This year more than any previous year, Star Wars Day (or May the 4th) has inspired numerous Star Wars licensees to put on some spectacular events, create some amazing new products, and offer many killer deals. Read on for a summary of what’s in store…
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Tags: LEGO, may the 4th, May the 4th Be With You, may the 4th deals, Rancho Obi-Wan, star wars day deals
Collecting, Events, Fans and Community, May the 4th Be With You | 
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Sometimes it take a near-disaster as well as happy news to remind us what has made — and keeps — Star Wars so strong and such an important part of the lives of so many of us around the world. When it all happens in the space of just seven days, it’s like a bright neon sign flashing the word COMMUNITY.
Let me tell you about my week. About an hour into a guided tour of Rancho Obi-Wan on Monday for eight adults and two children, my friend and museum general manager Anne Neumann appeared at the top of the stairs with as serious a look as I’ve ever seen on her face. “Steve, there’s a major problem in the garage. Come now!” she spit out breathlessly, then turned and left. I couldn’t imagine what was up, only remembering that the garage was filled with scores of cardboard boxes filled with thousands of books and magazines that might — or might not — be duplicates of what we had in the collection. There were also cardboard store displays and more boxes filled with old and new collectibles that were awaiting integration into the museum.
2 Comments » | Tags: Rancho Obi-Wan, Steve Sansweet, The 501st Legion
Fans and Community | Permalink
by Flat Stanley as told to Steve Sansweet (Photos by Anne Neumann)
Hi! My name is Flat Stanley. If you’re of a certain age, you may have met me in school. I was born in a 1964 book by Jeff Brown, but I still look like I go to elementary school because that’s part of the magic of books and reading. I get to travel all over the world thanks to tens of thousands of students who read my adventures and a group called The Flat Stanley Project. I’m even an App!
But this is about one of my recent trips, a 2,636-mile journey from Mrs. Moore’s first-grade class at Six Mile Elementary School in Six Mile, South Carolina, to a magical place called Rancho Obi-Wan about an hour north of San Francisco. I guess I could have taken buses, but even nonstop that would have taken 39 hours — and that’s a long time to be sealed inside an envelope. Instead I was lovingly tucked into a FedEx pack and whisked away. It was marked “Extremely Urgent,” and boy, did that ever make me feel important!
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What a difference a year makes!
It was just last November that we finally finished building my dream — or, at least, the foundation of it. After 18 months of planning and lots of hard work from countless contractors, friends who volunteered a bazillion hours of their time, and lots of patience and luck, we incorporated Rancho Obi-Wan Inc. as a California nonprofit public benefit corporation. And then we had a Grand Reopening party for 180 people including 30 volunteers.
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Collecting | Permalink
At least I assume that Gremlin-esque transformation of a part of my collection happened sometime during the insanely wonderful Star Wars Celebration VI in Orlando. How else to explain the simple math: We arrived at the Orange County Convention Center with 17 pallets and crates weighing well over two tons. The returning truck has 26 pallets and crates weighing who-knows-how-much!
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Collecting, Events | Permalink
To say that we’re excited about the Rancho Obi-Wan Experience at Star Wars Celebration VI (Booth # 1235) is a real understatement. To say that we’re completely ready and that everything has gone smoothly falls into that same category.
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Events | Permalink
I didn’t set out to amass the world’s largest private collection of Star Wars memorabilia, or WLPCoSWM for you acronym fans. It just kind of happened. It’s like a baby’s first steps: First one tentative foot forward, soon followed by the second, then a quicker third step…and the next thing you know, little Carl Lewis is winning nine Olympic gold medals in Track and Field!
5 Comments » | Tags: Rancho Obi-Wan, Steve Sansweet
Collecting | Permalink
SW column May 1987 (c) Dow Jones & Co.
People often ask how I got involved with Lucasfilm. There are several answers, some less embarrassing than others.
In 1987, just a few months after I had become Los Angeles Bureau Chief of The Wall Street Journal, and well aware of the upcoming Star Wars 10th Anniversary, I proposed an editorial page column looking back at and assessing the amazing cultural phenomenon and Lucas’ career. I had never written for the edit page before, but the New York editors said yes. Then I—a fiercely independent, hard-bitten journalist who had once spent two years tracking down and reporting on multinational corporate bribery scandals—began fantasizing about my first visit to the fabled Skywalker Ranch and a chat with George Lucas. Oh, the cruelty of daydreams that dissipate as quickly as a cold front during an Orlando summer!
12 Comments » | Tags: Lucasfilm, Rancho Obi-Wan
Collecting, Fans and Community, Lucasfilm | Permalink
Editor’s Note: Whether you’re a regular reader of this blog or not, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of, or met, Steve Sansweet. (And he’s appeared in the blog many, many times.) In addition to owning the world’s largest collection of Star Wars collectibles — on display at Rancho Obi-Wan — Steve has been a frequent presence at fan conventions, expos and gatherings around the world. He is also an advisor to Lucasfilm, where he served for over a decade as the company’s Head of Fan Relations. And now he’s a blogger. Welcome, Steve!
23 Comments » | Tags: Contributors, Rancho Obi-Wan, Steve Sansweet
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