Force Material Episode XXII: The Han Solo Adventures
Our Daley Double wraps up with a fond look back at some of the greatest Star Wars novels ever written, The Han Solo Adventures!
It's been 22 years this month since legendary author Brian Daley passed away. Last week, on the anniversary of his death, we paid tribute to his classic Star Wars audio dramas, and this week, we're remembering his beloved trilogy of Han Solo novels.
When Brian Daley pitched a trilogy of Han Solo and Chewbacca novels to Del Rey Books in the 1970s, he was just casually looking to make some fast cash. How very Han Solo of him.
But once Brian started out on this journey, the galaxy opened up to him. Not allowed to use The Force, Vader, the Empire, TIE fighters, the Rebellion, or any established characters save Han and Chewie, he used his ingenuity instead in a trilogy of books that saw Han and Chewie face gunslingers, slavers, corrupt bureaucrats and murderous droids in a colourful backwater of space.
Join us this week as we explore how these books helped shape Han Solo’s character in the early days of the Expanded Universe, and helped shape the childhoods of many a Star Wars fan.
We also discuss the lost art of the movie novelisation; the single worst line in Raiders of the Lost Ark; the surprising ways in which Woody Allen, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope inspired Han Solo; and loads more!
This week's episode refers frequently to an interview Brian Daley gave Alex Newborn at Star Wars Collector in 1995, which can be read in full here.
Force Material is a podcast exploring the secrets and source material of Star Wars with hosts Rohan Williams and Baz McAlister. Listen and subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, Stitcher, PlayerFM and Castro; stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram; and support the show by browsing our range of shirts, hoodies, kids apparel, mugs and more at TeePublic.
