Fun ways to celebrate Star Wars Day 0:49
(CNN) -
"No, I am your father."
These are not the androids you are looking for.
Do it or leave it.
There are no attempts.
Oh, and we also have: "May the force be with you."
Star Wars was born in 1977. Its live action films - 11 to date - have long been established in popular culture.
Given its immense popularity, it is hard to believe, as Ronald Brownstein wrote in his recent book
Rock Me on the Water: 1974 - the Year Los Angeles Transformed Movies, Music, Television, and Politics
, that it took George Lucas several years to raise the funding. and the support of the studios for "a space epic inspired by the serial cinema of the Saturday mornings of his youth."
The payoff was considerable, as within months of its arrival, Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope became the highest grossing film in history.
Always nostalgic, Lucas was not very common among filmmakers of his generation for not caring so much about what was happening around him.
He celebrated carefree youth, as with his 1973 film
American Graffiti
, and also science fiction in which the good guys have a lot of trouble but are victorious.
Due to the pandemic, an immersion in the Star Wars universe seems the most appropriate.
And, thanks to the efforts of a devoted fan base and the cinematic machinery behind the series, May 4 is just the day to do it.
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Star Wars script reveals hidden secret to Darth Vader 0:50
Origins of Star Wars Day
May 4 is formed thanks to a play on words in English: "May the 4th be with you" (which in Spanish would be "May 4 May accompany you").
However, the origins of what has become an annual party for true Star Wars fans are a bit unclear.
A Danish newspaper claims that it is due to an advertisement with a play on words placed by the British Conservative Party on the occasion of Margaret Thatcher's rise to the post of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on May 4, 1979: "
May the 4th be with you
, Maggie.
Congratulations".
Finding direct evidence of the above requires a search as thorough as Darth Vader's of the Rebel Alliance base.
Either way, the pun was going to be used, no matter what the situation was.
So it was.
10 years ago, a Toronto movie theater hosted a movie marathon mixed with costume contests, trivia, and skits.
It was billed as "Star Wars Day" and the celebration spread across the geek world.
The Bad Batch
on Disney +
When Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, it appropriated the holiday and used it in 2020 to present the finale of the animated series
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
on Disney +.
This year, the channel premieres the
Star Wars: The Bad Batch series
on this day.
It centers on a group of space warriors who make the Delta Squad forces look like Brownies and works its way to a suspenseful ending.
As the official Star Wars website says: “As the Republic transforms into the Galactic Empire, the Bad Batch must decide its place in the new order.
Will they join their brothers in the ranks of the stormtroopers?
Or will they find their place in the galaxy somewhere beyond the reach of the Empire? "
Stay tuned guys. "
Disney: Ahsoka Tano and Darth Vader join the growing universe of & # 8216; Star Wars & # 8217;
Fill yourself with the Star Wars spirit with these activities
In the meantime, there are good reasons to get carried away on May 4.
On the one hand, opting for a movie marathon in which the good ends up triumphing is a great break for mental health, an escape from the uncertainty and chaos of the world around us.
Mind you, be sure to take breaks: get up and move so you don't become as inert as Han Solo frozen in carbonite.
In the company of friends and family already vaccinated against covid-19, you can play a few games and prepare conversation topics during those breaks.
One of the favorite pastimes of Star Wars Day is debating which movie in the series and its
spin-offs
is the worst, and admittedly there are a couple that would fall into that category.
Don't forget to discuss what's bad in the Star Wars universe
There are people out there with hearts of stone who are not moved to see Baby Yoda;
or people for whom Jar Jar Binks is the cinematic equivalent of fingernails scratching on a blackboard.
(For young people, that sound hurts.)
For example, I try to leave the room whenever Hayden Christensen, who plays Anakin Skywalker, complains too much, which is often, to anyone who hears in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and Star Wars : Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.
To his credit, Christensen comments in
Secrets of the Force: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Star Wars
, the forthcoming book by Edward Gross and Mark A. Altman to be published: “When I first read the script, I knew more or less what the reaction to 'Attack of the Clones' was going to be, because Anakin was a wayward and sometimes whiny teenager.
That's how it was written, that's how George wanted me to play it, and that's how the character had to be.
So I had no problem in that regard, but I knew it was going to get some criticism when it was released. "
Cosplay in times of covid-19
So, we can forgive the above.
On the other hand, there is this: cosplay, as Margaret Troup wrote in the Iowa State Daily, is a hobby adapted to the times of COVID-19.
It's true that costumed tributes to pop culture characters have been temporarily deprived of their usual venues, for example at conventions like Comic-Con International, which returns as an online event in July, with plans for a reunion. smaller in person at the end of November.
Still, Troup suggested, some of your favorite cosplay characters come with a security pass included, since they "already have their faces covered" in these times of pandemic.
There isn't much scientific data to support this claim, but, for the sake of the party, let's just say yes.
The most famous covered face character in Star Wars is, of course, Darth Vader, so hopefully this Tuesday we will see a lot of 'dark lords' on the streets.
Other secrets
Another reveal from the
Secrets of the Force book
: George Lucas originally envisioned the great Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune as Vader;
When he turned down the role, Lucas offered him Obi-Wan Kenobi instead, to no avail.
In the original film, bodybuilder David Prowse ended up playing the iconic villain, voiced by James Earl Jones, and Sir Alec Guinness ended up with the role of Obi-Wan.
Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker, asked Guinness why such a distinguished actor accepted the job, "and he said he always envisioned himself playing a magician in a children's movie."
And in a world full of dark lords, we all need Jedi Knights.
Enjoy, have fun, discuss (in a friendly way, of course) about the best and worst moments.
Whatever you do, hug and enjoy an impromptu party that is designed for the child in all of us.
Mind you, don't spend it in a seedy canteen like the one in Episode IV: you never know what trouble you'll get into if you do.
May 4 be with you.
Gregory McNamee writes about books, science, food, geography, and many other topics from his home in Arizona.
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