Chewbacca Head at Auction Fetches $172,000
The head of Chewbacca has fetched a fair price as part of a "Profiles in History" prop auction. It was only estimated to be worth $60,000 to $80,000 but doubled that amount, bringing in $172,000.
According to the auction's handbook, the Chewbacca mask was "most likely used in more than one of the original films of the trilogy" and consisted of "a screen-used cowl hairpiece and a period-made Stuart Freeborn facial appliance." Freeborn was also the makeup artist for the Yoda character in the original "Star Wars" trilogy.
The amount fetched by Chewbacca is more than the $170,000 brought in by a lightsaber from "Star Wars: Episode IV." That prop was used by none other than Luke Skywalker, and only two years later the gun used by his partner, Han Solo raised $180,000.
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Fans are known for their loyalty to George Lucas and the original "Star Wars" films, spending large amounts on tokens from the movies. Right now, "Star Wars" has a combined total box office revenue of $4.49 billion, which puts it third behind "Harry Potter" and "James bond" franchises.
George Lucas has been heralded as a genius for his writing ability and use of technology in the 1970s and 1980s.
"It wasn't long after I began writing 'Star Wars' that I realized the story was more than a single film could hold," Lucas explained in a preface of the 1994 version of "Splinter of the Mind's Eye."
"I began to see it as a tale that could take at least nine films to tell- three trilogies- and I realized, in making my through the back story and after story, that I was really setting out to write the middle story," he said.
Fans of the trilogy have also heavily criticized Lucas for allowing three additional films to be made years after the original films. They claim that Lucas sold out in order to earn more money and fame.
