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From: Jamie.Zawinski@CMU-CS-SPICE.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Subject: Ewoks and NutraSweet
Message-ID: <3005@topaz.ARPA>
Date: Tue, 30-Jul-85 17:02:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: topaz.3005
Posted: Tue Jul 30 17:02:28 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 1-Aug-85 05:02:52 EDT
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Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.
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From: Jamie.Zawinski@CMU-CS-SPICE

My main reason for despising the Ewoks with every fiber of my being is
that by rights, THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN WOOKIES!  George Lucas had
originally planned that the moon (Endor? memory fails) be the native
planet of the Wookies.  This was even stated in that TV Christmas
special they did in '78 or '79.  

So why the change?  Why ditch the Wookies?  The same reason that the
Ewoks were made abominably cute: marketing.  Lucas & co. felt that the
Wookies (because of Chewbacca) had an image of being a civilized,
spacefareing, technological people.  They thought the Masses would 
object to being told that Chewie was an exception, that most Wookies 
were primative tribals.  So, they changed them.  The first design of 
the Ewoks was a very tall, thin, hairy critter.  Because this looked 
too much like a Wookie, they made them very short, and eventually 
arrived at the saccharine teddy-bear (some of the preliminary drawings 
looked a lot like the elfish creatures from the Dark Crystal).  

Lucas said that they also had been a little worried about Vader.  
They thought people would object to there being anything Human under 
the mask at all (thank The Force it didn't go that far!)

Another interesting point... Remember the orthinoper that the Ewoks 
used against the Imperials?  It was supposed to be a bird, but the 
Dreaded Deadline prevented them from getting a good looking 
critter... um...off the ground, so they made it mechanical.

My source for all this is one of those "Making of..." TV shows.  Lots 
of interviews with Lucas and the people at ILM. (I think it was 
"Making of the Star Wars Trilogy," but it may have been 
"Making of Return of the Jedi").



					---Jamie
				   (jwz@cmu-cs-spice)
		   "Anything worth doing is worth doing for a profit."


P.S.:
      Anyone know when/if the next movie is going to be released/begun?  
The Original Plan called for nine, but I haven't heard anything about 
SW#4 (episode 1) except that if released at all, it will deal with the 
Clone Wars.