“The Winds That Shook The Stars” Book About The ‘Star Wars’ NPR Radio Dramas Set To Release In October
Image Source: Wallpapersden
Hardcore older fans of Star Wars, the ones who grew up with the original trilogy, might remember that National Public Radio (NPR) played an important role in further expanding the reach and popularity of the franchise during the early 1980s and mid-1990s by adapting and dramatizing all three original trilogy films for broadcast over public airwaves.
The project was embraced wholeheartedly by George Lucas, who donated sound effects and music from the movies to NPR for the project. The late Brian Daley (1947-1996), a popular author of Star Wars novels, most notably an early trilogy of books featuring Han Solo and Chewbacca, was hired to adapt the movies for the radio dramas. The radio dramas, which have their roots in old-fashioned serials from the golden age of radio, included expanded scenes that had either been deleted from the films or created to add more context to certain scenes.
RELATED:
Image Source: Wallpapersden
For example, the first two chapters of A New Hope, which feature (separate) scenes with Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia, are set prior to the opening of the film. The Princess Leia chapter also includes an alternate take on the theft of the original Death Star plans, which is drastically different than the story presented in Rogue One. The Empire Strikes Back starts with the destruction of a Rebel convoy by the Empire, further accentuating the dire straits in which the Rebel Alliance finds itself at that moment. Darth Vader has a brief conversation with Emperor Palpatine before leaving for the second Death Star in Return of the Jedi. Also, in a surprise nod to fans of the original Thrawn trilogy, C-3PO has a conversation with a dancer, “Arica”, in Jabba’s palace in Return of the Jedi. “Arica” was, in fact, the disguise adopted by Mara Jade, the Emperor’s Hand, to infiltrate Jabba’s Palace in an attempt to assassinate Luke Skywalker.
Image Source: Wallpapersden
Regarding the actors chosen for the radio dramas, Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprised their roles from the movies as Luke Skywalker and C-3PO, respectively, for A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. Billy Dee Williams reprised his role as Lando Calrissian for The Empire Strikes Back. The rest of the cast was rounded out by other fairly well-known actors such as Perry King, who had originally auditioned for the role of Han Solo and finally got the opportunity to portray the loveable scoundrel in the radio dramas. The late Brock Peters, who enjoyed an illustrious Hollywood career, including later roles in two Star Trek movies, as well as Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, took up James Earl Jones’ mantle of the sinister Darth Vader.
Other surprising guest stars included John Lithgow as Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi and Ed Begley Jr. as Boba Fett and Ed Asner as Jabba The Hutt in Return of the Jedi. Yeardley Smith, the voice of Lisa Simpson from The Simpsons, also makes a heavily synthesized appearance as Jabba’s cruel droid supervisor droid, EV-9D9, in Return of the Jedi.
Image Source: Wallpapersden
All of this information (and more) is set to be contained in the upcoming book, written by John and Mary Jo Tenuto, The Winds That Shook The Stars: The Making of the Star Wars Radio Dramas and the Legacy of Brian Daley. The book explores the creative origins, production, and legacy of the Star Wars NPR radio dramas based on the information that Mr. Tenuto and his wife were able to obtain through intensive research, as well as interviews with some of the surviving cast of the radio dramas. The book is set to be released in October 2023, and is currently available for pre-order through Amazon.com and other major bookstores. Mr. Tenuto has indicated that there may eventually be an audiobook release as well.
READ NEXT:
Sources: The Rebel Base Card Podcast, GoodReads, Wookieepedia [1], [2],
Latest News
Featured
