For our first post we thought it would be sort of a fun introduction to come up with some questions and then each take a turn answering them. So, this first post of Another Star Wars Blog is long and sort of wordy.
I personally hope that we can do a "Star Quiz" on occasion, as it was fun coming up with the questions and a blast reading everyone's answers.
Hope you enjoy and as we say on ASWB... STAR WARS!!!
Q: Your first memory of seeing Star Wars (or any of the
Star Wars movies) for the
first time.
A:
Brian A – It's funny, I don't remember anything that day
before seeing Star Wars but I remember watching the movie and walking out
afterwards. I was 10 years old and it felt like life was never going to
be the same… and I know how corny that sounds, believe me. I was just so
blown away by the movie. It's been said a billion times before but it was
just so REAL and different than any film I had watched before. I saw it
at Rimrock 4 theatre at a local mall with a friend of mine. I went on to
work at that theater, later, as a teenager… and met my wife there, too.
Brian B – My family was on vacation in Boonesborough,
Kentucky in 1977.
We had been to Fort Boonesborough and soaked in the history there
but three boys still had plenty of energy so Dad took us to a movie.
We didn't know what we were going to see but Dad said all the guys
at work said there was a cowboy movie in space that was really good.
I was 12 and grew up wanting to be an Astronaut. I remember
Dad taking us out into the back yard and looking at the moon as he told us
"Men are walking on there right now boys!” So to see spaceships, robots,
laser blasters and Lightsabers took our breath away. We had never seen
anything like it before. In the morning we were wearing coonskin caps and
shooting play flintlocks rifles but that night our guns were laser blasters and
went "phew -phew" instead of "Ka-pow!” It changed our
world.
One funny thing that happened in the first viewing was during the
Cantina scene. After Obi-Wan cut off the guys arm off a guy stood up and
took a flash picture of it. I remember Dad saying, "That guy's going
to be surprised to see a white screen Instead of a severed arm." since he
had used a flash.
Chunky B – My first memory was walking into the
Galaxy Theater a few minutes late, after the titles and story text had scrolled
by, and my first vision was of the Star Destroyer passing over head. I just
stood in the aisle as my Father was finding seats for us. I never once moved my
eyes from the screen.
I was ushered into a seat by my Dad, who had to get
back out of his to remove me from the aisle. I feel like I didn’t blink during
the rest of the movie.
It was not until later that I would see the titles,
months later to be exact. My parents decided to load me into our 1976 Vega and
go see a movie they wanted to see at the Drive in, I was not interested in the
least in seeing Saturday Night Fever, so I had my blanket and pillow spread out
in the back (it was a hatch back) and was settling in when I noticed another
movie starting on the opposite screen, I wondered no more what it was as I
watched the story unfold again with out sound.
Q: For those that weren't there, can you describe what
life was like in 70s when Star Wars was first released?
A:
Brian A – Life was SO different back then. Without
all the pre-hype films have backing them today, Star Wars just kind of hit
everyone like a ton of bricks. No one really knew what to expect.
Star Wars became a huge phenomenon with EVERYBODY… parents, cool kids,
geek kids, dogs, parrots, everybody. The 70s were a time without much
high-tech to speak of… no cell phones, no Internet, no hi-def TVs, no home
computers (at least not till the very late 70s and it was nowhere near a common
thing, even then, and they really didn't do much). About the most
high-tech things in homes, back then, were Color TVs, Stereo Hi Fis, Polaroid
cameras, and tape recorders. Many of us even tried to capture some TV
moments with a tape recorder for audio and few Polaroids of the screen.
VCRs didn't start becoming household items until the early 80s. So,
once you saw Star Wars, your only chance of seeing again for quite a few years
was to see it again at the theater.
Brian B – I don't think any other movie has changed
things the way Star Wars has.
Some of what I mean is in answering question 1, flintlocks to laser
blasters.
Another way was that it modernized the fairytale for us.
We knew the first movie as Star Wars and the title “A New Hope"
came much later but it sums up what I mean well.
Fairytales instilled hope. Any kid could rise up to be the
hero or maybe even royalty.
We could be Luke Skywalker. Knocking around on a farm one day
to saving a Princess the next with abilities we never knew we had within us.
It was a movie. A good story that helped inspire us to be more. We
were inspired to rise to our occasions, to push forward. Today it is a
religion. A lines been crossed today.
So yeah it is different now. I look forward to future movies
and the excitement of their release but you can never capture what we had in
the seventies again.
Chunky B – There was life in the 70’s before Star
Wars?
Life was awesome, summers were longer, school seemed more
fun, you and your friends could roam the streets and on Saturdays you would get
up, grab a bowl of sugar filled cereal and spend the rest of the day outside
playing, maybe stop back for lunch, not coming in till dinner. The most
realistic Space drama was Star Trek or Lost in Space, Lego was an exotic toy,
Mego and GI Joe were standard issue for the kids of the day, bikes, BB Guns,
Comics. That was it. You learned about new movies from friends who had been to
the cinema that week, going to the movie was sort of a big deal, and if you
were going to waste a Summer Saturday inside, it better be a good movie.
Star Wars came on this scene and blew everyone away,
probably one of very few times kids and adults saw eye to eye on a movie, it
slammed into our lives and did not let up, it jumped into the news, the papers,
music, it sort of took over pop culture and culture in general. It was like
someone took movies and turned a switch and you had Star Wars.
Q: What is your favorite Star Wars memorabilia and
when did you get it? Or How about your first Star Wars toy?
A:
Brian A – Hands down, my favorite Star Wars memorabilia
is my collection of vintage action figures… especially the first 21. I
still have all of my original action figures from childhood. I was lucky
that they got tucked away in a Darth Vader case for years and years to be
rediscovered as an "adult." I took great care of them and
didn't lose any weapons, either. I wouldn't even trade my original
childhood figures for nice, carded examples, ever. Not that anyone's
offering… just saying. :)
I think my very first Star Wars toy was the Escape from the Death
Star board game. I remember buying it on a shopping trip with my Mom
because I needed SOMETHING Star Wars and there weren't any true toys on shelves
yet. I remember that the directions didn't make any sense. So, I
mailed a letter to Kenner about it and received a revised set of instructions
back. Kenner was really good about that kind of stuff.
Brian B – The first Star Wars related toy I had was a
light saber. It wasn't an official Star Wars merchandised sword though
those came out later than this one. This Lightsaber played off Star Wars but
this manufacturer got them into the stores before the official ones came to our
town. The ones we had were much more durable than the official ones were.
Ours were one piece of plastic. They didn't telescope out or light up but
they did glow in the dark after you charged it under a bright light. Did
I mention that these were durable? We pounded them to death while we had
them. They lasted a long time even though we battled with them often.
When we saw the first official licensed Star Wars Lightsabers we didn't
even want them because we knew we would destroy them the first time we fought
with them. I wish I still had mine but when it was time to throw them
away we knew they needed to be trashed because we had played the life out of
them and in my opinion if you can say that about a toy that was a good toy.
Chunky B – My favorite piece of memorabilia is an
autographed 8x10 of Darth Vader, “Compliments of Texas Instruments”. It’s not
even of the actual actor, just signed “Vader”. My father got me up one Saturday
and took me into town, a new Mall had opened up and JC Penny’s was playing host
to a very special guest. Other than that I had no clue until I got there and
beyond a mob of people was Darth Vader on a stage underneath the escalators
signing autographs.
Vader was basically scribbling his name and throwing
them to the outreached arms. I made my way to the stage and reached for one, a
man grabbed the same one I had and tore the corner off, my Dad rescued the
corner off the floor and we taped it back on, it was a day long remembered.
First toy would be a homemade lightsaber, first
official toy would be the Landspeeder, X-Wing, and a few figures for my
Birthday in 1978.
Q: Original Trilogy or Prequel Trilogy… or both?
A:
Brian A – OT all the way! That's not to say that there's
nothing in the PT that I don't appreciate. There were some definitely
cool things in them here and there. Overall, though, I'm doing my best to
stay away from watching them or collecting any PT memorabilia. When the first films were released, I TRIED to talk myself into liking them and even
bought quite a few toys and figures. When I started to realize that every
time I saw a picture of Vader, I thought of Hayden's Anakin, I knew it was time
to start "walling up" my memories of the PT and keeping my distance
from them. With that said, I do tend to go back and watch Episode 3 every
few years or so. I think the Prequel Trilogy is a valiant effort but it's just
not "my Star Wars."
Brian B – Original by far. I have enjoyed the
prequels but nothing will replace that first encounter with this Universe.
I have never even seen the digital remasters of the first originals.
Oh VHS rocks.
Chunky B – I am going to fall into the camp of
Original Trilogy. I did like the Prequels, I really like watching the Clone
Wars Animated series (both of them), but A New Hope will always be Star Wars,
and Empire will always be my second favorite movie after Star Wars. It really
was a different time and brings back different memories than the new stuff, a
connection was made back in 1977.
Q: What is your favorite "Star Wars" memory?
A:
Brian A – In the spring of 1978, I fell on the ice at
recess playing "hockey" (kicking a puck with our feet) with some
friends and fractured my shoulder. We didn't know it was fractured until
an infection set in. So, I spent a couple of weeks in the hospital. At
that point, I already had a couple figures and a Landspeeder. My Dad
would come visit me after work (my Mom, too, just not always at the same time)
and started bringing me a new Star Wars action figure every day. It made
being in the hospital more than bearable. One day, he brought me a new
figure AND a new X-wing fighter for the figures. That's probably my
favorite memory. It's one of those nostalgic moments that always brings up
the best emotions whenever I happen to think about it.
Brian B – The 1980 release of the Empire Strikes Back.
I was 15 and geeked up for the movie before that was even a word for it.
My best memory was watching the snowspeeders as flew and little flaps
open and closed on their wings. I remember think how real it looked and
felt like I was in the battle.
Chunky B – That is tough, I have a ton of great
memories surrounding my love for Star Wars. I am going to go back to my very
first memory of a buddy of mine trying to tell me about the latest and greatest
movie that was out and how I was missing out. He had seen it on the first
weekend it was out, we were playing army men in the front yard of our house and
he is going on and on, I wished he would give it a break, I mean nothing beat
Star Trek for being realistic. I remember not seeing the actual movie until
Summer and loving it and being blown away, now I haven’t shut up about it
since… still loves me some Star Trek though, but holy cow that Star Wars was
sooooo real.
Q: As a cultural "thing", how do you think
Star Wars is different today than it was, say, in 1977?
A:
Brian A – I kind of touched on this earlier, but when
Star Wars was released it was an instant cultural "hit" with
everyone. It wasn't a "geek thing" to love Star Wars back then.
Fans came from every walk of life. You couldn't get away from Star
Wars. It was in magazines, referenced in TV shows, and parodied
constantly. Something happened, though, sometime in the 1990's, I'm
guessing. Suddenly, Star Wars became this thing that was for "geeks
and nerds." The general population started to look at Star Wars fans
as being kind of "off-center" and odd. Certainly, any fan base
has the kind of people that take something too far but most of the Star Wars
fans I know today are normal, smart, successful people. I think the
"shift" in attitude started when fans started dressing up as their
favorite Star Wars characters at conventions and whatnot. I have nothing
against people that enjoy Star Wars costuming but I think that was when the
"tide" started to turn.
Brian B – Yes it was different back then.
In 1977 it was new, a discovery, a mystery but now it is different.
I don't want to say that Star Wars has been watched too much but I kind
of lean that direction.
In 1977 I might have known one or two people who had seen the same
movie more that once. There weren't VCR's or DVD's. No Internet to
discuss it with. Just the kids you knew.
We didn't tear it apart or study it's intricacies. We just
enjoyed it. Seems like America was closer to what America was supposed to
be then not some politically correct thing that tries not to offend anyone and
still please its audience.
Here is what I mean. We all had knives, BB guns and
rode-jumped-crashed our bikes without a helmet. We watched the movie on a
weekend night and played outside until our parents called us in to eat every
day we could.
Kids ran, rode their bikes, climbed trees, dammed creeks and in
general enjoyed life. We didn't sit in front of the T.V all day and all
night existing in a fantasy. We lived.
In our movies Storm troopers were shot, Obi Wan died and we knew Han
shot first because he had to.
We had four maybe five channels on our television sets. Those
channels were not on twenty-four hours a day either but came on at 6 am with
the National anthem playing and went off at midnight with the National anthem
playing. Movies were only on television on the weekends.
Watch this link to see what a big deal it was by its intro. How
fast a movie got on television after it was in the theaters told you how bad
the movie stunk.
The longer it took for a movie to be shown on television the bigger
and better that movie must have been.
Armed with that information I can remember have the following
discussion with a friend.
Me: "Did you watch the Friday night movie?"
Friend: "Yeah it was okay."
Me: "Star Wars will never be on T.V."
Friend: "I bet your right."
We were saying it was so good and so big that television couldn't
afford it and thus would preserve it in our memories forever.
Today people can't wait to rip apart a movie they say they love.
Very different today.
That is the way I see it.
Brian steps down off his soapbox.........for now.
Chunky B – In 1977 everyone loved Star Wars (or most
people I knew or saw on the news) Adults and children alike, it was as if there
was this one movie everyone really enjoyed and agreed upon. I can see now it
was just a retelling of the Heroic Journey, it was just the way it was
presented. As the movie left theaters it was the children that latched onto it
and kept it going with the toys and the talk on playgrounds of what was next.
It was like the adventures were up to you.
I recall the lean years too, late eighties to early
nineties, I think it transformed during that time into a geek driven passion.
Fewer and fewer people wanted to associate with it I guess; they loved the
films, but had grown away from them. It is almost weird for me to see how big
this franchise has come today. It’s almost like you are considered cool or hip for
liking Star Wars. I remember being made fun of at my first real art job for
having a Chewbacca action figure on my desk, now I would be made fun of for not
having the latest Chewbacca action figure hanging out on my desk. I feel like
the early children who loved Star Wars were the care takers for decades and it
has been placed in the hands of fans that are almost too fanatical about it
(says the man writing on a blog about Star Wars) or maybe they care too much
about every detail it has become less fun.
Q: How is Star Wars different for you, personally, vs.
when you were a child?
A:
Brian A – When I was a kid, there was a sense that Star
Wars was a huge deal to a lot of people but to me, personally, it felt like it
belonged to me and few friends… like NO one else could have loved it as much as
we did. Of course, then you grow up and realize that there are maybe
millions of people around the world that feel just as strongly (or even more
so) as you do about that "galaxy far, far away." It's actually
a pretty cool thing to realize you have all sorts of "Star Wars
friends" out there.
Plus, now we have the Expanded Universe, Prequel Films, the Clone
Wars animated series, and even more Star Wars movies on the way. So, Star
Wars feels bigger than ever… and that's pretty neat.
Brian B – See above. On the lighter side though I
think it was the way they were made. CGI vs. Models. I liked the old way
better than CGI. I love the behind the scene picture of the X-wings
attacking the Death Star while a man stands there with a light meter.
In the camera makes a difference I think. I think there is a
place for CGI but it shouldn't do all the heavy lifting.
Chunky B – Well, for one I have more of an income than
just paper route money to spend on all those wonderful toys.
Seriously though, I would say it’s different now vs.
then in a sense that it is more detailed, I liked it simple, more left to the
imagination, but as we got bigger and hopefully smarter we did require more
details about the technical name of the Stormtrooper’s blaster, that Jedi had
something in their blood that made them special, and that there were way more
politics involved in the Star Wars than we imagined as kids. As a kid it was
Hammerhead, Snaggletooth, Walrusman and Greedo. Now it’s Momaw Nadon, Zutton,
Ponda Baba, and, well, Greedo.
Q: Why has SW stuck with you after all these years?
Why are you still a fan?
A:
Brian A – I'm not entirely sure I can answer this one.
A handful of things have stayed with me since being a kid, and I'm not
always sure why. With Star Wars, I think the characters and story were
just so mind-blowing to me, as a kid that they just kind of "stuck."
It's hard to explain but, as far as films go, nothing even comes close
the impact that first Star Wars film made on me. As an adult, I can see
that Star Wars borrows some themes from other great works of fiction and
mythology. A lot has been said about how it tapped into mythological stories
that are kind of ingrained in our psyches. However, being one of those
kids sitting in the theater in 1977, it was just such an amazing story filled
with amazing characters that it swept us away.
Brian B – A good story is hard to not hear again.
Chunky B – I guess Star Wars being such a game changer
as far as the way stories were presented and the special f/x always just
resonated with me, that and possibly that I have always been fascinated with
space and sci-fi. During that time it was normal for me to watch Star Trek,
Lost in Space, Space 1999, and be playing the same with my friends. I was
taking trips to NASA with my family, building models of real and fantasy space
ships, just seemed normal to me then and somewhat now. Today I still enjoy the parts
in Sci-fi where they show a bit of what technology will be like, even though we
live in a pretty hi tech time ourselves. Still I am waiting for my Landspeeder.
Q: Did you watch the Star Wars Holiday Special when it
aired back in November of 1978?
A:
Brian A – I did. I went over to my friend Andrew's
house to watch it. Andrew and I both were still actively hunting for the
original 12 action figures, back then. I can still remember watching it
in his basement (there was even a lava lamp in the TV area). The whole
show seemed a little odd but it didn't matter… we were watching something NEW
and STAR WARS at home. Just seeing the actors in costume outside of the
film was pretty exciting. It was definitely an "event," too.
I remember making plans to watch it and then counting down the days
before it aired.
Brian B – Yes. I was excited to see Stat Wars on
television and watched in disbelief as someone tried to destroy Christmas and
Star Wars at the same time.
I just remember thinking "I must be missing something?" or
"What was that? Was this meant for British T.V.?”
Chunky B – Yes, and thinking back I can see why I
blocked out the parts that everyone seems to be making fun of now. The parts I
do remember is the debut of Boba Fett, the story of Chewbacca’s family and Han
coming in to help save the day, and for some reason the creep part where Chewie’s
father-in-law (guessing here) was watching the pay per view Wookiee Channel. I
left the show thinking it was cool I got to see some Stormtroopers on the TV
screen, Boba Fett looked cool. Will Kenner make Wookiee Life Day robes?
Q: What are your top three favorite Star Wars
characters?
A:
Brian A – Darth Vader - His back-story was mysterious and
it was fun to imagine what he was like before turning to the dark side.
Now, we don't have to imagine… but I still do.
Luke Skywalker - As a ten year-old, I could completely identify with
Luke and his drive for adventure. He's the character we kind of see the
first Trilogy through and I enjoy the story being kind of presented as Luke's
journey.
R2-D2 - Droid or not, he's a great character. I think it was pretty
brilliant to have a main character or two that the audience couldn't
understand, at least as far as language is concerned. If we had been able
to understand R2, I don't think he would be nearly as loved by fans as he is.
Brian B – Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Boba Fett.
Chunky B – Just three?
1) Stromtroopers
– They were the coolest bad guys I had seen, didn’t talk much, couldn’t hit the
broad side of a barn, but how cool was that armor. I would daydream all the
time what I wouldn’t do for a cool set of Stormtrooper armor.
2) Han Solo
– When I was a kid everyone wanted to be Han Solo, Luke was way too whiney for
me, Han knew how to get things done. Plus Chewbacca, yeah I have one of those
today, except he is a She and she’s a Basset named Lulu.
3) Boba
Fett – I am talking about when he was cool, The Empire Strikes Back Days. I
used to think it would be funny if Boba Fett were actually a woman that Han
Solo crossed, that would piss a lot of fan boys off. My main reason, cool, beat
up armor, and could shoot better than a Stormtrooper.
Q: If you could fly any of the Star Wars ships or
vehicles, which one would you chose and why?
A:
Brian A – My favorite vehicle in the Star Wars universe
is definitely the X-wing. However, I'm going to have to go with the
Snowspeeder. For some reason, it seems like it would be a blast to pilot
a small, nimble craft like that. With the way it kind of skims the
terrain, it would be kind of like piloting a roller coaster.
I have to say; it would be pretty fun to go stomping around in an
AT-AT, also.
Brian B – Darth Vader's Tie Fighter because it is bad!!!
Chunky B – A Speederbike, always loved the way it
feels to ride a motorcycle, it was like George Lucas reached into my brain and
said “Here you go Charles, a space motor cycle just for you”. They should have
Speeder Bike tracks with little target you could blast as you fly by Phew Phew!
