Thanks Peter


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We got the news today that Peter Mayhew, the actor behind Chewbacca, passed away. Peter’s passing really touched me. I’m enough of a Star Wars nerd that I’ve attended the Celebration Expo several times and, of all the original cast, Peter always seemed one of the happiest guys in the room. When he got the Chewbacca gig, he was a hospital orderly and I think he never lost sight of how fortunate he was to play such a big role. That being said, it wasn’t all luck. Putting a guy in a six foot dog costume and asking him to follow Harrison Ford around in a potentially campy 70’s sci-fi film could have gone horribly wrong. Peter brought something to the table though. He gave Chewie heart and a lot of us, myself included, certainly connected. Chewbacca never would have become what he is without Peter. As Mark Hamill tweeted, “I’m a better man for just having known him.” There was a lot of sadness from fans of the original trilogy that we never got that scene in the new movies with Luke, Han, Leia, and Chewie together. Having now lost both Peter Mayhew and Carrie Fischer, that’s even more true.

When I visit Disneyland (frequently), I have the option to get my picture taken with a variety of characters from Star Wars. The thing is, I always go for Chewbacca. There are probably 100 pictures of me and Chewbacca in my Apple Photos library. There is nothing quite like hugging a Wookiee to set you right. Thanks Peter.

The New Galaxy’s Edge Soundtrack

This one pushes all of my buttons.

As an annual passholder, I’ve enjoyed watching Star Wars grow out of the Disneyland backlot over the last year. The new Star Wars themed land will be called Galaxy’s Edge and, thanks to Josh Gad (long story), I spent some quality time with the primary Galaxy’s Edge designers. If you are curious, I explain the story and the details in this episode of Rebel Force Radio.

This week Disney announced that John Williams is creating new and original Star Wars themes just for the new park. They even posted a video showcasing the new music with some very recent flybys through the area under construction. Disney says the California iteration of Galaxy’s Edge is supposed to open this summer.

Every time I watch the below video, my inner eight-year-old flips out.

Episode VIII


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Today marks general release of the latest Star Wars Movie. This will be episode VIII and, for me, continuation of a journey started when I was nine years old. I’ve got my Star Wars shirt on and wearing my Star Wars shoes (the same ones I wore a few years ago for Episode VII) and a group of friends and family ready to go see “The Movie” tonight. I’ve been intentionally laying low on social media the last few days and I’m ready to go be amazed. If you’re a geek like me, May the Force Be with You.

 

Solo

Today Ron Howard announced the name of the previously untitled Han Solo Star Wars Movie. 

Solo.


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I like it. He finishes the video saying “I’ll see you next year.” The question is … when next year? Previously Lucas announced Solo would be released in Summer of 2018 but since they’ve now pushed Episode IX to December of 2019, I wouldn’t be surprised if Solo gets pushed back to December 2018.

Star Wars Augmented Reality Promotion

Reuters is reporting that September 1-3 we are going to get augmented reality Star Wars characters on our iPhones at certain retailers like Target, Wal-Mart, Best Buy and … yes … Apple. 

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The hunt for “Star Wars” characters is scheduled to last three days and will coincide with “Force Friday II,” the day retailers start selling toys and other products tied to “The Last Jedi” with midnight openings around the world.
— Reuters

Of course, this is something right in my wheelhouse. It may even compel me to go to a store, which I usually try to avoid.

One curiosity for me is that this AR stunt happens before iOS 11 ships so it will not be taking advantage of the remarkable AR support we’ll see in the next version of iOS. It will be interesting to see how well they pull it off without that advantage.