Star Wars Celebration
Star Wars Celebration is a large fan convention held to celebrate the Star Wars franchise. The event is usually held every one to three years in varying locations around the world, and commonly features a host of Star Wars project announcements, panel discussions featuring actors, producers and writers, screenings, exhibits, cosplay and merchandise sales.
It began in 1999, when Lucasfilm held the first Star Wars Celebration in Denver, Colorado to celebrate the upcoming release of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.
History
Star Wars Celebration
Celebration I
The Star Wars Celebration was held from April 30 to May 2, 1999, at the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum in Denver, Colorado, just three weeks before the release of The Phantom Menace. An event "for the fans, by the fans," the event took place in the hometown of the Official Star Wars Fan Club, headed by Dan Madsen. "The Fan Club is based here in Denver," says Madsen, "so we thought it would only be appropriate that the Celebration be held here."The first Star Wars convention since 1987, the Celebration held activities including actor panels, THX theater demonstrations, behind the scenes footage from Episode I, and the world premiere of the "Duel of the Fates" music video. The grounds boasted a vendors tent, and the museum hosted an exhibition consisting of props from the official LucasFilm archives, including a full-scale model of Anakin Skywalker's podracer and a life-size X-wing model.
Celebration II
From May 3 to 5, 2002, Celebration II was held to celebrate the upcoming release of Attack of the Clones and the 25th anniversary of the first theatrically released Star Wars film. The convention was moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, to make use of the larger Indiana Convention Center.Downtown Indianapolis was invaded by multitudes of Star Wars fans. The initial projection of 15–20,000 people per day based on advance ticket sales was well surpassed and reached critical mass on Saturday. The estimated final tally was a little over 75,000 people for the three-day event. The two busiest spots were the Fan Club store and the autograph section, specifically for Carrie Fisher. Highlights of the event included the Rick McCallum Spectacular and the Star Wars 25th Anniversary Concert on Saturday night, performed by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Indianapolis.
Celebration III
The Star Wars Celebration returned to Indianapolis from April 21 to 24, 2005, to commemorate the release of what was then thought to be the final film in the saga, Revenge of the Sith. With over 34,000 fans in attendance over the course of four days, Celebration III brought actor panels, costume contests, fan films, and diorama building to the Indiana Convention Center. The Lucasfilm archive provided many important props and costumes for display. One of this Celebration's most noteworthy events was the unprecedented Q&A session with Star Wars creator George Lucas, his first such appearance since the Star Wars 10th Anniversary Convention in 1987. With approximately 10,000 fans in attendance, Lucas personally answered several dozen fans' questions about the saga.Celebration IV
On May 26, 2006, StarWars.com announced Star Wars Celebration IV to be held from May 24 to 28, 2007, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the first Star Wars film. C4 was located at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, where most E3 events were held. The convention offered a record number of celebrities in the autograph hall, multiple exhibitors, a Star Wars art show, a Darth Vader helmet and Lucasfilm archive exhibits and many fan oriented activities. In addition, there were collector and costuming panels, including sneak peeks of the upcoming Clone Wars animated series. Fans were the first to see the footage of this series on Sunday morning as well. Other highlights included conversations with Carrie Fisher and Billy Dee Williams, a visit from Seth MacFarlane and Seth Green for special Star Wars episodes of Family Guy and Robot Chicken respectively, and an efficiently organized Celebration Store. An estimated 35,000 people walked through the doors for Celebration IV over the Memorial Day weekend.After the event, Lucasfilm sued the hosting entity, GenCon, for a variety of reasons, forcing GenCon into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Celebration V
Lucasfilm announced in 2008 that a US-based four-day Star Wars convention called "Celebration V" would be held in the summer of 2010. In July 2008, Steve Sansweet, director of content management and head of fan relations for Lucasfilm, announced that Baltimore, Minneapolis, Chicago, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Anaheim, and Orlando, Florida were competing to host this event. Organizers anticipated that 30,000 Star Wars fans would attend no matter which city was selected.Reed Exhibitions and Lucasfilm announced on December 3, 2009, that Orlando would host the event. Celebration V took place at the Orange County Convention Center from August 12 to 15, 2010. The convention celebrated the 30th anniversary of the second Star Wars movie, The Empire Strikes Back. It also included many features of previous Celebrations as well as a special one-hour interview between Jon Stewart and George Lucas called "The Main Event". Celebration V marked the first American Celebration appearance for Mark Hamill and the last American appearance for Caroline Blakiston. Attendance was estimated at 32,000.
Lucas also made an appearance at the nearby Disney's Hollywood Studios to take part in the "Last Tour to Endor Event", which provided special entertainment for those individuals who attended "Celebration V".