A limited-edition jacket, inspired by the one worn by the cast and crew of The Empire Strikes Back, in 1979, hits the Columbia Sportswear stores and website, this Friday.
By Ludmilla Intravaia
It's not only the rebels of the Alliance against the evil Galactic Empire that froze to death on the ice planet Hoth, at the beginning of the Empire Strikes Back. The film cast and crew also, who had chosen to immortalize the second opus of the Star Wars saga in natural settings, in sub-zero weather, in Norway, at the foot of the Hardangerjøkulen glacier.
Shooting of The Empire Strikes Back, in 1979, in Norway (©Starwars.com)
Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) and producer Gary Kurtz in their Empire crew parkas (©Starwars.com)
Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) wearing the parka, in 1979, in Norway (©Starwars.com)
Of the hundred or so jackets created to keep the cast and crew members at constant temperature, only a handful remains, safe, locked and hidden by fans jealous of their treasure. Nevertheless, associated with Columbia Sportswear, Lucasfilm, the company that produced the first two trilogies created by George Lucas, managed to find a coat, kindly lent by an accomodating collector.
One of two jackets owned by collector Gus Lopez (© Starwars.com)
The American sportswear company, which had already signed jackets derived from the film Rogue One (2016), recreated this original jacket, preserving some vintage aspects like its bold blue design, the Darth Vader chest patch and the Star Wars logos.
Vintage look for the Darth Vader chest patch (©Columbia Sportswear)
From a thermal insulation point of view, the jacket had also been adapted to current technological standards, Columbia Sportswear promising, for 500 dollars, to "keep you as warm as a Wookiee".
The limited-edition Star WarsEmpire Crew Parka modeled directly after the original (©Columbia Sportswear)
* The parka is available here, on the Columbia Sportswear website, from December 7, 2018.
* The story of this revisited parka, with touching vintage pictures of the shooting, is reported here, in this article of Starwars.com.