A long time ago ... 'Star Wars' hits 30th anniversary by Rob Woollard Sun May 20, 7:49 AM ET Star Wars characters pose in front of the new forty one cent US postage stamp unveiled March 2007 at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood, California where the first Star Wars movie opened nearly 30 years ago. Thirty years after Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Han Solo were introduced to the world in "Star Wars" on May 25, 1977, the seismic impact of George Lucas's science-fiction saga is still being felt.(AFP/File/Gabriel Bouys) LOS ANGELES (AFP) - A long time ago, in a Hollywood era far, far away, the story of an intergalactic battle between good and evil took the world by storm -- and changed the movie industry forever. Thirty years after Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader and Han Solo were introduced to the world in "Star Wars" on May 25, 1977, the seismic impact of George Lucas's science-fiction saga is still being felt. Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" might have been responsible for ushering in the modern-day blockbuster era two years earlier, but "Star Wars" was the first film to become a fully-fledged cultural phenomenon. "'Jaws' was a scary movie, but 'Star Wars' became a mania," said Lew Harris of movies.com. "It was the first film that ever did that. "It single-handedly created the merchandising industry, it changed the face of science-fiction, it changed special-effects, it changed the way we look at sequels. A lot of things about 'Star Wars' were completely ground-breaking." As "Star Wars"' 30th anniversary approaches, the film remains one of the highest-grossing movies of all time. As well as six movies, "Star Wars" has spawned a cottage industry of spin-off television series, books, comics, video games, toys and other merchandise. Forbes magazine estimated in 2005 the franchise has generated as much as 20 billion dollars in revenues over the past three decades. Ironically, however, Lucas had to fight tooth and nail to persuade the film's backers, 20th Century Fox, to continue bankrolling the project during a troubled production. Fox slashed the budget for the film from 7.5 million dollars to 6.9 million just four months before shooting began, and it was only the intervention of legendary studio production chief Alan Ladd Jr that prevented further cuts. "Why did I believe in George Lucas? That's easy -- George Lucas," Ladd told AFP. Despite Ladd's confidence in Lucas, doubts swirled around the film almost up to the moment of its release. An initial screening of a rough version of the movie, for an audience of studio executives and fellow directors that included Spielberg and Brian DePalma, received an icy reception. According to past interviews, Spielberg was one of the few who could see that Lucas had struck gold. "George, it's great," he told his friend. "It's gonna make 100 million dollars." Later Ladd sought Spielberg's opinion on the film and was told simply: "You're gonna be the happiest film studio executive in Hollywood." Ladd, talking to AFP at a recent gala evening for Star Wars at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, said he first realized the studio had a smash hit after a test screening in San Francisco. "It was about 9:30 on a Saturday morning and we had a pretty mixed audience," Ladd said. "As soon as the picture started rolling and you've got that fantastic opening shot of the rebel spaceship being chased by the Imperial Destroyer people in the audience were screaming. That's when I knew." The film opened in only 32 theatres across America but quickly became a monster hit, leaving Lucas free to dictate terms for the subsequent sequels, 1980's "The Empire Strikes Back" and 1983's "The Return of the Jedi." According to Harris, the "Star Wars" sequels were revolutionary for being individual pieces of a larger puzzle. "There had been sequels before. But things like the James Bond movies were always self-contained stand alone movies," he told AFP. "What Lucas did with 'The Empire Strikes Back' is leave the story hanging in mid-air. No-one had ever dared to do that. But it kept people coming back for more." Harris said "Star Wars" appeal was derived from its simple story line and strong characters. "It's an updated fairytale," he said. "And as much as 'Star Wars' was revolutionary because of its special effects, it is easy to overlook the fact that it has character. "That was its crowning achievement. Inside of this fantastic, outer-space adventure he created a whole world that transported and immersed the audience." The final three films in the "Star Wars" sequence, while massively successful at the box-office, will be less fondly remembered because special effects took priority over character, Harris said. "If you look at the later 'Star Wars' films, there's nobody that compares to Han Solo, and you aren't engaged emotionally in the same sort of way. "The critics complained that the films looked like giant video games and there is some truth to that," Harris said. Lucas meanwhile has repeatedly rejected the notion that "Star Wars" was responsible for dumbing-down the film industry, persuading studios to favor blockbusters over serious, art house-type pictures. "'Star Wars' didn't kill the film industry or infantilize it," he said in a past interview. "Popcorn pictures have always ruled. Why do people go and see these popcorn pictures when they're not good? Why is the public so stupid? That's not my fault. I just understood what people liked to go see, and Steven (Spielberg) has too, and we go for that."
Thirty years later, 'Star Wars' force still being felt http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/05/23/star.wars.30/index.html ? "Star Wars" was released May 25, 1977, in just 40 theaters ? Blockbuster film tremendously influential ? 30th anniversary events include History Channel documentary (CNN) -- What the studio executives couldn't see, 13-year-old Stephen Colbert saw all too clearly. "We went to school the next day unable to explain to our friends how everything was different now," the "Colbert Report" host, now 43, says about his first viewing of "Star Wars" in the History Channel documentary "Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed." How right he was. "Star Wars," indeed, was a phenomenon -- one that caught most of Hollywood by surprise. Thirty years after its premiere on May 25, 1977 (in just 32 theaters), it remains the model for the summer blockbuster -- and a touchstone for two generations of moviegoers. (i-Report: Your "Star Wars" memories) With the film's 30th anniversary Friday, celebrations are kicking into high gear. Besides the History Channel special, set to air 9 p.m. ET Monday, there are: ?Several books (notably "The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film" [Del Rey]); ?"Star Wars" weekends at the Disney-MGM Studios theme park near Orlando, Florida; ?"Star Wars" Celebration IV, beginning Thursday in Los Angeles, California; ?30th-anniversary action figures, released by Hasbro; ?A screening of all six films on Cinemax on Friday; ?And even "Star Wars" postage stamps, to go along with all those R2-D2 mailboxes that the United States Postal Service has installed around the country. Not bad for a film rather unsensationally described in its own press kit as "an expression of [George Lucas'] boyhood fantasy life -- his love for 'Flash Gordon' and all the great mysteries and adventures in books and movies." (EW: The secrets of "Star Wars") 'It was touch-and-go for a time' Given that press kits are usually chock-full of hyperbole, that somewhat timid portrayal may have indicated what studio execs, and even Lucas' friends, thought of the film. After viewing a screening in March 1977, with the special effects still unfinished, Lucas' wife Marcia was aghast, according to Peter Biskind's 1970s movie history, "Easy Riders, Raging Bulls." "It's the 'At Long Last Love' of science fiction," she said, referring to a well-known bomb of the time. And the necessary special effects cost a fortune in 1977. Lucas' studio, 20th Century Fox, was nervous. "It was touch-and-go for a time," Lucas later recalled. (He wouldn't trust a studio again, creating his own company, Lucasfilm, to go along with his special-effects house, Industrial Light & Magic, for future endeavors.) But moviegoers never doubted. The film was a hit from its first day, attracting such crowds of people that its opening was featured on Walter Cronkite's "CBS Evening News." Harrison Ford was practically ripped apart while shopping at a record store. The film's theme music, redone in disco form by a musician named Meco, became a No. 1 single. The success of "Star Wars" paved the way for Lucas' entire empire, including massively successful merchandising tie-ins and five other films, broadening the "Star Wars" mythology. (Gallery: A guide to "Star Wars" characters) Observers, from casual fans to Ph.D.-laden professors, have tried to explain the reasons for the films' success. Lucas had more than "Flash Gordon" on his mind when he started writing the first film in 1973; he had the myth-probing works of Joseph Campbell as well. Lucas' universe incorporated such figures as the reluctant hero (Luke Skywalker), the reckless adventurer (Han Solo), the goofy sidekick (C-3PO, Jar Jar Binks) and -- perhaps most important -- the corrupted leader (Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader). It's a mythology that has deep resonance. "A hundred years from now someone will be sitting here discussing the impact of 'Star Wars' and they will be seeing different things in it than we are seeing today, just as today we have classes in the university on Homer," Joan Breton Connelly, who teaches "From the Iliad to 'Star Wars' " at New York University, says in "Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed." Former NBC anchor Tom Brokaw is blunter. "I thought 'Star Wars' was the quintessential Western played out in a different universe," he says in the History Channel documentary. 'All roads now lead to Tatooine' "Star Wars" changed the Hollywood universe as well. Previous box-office kings -- "The Sound of Music," "The Godfather," '70s disaster movies, even "Star Wars" predecessor "Jaws" -- were aimed primarily at adults. "Star Wars" brought in a huge teenage market that went to movies over and over (and over) again. In the decades since, this has become Hollywood's blockbuster template. In a recent column, Atlanta Journal-Constitution film critic Eleanor Ringel lamented how "Star Wars" and "Saturday Night Fever" helped kill the so-called '70s golden age, when movies ranging from "The Godfather" to "The Sting" to "Shampoo" could be both critical and box office successes. "Goodbye, Don Corleone and Travis Bickle. Hello, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Tony Manero. Move over, Little Italy and Nashville. All roads now lead to Tatooine and Brooklyn," she wrote. And though the second "Star Wars" trilogy -- "The Phantom Menace," "Attack of the Clones" and "Revenge of the Sith" -- did huge business, many fans prefer the first three films. (Most rate the second film, 1980's "The Empire Strikes Back," best; it's no coincidence that it had a script written by Lawrence Kasdan and sci-fi legend -- and noted screenwriter -- Leigh Brackett.) Nevertheless, Lucas and his collaborators succeeded in creating a legacy. "It is bad guys versus good guys, and everyone wants to see that story," says director -- and hardcore "Star Wars" fan -- Kevin Smith in the documentary. "That story will never grow tired, never grow old." The crew heads off for adventure in "Star Wars," one of the most influential hits of all time. Darth Vader's journey to the Dark Side -- and back -- is at the heart of the "Star Wars" saga.
Here's a sneak preview of their new Clone Wars Cartoon You should also check out the updated site. www.starwars.com
Next year I think. It's going to be great. Then the live action Boba Fett series is in 2009 is going to be awesome too!!
Thought this was pretty cool. Some images of Vader helmets in different forms. I liked the Doom Vader the best. http://news.com.com/2300-1026_3-6186914.html?tag=ne.gall.rbcs
Robot Chicken episodes Jedi Butter Fingers Janitor on Naboo The Janitor on Coruscant Death Star Orientation Jar Jar Returns Power Converters Ponda Baba's bad day Lukes Training Slight Weapons Malfunction Luke is alone The Emperor's Phone Call Taunton Camp Out Inside the AT-AT Vader's stuck Space Slug Chinease Delivery Lobot! Luke learns the truth Boba Fett Wins! Not fully operational battle station Janitor on the Death Star
30th? We all know sw was dead at 21. I hate to be 'that guy'... but I'm gunna be anyway. Star Wars May 25, 1977 - May 19, 1999 Rest In Peace Thanks for smothering my childhood memories in excrement Lucas.
That being said.. to answer the poll, I'd go with 'The Empire Strikes Back'. 'A New Hope' taking a close second.
