'STAR WARS' AT 40: TO BE A JEDI!

Image: Gary Kurtz.

The shocking fate of Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru confirmed, a devastated Luke Skywalker returns to Obi-Wan and the droids at the Sandcrawler wreck, cementing his destiny in accompanying his new mentor on the trip to Alderaan with the Death Star plans inside Artoo, and wanting to become a Jedi like his late father.

Shot in a canyon at Tozeur, this day of March 31st, 1976 was a very busy one for the production team of 100 people from 9.30 a.m., what with the huge amount of set dressing, props, dead Jawa dummy bodies and robot parts/ scattered weapons and Gaffi stick/debris needed for and littered around the wrecked blaster holed and damaged Sandcrawler scaffold. Plus, Bantha track trails, smoke, bonfire and flames, both Landspeeder props and all the available versions of Artoo (lightweight, mechanical, pull along, Kenny Baker's version, and 1/2 R2 shell (for riding atop the speeder)). A deleted moment was filmed where our heroes, having cremated the last Jawas, head back to Luke's speeder and depart.

This was also the day that second unit aerial shots were taken of the area (presumably for the Landspeeder back projection footage needed of Luke and Threepio's earlier search for Artoo and the descent into STAR WARS Canyon) as well as generic shots of the group in the Landspeeder heading for Mos Eisley. Stills of the Sandcrawler prop from high up the nearby mountains were also captured and used in behind the scenes articles for years to come.