Words & Photos: Bonnie Burton
Cad Bane wasn’t the only star of The Clone Wars Season 2 Press Junket at Big Rock Ranch. After all, the show is called The CLONE Wars.
Here’s a selection of our fave photos of the clone troopers in action as they mingle with the press, guard the entrance and play as themselves in games from LucasArts.
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Clone Wars, TV, The 501st Legion, costumes, events | 
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Posted by bonniegrrl
If you couldn’t make it to Dragon*Con this year, you can at least see some of the many costumed attendees in the best way possible — as they dance to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”
WATCH VIDEO: Star Wars Thriller DragonCon 2009
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SOURCE: Thanks @jenthefangirl
6 Comments » | Fan Films, The 501st Legion, conventions, costumes, fan fun | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
The 501st Legion’s Noel Green (TK-8541) is very close to winning the top spot in the Chick-fil-A Cow Appreciation Day contest on Facebook!
In true Star Wars fan fashion, Noel has pledged to donate the potential grand prize (a year’s worth of meals) to his local food bank in New Mexico, but he can’t do it without the support of fellow Star Wars fans everywhere.
DAILY VOTES are now critical with voting ending in just a few days on August 31st!
Once per day, go to the following link, then click ‘Vote’ and then click ‘Highest Rated’ and you’ll see the black and white Cow Trooper among the top contestants!
Send this along to other Star Wars fans to pull together for this worthy cause. Thanks for helping spread the word — and vote daily!
3 Comments » | The 501st Legion, charity, fan fun | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
Words: Bonnie Burton
Photos: Lesley Farquhar
In addition to the 501st Legion uniting Star Wars fans worldwide, the group also recognizes those special people who contribute their time and talents to the Star Wars community. These people who support of the 501st and Star Wars fandom are called “Friends of the 501st Legion.”
During San Diego Comic-Con International 2009, the Southern California Garrison recognized Fanboys director Kyle Newman for his continual support of the 501st Legion as well as for his undying love for all things Star Wars.
Southern California Garrison XO Lesley Farquhar had this to say about their newest Friend of the 501st:
“We wanted Kyle Newman to be in the Legion for the simple fact that he’s as much of a fan as we are! His work on Fanboys shows his dedication to the Star Wars genre, and of course — by asking us to help out with various aspects of the film, he definitely made fans of us!”
Sponsored by garrison members Dan Wolsey and Kit Sovine, Kyle was presented a custom plaque, coin and custom name badge commemorating his “Friend of the 501st” relationship with the 501st Legion. The induction was a complete surprise to Kyle who was there just to take a fun photo with his favorite troopers.
Starwars.com chats with Kyle about his induction and why he’s honored to be officially part of the 501st Legion.
5 Comments » | Celebrities, Comic-Con, Fanboys, The 501st Legion | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
(Photo by Bonnie Burton)
Words: Bonnie Burton
You can’t walk through San Diego Comic-Con without running into a stormtrooper, Jedi or bounty hunter. As usual, the 501st Legion and Rebel Legion were out in full force, as were the lovely Slave Leias, and some rather unusual and new Star Wars characters.
Here’s a recap of some of the best Star Wars costumes we spotted.
(Photo by Pablo Hidalgo)
Lounge Lords:
There’s something rather satisfying about seeing two of the biddest baddies in Star Wars dressed up in their leisure wear, ready for a cocktail and a good time. These two characters roamed Comic-Con with a certain swagger that only Darth Vader and Boba Fett could pull off. Bravo, gentlemen. Bravo!
(Photo by Robert Casipe)
Fan in Carbonite:
Wearing full stormtrooper armor is constraining. Slave Leia costumes are drafty. But this Fan in Carbonite costume wins for most likely the hardest Star Wars costume ever to navigate through swarms of Comic-Con goers. Color us impressed.
5 Comments » | Comic-Con, The 501st Legion, costumes | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
Words/Photos: Bonnie Burton
In addition to the 501st Legion uniting Star Wars fans worldwide, it also likes to recognize those people who contribute their time and talents to the Star Wars community in special way. These people who support of the 501st and Star Wars fandom are called “Friends of the 501st Legion.”
During San Diego Comic-Con International 2009, one such person was recognized by the Southern California Garrison for his continual support of the 501st Legion as well as for his undying love for all things Star Wars — Heroes actor Milo Ventimiglia.
Already well-known as a hardcore Star Wars fan as well as a fan of the 501st, Milo also supports real-life troops fighting overseas by working with the military veterans organization Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).
Southern California Garrison XO Lesley Farquhar, who sponsored Milo’s induction, had this to say about their newest Friend of the 501st:
“Milo Ventimiglia has been a great Star Wars fan for years. Not only does he have fun with the lightsaber battles and props, but another similarity we have is our devotion to charity work. The 501st Legion is noted for its charity work for soldiers around the world, and this is something Milo has a passion for as well. Anyone with that kind of passion for charity and love for the genre fits right in! Now we just need to get him in armor!”
Milo was presented a custom plaque, coin and custom name badge commemorating his “Friend of the 501st” relationship with the 501st Legion. Keeping with tradition, the induction was a complete surprise to Milo who was ambushed by the Southern California garrison, and myself, at the end of his Top Cow comics panel at Comic-Con where he was promoting the two new comic titles his production company DiViDe Pictures is supporting — Rest and Berserker.
1 Comment » | Celebrities, Comic-Con, The 501st Legion | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
Ft. Wayne and Indianapolis are like the Empire and Rebellion in Indiana when it comes to roller derby teams, so it seemed only fitting to have the 501st and Rebel Legion come along for Cyclone Wars!
Rebel Legion Commanding Officer Matthew W. Hofmann reports:
About 30 costumed characters from the Rebel Legion and 501st will be at this event, including Darth Vader, Chewbacca, the Fetts, and R2-D2 along with all your favorite armored or lightsaber-wielding friends. They’ll also be having a Jail and Bail to benefit Girls Inc. of Indianapolis and a halftime target practice show featuring the Rebel Legion teaching future members of the Rebellion how to shoot TKs with dart guns for fun and fabulous Star Wars and Naptown Roller Girls prizes!
It’s this Saturday at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Get ticket info here. Tickets will remain on sale until midnight, Friday, May 29. Doors open at 5 pm, and the double header begins at about 5:30 pm.
May the Force be with your roller skates!
6 Comments » | The 501st Legion, charity, events | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
(Jane Wiedlin poses with 501st and wee little fan)
Words & photos: Bonnie Burton
Not all conventions are made equally. While San Diego Comic-Con International is still considered the Mother Ship of geektastic gatherings, some of the smaller conventions still hold a special place in my heart. San Jose Super-Con (held May 16-17, 2009) is one of those tiny conventions that still believe comics, not movies, are king.
Here’s a recap of what you might have seen/heard/witnessed/tweeted if you were there.
(501st greet a young recruit)
8 Comments » | Celebrities, Star Wars Art, The 501st Legion, conventions, costumes | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
(Photo by Percy Ricaud)
Star Wars actor Jay Laga’aia — who is best known for his role as Captain Typho — can now be officially addressed as TK-6352 thanks to The 501st Legion.
501st.com writes:
Although he’s been a Honorary Member of the 501st since October 2005, Star Wars actor Jay Laga’aia (Captain Typho) always had full intentions of becoming an armor-wearing member of the 501st. On May 14, Jay realized his dream and was approved as TK-6352 of the Terror Australis Garrison.
To preserve the surprise, local members were bound to secrecy even as they helped Jay acquire and assemble his stormtrooper armor, and the tongue-in-cheek alias of “Jasson Lagguinski” was used throughout the member application process.
Jay is the 2009 Star Wars Weekends celebrity host from May 22 to June 14 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida, and hopes to don the armor for his first official troop sometime during his visit. Jay will be joined each weekend by other Star Wars Weekends mainstays such as Jeremy Bulloch, Warwick Davis, Dave Filoni, Peter Mayhew, Temuera Morrison, Ray Park, David Prowse and Matthew Wood and — of course — the 501st Legion.
Congrats Jay! We all look forward to see you suited up!
12 Comments » | Celebrities, The 501st Legion | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
Words/Photos: Bonnie Burton
Even though San Francisco’s WonderCon is much smaller than the epic San Diego Comic-Con International, you literally can’t walk past a booth without bumping into a costumed fan.
Each year WonderCon gets a little bit bigger which means more and more fans dressed as superheroes, video game characters, horror film icons, steampunkers, vampires, dragons, pirates, manga and anime favorites, and of course, Star Wars characters.
As usual members of the 501st and Rebel Legion were out in full Force. Here’s a recap of some of the best Star Wars costumes we spotted at WonderCon 2009.
What a Trooper!
It just isn’t a convention without spotting 501st Legion members dressed as clone troopers and stormtroopers. The 501st always impress with their custom-made body armor, but it’s their patience with hundreds of people who want their photos taken with them every five steps that make them real troopers. If you want to learn more about the 501st Legion, check out: Inside the Fighting 501st.
Rebel, Rebel!
Next up, the Rebel Legion. These fans dress as Jedi, Rebel Pilots, Princess Leias and more. At this year’s WonderCon they could be seen hanging out with the 501st or I suppose infiltrating the Empire depending on how you look at it. If you’d like to find out more about them, visit the Official Rebel Legion site here.
Darth Vader
While The Clone Wars may be taking fandom my storm, Darth Vader still dominates all the photo ops at WonderCon. He’s not called a Sith Lord for nothing.
6 Comments » | The 501st Legion, WonderCon, costumes | Permalink
Posted by bonniegrrl
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