Conference noted::sf

    	Supposedly, the next STAR WARS trilogy will go back to show
    the BEGINNINGS of what occurred in SW Episodes 3, 4, and 5.  Then
    the trilogy AFTER that will "tie up" the whole series (presumably
    with the Rebellion defeating the Empire - I doubt I spoiled anything
    there!).  It was also said this would not have any of the actors
    who played in SW 3-5 portraying their characters again, just R2-D2
    and C3PO throughout the whole nine episodes!
    
    	These movies are supposed to last until 1998!
    
    	Larry
    

     
    Actually, Lucas said that he was taking a few years off from movies
    before he thought about producing another Star Wars trilogy. He
    also said that the other two trilogies would be less action-oriented,
    which is why he started in the middle. The first one deals with
    the decline of the old republic, the Clone wars, et. al. The last
    three books deal with the complications of reforming civilization
    after the downfall of the Empire. Pretty dry stuff, but could be
    good if done well. They wouldn't appeal to the same audience as
    the "originals", though.
    very good if done well. They would not appeal to the same 

    	Did Lucas ORIGINALLY plan on having anything more than STAR
    WARS?  In its first showing (1977), there was NO "Episode IV" heading
    to the introduction.  I can't remember exactly what it said, but
    it was not Episode IV.
    
    	Larry
    

     
    He had completed all nine books in the series, but I doubt he planned
    on more that one movie, since he had to fight tooth and nail to
    get the first one produced. 
    
    BTW Does anyone know the name of the nine-book series? I used to
    know it, but my brain seems to have turned to mush lately.
    
    Roy

    Star Wars when originally released, did not carry the "part IV"
    announcement merely to keep from confusing the ignorant masses.
    
    	/
       (  ___
        ) ///
       /

    The complete story is known as "The Journal of the Whills" (what
    it means is anyone's guess). Anyways, Lucas had supposedly worked
    out an outline for the whole series from the beginning. He chose
    to make STAR WARS [,CHAPTER IV: A NEW HOPE] first because (1) it
    was the most action-packed, and (2) if it didn't go over well, it
    could've stood by itself. Leaving the "Chapter" business off the
    original prints also two-fold: (1) so audiences wouldn't be forever
    wondering when the first three parts were released, and (2) if SW
    didn't make it, there wouldn't be any visible traces of it being
    only one part of a larger work.
    
    Some time back, Lucas mentioned that he dropped the idea of using
    the droids as the only continuing characters throughout the whole
    series. There are rumors floating around that Lucas has also
    dropped the series altogether, preferring to work on other things.
    He doesn't want to turn it lock, stock, and barrel over to someone
    else, either, for fear that it would diverge totally from his
    vision. Personally, though I really liked the series, I could
    live without more Star Wars films.
    
    --- jerry

    I saw Star Wars on opening day in San Diego and I distinctly remember
    the Episode IV heading.  I remember Being somewhat suprised by it.
    
    Steve

    I, too saw it when it first hit the theaters (Worc., Ma., which
    dispells any "World Premier" claims.); I could've sworm I saw 
    "Episode IV" because I thought: Cute; if its great we clamor for
    1 to 3."                                
        
    Anyone out there attend the "World Premier"?
                                           
    						Don

    I thought "Howard the Duck" WAS the sequel.  Can anybody straighten
    this out for me?

    I almost feel embarrassed to even be discussing the SW saga after
    "Return of the Jedi" obviously assumed the mental/emotional age
    of its audience to be between eight and ten.  Unless he can come
    up with a good excuse--like he was hung over, or his kid ghost-wrote
    it for him--I'd have to agree with the "Pack it in already, George"
    sentiments.
    
    Matt
    

The same thing seems to have happened to Saturday morning cartoons.  They're
now nothing more than 30 minute commercials for the latest doll or set of
"action figures".  
                                  
*Sigh*.  Whatever happened to Johnny Quest?

- Chris

    You can get action figures of him and his family and he has a new
    comic book.  That's what happened to Johnny Quest.  Is it any worse
    to make up the cartoon, the comic, and the dolls all at once than
    it is to make up the show, then market the comic and the dolls,
    the way they did with Mickey Mouse and Davy Crocket?  What bothers
    me about the current crop is the limited selection between saccharine
    and mayhem ("My Pretty Pony" and Smurfs, or Transformers and He-Man).
    
    I didn't think the mental age of "Return of the Jedi" was noticably
    lower than that of the other two movies.  None of them were
    fantastically highbrow, you know.  They were nonetheless good romps
    for all that.
    
    What I loved about Star Wars was that it showed on the screen
    things I had only read -- hyperdrives, alien skies and creatures,
    futuristic machines of unprescedented realism.  The plot was as
    unoriginal as a kubuki dance, but at least they were *space*opera*
    cliches, such as I had seldom seen on the screen before, and it
    was mildly amusing.
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    Re last several:
    
    Well, you can look at the three SW flix already out there as one
    complete adventure and two halves.  _Empire_ just stopped; _Jedi_
    sort of wrapped up many of the pieces.
    
    SW met the Muppets in _Empire_, since Yoda was a very elaborate
    Muppet (done by Frank "Miss Piggy" Oz)_.
    
    I agree with Earl -- it _was_ Space Opera cliches; nothing wrong
    with that.  Will Lucas do more?  Time will indeed tell.
    
    
    Steve Kallis, Jr.
    

    re:.7,.8
    
    I'm sorry to say that your memories are playing tricks on you. I
    first saw STAR WARS two days before its official release (a press
    preview), twice on opening day, twice again that Friday, and some-
    thing like 20 more times over the next 4 months (yes, I did like
    it!). The "Chapter IV: A New Hope" did *not* show up on the film
    until the summer two years later, when the film was in its first
    major re-release, carrying with it a special trailer for the then
    forthcoming THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK.
    
    --- jerry

    	So WHAT was originally said??
    
    	Larry
    

    If I remember correctly, it just Episode IV ot just IV at the top
    just after "In a galaxy far, far away  .....STAR WARS....music etc.
    
    Rick A

    A QUESTION TO THE CONFERENCE, please.
    
    Regarding "Star Wars" the book.  Does anyone have info leading to
    the where-'bouts of a copy of the movie in paper back ?  I have
    "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" and I would like
    to complete the set of this triology.
    
    
    Rick A

    	RE .16-
    
    	No, I do not believe it said Episode IV - what did it ORIGINALLY
    (1977) say?!
    
    	RE .17-
    
    	The novel STAR WARS is still being printed and is available
    in regular bookstores.
    
    	Larry
    

    What it originally said was *nothing*. After the card saying
    "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..." and the title
    "STAR WARS", it displays the synopsis. The only difference is
    that the later release added "Chapter IV --- A New Hope" to
    the top of the synopsis.
    
    --- jerry

re .17:

The Star Wars novelization is by George Lucas, so since
most bookstores seem to alphabetize by author look under
L in the SF section.

And if it's not there try a used bookstore.  The Book Rack
that I haunt (in Colorado Springs) suffered a severe
overstock of this one a couple of years back.

Susan

    Does anyone know if the entire nine-part Star Wars story is available
    in book form?
    

re:.21
                         -< All nine parts in print? >-

Nah. Lucas writes movie scripts, not books.
(It's rumored that SW, the book, is ghosted by good 'ol Alan Dean Foster.
With friends like these...)

John O.

    The SW books are only released after or shortly before the movies
    are released.  We won't see the other books until the movies are
    made.
    
    Steve

    RE: 'SW' novelization
    
    Righto.  It was ADF again.  Are you paying attention, Mr. McWhirter? 
    
    Matt
    
    (i.e. if Guinness has a category for most movie novelizations, I should
    think ADF has the category signed, sealed, and delivered. Let's see--
    Star Wars, Alien and the plural, Krull, The Last Starfighter, The Black
    Hole, Dark Star, Outland, Clash of the Titans...I get the feeling this
    guy really likes SF movies.  Or his agent does.) 
    
    (In all fairness to the guy, and to stretching the topic of this note,
    he does have some novels I liked:  "Cachalot," "Icerigger," and "The
    Man Who Used the Universe" come to mind.  Gosh, thanks, Matt, we were
    really wondering about that.) 
    

    I also liked THE TAR-AYM KRANG and some stories in WITH FRIENDS
    LIKE THESE.
                 
              					Don

    He even wrote the novelization of a movie that never got made ---
    LUANA.
    
    I still haven't seen any convincing evidence that Foster actually
    wrote the STAR WARS novelization. It didn't read like his other
    work.
    
    At any rate, the "books" of the other six Star Wars films are
    not novels, nor even movie scripts, but merely screen treatments
    (basicly, story outlines).
    
    --- jerry

from .24:
>    (i.e. if Guinness has a category for most movie novelizations, I should
>    think ADF has the category signed, sealed, and delivered. Let's see--
>    Star Wars, Alien and the plural, Krull, The Last Starfighter, The Black
>    Hole, Dark Star, Outland, Clash of the Titans...I get the feeling this
>    guy really likes SF movies.  Or his agent does.) 
    
And let us not forget of course, the Star Trek Logs - #s 1 through 10 !
Sorry folks, I just HAD to get that in.
kevin    

    Foster wrote at least one spin off novel derived from the Star Wars
    characters (I have mercifully forgotten the name.) I think his books
    set in the Humanx worlds are his best.

	RE: .28

	I remember reading a sequel called `Splinter of the Mind's Eye'
	(did he do more?).  It was about a confrontation between Luke and
	Vader over some chunk of crystal that would enhance control of
	The Force.

	Not really a memorable story so no wonder you forgot the title. :-)

		Bob L.

    	Does anyone remember the STAR WARS comic strip in the newspapers
    a few years ago?  It was supposed to take place BETWEEN Star Wars
    and Empire.  Is it still around?  Will any ideas be used in the
    future movies?
    
    	Larry
    
    	BTW - Foster also wrote STARMAN.
    

    Starman is another ADF effort I'd just as soon forget. He got most
    of the events but completely missed the magic. I wish he'd stick
    to writing his own ideas and lay off the movies, he does the former
    quite well (most of the time) and the latter badly. (I supose he
    likes the money tho...)

    re:.30
    
    No, the STAR WARS comic strip died out, somewhen around the time
    that RETURN OF THE JEDI came out, I think. I doubt that any of
    its ideas will be used in future movies. Licensed fiction such
    as comic strips, comic books, novels, etc. are general considered
    "unofficial". The studio usually reserves the right to use ideas
    from them if they want, but are under no obligation to do so.
    
    --- jerry

    RE .30:  Pay 'tenshun!  (.25)
    
    Re: Reading SPLINTER...  You're very brave.
       
    						Don

    	Obviously your reference to STARMAN wasn't obvious enough!
    
    	:^)
    

    BTW, the original novel cover had the title:
    	
    	From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker:    (in small letters)
    	
    		STAR WARS           		 (in big block letters)                  
    
                       
    implying (I suppose) that the novel was an extract of a much larger
    work.
    	
    I hope the Adventures of Luke Skywalker/Journal of Willis gets
    published in whatever form it exists before Lucas dies.  I want
    to see it.
    

    RE: Splinter
    
    I found it amusing to thumb through it now that RETURN OF THE JEDI
    is out.  All throughout the book Luke and the Princess are flirting
    with eachother.  Luke keeps thinking about her, "noticing" when
    she is close, etc.  ADF thought (logically, after the "good luck"
    kisses and other nonsense of SW) that Lucas & Co. was positioning
    "Luke and Leia" as the next "Luke and Laura."
    
    I wish somebody had let him in on what was going on.  I assume at the
    very least a Lucasfilm rep. checked the book out before it was
    published, for continuity.  Since Lucas at least _claims_ that most of
    the trilogy was already planned out before SW was even made,
    theoretically at least they already knew Leia was going to turn out to
    be Luke's sister (although it felt pretty "tacked-on" - not to mention
    "silly" - to me).  I am surprised they let ADF's stuff go.  By now
    it seems pretty wacky, and mildly incestual.
    
    Matt
    

    	Lucas undoubtedly did NOT want the big JEDI secret of Leia being
    Luke's sister to get out, even at the risk of novel sin!
    
    	Remember the big smooch she gave him in EMPIRE?
    
    	Perhaps in that galaxy and time, it's okay! ;^)
    
    	Larry
    

re:.37

>    	Lucas undoubtedly did NOT want the big JEDI secret of Leia being
>    Luke's sister to get out, even at the risk of novel sin!
    
Probably because there WAS no secret at the time "A New Hope" and "Empire"
were filmed. While most of the SW "nonilogy" (? nine books) was outlined,
there were a lot of changes made as the stories developed, the characters
changed or took on new dimensions, and so on.

In a PBS airing of Lucas discussing the "making of", he mentions a few
things:

The planet battle between the Ewoks and the empire was planned, originally,
to be between WOOKIES and the empire. Lucas wanted an advanced vs. primitive
battle, with the primitive winning- (more spirit, can see better because
they're not wearing masks... ) The problem was that Chewbacca demonstrated
in both earlier films that wookies are NOT primitive, since they can repair
starships and robots and handle conventional weaponry. So Ewoks were invented.

Leia being Luke's sister is even more bizarre. In the final duel between Luke
and Vader, remember Vader suddenly realizes that Luke has a sister. At this
point, Luke gets REALLY annoyed, and defeats Vader. The original idea was to
have Luke defeat Vader, but since he is trained at controlling his emotions,
something was needed to motivate him without making him seem hot-headed or
aggressive. So the threat to the sister. But the sister had to be someone
the audience already knew, not yet another new character that no-one would be
much interested in, particularly Luke. So Leia got a new last name.

Lucas may have come up with this idea late in the "Empire" film, as the
scene of Leia responding to Luke's telepathic call for help and Yoda's
line "there is another..." may (or may not) be references. I believe I 
remember Lucas saying that he was fortunate that he had not written any
heavy breathing scenes between Luke and Leia up to "Return", because of the
impropriety, even though it would be without the character's knowledge.
The "Empire" scenes don't indicate that Leia is Luke's sister, only that
she has the "force"- Yoda and Ben have the force, and are not related to
the Skywalker clan.

This also explains why this all seems "tacked on"... it is.

John O.

    "There is another............>>>"
    
    Wonder who ?  I do not completely believe that the whole reference
    was to Leia.  Anyway there is another book with Han Solo and Chewie
    called something like "At Star's End".  I don not remember now but
    there is no Luke and Leia in it.  Would be a good lead in for, let's
    see, "Star Wars III - Who are we".
    
    Rick A

                There were three of them :
                
                Han Solo at Stars' End
                Han Solo's Revenge and
                Han Solo and the Lost Legacy
                
                all by Brian Daley.
                

Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Path: decwrl!decvax!ucbvax!ucbcad!zen!seymour.Berkeley.EDU!c8-2cc
Subject: Re: Star Wars I (not IV)
Posted: 18 Oct 86 21:36:27 GMT
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Posted: Sat Oct 18 17:36:27 1986
 
In article <[email protected]> [email protected] (Joe Jaquinta) writes:

>I have heard that they have started filming Star Wars I (or -3 if you
>prefer {-2 for mathemeticians}). Does anybody know if this is true and
>if so what is the supposed plot summary?
>
>			j^2
 
I'm not sure if they've actually started filming yet or not, but I did
hear that they have started on the creatures for that. I heard that
Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) in Marin (near Berkeley) is working
on the creatures that they're using for that film. The idea of the
first trilogy is supposed to be a recounting of what happened between
Obi Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker. That's about all I
know. It's supposed to tell, in greater detail than in "Jedi", how
Anakin came to be with the Dark Side. BTW, the last trilogy, beginning
with Star Wars VI, is supposed to continue the adventures of Luke,
Leia, and Han and the gang. It's supposed to pick up after "Jedi", but
I don't know if it will ever be made. I hope that helps. 
 
						    
						    Cindy

Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Path: decwrl!amdcad!lll-crg!rutgers!caip!daemon
Subject: Star Wars continues
Posted: 21 Oct 86 21:53:37 GMT
Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.
 
From: [email protected]
 
I vaguely remember reading about this in "The L.A. Weekly" +5 years
ago where George Lucas was spilling the plot of the Star Wars story.
From my faded core memory.... 
 
Each trilogy happened many hundreds of years apart of each other.
 
The first trilogy dealt with the rising of the First Empire and the
organization of the Jedi Knights. 
 
The third trilogy dealt with the outcome (another galactic empire) of
the second trilogy. 
 
***** Mild Spoiler Follows *****
 
What really ties the trilogies together are the droids, C3PO and R2D2.
We find in the last trilogy that they are telling the whole story.
They are the only characters that have survived.  Luke, Leia and the
rest should only appear in the second trilogy.  Of course this is
Hollywood and your mileage may vary so the story may have been changed
again.  It will be interesting to see how 'primitive' technology will
be in the first trilogy compared to the second trilogy. 

Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Path: decwrl!amdcad!lll-crg!rutgers!daemon
Subject: Before the Beginning
Posted: 18 Nov 86 16:23:52 GMT
Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.
 
From: nutto%[email protected]  (Andy Steinberg)
 
I do remember in STAR WARS after the logo came on the screen it then
said EPISODE IV and gave a summary of what was happening. Back in the
summer of 1983 I turned om Doctor Who in Boston and just before the
program started they showed an advertisement for the Star Wars saga
which would begin that Friday on National Public Radio 89.7 FM. 

The series was composed of 13 half-hour shows, the first several
dealing with incidents that took place before the opening of the first
Star Wars movie. It started out on some planet with the Princess Leia
and the captain of the ship later attacked by the star destroyer
discussing his mission to a solar system containing a rebel base.
While talking they were interrupted by Darth Vader. The three
exchanged the usual diplomatic formalities and then departed. Princess
Leia traveled back to Alderaan while the captain flew his ship to the
rebel base. The Princess, now back on Alderaan, was met by her
(adopted) father and an Imperial governer who wanted to marry her.
Unfortunately the governer was killed during a scuffle with Leia and
her father and she was forced to leave the planet while her father
disposed of the body. Meanwhile, the ship receiving the Death Star
plans from the rebel base out in space is found by the Star Destroyer.
The captain sends his ship into hyperspace and emerges near Tatoonine
only to be followed by the Star Destroyer. I do not remeber when Leia
joined the captain on his ship. 

            <<< UCOUNT::DISK$USER01:[NOTES$LIBRARY]MOVIES.NOTE;1 >>>
                             -< You be the critic >-
================================================================================
Note 378.19                Next STAR WARS Movie???                     19 of 19 
MONSTR::HUGHES "Gary Hughes"                          5 lines  11-FEB-1987 09:59
                              -< THE CLONE WARS >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    According to CINEFANTASTIQUE, THE CLONE WARS (episode 1 of STAR
    WARS) is starting production this month (Feb 87). Location filming
    is set for Kenya, Morocco, and Switzerland.
    
    gary

    I'm suprised no ones mentioned it yet but in sf-lovers digest issue
    128,129,130 there is a synopsis of the next movie.  At first I though
    it was an APRIL Fools joke (it came on april 2), but the original
    submission date was march 21.  I didn't find anythihg that led me
    to believe that it was a hoax (like something I saw last year that
    had Cindy Lauper playing a character) but I did notice mention of
    the Kaiburr Crystal which was in Alan Dean Fosters "Splinter of the
    Minds Eye"
    
    Its rather long to put into the notes file but if someone wants
    it, send me mail.
    
    The story treatment was written by John L. Flynn.
    
    Does anyone whose seen this text know if its the real thing.
    
    Rich
    

    	There was a followup letter in REC.ARTS.SF-LOVERS which states
    that it is NOT an early script outline from Lucas, but a copy of
    a fan story which Lucasfilms rejected.  Some unscrupulous dealers
    got a hold of some copies and started selling it as the real thing.
    
    	So what you have is not official, I'm afraid.
    
    	Larry
                                                     

    re .38, .39
    
    I just saw "The Empire Strikes Back" on Tube the other night.  Yoda
    sais 'there is another' in response to a comment from Obewan about
    Luke being the last hope.  That's GOT to be a reference to Leia.
    
    I'm left wondering how come nobody knew that Leia had 'the force', when
    it seems that people who are strong in the force (Obewan, Vadar) could
    sense that kind of stuff.
     

    	Because Leia was made unaware of her own abilities, thus she
    didn't give out any "signals" to Vader and Fiends.  Vader only learned
    about it when he probed Luke's thoughts (Luke was aware of Leia's
    powers).
    
    	All of this is shown in EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983).
    
    	Larry
    

Path: muscat!decwrl!labrea!eos!ames!pacbell!att-ih!ihnp4!inuxc!iuvax!bsu-cs!
From: [email protected] (Neil Marsh)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf-lovers
Subject: Re: New STAR WARS movie?
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
Date: 30 Mar 88 16:09:02 GMT
References: <[email protected]>
Organization: CS Dept, Ball St U, Muncie, Indiana
Lines: 11
 
    According to a Lucasfilm representative in Indianapolis at
Starbase Indy, Lucas will being work on the next STAR WARS picture
near the end of 1989.  It will be the first part of the first trilogy.
 
==============================================================================
Neil P. Marsh 		UUCP:  <backbones>!{iuvax,pur-ee,uunet}!bsu-cs!drwho
415 1/2 W. Gilbert St.	             Ball State DOCTOR WHO Society
Muncie, IN  47305			  (1-317-747-0023)
==============================================================================
 
    MuncieCon '88 -- The most fun Muncie's seen since David Letterman!

From: [email protected]
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf-lovers
Subject: Star Wars and George Lucas
Date: 20 May 89 17:25:00 GMT
 
    Well, it seems Star Wars fans have a while to wait for another
movie in the series.  I quote from an article on George Lucas in my
local newspaper (byline Ben Fong-Torres, San Francisco Chronicle): 
 
	For those who've been waiting for the next "Star Wars" saga since
	the last one ("Return of the Jedi", 1983) and are holding Lucas to
	his original vision of a nine-film series, Lucas has mostly bad news.
 
	"It'll be a number of years before I even start thinking about it,"
	he says....  "I'm going to go off and work on other things that
	interest me."
 
	Those, says Lucas, include "helping some friends get some movies
	made" and developing "educational learning systems" involving
	computers and video disks.
 
	"And I'm doing some of my own writing, which may eventually turn
	into something I might direct," he adds.

    Anybody have any Star Wars sequel info??

    Nothing more than the usual rumors that pop up every couple of
    years.
    
    --- jerry

    I thought they bagged the rest of them...
    
    B.

    Where did you hear this???

    I remember something in the paper about Lucas declaring that he
    wouldn't do any more.  This happened either during or after his
    divorce.  I haven't seen anything about it since.
    
    B.

                I remember  hearing  the  same.   Lucas was bored
                with SW and didn't feel like doing them anymore.
                
                

    Considering what his work is like when (presumably) bored -eg Last
    Crusade- it may be a blessing in disguise.
    
    I just wish it wasn't such a good disguise :-(
    
    						=maggie

The most likely dirt -

Lucas divorced his wife a while back, this is common knowledge.

The divorce was rather ugly, also common knowledge, in the right circles.

During said divorce, the wife proved to the court that she was a major
artistic contributor to the look/feel/plots of the star wars series.
(all 9 are worked out to one degree or another, from plot outlines to almost
finished scripts)

So, as part of the settlement, she gets part of the profits of any and all
star wars movies, spinoffs, etc...

Lucas has vowed not to make another one...

Grins,

clark.

ps - I heard this from my girlfriend, who is from california and has friends/
connections in Lucasfilm, IL&M, and several other places...

    Why all these rumours and speculation.  If any of you had read reply
    #50 in this topic, you'd all know the status of Star Wars.

    
    Just saw on a Siskel & Ebert show that Lucas definately plans to do SW
    1-3!!They were talking with Martin S.,Steven S., and Lucas himself.He
    says he *WILL* do it.Now if he backs  off on this one I'll be po'd!!I'm
    not going to be sure until the actual shooting has begun.
    
    
    

    re: .60
    
    Sounds like Lucas can't make up his mind on what he wants to do with
    the Star Wars saga.  Just like the rumours I hear for the making of a
    6th Star Trek movie, I hear  conflicting  reports.
    
    ktlam--��

    Well,I heard it from his mouth so unless this guy is playing an April
    fool's joke,we will be seeing some more pictures.
    
    

I got this information from Ray Feist, who is a friend of Lucas's.  This 
conversation occured at 3:00 in the morning during a dead dog party at a con, 
so I might not have all the information correct.

Lucas was not, as of two months ago, planning on doing any more of the Star 
Wars sagas.  He is bored with them.  It has nothing to do with his divorce 
(which was amicable BTW).

The first SW installment, however, is scripted and a treatment for production 
has been completed.  All that is needed to go is Lucas's OK (and his money).  
I suppose that if Lucas has a couple of more disasters (i.e. Howard the Duck & 
Willow), he will do it just to revive his good name.  Since the Indiana Jones 
saga is finished, it looks like this is his only ace-in-the-hole.


    

I saw the Siskel and Ebert thing also and Siskel was interviewing Lucas and
right out of LUcas' mouth came the word "Yes" to the question "Are you going
to do any more Star Wars movies?"

The problem is when.

Steve

    Now that It seems all but official,any suggestions on who should be in
    the movies??Who would like to see play young Annakin?Young Obewan?Who
    should play Mrs. Skywalker??
    
    
    How about Tom Cruise as Annakin??
    
    

    re: .65
    
    I think the name is Anakim Skywalker.  I don't think Tom Cruise would
    be it.  Lucas tends to like to introduce new faces/names.  In most of
    his movies  he shies away from big names.  The only two big names he
    used  in ST were Alec Guinness and I forget the other guy's name, he
    was well known for horror movies like Dracula and Frankenstein. 
    Besides Tom Cruise was already in another  of Lucas' movies.  A fantasy
    picture called "Legend".
    
    ktlam-- -YY-
    
    

    re:.66
    
    (1) It's Anakin.
    
    (2) The other "big name" was Peter Cushing. Of course, there's James
        Earl Jones as well, though his appearance in STAR WARS is a
        little less obvious.
    
    (3) Lucas had nothing to do with LEGEND. You're confusing that with
        LABYRINTH, which *was* a Lucasfilm production.
    
    --- jerry

    
    
    Jerry,is the man who played Obewan dead?Also os the guy who played the
    emporer dead?
    
    Just curious(and I'm sure you know -:)
    
    j.

    From what I've heard, Alec Guinness (Obiwan Kenobi in Star Wars) is
    still alive.  After Star Wars, he did a TV series on PBS base on John
    LeCarre's spy novels called "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy".  I'm not
    totally sure though????
    
    re: .67
    
    Jerry - if Lucasfilm didn't do "Legend" then who did?
    
    ktlam--

    re:.68
    
    Sir Alec Guinness (Obi-Wan) is very definitely still alive, though
    he's had bouts of illness in recent years, from what I've heard.
    I don't recall who played the Emperor, so I can't answer definitively
    on that.
    
    re:.69
    
    Sir Alec has done quite a few things since STAR WARS. Don't forget
    that he appears in EMPIRE and JEDI as well. He's done at least two
    of the Smiley mini-series, and one other thing I can recall him
    in off the bat is PASSAGE TO INDIA.
    
    I'll have to check at home about who produced LEGEND, but I'm
    99-44/100% positive it wasn't Lucasfilm. For one thing, I seriously
    doubt that Lucasfilm would've let Universal muck around with the
    US release (i.e. cutting some material and putting on a completely
    different soundtrack).
    
    --- jerry

    If he lives any longer maybe he could appear in the prequel!!
    
    
    I wonder if Darth Vador would appear in any of these movies,maybe
    towards the end?
    
    
    j.

    re: .71
    
    Frankly, Sir Alec would probably be too old to appear in the prequel.  
    The prequel would involve a younger Obi-Wan(BEn) Kenobi training a
    young Anakin Skywalker.  It would also show how young Anakin succumbs
    to the darker side of the "Force" to become Darth Vader.
    
    ktlam--��

	re .67, .69, etc.
	
	Willow is the movie that Lucas produced.  Although I didn't
see it, the ads did sound similar to Legend.

Sandy

    re:.69
    
    LEGEND was produced by Arnon Milchan and Legend Productions.
    
    re:.73
    
    Yes, Lucas was a producer on WILLOW. He was also a producer on
    LABYRINTH, as I mentioned in an earlier reply. The reason I suspected
    that ktlam was confusing LEGEND and LABYRINTH was because (a) they
    both begin with the same letter, and (b) many people get the two
    confused because of (a).
    
    --- jerry

    re: .74
    
    Also, both "Legend" and "Labyrinth" are in the same genre of films --
    fantasy.  
    
    ktlam--��

RE: .68, .70

The name of the chap who played the emperor is Ian McDiarmid.
Unfortunately, I can't provide any info other than his name.

-- Cathy

    Well the rumor mill is up again.  I read yesterday (4-jun-1991) in
    the Boston Herald that old G. Lucas was back to thinking about the 1-3
    prequells.  BH reported that the prequel will involve the ealy life
    of Luke Skywalker. !!??  If this is accurate I wonder if George himself
    know what he wants to do for the first three films.  Pre-production is
    still yet to start.
    
    Rich

    Mentioned in MOVIE notes is that the kid from Home Alone "MacCauley
    Caulkin" or somesuch) was cast as young Luke.
    
    K.C.

    This doesn't seem to make any sense, given that we already saw Luke
    discover the beginnings of his Jedi powers in the first Star Wars
    movie. As that film begins, Luke is biding his time on his aunt and
    uncle's farm. What is his young life going to feature: smoking corn
    silk back behind the barn-unit with Emmy Lou 4.2?
    
    There's a whole rich history before Luke's generation, esp. the Clone
    Wars and the campaign of the emperor against the Jedi. (Hey, I just
    read the newest Star Wars book by Timothy Zahn, don't blame me for
    being up on this stuff!) The story could show the young Ben, Yoda, and
    what's-his-name Skywalker (Luke's pop) cutting a lightsaber-swath thru
    the universe in the cause of the first Republic. How about Tom Cruise
    cast as 1000 troopers in the Clone Wars? How about Emilio Estavez as
    the young emperor, turning Skywalker Sr. to the dark side? Then there's
    the story of Luke and Leia's Mom, curvatious and brilliant, struggling
    to hide her Force-capable twins from the evil emperor's grasp. It then
    turns out that Mom clones herself (with a Y-chromosome added) and the
    result is put into deep-freeze until it emerges as Han Solo! Ever
    notice that we know NOTHING about Han's parentage? This would develop
    the Oedipus theme still further, especially since in Zahn's book, Han
    and Leia are expecting twins of their own!!
    
    - Hoyt

I think you have it wrong.  according to the report I heard the next three will
be on the early years of Obi Wan,  Anakin SkyWalker (Darth Vader) and Yoda.  
Luke is not even a gleam in Anakin's eye yet.

Steve

Let me get this straight (re: last several) --

Does this mean that obnoxious kid will play VADER as a young child?

A-A-A-A-A-A-H-HHH...R-R-R-G-HH!!


- Steve

I doubt it!  These episodes will cover them as Jedi not children.

Steve

               <<< EOT::EOT_18773:[NOTES$LIBRARY]MOVIES.NOTE;1 >>>
                             -< You be the critic >-
================================================================================
Note 378.55                 Next "Star Wars" Movie???                   55 of 60
AYOV27::TWASON                                        7 lines   5-JUN-1991 04:06
                             -< More Rumours.... >-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    
    
    Yesterdays Daily Express (UK newspaper) announced that Mcauley Culkin
    has been picked to play the young Luke Skywalker, and filming starts
    next year.
    
    Tracy W

This was sent to me a few days ago by a fellow SFer when I asked
him about the new book...


    " Star Wars." Yeah,
judging by the rumblings coming off Skywalker ranch, we're not too far away
from the launch the next " Star Wars " trilogy. I don't know if you read my
original note, but these next three films will be markedly different from the
first trio. This trilogy -- detailing the clone wars, the rise of the evil
Emperor as well as the seduction and destruction of the Jedi Knights -- will
really owe a lot to the legend of King Arthur. It'll be a story that starts
out light, magical and adventurous with its first installment, grow darker in
the second film, and ultimately turn tragic by number three. Don't get me
wrong, these will be " Star Wars " films -- full of thrills, laughs, spills,
and ( Of course ! ) those great ILM effects -- but there's a much somber 
undertone to these films, the rise and fall of the characters is almost 
Shakespearean in scale. They'll still be able to sell a lot of little " Star
Wars " toys to children who'll see these films, but the adults who first saw
the original films as kids will be doubly impressed by the depth of the tale.
	So far, there's no news on casting. But Lucas -- working from a 
monsterous 300 page script written by Lawrence Kasdan from George's own 
outline -- has been secretly auditioning younger actors from some of the 
parts. The rumor is that -- just like the first time around -- Lucas will
use no-name actors in the central parts, with name performers relegated to
small, supporting roles. And -- yeah -- the other rumor appears to be true.
To save dough in the long run, all of the live action sequences for all
three films will be shot in one LOOOOONG shoot. Tenative estimates say that
it'll take a year to get everyting they need in the can. 
	However, learning for the mistakes Universal made with its released
too-close-together " Back to the Future " sequels, Lucas has now said that he
plans to release a new installment every 18 months. So, following this
scenario, ( And assuming that Lucas meets his proposed production start date
of the summer of '91 at Pinewood Studios in London ) the first new " Star 
Wars " film will open nation-wide during the Memorial Day weekend in 1992.
The second installment will be in theaters for Thanksgiving 1993, with the 
final film rolling in again on Memorial Day 1995.
	Now, what makes this all very interesting is that all of the live 
action scenes for all three movies are supposed to be directed by one man
-- and the one man Lucas feels is capable of handling the job is Hollywood
hitmaker, Steven Spielberg. Lucas and Spielberg has enjoyed a long and
fruitful collaboration with the " Raiders " series, and -- they were both
happy to finally put Indiana Jones to rest ( Well, that's not entirely 
    true -- but the proposed fourth Indiana Jones film is a story for
    another  time ) -- George and Steve genuinely enjoy working together
    and have
    been     looking around for a new project to tackle. Lucas has been actively
    campaigning to get Spielberg to agree to direct all three films, but
    Steve's been balking  because of just the sheer size and scale of the 
    project.
	Lately, I hear, Lucas is using a combination ego stroke / riches beyond
measure approach to try and land Spielberg. He's been stressing the somber 
under-side of the story line ( Appealing to Spielberg's desperate need to be 
taken seriously by the film-making community ) as well as the world-wide
success of the first three films. " You'll be directing the sequels to the 
most successful film series of all time -- and you're the only one with the 
talent .... Oops. Time to go home. More info later.

    We were watching the STAR WARS on tape, and after it was over, a friend
    said it was a B rated movie with a lot of special effects, but he still
    liked it.  I think I agree with him.  On the other hand Joseph Campbell
    seemed to be able to read a lot into the stuff, but then he could read
    a lot of stuff out of anything.  Do other people here have similar
    feelings?                                                
    
    Eugene

    Yes, it seemed pretty deliberately mythic, and pretty deliberately
    modelled on the theme of Campbell's "Hero With a Thousand
    Faces".  You have the boy growing into manhood, the wise old
    mentor, the quest, the resistance of organized authority. 
    There's nothing wrong with that; re-working myths is ancient and
    standard practice.  If you go overboard with it, as Lucas did on
    "Willow", it looks like lack of imagination, but SW had
    imagination to spare.
    
    /jlr

  Not being a member of of the literati, I thought "Star Wars" was simply 
  a remake of "12 O'Clock High."  I like it and all but I thought
  manually-controlled turret guns were a bit much.

  JP

    Re .85
    
    Oh, it was definitely a B movie, but it was a GREAT B movie.  That is,
    it was not in the least trying for dramatic subtlety.  It was, instead,
    Space Opera, very much as E. E. Smith spun it, painted (to change
    metaphors) with very broad strokes, but painted well.  Funny thing,
    these unsophisticated popular-appeal forms of entertainment very often
    wind up dripping with archetypes and mythic motifs.  The connection to
    Joseph Campbell's views is no accident, but it needn't go straight
    through Campbell.  Campbell is saying the same things as Jung.  And
    Lucas may have read Campbell and Jung, or he may have read neither;
    Jung would not be the least surprised to find old fairy-tale themes
    embodied in a popular adventure-romance.  He would say it was
    inevitable.  (I hadn't heard the connection to "12 O'Clock High," but
    I've heard matches made to "The Wizard of Oz.")
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    re: last few
    
    From what I've read about it Lucas himself said that he was trying to
    capture the feel of the old "Buck Rodgers" and "Flash Gordon" movie
    serials he saw as a kid.  I would say he succeeded very well in doing
    that.  It was all action and adventure fantasy in that genre that was
    extremely well done!

    Sure the manual gun turrets are probably unreal,but on the other the
    other hand the hero was doing an impressive job !
    
    Mike

    I always thought the manual gun turrets were intentional ... the
    Millenium Falcon was a real piece of space junk after all ... ;^)
    
    Ya noticed the X-wings had weapons computers ...
    
    							... Bob
    

  Didn't Luke have to drop that Deathstar-killing bomb manually as well?
  (That scene was more like "The Dam Busters" than "12 O'Clock High.")
  I guess the Rebels were short of cash, too.

  JP

John -

no he did not HAVE TO, obi wan just "suggested" that he use the force instead
of the targeting computer...

And it worked, like there was any doubt...(although it would have been 
interesting had it NOT worked...)

grins,

clark.

    Actually, I always thought that the electronic countermeasures on the
    Death Star were causing everyone elses weapons to miss, so Luke used
    the 'other targetting computer'....
    
    Willie

    RE 	     -< There wasn't _any_ AI in evidence in those movies >-
    
    Of course there was ... two of the major characters in fact ... R2D2
    and C3P0.
    
    ... Bob
    

    re: .87
    
    The space battles in SW looked to me like frame by frame
    imitations of the dogfights in "The Battle of Britain", which was
    made a few years earlier.   That might be a coincidence of using
    WW II aircraft ballistics for space fighters, or it might be a
    direct steal.    
    
    Dogfights are practically obsolete /today/, of
    course, but it's hard to get drama out of duelling electronic
    counter-measures.   Maybe future military stories should be told
    from the point of view of the AI who is actually controlling the
    weapons.   The human soldiers would be pushed out of combat
    altogether, and behave like generals do today.  The GIs are AIs.
    
    /jlr

    It pretty common knowledge that the bombing run on the Death Star
    was inspired by two British WW2 films: THE DAM BUSTERS (1954) and
    633 SQUADRON (1964). In fact, Lucas reportedly used footage from
    the latter as a model for the attack sequence.
    
    --- jerry

    
    re .96
    
    I beg to differ about dogfights being obsolete /today/. From reports
    I've read there were some pretty big "furballs" over the Bekka (sp?)
    valley between the Israelis and Syrians. Don't let that turkey shoot
    over Iraq fool you. If the war in Central Europe had ever come off
    you would have seen dogfights that would have made the Battle of
    Britain look like a classical dance class. :-)
    
    bruce

    re .96
    
    Dogfighting is far from obsolete!  We currently are emphasizing
    dogfighting skills and techniques in our fighter pilot training schools
    and excercises (i.e. Top Gun, Red Flag, Aggressor, etc.).  

    re:  AI
    
    Well, sure the robots were AI, but they were autonomous critters, I
    meant the ships themselves (for some reason) didn't seem to have any
    AI.  It probably would have been reasonable to expect battles to be
    more computerized, and to have seen more AI in the movie, but that
    wouldhave made the people less impressive.  Besides, would you have let
    C3PO drive your car, much less your starship?
    
    Willie

    Well Willie, there's AI and then there's AI...
    
    What do you need for proof? A tinny voice telling you that the X-wing
    fighter's hatch is a jar? A Bitchin' Betty repeating the word danger or
    warning over and over? I look at AI as being the type of thing that
    when a button is pushed, the hardware/software can tell from the
    current context what is wanted without a long dialogue. The continuous
    speech recognition of R2D2 is a significant step (and yet he can only
    beep). Advances come when we see complex machinery as appliances and
    expect them to complete they're assigned task unmonitored.
    
    Artificial Intellegence is one of those fields where once you've
    managed to implement it, you question whether it's intellegence in the
    first place and then move on to higher and higher levels. A pilot
    doesn't want to see a lot of geometry and mechanics in order to have
    faith that the flight computer (such as a nap-of-the-earth control
    system) will keep him from wacking the ground. I don't think the
    external cues will be significantly different than they are now but
    things will happen and might very well appear as "magic" to those
    unaware of the implementation.

    In one of the later movies, C3PO is translating from the Millenium
    Falcon for Han Solo and remarks that the ship has picked up a peculiar
    dialect somewhere.  This suggests that there IS a lot of AI behind the
    scenes in the Star Wars world.
    
    As for R2D2's beeping instead of talking, I don't think it's because he
    isn't smart enough.  (He seems a lot smarter than C3PO, who has to be
    switched off to *stop* him from talking), but because he wasn't
    intended for human interactions.  My impression is that R2 units mostly
    spend their lives tending other machines, and talking to other
    machines.  So they're only designed for that.  Of course, they
    understand organic speech, because you'd want your servants to, but
    they have so little occasion to talk back that they resort to screen
    display (or a protocol 'droid) when it's needed.
    
    R2D2, of course, is *not* living the life of a typical R2 unit, any
    more than Luke is living the life of a typical vapor farmer.
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    
    re. last couple
    
    Let's get real here. I'm sure when Lucas' made Star Wars the last thing
    on his mind was science. You're stretching SF a lot by including Star
    Wars. I'd have to call it space opera if anything. Take away all the 
    effects and what have you got ? Some cheap thirties serial, that's
    what.
    
    bruce

    re .103;
    
    And since when is space opera NOT part of science fiction?
    
    -dave

    
    re. -1 
    
    When you take an old good vs bad, hero gets heroine etc plot and add
    lots of special effects and toys just to bring in larger audiences.
    The setting of Star Wars is NOT integral to the plot. You could just
    as easily set it in medevial Europe and make it a swords and scorcerors
    kind of flick. To me, that ain't science fiction.
    
    bruce
    

    To you, that ain't science fiction, but to the majority of people it's
    what they usually think of when someone says "science fiction."  If
    they don't think of UFOs and Godzilla.
    
    Granted the superficial nature of the science in Star Wars, this
    needn't mean there was no effort or consistency put into the
    background.
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    Well, if you "set it in medevial Europe and make it a swords and
    scorcerors kind of flick" I wouldn't have gone to see it, nor would I
    have enjoyed it as much as I did, and I certainly wouldn't have call it
    SF!
    
    Willie

    
    Look, I never said SW wasn't good entertainment. I've seen all three
    (including a back-to-back viewing of TESB) and I'll probably (read
    definitely) go see any sequels. My point is: let's not go overboard
    and grant too much credit where none is due. I'd bet a lot that if 
    you asked Lucas he'd admit that he had no intention of coming up
    with a great SF masterpiece. He simply took an old morality play and
    dressed it up with bright lights and intricate models. To suggest that
    he thought about trivial details like how much AI existed in the
    ship autopilots is a little much.
    
    Sermon over. :^)
    
    bruce

    Well, some writers do.
    
    I've been reading Niven's "N Space" at night when I get into bed and one
    of the things he mentions about the writing of the "Mote in God's Eye"
    is the fact that they designed the technology that the "moties" had
    before writing the story and then allowed the limitations that set
    to determine several situations. They designed the laws of the stories
    universe and then built the plot along those lines.
    
    I can't believe that writers would plod ahead and then "create" the
    technology necessary when a situation arises. This always makes me
    think of the cartoon where the professor has tons of equations on the
    board and somewhere in the middle is a box that says "and then a
    miracle happens". To be successful, you need to be internally
    consistant.

    
    Absolutely, I agree with you. Some writers do "build from the ground
    up". I think, however, that Lucas' focus was the morality play and the
    technology and setting were just props and got a correspondingly
    limited amount of attention.
    
    bruce

    >>  Well, some writers do.
    
       The keyword here is "writers" -- the world of Hollywood, and film in
    general, is rarely concerned with the `authenticity' of its work --
    witness the evisceration of historical context in the newly released
    "Robin Hood" abomination, wherein Prince John disappears, the Sheriff
    of Nottingham is the offspring of a witch, Will Scarlet turns out to
    be none other than... [OOPS!  That would be a Spoiler -- better
    pass...], and a number of other inaccuracies appear...
    
      Meanwhile, *writers* attempt to make their work feel like reality, in
    some sense -- which in the case of Niven, et al., includes making sure
    the *science* is consistent.
    
      IMHO, this discussion is rather academic in this Conference...
    
    - Steve
    

    Which discussion, Steve? Star Wars in SF or technical backed SF?

    RE: .112	>> Star Wars in SF or technical backed SF?
    
    Actually, none of the above ...
    
    I was just making the point that `filmmakers' (and I use the term
    loosely?) often have less concern about `doing it right' than about
    getting-it-done... it matters not to them whether they are distorting
    history or the laws of science...
    
    
    

    For me, the terms "sf" and "science fiction" are synonymous and define
    a broad category ranging from speculative histories to cyberpunk to
    space-opera to "hard" SF.  Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but it
    remains just that, especially in the absence on any universally
    recognized standards body! (see note) :-)
    
    Wook
    
    E.g., IDSI - Inter-Dimensional Standards Institute

    Seeing as the Robin Hood legend is very loosely based on fact and
    history to begin with, I don't think we can criticize Hollywood for any
    elaborations they may choose to make to the story.

      Hey folks, don't lend too much credence on Culkin playing a young
    Luke. Anyone who knows anything about these films know that Luke would
    only appear at the very end of the third filmand he would be a little
    infant. But then again who knows?? Maybe Lucas and Lawrence Kasden made
    some modifications to the script.
    
     Now let's think about a director for these films. Lucas wants to save
    money by filming all 3 in one looooong shot, as mentioned earlier in
    the topic. Lucas wanted one man and no one else: Steven Spielberg. But
    Stevie-boy is too busy right now he has 3 more films to direct before
    he's free to direct the Star Wars trilogy. Lucas can't wait that long
    for Spielberg. So he's going to have to find someone else to direct
    these pictures. Joe Johnston would did a fine job with THE ROCKETEER
    should be his chioce IMO. I feel he could do an excellent job on the
    STAR WARS pictures. The other man I was thinking of was the dude who
    directed THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Ivan....? But I've heard he and Lucas
    fought constantly during filming and once the film came out many
    critics said that it was better than the original and Georgie got a
    little jealous. 
    
     I'm curious to see who plays Obi-Wan. Yes Lucas picks unknowns to play
    his films but Alec Guiness was hardly an unknown when he was cast in
    STAR WARS. I'm going to estimate that Obi-Wan was still middle aged
    even in the upcoming prequels. Probably in his early to mid forties. I
    suspect a fine British actor will get the role. 
    
     Looking at things at a perspective, the three films should take a year
    to make all together. This style of filming back-toback-toback is very
    much like THE BACK TO THE FUTURE MOVIES. One the mistakes Universal
    made was releasing BTTF 3 too soon. So Lucas will release each film
    every 18 months or so from what I've been told. Early estimates say
    that summer of 1993 will be the release of the first movie.  A little
    math says that the next would come out about the Christmas of 1994. The
    third and final film of this trilogy would be realeased in the summer
    of 1995. A very cost effective idea. With a new television network 20th
    Century Fox, *may* not have enough money to fund such a massive
    production. So Lucas has been looking at other studios to help "Fox"
    support the movies. Rumor has it Disney will be the one.
    
    
      These movie will be like a Camelot in space. It has those
    Shakesperian trajic overtones to them. If done well, this trilogy could
    be better than the original trilogy.
    
    
    Comments?
    
    JES

    >One the mistakes Universal made was releasing BTTF 3 too soon.
    
     I haven't seen them, but I'm told that the mistakes made with BTTF 2
    and 3 was releasing them at all....  :+{
    
    Willie

Makr that "summer of 1996".  Summer of '95 will be only 6 months after Christmas
of '94.

I'll buy tickets.

The problem with Back to the Future II and III was that they were too similar.
Essentially the same story was told 3 times.  Showing all three back-to-back is
massively redundant and boring.  Waiting 18 months allows you to forget enough
that it would seem fresher.

Star Wars, on the other hand, is supposed to be a chronology.  I'd like it if
all were released together as a $20 triple-feature.  Or shown a week or day
apart like a mini-series.  Maybe in '97...

						-- Spencer

According to the interviews I've read with those involved, from a
production standpoint, one of the biggest mistakes made with BTTF 2 and
3 was to plan the BTTF 2 release as if BTTF 3 were not being filmed. 
That meant that the director (especially) was stretched to the absolute
limit trying to watch over both principal photography for 3 and
postproduction for 2 at the same time; 18-hour and longer days were
common.  The effects people were also affected, since they were
actively involved with principal photography.  It's my understanding
that the plans for the new set of Star Wars flicks are to do all
principal photography before the postproduction effects work starts,
which sounds much more sane.

A year is probably a good estimate for the principal photography; that
should be preceded by 6-12 months of preproduction once there is a
script, and 6-12 months per picture of postproduction.  Of course, just
like with software, money and overtime sometimes substitute for
inadequate planning and unreasonable schedules.

    
       Sorry, you're right the last movie ( according to everything I've
    heard ) would be Summer `96. Even though STAR WARS is a chronology,
    there's no way that Lucas would release two movies within a week or
    whatever. He wants to squeeze as much money from each movie as
    possible. Plus the fact that he wants to keep the fans in suspense for
    a year and a half, so the next movie could be a even bigger than the
    preceding one!!
    
    JES

    A friend of mine bought a 32" TV and we rented Star War II and III and
    watched it last night.  I would say the thing is darn Wagnerian. 
    Simple inconsistant stories with deliberate mysticism, complete with
    leitmotiff both audio and visual.
    
    Eugene

    Re .121
    
    I haven't seen much Wagner, but what I recall agrees with your
    assessment.  But it's been some time; what were the inconsistencies?
    
    Earl Wajenberg

    A question:-
    
    		Does anyone know the name of the guards in Jaba's palace.
    
    		You know, the big fat green one's with axes and pig heads,
    		one of them got dropped in the Rancor pit.
    
    		If got a whole office of people who have got the name on
    		the tip of their collective tongues but can't figure out
    		the name.
    
    			Matt. B.

               <<< EOT::EOT_NOTES:[NOTES$LIBRARY]MOVIES.NOTE;1 >>>
                             -< You be the critic >-
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Note 378.72                 Next "Star Wars" Movie???                   72 of 74
BAUCIS::SAPP "One warrior to another"                 7 lines  11-JAN-1992 11:21
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    	Apparently Spielberg *will* be directing these next three prequels.
    He said in an interview that he'd like these three pictures to be as
    good as the originals. He said he'd like to have - get this - Kevin
    Costner to play Annakin Skywalker.
    
    
    JS

Costner as Annakin Skywalker?

GAAAAACCCCKKKK!   AAACCCCKKK!   PTOOOIEEEE!!!

He may be cute as hell (according to my wife), 
but (IMHO) he can't act to save his life!

    Actually, he'd be ok as the 'good' Annakin, but I don't think
    he could handle the transformation to Darth Vader.

    
    	If Spielberg is directing the next three prequels then I would
    	expect it to have cute kids, cute animals, cute aliens and lots of
    	nice hugs with a happy ending. 
    
    	I think I'm going to be sick...
    
    							Andy

    
    ahahahahaha!!!!!
    
    ahem... sorry.
    
    :')