Star Wars Day – May the 4th Be With You

It was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away. Northbrook, Illinois in 1977, to be precise. I was thirteen years old, and I found myself standing in line at the Eden\’s 2 Movie Theater with my best friend, Peter. We were waiting to see the new film that everyone was talking about, Star Wars.

The line wrapped completely around the theater. I had never seen anything like it before. What was all the hype about?

Today, I like to sit in the back of movie theaters. But as a young teenager, it was the front row that beckoned me. Neck pain? I didn\’t consider it. All I knew was that I wanted to be completely immersed in this experience.

I was told that Star Wars was like a modern-day Buck Rogers, essentially swashbucklers in space. Having not seen Buck Rogers, I couldn\’t make much of an association. I just knew I was game.

The lights went down. The theater went black. And on the screen came the most glorious titles I had ever seen, displayed in a way that was just plain cool. Accentuated by John WIlliams majestic overture, I think everyone sharing the experience knew that we were in for something special.

If I wasn\’t hooked in the opening seconds, the first minute would finish me off. As the titles finished and the view panned towards the planet below, the most breath-taking scene I\’d ever seen (a little alliteration and homonym fun for those who enjoy that kind of thing) played out before me.

A battle in space was taking place, and from the edge of the screen entered an Imperial Cruiser. And it was a MASSIVE ship. It just kept going and going and going and going. My jaw dropped and my eyes were wide. Wow!

You know the rest of the story and the fabulous cast of characters that we all love. Luke, Leah, Han, Chewie, C-3P0, R2D2, Obi-Wan, and even the super-snuggly deep-breathing Darth Vader.

Thanks to George Lucas, the world was never to be the same. I knew my world had changed, which is why Peter and I went back to see Star Wars multiple times. I remember voluntarily laying on the floor UNDER the screen to view it during one repeat viewing!

It\’s thirty-five years later and all this talk makes me feel quite old. Yet, the thirteen-year old inside me still stirs when I hear the beloved theme song. I still grin at the fantasy of owning a light saber. (I have one on my iPhone, does that count?) And I still quote lines from the films that are ingrained in our collective pop-culture psyche.

When someone says \”I\’ll try\”, I cannot help but hear Yoda\’s sage advice \”do or do not, there is no try.\”

I\’ll look to someone who has something I need and say \”Help me, Obi-Wan…\”

I can\’t count the number of times I have looked at my son during his twenty years, taken on a deep-breathing Vader-like voice and said, \”Zach, I am your faaaather.\” Fortunately, he only rolls his eyes at me instead of screaming \”NOOOOOOOOOO!\”

Curse you, George Lucas. And bless you.

Star Wars provided something for this young man that was desperately needed in his life. Adventure. Goodness. Beauty. Hope. Dreams.

For a number of years I collected Star Wars memorabilia. To this day, I have the People Magazine that featured the beloved droids on the cover. I have the Poster Magazine, editions 1-12. I have the original comic book series, a prized part of my comic collection. Yes, I was a Star Wars fan.

Today, we have the blight of the later-titled episodes 1, 2, and 3 on the record. I know George Lucas meant well, and certainly he has done quite well financially with the latter trilogy. But you\’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who was around for the original trilogy that prefers Anakin, Darth Maul and Qui-Gon. I know, there are those who would say Ewoks were the Jar-Jar Binks of Return of the Jedi. You may be right. But more people wanted Jar-Jar to die a slow, painful death than wanted to harm a furry, little Ewok.

Still, Star Wars transformed a culture, an industry and me. For better or for worse, I must recognize it as a fact.

And on this National Star Wars Day (even though celebrated internationally), I must join with the rest of the world in saying \”May the Fourth Be with You… always\”