Star Wars' Secret Shame: The Holiday Special

'60s B-movie 'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' ranks worst: poll

(NEWSER) - What are the top 10 most cringe-inducing, holiday-ruining, Santa-offending Christmas movies of all time? Online ticket seller Fandango set out to find out, and polled its customers. Among the films that you probably shouldn't watch tonight:

1. Santa Claus Conquers the Martians : a 1964 ultra-low budget fantasy flick; good luck making it all the way through the 1:22 trailer, at left
2. Silent Night, Deadly Night : a 1984 horror film featuring a murderous man in a Santa suit
3. Jingle All the Way : Sinbad and Arnold Schwarzenegger fight over a toy action figure

Sale sets new record for Star Wars memorabilia

(NEWSER) - The camera used to film the first Star Wars movie has sold for an astronomical $625,000 at a movie memorabilia auction. The late '60s Panavision PSR 35mm camera, which is still in working order, went to an anonymous buyer at the sale of actress Debbie Reynolds' collection of Hollywood memorabilia, reports the Guardian . More»

Helmet designer can keep selling replicas: UK Supreme Court

(NEWSER) - For at least one day, the force is not with George Lucas. The head of the Star Wars empire has lost a lawsuit against a prop designer over the right to sell replica Imperial Stormtrooper helmets, reports the BBC . The UK Supreme Court ruled that Andrew Ainsworth—who designed the iconic helmet in 1976 and kept the molds—will be permitted to sell replicas, though not in the US, notes AP . More»

Irvin Kershner aimed for depth with Star Wars sequel

(AP) - Irvin Kershner—who directed the Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back, the James Bond film Never Say Never Again and Robocop 2—died Saturday after a long illness at age 87. Kershner already had made a number of well-received movies when he was hired by George Lucas to direct Empire, the second-produced Star Wars film. More»

Wired blog: Lucas denies rumors, but maybe he should reconsider

(NEWSER) - Rumors are flying that George Lucas has another Star Wars trilogy up his sleeve. Lucas says it ain't so, but Scott Thill offers five reasons at Wired why he should reconsider:

• Purists are annoying: The first movie came out in 1977, and those who whine about Lucas ruining things "need to step back into the timestream and grow up," writes Thill. Lucas hasn't "sold out our sacred childhood fantasies. He’s the one that built them, and another trilogy will remind us all of that inescapable truth."