The following interviews were originally printed in a double issue of Filmfax magazine #69/70 from 1998.
Although the “Star Wars Holiday Special” aired only once 30 years ago, it is well remembered by Star Wars fans because it expanded the Star Wars universe: Boba Fett was introduced for the first time, and the Wookiee planet of Kashyyyk, originally conceived for the Star Wars films, was introduced, as was Chewbacca’s family. Star Wars fans were ambivalent about the show’s vaudevillian take on George Lucas’s universe. However, the involvement of Lucasfilm veterans did give it some legitimacy: Star Wars illustrator Ralph McQuarrie designed the Wookiee planet. Ben Burtt provided new sound effects, and Lucasfilm liaison Miki Herman made sure the special remained consistent with George Lucas’s Star Wars mythology. The following interviews reveal the fascinating and sometimes tempestuous story behind the making of the show.
None of the former-production staff remembers how the special came about but co-executive producer Gary Smith of Smith-Hemion Productions (The Emmy Award, The People’s Choice Awards, The Tony Awards) believes that 20th Century Fox came up with the idea. “I have a feeling that 20th Century Fox was the instigator. In typical television style they probably said, ‘Let’s sell a Christmas special promoting Star Wars and we think Smith-Hemion Productions are the right people to do it. So we met with George and played around with several concepts.” Although the original script was a collaborative effort between George Lucas and Smith-Hemion Productions, the final draft was written without Lucas’s involvement.
The first draft of The “Star Wars Holiday Special” was written by Lenny Ripps and his then-partner Pat Proft, with input from George Lucas. The final script was turned over to producers Ken & Mitzie Welch, who made significant changes to it. Both Ripps and Proft have since worked on highly successful projects. After many successful years of writing for stand-up comics such as Joan Rivers, Rodney Dangerfield and David Steinberg, Ripps worked on Tim Burton’s featurette Frankenweenie and contributed to The Flintstones and Casper. Proft went on to collaborate with Zucker, Abrahams & Zucker on the Police Squad TV series and the Naked Gun films.
FAX: How did you become involved in the “Holiday Special”?
RIPPS: Lucasfilm came to 20th Century-Fox, and they came to Smith-Hemion Productions because of their reputation for doing high quality TV specials. Pat Proft and I had worked for Smith-Hemion. We were chosen for this project because of our work on Captain & Tenniel, which combined comedy and music.
FAX: Did Lucasfilm present you with a story?
RIPPS: Yes. Pat and I spent a day with George Lucas in which he took a piece of paper and said “How long is a TV movie?” He put that number down and said “Now let’s write what we’re going to do every minute.’ It was the only day of my life that I forgot to have lunch!
At that time I was a 310 pound man who didn’t think about food for the entire day! Now I’m a couple hundred pounds lighter but, at that time. I was an eating machine who forgot to eat. It was fascinating! He had a vision of what it was going to be. The original director was a protegé of his. I don’t know why he got replaced. He was a good guy, a good director, but the vision changed. It became more a musical comedy.
FAX: What was George Lucas’s original vision?
RIPPS: I think he wanted to make a sweet and sentimental vision of a holiday season and I think it evolved into something maudlin which was not what I thought his vision was. Now I don’t mean to speak for him, but my inclination was that it got kind of sappy.
FAX: It was an eclectic combination of elements: drama. space fantasy. and musical variety.
RIPPS: To me, it didn’t come together. The ideas were all right but I’m not sure that they belonged in the same room. What was interesting to me was that Lucas started talking about Star Wars as if it was a real world. He said things like “Well, you know Han Solo is married to a Wookiee. but we can’t say that.” Now that was 20 years ago [in 1998], so my memory may be wrong. [As outrageous as Ripps’s recollection sounds, there is evidence supporting it. Pat Proft corroborates it and an early draft of the Star Wars script (January 28, 1975) has Han Solo living with a furry female creature who he kisses. Proft also remembers learning that Han was raised by Wookiees, which is verified on pages 46 & 131 of Laurent Bouzereau’s Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays.]
This was a world that the audience only knew a little bit about. It was like he was showing pieces of history; however, he knew the whole world, a world that we may never know. It was almost like he had discovered the Sphinx and was only showing parts of it, but he had it all.
He creates not just biography but history and context. It was remarkable. I hope that, as a writer, I learned from that. When you look at a character it’s not just who they are on the page but who they were before you created them. He was one of the most interesting people that I ever spent any time with because he had so much focus and passion. I subsequently re-wrote a movie for Steven Spielberg [Casper] and spent a day with him, and he was the same way: passionate and focused. He knew what it was about even though it wasn’t done yet. By the same token, however, both men were totally open to ideas. There was no egotism at all.
FAX: After the meeting ended, how did work progress?
RIPPS: We went off and did an outline based on his notes, and then it was approved. We did not see him subsequently. Pal and I did not do the final re-write. People were brought in who did a lot more of the variety writing. It changed, in terms of style, from what we wrote.
FAX: Did George Lucas’s basic story stay the same? Was it always about Chewie trying to get home for in time for Life Day?
RIPPS: That was the story. It was a re-interpretation of Thanksgiving: home, family, and tradition. I viewed it as a Thanksgiving movie in a stellar context. I felt it became less cinematic and more television. It was George Lucas’s story but not necessarily his vision.
FAX: One of the more interesting aspects about the “Holiday Special” was the lack of violence.
RIPPS: I remember that we were talking about prime time television for families. You have to remember that this was a long time ago when what was violent then would be considered a cartoon now. I know that we were careful not to show violence.
FAX: Was it a challenge writing a Star Wars script with minimal violence?
RIPPS: In the context of a holiday special, it was not hard to accommodate. Even though there was no violence, there should have been more tension. I think it could have been more dramatic without being melodramatic.
Smith & Hemion are terrific producers with real integrity. My inclination — and I could be wrong — was that their vision was not the same as Lucas’s. Everybody involved had great respect for the film because it was more than a movie: it was almost literature. This was a newly-minted icon and maybe we had too much reverence for it. It’s always a problem when you’re trying to interpret somebody else’s vision.
FAX: What was your favorite part of the special?
RIPPS: Obviously the high point was working with Lucas. He was one of the most interesting people that I ever spent any time with.
[After this interview was conducted, Ripps had a chance to watch the special for the first time in decades. He described it as “sweet” but added “I don’t think it was George Lucas’s vision. That’s pretty clear because he doesn’t even want to talk about it.”]
