When 'Star Wars' Was On The Radio: A Look At 'Star Wars' On NPR

"Star Wars! Based on characters and situations created by George Lucas."

This was the opening line for all 29 Star Wars radio drama episodes, encompassing Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. Of course, the Star Wars radio dramas told the story not shown on movie screens. But despite the lack of visuals, they painted a clear picture of what life was like for two droids, a farmboy on Tatooine, an Alderaanian princess, and even a wayward smuggler angry at the universe. This was Star Wars on the radio, where imagination is king.

It’s no secret Star Wars was highly influenced by television serials like Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers. The scroll before each Star Wars movie was taken directly from those serials, which served as a reminder of what came in the previous episode. But Lucas was also influenced by radio dramas from the 1940s, such as The Shadow, the caped vigilante with the oversized fedora and scarf who fought crime by virtually scarring the bad guys half to death. So, producing Star Wars as a radio drama was a perfect fit.

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In 1981, George Lucas fully cooperated and sold the rights for one dollar to KUSC-FM in Los Angeles, the public radio affiliate of his alma mater, USC. Lucas also allowed the use of any sound effects and music from Star Wars. The result was a spectacular 13-episode retelling of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, complete with music, sound effects, and even some actors from the films who offered their voices to the radio drama. Those that returned were Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker) and Anthony Daniels (C-3PO). The rest of the main cast included Ann Sachs (Princess Leia), Bernard Behrens (Ben Kenobi), Keene Curtis (Tarkin), and Brock Peters (Darth Vader). In addition, Perry King, who auditioned for the role of Han Solo in the movie, played the smuggler-turned-rebel in the radio drama.

What is unique about the Star Wars radio drama is how well it pulls you into the story. From the first episode, A Wind to Shake the Stars, the spoken intro, which is different for each episode, describes where we are in the story up to that point. Then we hear a young Luke listening to a recruitment tape from the Empire while he’s working in his uncle’s tech dome. Soon his friend, Windy, arrives to invite Luke to go to the power station at Beggar's Canyon. It’s fun scenes like this, that were cut from the film, that we get to hear played out. And because it’s not a visual format, there’s more emphasis on the emotion and dialogue, which is purposely descriptive. So while attractions like Galaxy’s Edge and the Galactic Starcruiser are meant to immerse you into the Star Wars galaxy by putting you literally in that world, the Star Wars radio dramas did the same with the help of your imagination, and it succeeded brilliantly. It might seem hokey or corny now, but it was pure genius at the time.

Although the radio dramas were based on the Star Wars movies, the scripts were adapted by famed science fiction author Brian Daley, who also wrote the original Han Solo Adventures. One particular scene in the radio serial that stands out is a dinner attended by Bail Organa, his daughter Leia, and Lord Tion at the Organa palace on Alderaan. Lord Tion was a Commodore in the Imperial Navy who suspected the Organas to be rebel sympathizers. During the dinner, Leia slips that she knows about the Death Star. As Tion begins to arrest her, Bail steps in, there is a struggle, and Lord Tion is accidentally shot.

Han Solo’s character comes off as angrier in the radio dramas than in the movies. While Han has always been a loner and just trying to make money, in the radio drama, he has no interest in the rebel cause and sometimes comes off as a selfish jerk. While Luke is clearly drawn in by Leia and helping the rebellion any way he can, it’s not until the last episode that Han finally turns a new leaf.

Of the trilogy of radio dramas, the original Star Wars one is clearly the best by far. NPR produced 10 episodes of The Empire Strikes Back radio drama in 1983, where Billy Dee Williams returned as Lando Calrissian and John Lithgow voiced Yoda. Unfortunately, there isn’t many extra scenes or added story in this drama, but we hear the opening space battle where the Empire destroys a much-needed convoy of supplies headed for the rebel base on Hoth. During the battle, Commander Narra of Renegade Squad is killed in action. This was probably the most exciting scene in this production.

After Empire’s release, NPR fell into financial difficulties and couldn’t produce the Return of the Jedi radio drama until 1996. By then, the only original movie cast member to return was Anthony Daniels. Ed Asner joined the cast to perform a bizarre version of Jabba the Hutt, sounding like a warped electronic recording. Thankfully, there were only six episodes, as this release wasn’t up to par. Sadly Brian Daley passed away during the production, and the release was dedicated to him. Later, each radio drama also received a separate printed book of the script so you could read along while listening.

Regardless, I think every Star Wars fan should listen to the original Star Wars radio drama at least once. It’s a wonderful experience. The first copy I bought was on cassette, and later on a compact disc. Unfortunately, they aren’t available digitally yet. But you can find the audio on YouTube.

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Written by Eric Onkenhout

Source(s): Wookiepedia

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