Fun Facts About Star Wars!

(Duuh Duuh da da da Duuh Duuh da da da Duuh Duuh dun-dun-dun-duuuuh...)

I'm not a huge fan of Star Wars, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy and appreciate the films. This will be my last blog that I'll be doing, so I will talk about some interesting facts about Star Wars original trilogy that you probably didn't know.

• Yoda was almost played as a monkey. According to the book The Making of Star Wars by J.W. Rinzler, George Lucas originally planned for Yoda to be played by an adorable monkey wearing a mask and carrying a cane.
• Boba Fett's face is actually visible in the original movies. the actor who played Fett, Jeremy Bulloch, did stand in for an Imperial officer at the last minute.
• Return of the Jedi almost had a very different ending. In a story development session for Return of the Jedi, George Lucas toyed with the idea that after Luke removes dying Vader's helmet, he puts it on, proclaims "Now I am Vader" and turns to the dark side.
• "I have a bad feeling about this" became a running gag for the franchise. (You probably know this already).

• Yoda has no determined species. Yoda's species has never been names. A mystery, it is.
• Yoda is not a Muppet. Legendary Muppeteer Frank Oz voiced Yoda and Jim Henson oversaw his creation, but he was built by a member of Lucasfilm. So don't expect to see him at Kermit's holiday party.
• There are no female fighter pilots in the original trilogy. Even though female fighter pilots were in the original screenplay, they were removed from final cut. Now that's just sad. :(
• Star Wars and 2001: A Space Odyssey share almost the exact same production crew. George Lucas admired Stanley Kubrik, and when he set out to make Star Wars, he hired so many people who worked on 2001: A Space Odyssey that the group was referred to as "The Class of 2001."

• David Lynch passed on directing Jedi. Acclaimed film director David Lynch passed when George Lucas asked him to direct Return of the Jedi.
• Darth Vader is banned from all official Star Wars events. David Prowse, the actor who portrayed Darth Vader (in form, not voice), is banned from attending official Star Wars conventions because George Lucas finds him annoying. Yikes!
• Chewbacca's voice is an eclectic mix of other animals. Chewbacca's voice is a mix of bears, walruses, lions, badgers and other dying animals.
• Harrison Ford almost wasn't Han Solo. Burt Reynolds was among the top contenders to play Han Solo, along with Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson and Christopher Walken.
• Empire Stricks Back uses the most stop-motion animation. Of all the films in the franchise, Empire utilizes the most stop-motion animation.