In the news: Carrie’s Hoth confession, Sandcrawlers in Singapore, and George speaks out for education

I doubt this was the kind of revelation that Lucasfilm was hoping would make waves in the wake of the new Making of book, but it’s been tough to miss Carrie Fisher’s disclosure down under that she did cocaine on the Hoth set of The Empire Strikes Back. “I didn’t even like coke that much,” she says. “It was just a case of getting on whatever train I needed to take to get high.” She goes on to talk about John Belushi and (of course) her show ‘Wishful Drinking,’ which she’ll be performing in several Australian cities through November.

UPDATE: Fisher blogs about the cocaine incident with her characteristic zing:

So, a long time ago, in a nostril far far away, I ventured outside the perimeters of the appropriate by inhaling a substance that would render me less than professional by abusing the privilege of playing the powerful space princess that I had been given.

And yes, she goes on to say, “I suggest you stay away from ingesting this anxious making powder.”

Wait, what’s that? Lucasfilm is building a new facility in Singapore that resembles a chromed Jawa sandcrawler. Pretty interesting, particularly given that the company seems to prefer a more vintage look when it comes to architecture (or maybe that only applies in California.)

The Maker… blogs? George Lucas has come down from on high to blog for The Huffington Post on the importance of education. Note: He probably wrote it on a yellow pad and had one of his many employees type it up, so don’t start holding your breath for his tweets.

Spreading the word. Ashley Eckstein talks Her Universe in an interview with McClatchy Newspapers.

Today’s awful thing: The ‘sexy’ Chewbacca costume

George Lucas gonna sue somebody!

It’s a known fact that Halloween brings a brigade of cheap, ill thought out, hilariously ‘sexy’ character costumes for ladies. (News? Learn from Cleolinda, my friend.) Previously, we hoped that maybe it couldn’t get much worse than Sexy Optimus Prime.

We were wrong. Behold: The Sexy Chewbacca. Yandy.com calls it the ‘Sci-Fi Furry Costume,’ like that’s any better. I don’t think it’s quite enough to not get their nearly-bare butts sued… (It saddens me that I know this – thanks, Internet! – but that girl is showing far too much skin to be an actual furry.)

Also in the offering is a ‘Sci-Fi Commander’ and ‘White Soldier,’ but been there, done that.

On the other hand… At least it’s not yet another slave Leia? (via)

Remember Chewbacca Day: 11 years, one dead Wookiee

It’s been 11 years since Vector Prime was released and the big guy got mooned. So folks on Facebook are celebrating the GFFA’s favorite Wookiee with Remember Chewbacca Day.

If only I could remember the drink recipe… I think it involves Baileys. But if that’s not your speed, here are some filks we did back in the day: ‘The Saga Goes On’ (we even had a video for this! Alas, in those pre-Youtube days, it was lost,) ‘Big Moon Falling,’ ‘Died, Died, Died,’ and ‘Chewie Had To Die.’ Perhaps they can help you too laugh through your tears. We won’t tell if you forgo the tears entirely.

Even author R.A. Salvatore, who got a lot of grief for Vector Prime and the event contained within, joined and posted. Even more shocking, the responses are very polite so far! Aww, fandom. Learn and grow. (Hattip to Austin.)

It’s official: Star Wars going 3-D in 2012

Well, they’re finally going through with it: The saga will be coming to theaters in 3-D in 2012, starting with The Phantom Menace. Although May seems the obvious choice, LFL is not committing to any dates or even a season for TPM, let alone the other 5 films. “The process is really extensive, and we want to make sure each of the films gets the attention it needs,” Lucasfilm spokeswoman Lynne Hale told USA Today.

Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter claims “each of the films would be released in order at the same time each consecutive year, depending on how well the first re-release does.” Hrm.

MORNING (9/29) UPDATE: Variety delves deeper into the situation with the techies. Most notably, John Knoll says that no other visual effects will be tweaked or added.