nPostednon April 17, 2016
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nOnnthis date in 1973, an “epic space opera” was born.
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nAnnepic space opera that made fortunes and molded careers. An epic spacenopera that became a cultural phenomenon! n
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ThenStarnWarsnepic is being told in a series of films and a television show – andnit has led to countless toys, games, costumes, books, and othernmerchandise, plus theme park rides and lands.
ThenStarnWarsnepic is being told in a series of films and a television show – andnit has led to countless toys, games, costumes, books, and othernmerchandise, plus theme park rides and lands.n
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nWhennI saw Wikipedia‘sndescription of StarnWarsnas a space opera, I wondered why it’s called an opera. There’s music, sure – veryndistinctive music written by John Williams, with a theme that most ofnus recognize instantly – but there is no singing, and the storynisn’t told through music. Operanis generally defined as a dramatic work set to music for singers; Inhad to look up spacenoperanto learn its meaning: a dramatic work that (1) is set in outer spacenand (2) has a simplistic, melodramatic vibe.
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nAndnI guess that StarnWarsnhas a good-vs.-evil, high-fantasy, the-entire-galaxy-is-at-stake sortnof vibe.
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nButnit is also a pretty complex epic, with lots of settings andncharacters.
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| George Lucas, years ago… |
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nWhat George Lucas actually did all those 43 years ago was to write 13 pages onn“The Star Wars.” At that point there was no Sith, no Death Star,nand no Luke Skywalker.
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nAsna matter of fact, the hero of the story was originally going to benAnnikin, not Luke – and the last name was Starkiller, notnStarwalker. But in draft after draft, Lucas cut out complications,nstreamlined the story, introduced the young hero, and honed in on thenscreenplay that became StarnWars, Episode IV: A New Hope.
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n(Bynthe way, for a long time most people thought of the first Star Warsnmovie as JUST StarnWars.nTo this day, some people don’t really know the episode title, AnNew Hope,nalthough they tend to know episode titles of the other movies, suchnas ThenEmpire Strikes Back….Infound it interesting to realize that, even after production of thenfirst movie began, Lucas was still tinkering with the title. In 1976,nthe title was Adventuresnof Luke Starkiller, as taken from the Journal of the Whills, Saga I:nThe Star Wars.nn
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nWhichnis even longer than StarnWars, Episode IV: A New Hope.
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| Artist Ralph McQuarrie came up with some early concept art for Star Wars. Some of it, like the picture above, looks a LOT like the McQuarrie said that his early pieces were To see more of McQuarrie’s Star Wars |
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nOfncourse, what with Star Wars being a cultural phenomenon and all, I’ve writtennabout it before, including here,nhere,nand here.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nAnniversarynof the end of one of the world’s longest wars
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nBatnAppreciation Day
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nAstronomernGiovanni Riccioli’s birthday
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nAnniversarynof the arrival of horses in the New World
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nPlannahead:
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Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
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nApriln holidays
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nMayn holidays
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nMayn birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in May
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