventures of the Starkiller: The Star Wars” and he noticed there wasn’t a lot of female characters. So, Luke Starkiller was rewritten as an 18-year-old girl. Of course, Luke got a twin sister and it’s all good, but can you imagine? Oh wait… we have Rey.
Etymology is a Spoiler
We talked about Anakin’s progeny being a total secret, but if you know the roots of human language (and the wild imagination of George Lucas), the spoiler was already there. The man shared in Rolling Stone that ‘Darth’ is a variation of “dark.” So, we have the side. Then, we have German or Dutch where ‘Vader’ is “Father.”
Banana Splits He Likes
Originally, Yoda wasn’t the Jedi Master coolin’ out in a swap. He was supposed to swing from trees instead. Yes, that’s a monkey with a mask and a cane trained to be Yoda. Lightsaber, much? Oh, and George thought “Buffy” would be a good name for the ageless Jedi. The whole idea is just bananas. (Sorry. Kinda.)
Star Wars Was Just Trash
Luke, Han, Leia, and the gang are literally rummaging through the Death Star finding a way to get to master control and help the rebel base. Suddenly, they find themselves in the middle of a trash compactor. And it was real trash. Reports show Mark Hamill tried to hold his breath so much, he burst a blood vessel and the cameras avoided him the rest of the shot.
Han Solo is Alive Because of Toys
In the original story line of Return of the Jedi, Han Solo was supposed to die and the Rebel forces are disintegrated sans leadership. Luke disappears into the woods of Endor and Leia probably becomes a trollop somewhere on Naboo.
Then George Lucas has an epiphany — it couldn’t merchandise Han’s death. There’s no money to made in toy sales, so we got the big Ewok celebration (only we weren’t supposed to know they were Ewoks – see number one).
Girls Can’t Fly
Apparently, film makers of the original trilogy had a thing about women and spaceships–they can’t drive. Sure, in the extended DVDs, we see some lady A-wing pilots but none were seen in the original theatrical run.
The Clones Said ‘Bye-Bye-Bye’
Boy bands. Girls love them. Young ones. Among the fans are certain movie producers. Take George Lucas. At the time of Attack of the Clones, George’s daughter Amanda was a fan of ‘N Sync. As a fangirl, she begged daddy to get them in the movie. They did tape a cameo, but were later deleted from the final cut. Hence, “Bye Bye Bye.”
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