Episode IV: A New Hope

From Jalassociatecomics

Current revision as of 10:24, 19 September 2007

One Man's Dream

Before we explore Star Wars, see what inspired and affected its creation and outcome below.

If I were to go back in time to the early 70's and pluck one man from our dimension and drop him in one where everybody just adores Jar Jar Binks, this wiki/fansite and everything on it may as well be about Star Trek. Imagine... no Star Wars. We would live our lives not knowing who Obi-Wan and Darth Vader were, and would all be just like that guy I mentioned earlier in the intro, hiding under a big rock in the Arizona Desert.

This man is one whom I utterly respect, yet will continuously make fun of throughout this guide/review just for your pleasure. He is none other than George Walton "totally messed up Eps. 1 and 2" Lucas Jr.

Before you leap into this, here's a quick bio:

George Walton Lucas, Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter famous for his epic Star Wars saga and his Indiana Jones films. He is one of the American film industry's most independent, financially successful directors and producers.

George Walton Lucas was born in Modesto, California to George Walton Lucas, Sr. and Dorothy Ellinore Bomberger Lucas. His father, who was mainly of British and Swiss heritage, ran a stationery store (which pretty much stayed in the same place) and owned a small walnut orchard. His mother was a member of a prominent Modesto family (one of her cousins is the mother of former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and director of Unicef Ann Veneman) and was mainly of German and Scots-Irish heritage.

Lucas graduated from Thomas Downey High School in 1962, where he had...

Wait! You don't need to know all this! It's a Star Wars guide, remember. But if you really love the guy and would like to know some background info, follow this link but return quick, cos' I've barely started. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Lucas}

Really, though, if not for George's seat strap miraculously snapping (read more about that incident on the link above), we would not have had Episode IV and all the others. It would have been better if we did'nt have Episodes I and II, but you know what I mean.

Georgie had always been a bit of a maverick, as his student film about a bleak and sci-fi-style future, Electronic Labiryinthe THX: 1138 4EB more than displayed. He was also an action-loving kid as his penchant for "Flash Gordon" and such serials as well as comics and race car driving show. These two attributes led Lucas' imagination where everyone else would go "I'm way too deep into this, and it's really a whole load of nonsense".

George's surprising intrest in mythology also deeply affected the outcome of Star Wars. I mean, it's a classic good vs evil story, with slightly complex morality issues and magical creatures. Star Wars might as well be a contemporary version of King Arthur or Homer's Odyssey.

Lucas was influenced by the works of Joseph Campbell, an American professor, writer, and orator best known for his work in the fields of comparative mythology and comparative religion. Basically, that just means the guy studies mythology and analyses it. At the Wikipedia link above, you can find out more about his works and how they helped ole' Georgie along.

After graduating from UCS, Lucas joined a team of friends and formed American Zoetrope. However, this team soon broke up to pursue various interests.

Ole' Georgie's was his first independent film, American Grafitti. It was a whimsical look at teenage driving culture in the late 50's, partially inspired by his own crazy teenhood adventures. The film was Harrison Ford's first, paving the way for his career in Star Wars. Plus, it inspired a number of 50's themed films and TV shows, including the popular and long-running "Laverne and Shirley" (go ask your Mum, or Grandma).

The Saga Begins Life

But enough of American Grafitti. Popular as it was, the studio's treatment of the movie upsetted George, and he set his sights for the stars. Thus began Star Wars: as a near-nonsensical 900 page longhand draft entitled "The Adventures of Luke Starkiller". It was very heavily influenced by "Flash Gordon" and the like, as well as Lucas' wild imagination. At the same time, he also expressed interest in doing a 1930's era adventure movie to pal Steven Spielberg, but that's another story...namely Indiana Jones.

Lucas began writing in 1974, and ended the next year. Most of the studios he showed the script to thought it was bizarre. I don't see why: Luke Skywalker and all of Tatooine were originally midgets, Han Solo was a big green alien with gills, that sorta thing.

But development-wise, George was making headway. Cut a long story short, he employed legendary artist Ralph McQuarrie to do conceptual art, which more or less convinced 20th Century Fox. Lucas also tried his best in striking endorsement deals to ensure that hype would be built up, and that he could make sequels out of the remaing 2/3s of the original draft.