Club Jade

The New York Times profiles J.J. Abrams – mostly via the folks around him as they enter the home stretch on Star Trek Into Darkness. (via)

What’s May 4th without a couple of Episode VII rumors? Two separate news sources are saying that locations in Iceland and Scotland may be in the mix for Episode VII.

The Sun claims that shooting in in the Highlands and the Isle of Skye is pretty much a done deal, but… It’s The Sun.

Meanwhile, in Iceland, Fréttatíminn (translated) is only claiming that possible locations have been scouted in the south of the country. Maybe. (via)

All I can say is that when it comes to photoshopping, Iceland is the clear winner.

Hero Compex has an interview with Simon Kinberg, the Mr. & Mrs. Smith writer who’s penning one of the first two Star Wars standalone films as well as acting as a consultant on Episode VII.

It’s still too early for him to drop any news bombs on us (and he eludes the obligatory EU question) but he does talk at length about how the characters are what drives the films – and we learn that his favorite character is Han Solo, who has been rumored to be a possible subject for one of the spin-offs.

/Film has an exclusive look at Lawrence Kasdan’s original handwritten first draft of The Empire Strikes Back plus a page from the first printed draft.

We have also been given Lawrence’s original handwritten page for the Leia / Han “I love you” scene, which of course features different dialogue (Harrison Ford famously came up with the classic “I know” on set while they were shooting the scene.)

Go check them out!

Who’s an appropriate choice to be Her Universe’s Fangirl of the Day on May 4th? Lucasfilm’s Mary Franklin is not only Club Jade’s favorite bartending visionary, but she’s been responsible for almost every single Celebration and the Bantha Tracks newsletter. (Which, granted, may be the more impressive feat overall, but hey: We love our bar.)

You’ll want to check out Mary’s blog entries on the StarWars.com blog, particularly her series going behind the scenes at Celebration, which even features a few other Jaders here and there.

And of course you’ve been keeping up with the Fangirls of the Day, right?

io9′s Charlie Jane Anders has a nice piece on Leigh Brackett, who wrote the first draft of the Empire Strikes Back.

She quotes Andrew Liptak’s look at Brackett’s planetary romances in Kirkus, among other tributes.

Due to pregame demand, the Toledo Mud Hens are allowing fans to order replicas of the Chewbacca jerseys they’ll be wearing this weekend for $79.95. You don’t even have to go to Toledo – you can pre-order one online, but there are only so many so act fast.

Game-worn player jerseys will be part of a silent auction over the weekend games. The auction proceeds will go to Read for Literacy and the Spina Bifida Association of Northwest Ohio.

The Star Wars Books Facebook page held a chat with Pablo Hidalgo today, one of Lucasfilm’s resident continuity experts and author of The Essential Reader’s Companion.

So his most popular answer, naturally, addressed the relationship between the movies and the rest…

I think the EU will always continue to be part of the Star Wars experience, in that there are stories that are best suited for books, comics, games. etc.. The relationship between cinematic content and expanded universe content will continue to be what it is today and has been in the past. What happens on screen is one thing. What happens in the books is another. How they connect and interact is something I’m really eager to see.

More answers below the cut!

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USA Today has done a handful of stories celebrating May the 4th and previewing the 30th anniversary of Return of the Jedi on the 25th. They talked to Ian McDiarmid, Anthony Daniels, Jeremy Bulloch and blogger Whitney Matheson got a visit from Chewbacca. And on that note, they want your best Chewbacca impression.

Back to ROTJ, Jalopnik has a peice on how they filmed the speeder chase.

Need to convert a friend? Amazon has the Original and Prequel trilogy box sets (but not the saga?) slightly more on sale than usual. And hey, you can alleviate at least some of your Episode VII fears with a discount on J.J.’s Star Trek, too!

And you can save 50% on a subscription to the Star Wars Insider tomorrow as well by using the promo code MAY4TW.

Events. In addition to Entertainment Weekly’s ROTJ screening and the Toledo Mud Hens, Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando will be celebrating, and Change.org is hosting a Star Wars screening in San Francisco.

Still not sure what you’re doing? Find a local May the 4th event on StarWars.com.

You’ve read Paula’s tips on decor, food, games and dressing up, plus drink recipes from Mary Franklin and Kristen Hidalgo, but here are two videos with additional ideas from StarWars.com.

And here’s one on costuming:

May the last minute prep be with you!