Roundup: The Making of Empire takes off

The Making of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back has now been out for a whole week and the coverage just keeps coming. The hightlight is almost certainly Vanity Fair’s interview with Irvin Kershner about reviews, George, the actors, and whether he would have directed a prequel.

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.

Roundup highlights: Nearly a month to Celebration V!

32 days to the con and there are mere hours left to order tickets if you want your badge mailed to you: The deadline is 11:59 PM ET. (If you’re reading this Monday morning, you can still register: You’ll just have to pick up your badge in Orlando.)

  • You can preorder your program and those nifty Han/Leia t-shirts.
  • It may feature Boba Fett (sigh) but I actually kind of like the Empire Strikes Back tribute poster. But if you’re after some laughs, check out the latest promo art.
  • The second round of artists is in. My favorite so far? Tsuneo Sanda (at right) though Scott Erwert’s propaganda-style offering is pretty neat as well.
  • You can’t go wrong with troopers on Segways! Okay, we all know that’s a boldfaced lie. In any case, someone is going to smack their head on something, and we can only hope we’ll be there when they do.

There have been more guests added (most notably Warwick Davis and Ben Burtt) but if you’ve missed anything (I know I have) check out this handy page at StarWars.com.

EUbits: Al Williamson, Heir to the Empire, and September comics

RIP. Artist Al Williamson, who illustrated the Star Wars comic strip and adaptions of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, passed away this weekend. He’s remembered by editor Dave Land at DarkHorse.com

We read it uphill, in the snow, with no boots. Suvudu salutes Heir to the Empire — with a little help from Tim Zahn, editor Tom Dupree and art director Jamie S. Warren — as part of their 25 years of Spectra features.

Solicitations. Look ahead to September comics from Dark Horse, with new issues of Invasion, The Old Republic: Threat of Peace, that Fett thing, and a $1 reprint of Legacy #1.

Blogside. Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff on mistakes.

For the nitpickians. A new Essential Atlas appendix – in PDF form. Prime your hole-punchers!

The Empire Strikes Back turns 30, officially

We’ve already covered a bunch of Empire Strikes Back anniversary stuff, but today is the actual day. Here’s more stuff to check out:

The sequel begins. Leigh Brackett’s first draft of the film surfaced on the internet last week, giving us an intriguing glimpse into the could-have-beens, including a “tender love scene” between Luke and Leia, Lando being a clone, and Darth Vader’s pet gargoyles. (If you just want the highlights, Geeks of Doom has a nice rundown.)

Visuals. Lucasfilm gave Maxim magazine some rare photos, and to save us classy broads from buying Maxim (err, sorry guys) they’re also on StarWars.com.

Disturbance. They also have a look back at the Emperor’s first appearance – including some seriously whacked-out concept art. Baron Harkonnen is totally jealous.

In other news…

See any more unique tributes to ESB today? Post them in the comments or tell me on Twitter (@clubjade) and I’ll get them in.