One Man Star Wars
Charles Ross returns to Celebration to perform his one man show, “The One Man Star Wars Trilogy”. Ross uses no props and no instruments, only his voice, to create a fun and unique take on episodes IV, V, and VI.

Troop-athon Races
Troop-athon races returns for an event that is sure to have helmets rolling! The 501st Legion Troop-athon is a friendly competition between armored fans from all over the galaxy. The competition includes Ewok tossing, a Segway race, and a list of other challenges set up to test the soldiers’ skills and ability to perform in armor!

Bounty Hunt
The Bounty Hunt is a chance for you and your friends to prove yourself to the Bounty Hunters Guild! Players are given clues to solve, with the clues increasing in difficulty as they advance. Celebration V is your hunting grounds, and marks are given varying Credit amounts on their heads depending on difficulty.

Props Strikes Back
For the first time in the United States, Stefan Cembolista and the Belgian Star Wars prop crew will be presenting their replica collection for all to see! Some of the replicas on display include a full scale wampa, a 1:6 scale AT-AT, a Speederbike in front of a life-size Endor bunker, a life-size Snowspeeder, which you can get inside, a 1:6 scale X-Wing fighter, and MUCH more! They will also have a full scale TIE Interceptor, the first of this size to be built! And yes, they are even letting fans get in the cockpit!

Echo Base Diorama
As a Celebration regular, Frank D’lorio is back at Celebration to build a giant diorama of Echo Base with the help of fans! Echo Base was chosen to commemorate the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back. Hasbro has made a generous donation of action figures and vehicles, and D’lorio set up an action figure donation fund for those who may not have their own action figures. Each fan gets to take home a piece of the diorama on the last day of the show!

My Star Wars Story
The Stories Project is asking fans to share their experience of Star Wars through video! They will have cameras set up so that any fan can have their 15 minutes of nostalgia and fandome videotaped for Lucasfilms.

Get Tattooed Live
The Star Wars tattoo program is back with a bold new feature! Instead of simply displaying body art, they will have almost 20 tattoo artists present, ready to give fans the ultimate memento; getting tattooed live! They will also have a display called The Empire Skates Back, a series of Star Wars themed skateboard decks, presented by Shane Turgeon, author of The Force in the Flesh. The decks will be auctioned off for the Celebration Make A Wish charity.

Last Tour of Endor
Star Tours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is powering down temporarily to make way for the new Star Wars 3-D attraction coming in 2011, and they’re sending it off with a Death Star bang! The event promises to be the largest private party held at a Celebration to date. The party takes place “after hours”, from 8 pm to 1 am, and features exclusive merch, Disney characters dressed as Star Wars characters, a stunning fireworks show, a special edition of “Hyperspace Hoopla”, and more!

These events and many, many more make for a fun filled adventure any Star Wars fan can enjoy! For more information visit http://www.starwarscelebration.com/

1. Dantooine: Go camping on one of Dantooine’s luscious valley floors, where the rebel base is definitely not located.
   



2. Bespin: Hang out among the clouds in the planet with the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets in the galaxy.
   


3. Endor: Hike through Endor’s historical forests! (warning: do not pull hanging meat off trees)
   


4. Hoth: The galaxy’s most popular ski resort, and home of the mythical Wampa!
   


5. Ossus: Take in the epic history of the Jedi!
   


6. Yavin IV: Visit the ancient Massassi temples, and the old Rebel base!
   


7. Ando: Covered in ocean, Ando is the perfect place for swimming and fishing!
   


8. Korriban: Take the kids to visit the tombs of Sith Lords of old!
   


9. Naboo: Picnic in Naboo’s tranquil scenery and be sure to visit the Queen!
   


10. Alderaan: Uhh, nevermind.
    

1. ...you frequently get headaches trying to move things with your mind.


2. …you say “Use the Foooorce” in completely serious situations.


3. …you tell people your hunk-of-junk car can make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs.


4. …you don’t care that a parsec is not a measurement of time.


5. …Jar Jar Binks makes you cry.


6. …Mark Hamil calls you a Star Wars nerd.



7. …you have a tan line from your Darth Vader helmet.


8. …all your home movies involve you and a lightsaber.


9. …you’ve had an argument about whether Darth Vader’s breathing sounds like “huul-kaa”, “hoo-pah”, or “choo-kaa”.


10. …you know the back story of every creature and character that has even a single second of screen time.


11. …you had a memorial service for Chewy (RIP).


12. …Guiness makes you think of Ben Kenobi instead of beer.


13. …you think of lightsabers every time you use a flashlight.


14. ...you use Star Wars quotes as a part of your daily life.


15. …you watch a show you hate because they used a Star Wars quote once.


16. …you can name three generations of Hutts.


17. …you buy Star Wars costumes with no real intent on wearing them for Halloween.


18. …your license plate says “WildKardde”


19. …you know the Old Republic history better than your own country’s.


20. …you defend George Lucas no matter what.


21. …the intro crawl of A New Hope still makes you quiver.


22. …you’ve lost several night’s worth of sleep wondering where the yellow ladder on Luke’s X-wing went.


23. …you’re bummed that Taco Bell never made a “Chancellor Supreme.”


24. …you worry about which fictional comic book story is more real than the others.


25. …you really love this website.

Holograms are within arm’s length. Virtual reality is close to being perfected, and projectors are already widely available. The LG eXpo is a smartphone with a projector that was released in December of 2009. If these technologies were combined, and there was a way to make virtual reality portable, it would be easy to set up a way to project your own form to a friend or family member in another country.

Laser weapons are actively being researched by the U.S. Army’s Advanced Energy Armaments Systems Division and Stellar Photonics. The Airborne Laser is a 747 modified to emit a continuous-beam. Several companies are working on portable laser weapons for the U.S. Army. The PEP (pulsed energy projectile) is nearly finished, and may replace the stun gun within the next few years. Granted the PEP is more like a plasma pistol from Halo, but they’re getting there!

Robots are becoming more and more common in our time. Japan recently started testing the use of robots to aid the elderly in nursing homes. ASIMO is a humanoid robot developed by Honda that can recognize faces, sounds, moving objects, postures, gestures, and environments. The care-providing robot FRIEND is a semi-autonomous robot designed to support people who suffer from muscle diseases, strokes, or paralysis. It is also used by elderly people. The FRIEND is designed to aid these people in daily activities, such as cooking or even working, so that they can do these things on their own. Next I’m sure we’ll see 20 foot tall four-legged robots walking through the streets!

A company called HoverTech offers an e-book that contains a concept and directions for building your won hoverboard. They are also actively researching a whole list of hover technologies, from hydrostatic to magnetic. ACVs (air-cushoined vehicles) are already fairly common, using a “skirt” to contain high pressured air below the vehicle, making it easy to travel on land and on water. A company called Moller developed the M200G, which will sell for around $125k. It can hover 10 feet above the ground and travel at 50 miles per hour.

Scientists are making breakthroughs all the time, each discovery unlocking even more questions and research opportunities. As for things like hyperspace and giant spaceships, it seems we will have to wait a little longer. But be patient, Star Wars fans. The future is bright.

The best part was the kids in the audience and the extraordinary time they were having. So many of them were dressed up in costumes. The new Clone Wars TV series has reignited the passion in a new generation.

Here I am with my 10-year old Darth Maul t-shirt. (And here I am with the same t-shirt at the opening of Episode I in India 10 years ago):

Darth Maul.
Is my friend and all.

There’s Anthony Daniels, if you believe me.

A lot of kids were dressed up, as were many characters available for photo ops. They also had a lot of displays and props from the movies outside the arena by the concession stands.

Four day adult passes are $120, four day kids are $50, and they have single day admissions as well. I had been to Celebration II (Indianapolis 2002) and it was one of the most fun things I’ve done.

From starwars.com:

Star Wars Celebration V will take place August 12-15, 2010, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. A website, www.starwarscelebration.com, is dedicated exclusively to the event, and tickets to Star Wars Celebration V will be available for purchase online starting Thursday, December 10th. As always, Celebration will bring together the best of the Star Wars universe in one exciting, dynamic event!

Will you be there?

UPDATE: Tickets now on sale.

I might be on BBC World Service today on a program called “The World” The World Today . They’re doing a special on 30 years of Star Wars and I just spoke with a producer for the show. They’ve recorded my comments, but I’m not sure if they will use them. I was speaking quite naturally until they said “We’re recording now” at which point I became nervous and incoherent!

• To find out if you can listen where you are in the world.
• If nothing else, it will be online here tomorrow.

Of course, if they don’t use anything I said, they just gained a slightly bigger audience for the price of an international phone call.

UPDATE: My mistake, I called the show “The World” instead of “The World Today”, in case anyone is paying attention.

Let us know if you would like some of your favorite Star Wars sites that you would like this engine to consider.

Of course, there is this:

Any original art, envelope art, comics, illustrations, news, stories, meeting information, or any materials voluntarily submitted become the property of Lucasfilm. No compensation will be given for voluntary submissions, and there is no guarantee of publication. Submissions to starwars.com will not be returned. By submitting content, you are stating that the work is original, and created by the person submitting it.

Newspaper clippings

In Gujarati

Ahmedabad Newspapers

Bombay paper