Star Wars Quiz
Almost no one at the studio expected the 1977 film to succeed, including some of its own cast.
A Star Wars quiz with answers about the making of the saga rather than its plot twists: who voiced whom, where the sounds came from and which older films shaped the story. Fans of any trilogy can play.
Did you know?
- The desert planet Tatooine takes its name from a real place. The crew filmed in southern Tunisia in 1976, near the town of Tataouine, and several of the buildings used as sets are still standing. Some have become tourist stops, and others are slowly being covered by moving sand dunes.
- The opening text that crawls into the distance was inspired by the Flash Gordon cinema serials of the 1930s. For the first film it was not a computer effect: the words were laid out on a long black model and a camera moved slowly along it.
- Yoda was performed by Frank Oz, the puppeteer behind several of the best-known Muppets. The makers considered using a trained monkey in a mask before deciding on a puppet. Oz operated the figure from beneath the floor of the set, watching his performance on a small monitor.
How Star Wars was made
When George Lucas began writing his space adventure in the early 1970s, science fiction was not considered a safe investment. Several studios turned the project down before 20th Century Fox agreed to back it. Filming in Tunisia and England ran over schedule, the effects were late, and many of the people involved expected a modest children's film. It opened in a few dozen cinemas in May 1977 and queues formed within days.
A used universe
Earlier science-fiction films tended to show a spotless future. Lucas asked for the opposite: ships that were dented and oil-stained, robots with scratches, a galaxy that looked lived in. Concept paintings by Ralph McQuarrie fixed the look before a single scene was shot. The spaceship models were detailed with parts taken from hundreds of plastic kits of tanks, planes and cars, a shortcut that model makers call kitbashing.
Music and sound
John Williams wrote the score for a full symphony orchestra at a time when electronic music seemed the obvious choice for space. Each main character or idea has its own melody, which returns and changes as the story develops. The sound effects were collected from the real world: Darth Vader's breathing is a diving regulator, and R2-D2's voice mixes a synthesiser with the designer's own whistles and baby-like noises.
Beyond the cinema
In his contract Lucas accepted a lower fee in exchange for the rights to sequels and merchandise, which the studio thought were worth little. Toys, books and games went on to earn more than the films themselves. In 1997 the original trilogy returned to cinemas with new digital effects, and in 2012 the Walt Disney Company bought Lucasfilm for about four billion dollars and announced new films and series.