- A classic tale of good and evil, corruption and redemption, hi-tech super-weapons and swordplay, Star Wars brought Space Opera to the big screen. It is a juggernaut of a franchise, making creator George Lucas one of the most powerful men financially and in entertainment.
- Star Tales - Cygnus (ianridpath.com)
A popular name for Cygnus is the Northern Cross, and indeed its shape is far larger and more distinctive than the famous Southern Cross. In its cruciform shape the Greeks visualized the long neck, outstretched wings, and stubby tail of a swan flying along the Milky Way, in which it is embedded. Aratus’s description of it as being hazy or misty in parts is no doubt a reference to the Milky Way running through it. The mythographers tell us that the swan is Zeus in disguise, on his way to one of his innumerable love affairs, but his exact quarry is a subject of some disagreement.
- The Empire Strikes Back (allthetropes.org)
After the surprise success of A New Hope, a sequel was inevitable. Lucas’s new story turned the series into a dramatic saga with the revelation that Darth Vader was Luke’s father. Since making the last film had been so stressful, he had Lawrence Kasdan and Leigh Brackett write the script for The Empire Strikes Back and had Irvin Kershner direct it.