Tag: chewbacca

Shadows of the Empire

Shadows of the Empire: The Movie-Without-the-Movie Extravaganza of 1996

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In 2015, I conducted a series of interviews with some of the people who worked on the Shadows of the Empire project concocted by Lucasfilm back in 1996. I loved the project, warts and all, from the moment it was released so it was a joy to conduct these interviews and gain multiple inside perspectives on what it was like to create such an expansive project. The essay was written for the Expanded Universe anthology called A More Civilized Age: Exploring the Star Wars Expanded Universe (2016) from my friends Rich Handley and Joe Berenato. I’ve decided to reprint the essay here on my site because I feel it sheds some more light on the nearly 30-year-old project and ended up revealing a few facts that were previously unknown to me about the inner workings of Lucasfilm at the time.

I’ve slightly edited this essay for the Internet by removing footnotes and changing them to links, and other small things like that. All quotes, unless otherwise indicated, are from my interviews. For more fun, head over to Facebook and like my Shadows of the Empire fan page.

I hope you enjoy the essay.

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Interview with Peter Mayhew
(Original posting: January 16, 2001)

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At seven feet four inches tall, it goes without saying that Peter Mayhew is a big man. Fortunately, he has a heart just as big. Not only is Peter one of the nicest Star Wars celebrities I have met but he’s always ready and willing to share his fondest memories with the fans over and over again. Peter first worked as a hospital attendant at the King’s College Hospital in London when film producer Charles Schneer cast him in Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. One year later, he became Chewbacca and entered the world of popular culture. Though he has not done much acting since the Star Wars films, he keeps very busy at conventions and is always ready to don the hairy walking carpet once again if asked, no matter the occasion. Peter is very proud of his role and his contribution to Star Wars. I recently interviewed Peter and we talked about life as Chewie, what he thinks of Chewie’s big finale in the Expanded Universe, the Holiday Special, and much more. (Original posting: January 16, 2001)

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The Chewbacca You’ve Always Wanted

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If you are anything like me, you watched Star Wars as a child and had dreams of robots, aliens, and flying through hyperspace.  For most fans there is at least one scene or character that just grabs you and becomes a favorite.  For me, that is Chewie.  Chewbacca the Wookiee.  I don’t know if it was because he growled and threw people around, or if it was the way Han somehow knew what he was saying, or just that he was so darn BIG.  Whatever it was, I’ve been collecting everything from backpacks and mugs, to action figures with his likeness.

Kenner and Hasbro have been doing Star Wars action figures since the movies came out, but a relatively new company named Hot Toys just created the Chewbacca you have (well… I have) always wanted.

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Wookiee Madness! The Russ Manning Comic Strips

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It’s Wookiees Gone Wild!

From the moment Chewbacca graced the silver screen in 1977, the word Wookiee (two e’s at the end, please) became a household name. Until Episode III, we only saw Wookiees as background characters. There was the Star Wars Holiday Special in 1978, but many fans (and even George Lucas) don’t like to think back on that bit of riveting TV as part of the real Star Wars universe.

Back in 1979, however, there was a weekly comic strip that ran in many newspapers by Russ Manning. It was a fun strip that ventured into all kinds of areas and explored many plotlines. Many planets were traveled to, including Kashyyyk – home of the Wookiees.  The planet name was going through a bit of a transitional phase at that time. It was part of the 1978 Holiday Special, but was pronounced “Kazook.” In the Russ Manning comics it’s spelled Kazhyyyk (with a z). The expanded universe finally got a hold of itself soon after and decided that the proper spelling would be Kashyyyk and that one stuck.

Special thanks go out to my friends Rich Handley and Matt Bracher for these great scans.

Here’s a short description from Rich about the strip:

These are the only Star Wars comic stories from the L.A. Times newspaper strips (except for “Planet of Kadril”) that have never been reprinted by Dark Horse Comics. They represent one of two stories that ran on Sundays during the “Gambler’s World” storyline, which ran Mondays to Saturdays. (The other story was the one about Constancia, which was reprinted in a K*B Toys one-shot by Dark Horse.) Neither of the Sunday-only stories was printed with a title.

Here’s a quick word from Matt:

The impetus is that they were ALL posted on alt.binaries.starwars at some point and I’m re-experiencing their beauty and wonder. The poster even included a week of Russ Manning dailies that I’ve never seen before; part of the Tatooine story that never saw print. (Although, missing are the two weeks of dailies that Al Williamson did adapting the first film.)

What a great trip down memory lane for comic lovers.  Enjoy!

Russ Manning Comics Set 1

 

Russ Manning Comics Set 2

The Path of Luke Skywalker

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George Lucas has stated in many interviews that the heart of the Star Wars saga revolves around the relationship between a father and a son. He might not have had those roles clearly defined at the onset or writing, as evident in the old drafts of the script, but he eventually got his characters there. The role of the son eventually went to young Luke Skywalker, who went on to embark on his “Hero’s Journey” throughout the original trilogy of films. He starts out as a young boy, is thrown into adventure with a wizard-like mentor, defies the odds, pulls off the unexpected, and becomes a hero. The path was not an easy one, however.

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On The Forest Moon

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Most of the Star Wars films are known and loved for their action packed, multi-threaded, climactic ending sequences. In Return of the Jedi, there was a large space attack happening above the forest moon of Endor, along with an epic duel between Father and Son with lightsabers and taunting by an evil menace. The battle above Endor was paired with a battle on the surface of the planet that succeeded due to the brave actions of the Rebel Alliance soldiers (and those pesky Ewoks.) Had any one of these battles gone in favor of the Empire, the galaxy might have been a very different place in the following years.

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Battle in the Desert

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Rescuing Han Solo from the clutches of Jabba was no easy task. It took a well-thought out plan, consisting of many parts and relied on cunning and chance. It all concluded with a battle in the Tatooine desert over a mostly underground creature buried in the sand. The battle and its aftermath give us lots of material to cover.

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Han Solo and the Princess

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The story of Leia and Han is a wonderful sub-plot and one of the greatest, most tenuous on-screen romances of all time. The Princess and The Pauper. Beauty and the Beast. Prom Queen and the Bad Boy. Call it what you want, it worked. Here are some of their lesser-seen moments as well as some other mentions of Han’s other love: The Millennium Falcon.

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The Battle of Yavin

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Yavin IV is a small moon orbiting the gas giant Yavin. It’s also where the Rebel Alliance decided to set up camp. Most of the battle preparation scenes took place in the hangar, briefing room, and throne room, not counting the few exterior shots. The battle obviously took place in space and there were a few changes made from script to film. Let’s take a look.

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