Cracked STAR WARS Art by John Severin

This original 1980 Cracked magazine cover art by the legendary John Severin seems even more appropriate today, with the new Star Wars film poised to set box office and merchandising records in the next few weeks. Enjoy!

Rainier Beer "Fresh Gordon" TV Spot (1978)

This 1978 commercial for Rainier Beer manages to "homage" 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars (dig that oh-so-close background music in the cantina) and Flash Gordon... and stars the original Flash, Buster Crabbe, as "Fresh Gordon."

Only in the 1970s.

Happy (Belated) Life Day!

Yesterday marked the 36th (!) anniversary of the much-derided Star Wars Holiday Special, which aired on CBS in 1978. Sure, I've kicked the bizarre variety special around some myself over the years, but I admit that I was watching it that night, sitting on the floor about two feet from the tube, and fourteen year-old me enjoyed the hell out of it. And if truth be told, whenever I pop in my bootleg DVD to torture the wife each holiday season, I still enjoy it.

Well, parts of it, anyway.

That awesomely strange cartoon, of course, introducing to the universe the intriguing Boba Fett. Some (very little, admittedly) of the domestic wookiee stuff. (And the Stan Winston wookie suits are fantastic and full of character.) Mark Hamill's heavy makeup. Harrison Ford, trying to stay in character and keep a straight face amid the nonsense. And I genuinely enjoy Bea Arthur's musical number - and whoever thought I'd admit that?

The less said about Carrie Fisher's singing, on the other hand, the better.

When the only Star Wars was Star Wars, (and the Marvel comics) even this bizarro Seventies artifact was something to look forward to and even celebrate. Have yourselves a happy (belated) Life Day and may the Force be with you, Star Kids!

The Adventures Of Lando Calrissian

Following the success of Brian Daley's trilogy of Han Solo novels in 1979-80, Del Rey Books released a three-volume cycle of Star Wars universe novels by L. Neil Smith, featuring the Millennium Falcon's previous captain, the roguish Lando Calrissian in 1981. The titles were:  Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu, Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon and Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka. (My spellchecker's having a stroke.)

Like Daley's Han Solo books, these novels took place well before the events of the original Star Wars films, and were set off in corners of the galaxy that seemed to have little connection with the Imperial settings of the films. Unlike the Solo novels, though, the Calrissian adventure were just plain weird. Even when Lucasfilm was building and putting considerable effort into reconciling its "Expanded Universe," the events, characters and planets in these books were essentially ignored. Still, at the time of their release, there was damned little new Star Wars adventures to be had, and offbeat as they were, they were eagerly snapped up by young fans.

Plus, they had great cover paintings by Williams Schmidt.

The Mindharp Of Sharu

The Flamewind of Oseon

The Starcave of ThonBoka

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK Soundtrack Ad

Over Christmas with the family, I was surprised to discover that my teenaged niece was a big Star Wars fan. Of course, I was too, when I was her age, but it wasn't quite the same back then. For one thing, there wasn't all the cool collectible stuff back in my teens. Early on, practically all we had were the paperback novelizations, the Marvel comics, some tee-shirts and the soundtrack albums on vinyl LPs.

Today I've got this whimsical newspaper advertisement (from the UK, I believe, though I may be mistaken) for the John Williams Empire Strikes Back soundtrack album. Really needs a comma between Jaws and Dracula, though... unless there was a vampire shark movie I missed?

Kenner 12" Boba Fett!

"That's why you got the job!" I never had any of the large-sized Star Wars action figures - hell, I had very few of the small ones - but I would have loved to own this cool Boba Fett doll. And Darth Vader (sold seperately), for that matter....

Posting has been light here of late as I've been concentrating on other projects and, frankly, recharging the nostalgia batteries. About a month or so ago, I started to feel a bit exhausted trying to come up with material to maintain nigh-daily Space: 1970 updates, and although I didn't really plan it, I obviously needed a break.

Regular posting will resume shortly. Stay tuned....

Burger Chef STAR WARS (1977) Posters Commercial

One of the most popular posts on this blog has been the one about the Star Wars Burger Chef/Burger King posters painted by Del Nichols and offered by both restaurant chains back in the early months of 1978. Well, here's a vintage Burger Chef commercial for those highly collectible fast food premiums, starring pitchdroids C-3PO, R2-D2, and some of their galactic "pals."

Unused STAR WARS (1977) Poster Concept

When it comes to Star Wars (and Star Trek) items, I've resolved myself to the fact that I'm not likely to dig up anything that's new to the die hard fans. But every once in a while, I do come across stuff that's new to me - like this early Star Wars advertising campaign concept art.

The graphic design is strong, and from a marketing perspective, it's an interesting approach. There was a lot of pop culture nostalgia in the air in the mid-Seventies, so I can see why someone at Fox might propose that angle as a way to sell George Lucas' space opera to the masses. Of course, what's so ironic about this is that it was the spectacular success of Luke Skywalker that paved the way for both Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon to return to the big screen over the next few years.

Posting here at Space: 1970 will probably be pretty light this week, as I will be concentrating on finishing up some comics writing work and some overdue DVD/Blu-ray reviews for my DVD Late Show website. Of course, if anything newsworthy should come up in the next few days, I'll be sure to let you all know.

Behind-The Scenes Pix #41: STAR WARS

I missed it, but yesterday was George Lucas' 69th birthday. Like every first-generation Star Wars fan, I have my issues with Lucas' choices and handling of the franchise he's created over the years... but I cannot forget that it's ultimately his vision, and we're all just very lucky to have had a chance to share in it. Star Wars changed the world - and the lives of plenty of Star Kids - in a lot of ways, and it all started with Lucas.

Here's the man himself, directing Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford on the set, way back in 1976...

70's Sci-Fi Topps Trading Card Flyers

I collected a lot of Topps bubblegum cards back in the 1970's. I had tons of Star Wars cards (blue, red, yellow and green series) almost all of the Galactica cards (and still have most of them), and a small stack of Buck Rogers cards. I didn't collect the Superman or Hulk cards, but I seem to remember buying some Star Trek - TMP sets.

Anyway, here, courtesy of Star Kid (and Dark Shadows aficionado) Cousin Barnabas (of the Collinsport Historical Society), are a selection of colorful promotional flyers produced by Topps to interest retailers in carrying their various Space: 1970-era photo cards. Enjoy!

SPFX: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980) TV Special

Before exhaustive DVD/Blu-ray bonus features and entire television channels devoted to peeling back the behind-the-scenes process of filmmaking, the only glimpses fans had into the real-world of movie special effects was through occasional Starlog features and other magazine articles, and the rare prime-time network television special - such as this 1980 TV event designed to promote the first Star Wars sequel, The Empire Strikes Back. Hosted by Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill, we were given a full hour of lovingly photographed miniature spaceships, stop-motion Tauntauns (and Imperial Walkers), and so much more.

A genre fan himself, Hamill brought a lot of natural enthusiasm to his hosting duty on this documentary special.

I'm pretty sure (though not 100% certain - I couldn't find a scan of the tape box) that this special got an 80's VHS videotape release along with the Star Wars and Return Of The Jedi TV promotional specials.

Cosmic Valentines

Happy Valentine's Day!

PIZZAZZ Magazine Cover Gallery

I have never actually read an issue of Marvel Comics' 70s-80s tween/teen magazine, Pizzazz, but I wouldn't mind getting a look at the mag's exclusive serialized Star Wars comic, which was mixed into the usual assortment of puzzles, pop culture articles, bubble gum pop star coverage (Shaun Cassidy!), short stories and games.

Of course, being of the Space: 1970 era, it covered (and cover-featured) plenty of genre stuff, including two properties that Marvel Comics was then publishing in four-color form: Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica - and lots of Marvel superheroes. Here's a small sampling:

Coming Attractions: REVENGE OF THE JEDI Teaser Trailer

I'm sure everyone else has seen this video millions of times, but until today, I hadn't seen this Revenge Of the Jedi trailer since I caught the first re-release of The Empire Strikes Back in the theater. I remember being really, really excited for the third film...

Now, I just get a kick out of the "Wilhelm scream" sound effect used when the guy falls into the sarlacc (sarlaac?) pit.

STAR WARS Atari Arcade Game (1983) Advertising Art

I can't even guess how many quarters I pumped into this game back in the Summer of '83. I had a full-time job at a paper mill that Summer, but pretty much every evening I would hang out with my friends at a now-long-gone, second-rate pizza parlor in Waterville, Maine, where we would divvy up mediocre peperoni pies and take turns at the Star Wars stand-up in the corner.

I really dig this artwork - because it's undeniably gorgeous, and because it reminds me of those long, pizza-filled evenings hanging out with my friends during what was pretty much our last Summer together before college, jobs and all the other things that go with adulthood caused us to drift apart....

Books In The Basement

So... the other night I was poking around in my parents' basement and found a box of books that I thought were long lost and/or I'd forgotten I had. In the first category, was my near-mint first printing of Donald Glut's Empire Strikes Back novelization from the Spring of 1980 and nearly a dozen volumes of The Best Of Trek - a series of paperbacks published by Signet Books that collected fan-written Star Trek articles from G.B. Love's seminal fanzine, Trek. In the "forgotten I ever had" category was the fourteenth and final Battlestar Galactica paperback from Berkley Books, Surrender The Galactica!

That latter discovery was especially fortuitous, because, as I've noted elsewhere on this blog, I've been slowly filling in my collection of Berkley Galactica titles, buying them piecemeal from various online dealers, and Surrender has proven to be the priciest of the books in good (or better) condition. So, what a pleasant surprise to discover I already owned a copy - and in like-new condition!

As a Star Kid, I didn't collect a lot of toys/action figures - I had model kits - but, being a voracious reader, I did collect a lot of books and magazines. All these years later, it's still the books that really spark my nostalgia and the only Space: 1970 "collectibles" that I still hunt down and buy.

Season's Greetings From Space: 1970

Best wishes from R2-D2, C-3PO and all of the busy droids and robots here at Space: 1970. Have fun, stay safe, and we'll see you all here again after the holidays - whichever holidays you celebrate - with a lot more sci-fi memories from the analog age!

What Do You Give A Wookie For Christmas?

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980) Premium Art By Boris

Another image-centric blog post! Man, I'm getting lazy. Anyway, when The Empire Strikes Back premiered in 1980, acclaimed fantasy artist Boris Vallejo (whose Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon images from the period are also memorable) was commissioned to paint these dramatic posters as premiums for Coca-Cola.

I don't recall if these were available at fast food restaurants or at theaters. Can someone who actually remembers let me know in the comments?

ADDENDUM: From the comments, it appears that these posters were available at both the Burger Chef/Burger King restaurants and at "participating theaters!"

Captain's bLog: 1217.12

•   Obit: I begin this Captain's bLog with some sad news. I've learned that actress Dolores Mantez, who portrayed lovely Lieutenant Nina Barry, the purple-wigged moonbase commander on Gerry Anderson's 1970 series UFO, passed away in November.

She appeared in 23 of the series 26 episodes, with probably her most memorable appearance being in "Sub Smash," a tension-filled hour of drama where her character was trapped on a crippled SHADO submarine with Ed Bishop's Commander Straker and very little air.

Although a busy actress on British television during the Sixties, she retired from acting in 1972 to devote her attentions to her family. Rest in peace, Ms. Mantez.

•   Star Wars Graphic Novel Giveaway: While I remain disappointed in how few of the folks who entered actually followed directions - even after I repeated the instructions - I'm otherwise pleased by the overall response to this first Space: 1970 Giveaway. After disqualifying all the entries that didn't follow the rules, I randomly drew the winning name of Star Kid Mark Holmes, from far-off Willingboro, New Jersey.

Sometime in the next few days, I'll be shipping out the Dark Horse Star Wars Omnibus Vol. 2 and the adaptations of Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. Keep an eye on the mail, Mark!

 •  Press: Last friday, Huffington Post blogger Jason Apuzzo wrote an article about the upcoming Disney Star Wars sequels and 70s science fiction cinema. I enjoyed the article for the most part (especially the parts that seemed to be borrowed from - or at least influenced by - my writings here), but the best part was that he included a link to Space: 1970 at the end of his post. This resulted in a nice uptick in hits from new readers. Hopefully, some of them stuck around!

•  Blatant Cross-Promotion: And here's my usual shameless plug: anyone who enjoys my writing and the DVD reviews on this blog  should check out my DVD Late Show site, where I have been reviewing B-movies, cult films and genre television shows on DVD and Blu-ray disc since 2005. Among the over 700 reviews on the site are plenty of Space: 1970-era favorites, like Battle Beyond The Stars, Damnation Alley, Starcrash, The Starlost, the Space: 1999 Blu-rays, and many more.