The Clone Wars maestro Dave Filoni will be appearing live on tonight’s Forcecast. It’s your chance to call in and ask those burning questions…
Roundup: Celebration V is closer than you might think
So in the midst of real life and other such horrors, I missed a great deal of Celebration V news. First off, you should know that we are now 99 days out from the event, a fact which strikes me with terror because I haven’t done a damn thing to prepare. (Yes, I really need to stop moving in Celebration years.) But onto the news:
- We’ve had two sets of t-shirt reveals: The first, some standard logos. (I suppose if one must have Boba Fett, sticking him something appropriately Miami Vicesque takes some of the fanboy stench off.) The second set is much more palatable, even if it involves hot pink, and the Han/Leia shirt combo is rather adorable.
- Jay Laga’aia is returning as celebrity host, which is A-OK by me, because Jay Laga’aia is awesome. Really, no snark here. He just is.
Also hosting (at the Behind-the-Scenes Stage) is Internet Rockstar Pablo Hidalgo and LucasArts’ David Collins (on the Digital Stage.) Alas, this crushes my secret hope for a Pablo-staffed continuity-counseling booth (mockup at right) but it is more likely to keep him from running like a madman into the night.
- The R2-D2 Builders will be there in force, promising “a bigger and more encompassing experience for our visitors that will not only include tons of droids, but also re-creations of some of the most iconic scenes from The Empire Strikes Back.”
The fandom minute: Of parties and fan tributes
Woe be unto you, Club Jade fans. Dunc is having a real life this week and has left me to round up the news for you. So, sorry. She’ll be back soon! So let’s round up some bits and bobs in the world of Star Wars, shall we?
- That awesome fan project, Star Wars: Uncut, is now cut. And we have a trailer!
- Speaking of fans, the University of Georgia paper profiles a member of the 501st Georgia Garrison. Yes, Athens fans, there are others near you!
- And they’ll need all the help they can get. Star Wars Weekends is cranking up again.
- The 501st even helped Lando, um, I mean Billy Dee Williams, arrive in style to the Sunscreen Film Festival. I bet he’d love to have Colt 45 can greet him, just once.
- We’ll move from that The Empire Strikes Back actor to StarWars.com’s review of Empire cast and crew swag. (I’ve always wanted one of those passports.)
- And finally, from the film that inspired it all, Kurosawa Hidden Fortress action figures. Awesome!
Dunc will be back soon. Promise!
Lucy Autrey Wilson retiring from Lucasfilm
Lucy Autrey Wilson began her Lucasfilm run as George Lucas’ assistant, typing up the script for Star Wars, making her Lucasfilm Employee #1. Many of us first encountered her name as head of the publishing program, which she established. In recent years she has been instrumental in the nonfiction end at George Lucas Books.
Basically? We – as in Club Jade – wouldn’t be here if not for Wilson. We wish her the happiness and luck in retirement!
Carrie Fisher is coming to Celebration V
Reed has nabbed the “original princess with an attitude” to appear at Celebration V. Currently she’s only on for autographs, but cross your fingers.
Fisher will also be at another Reed convention, C2E2, next month in Chicago.
New Firefly comic by real Browncoat
Clearly, Patton Oswalt is a man obsessed with Firefly. (And I so understand that!)
He talks with Entertainment Weekly about his upcoming Firefly comic “Float Out.”
I like him. In this article, it is clear he totally gets the Joss Whedon vibe. But you’ll have to wait until June to read it!
Andrew Koenig Found Dead
The son of Star Trek actor Walter Koenig (Chekov) was found dead in Vancouver’s Stanley Park on Thursday.
Andrew Koenig, an actor,writer and director best known for his role as Boner in Growing Pains, had been battling depression for years and had stopped taking his medication a year ago. He had gone to Vancouver to visit friends when he disappeared on Valentine’s Day.
After his parents received a letter from him that sounded despondent, the Koenigs notified police. Fandom and the internets took up the cause by posting his picture and linking to the website set up by his friends and family in the hopes that he might be found. Unfortunately, a private search organized by the family located him in a secluded area off one of his favorite paths. They shared that he had taken his own life.
Walter and his wife said the following during a press conference:
If you know or are one of those people who feel like you can’t handle it any more, if you can learn anything from this, it is that there are people out there who care. You may not think so, and ultimately it may not be enough, but there are people that care. Before you make that final decision, check it out again, talk to somebody.
People in the United States who need to speak with someone can call the National Suicide Prevention Hotlines at either 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) or 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).
Ewan on new film, nudity, Star Wars
Ewan McGregor has a film coming out, and thus he was on NPR the other day. You can listen to the segment (Or not: NPR provides a transcript,) but here’s some of what he had to say about working on the prequels:
“When I got closer and closer to being cast as Obi-Wan Kenobi, I did question whether it was the right thing for me. Up until that point, I’d been involved in mainly low-budget independent films … and I felt like being part of the [indie British filmmaking] team was my identity as an actor … I didn’t think that ‘Star Wars’ was quite who I was or what I was about. However, the closer I got, the more I wanted to do it … I’m very happy with the work I did in ‘Star Wars’ … I’ve always been quite open with the fact that they were technically quite difficult to make. There’s a lot of green screen and blue screen, and for the actor, there’s very often not another actor to act with — so you were playing to a tennis ball on a stick or a piece of tape on a green curtain, and that’s just not easy. That becomes a very technical exercise.”
The fandom minute: Felicia Day, Kristen Bell, space, Jedi and discounted alcoholic beverages
Felicia Day gets her saber on. The internet geek superstar (you probably know her from The Guild, and Dr. Horrible) can check another box on her ultimate geek list by appearing in an internet lightsaber fight.
Kristen Bell teams up with hometown 501s. The Fanboys actress helped the the Great Lakes Garrison raise $2,000 for Michigan charities.
Those look familiar. Check out what they’re building on the International Space Station. Go go science fact!
Jedi church looking for a Master. Too easy. Way too easy.
Drink up. Discount code for Skywalker Ranch wine.
Contain your shock: Harrison Ford “done with” Han Solo
Wherever the deathly obvious needs exploring, MTV is there! Let’s quote:
“No, no, no. Han Solo was very good to me at a certain point in my career,” explained the legendary star, who will be seen in the drama “Extraordinary Measures” on January 22nd. “But I’m done. I’m done with him.”
Surprise! Except, y’know, not.