Saturday might be Cinco De Mayo 2012, complete with a ′Super-Moon′, but today I wish all my readers a Happy Star Wars Day 2012. May the Fourth be with you! Yes, it is a clever play on words as we embrace our inner Wookie celebrating the cultural impact of the film series by George Lucas. Inspired by the old Sci-Fi serials like Flash Gordon and Buck Rodgers, and lifting whole scenes from movies like ′The Searchers′ and ′633 Squadron′, Lucas handed America, and the world, a whole new universe of memorable characters and common sense. Who would have thought that a futuristic space opera based on the Arthurian legends would turn into a multi-billion dollar industry?

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Happy Star Wars Day 2012! May the Fourth be with you! Image Credit: Chris Saxon / Wenn.com.

But that is precisely what George Lucas did. His face-lift of traditional folklore and historical themes blended well and became a virtual institution of our society. Good versus Evil, Freedom versus Tyranny as well as other classical concepts, spanning from The Holy Bible to Shakespeare to today′s headlines all came together in 1977 when the first Star Wars movie, Chapter 4 in the series, hit the big screen. The lines of people wanting to participate wrapped about theaters all across the globe.

Such treasured memories have I on the subject. Like skipping a day from college to wait in line for tickets to the opening of the second film, ′The Empire Strikes Back′. Arriving at the theater shortly after dawn, my friends and I were the second batch of fans outside the ticket window. Naturally, we were stoned, having dropped some Purple Micro-Dot just before arriving. It was a sunny, warm day, none better for ′skleening-out′ for the hours we waited.

So do share your favorite memories on this Happy Star Wars Day 2012. May the Fourth be with you is more more than just a cheap slogan. It is a state of mind, a piece of our culture and history. Thank you, George Lucas! Or as we would say on Star Trek, Live long and prosper!

Photos: www.wenn.com