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Star Wars Trilogy: NPR Dramatizations #1
Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization
When this series was first broadcast on National Public Radio in 1981, it generated the largest response in the network's history: 50,000 letters and phone calls in a single week, an audience of 750,000 per episode, and a subsequent 40-percent jump in NPR listenership.
This landmark production, perhaps the most ambitious radio project ever attempted, began when "Star Wars" creator George Lucas donated the story rights to an NPR affiliate. Writer Brian Daley adapted the film's highly visual script to the special demands and unique possibilities of radio, creating a more richly textured tale with greater emphasis on character development. Director John Madden guided a splendid cast--including Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, reprising their film roles as Luke Skywalker and the persnickety robot See Threepio--through an intense 10-day dialogue recording session. Then came months of painstaking work for virtuoso sound engineer Tom Voegeli, whose brilliant blending of the actors' voices, the music, and hundreds of sound effects takes this intergalactic adventure into a realm of imagination that is beyond the reach of cinema.
This landmark production, perhaps the most ambitious radio project ever attempted, began when "Star Wars" creator George Lucas donated the story rights to an NPR affiliate. Writer Brian Daley adapted the film's highly visual script to the special demands and unique possibilities of radio, creating a more richly textured tale with greater emphasis on character development. Director John Madden guided a splendid cast--including Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, reprising their film roles as Luke Skywalker and the persnickety robot See Threepio--through an intense 10-day dialogue recording session. Then came months of painstaking work for virtuoso sound engineer Tom Voegeli, whose brilliant blending of the actors' voices, the music, and hundreds of sound effects takes this intergalactic adventure into a realm of imagination that is beyond the reach of cinema.
346 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
3 people are currently reading
330 people want to read
About the author
Brian Daley
46 books97 followersBrian was born in Englewood Hospital in Englewood, New Jersey on Dec. 22, 1947. A blizzard kept him and his mother at the hospital over Christmas, and the nurses sang "Away in a Manger" to them.
His middle name is Charles. He grew up in Rockleigh, NJ. His mother's name was Myra and his father's name was Charles. He has an older brother, David, and a younger sister, also named Myra. He had no children of his own, but he was always great with his two nieces and four nephews.
He went to Nathan Hale Elementary School in Norwood, NJ, and a consolidated High School - Northern Valley Regional High School in Old Tappan, NJ.
Brian loved to read, drive his '74 Corvette Stingray, spend summers with me on Martha's Vineyard, and travel to wild and exotic places like the jungles of Guatemala and Mexico, and the mountains of Nepal.
He said he wanted to write from an early age, about third grade. He also read a LOT of science fiction as a kid, and that inspired him.
After he graduated from high school in 1965 he joined the army and went to Vietnam for a year's tour of duty. Then he went to Berlin, Germany.
After the army he went to Jersey City State College, majoring in media. While attending college and working as a waiter at a local steak house, he also wrote his first novel, Doomfarers of Coromande. Del Rey Books accepted it and started him on his writing career. The editor picked Brian's manuscript out of the "slush" pile (unsolicited manuscripts) because it was the most neatly typed, but it wasn't accepted right away. The editor made Brian do a lot of re-writing.
When the first STAR WARS movie came out Brian saw it, and he was elated. He said he came out of the theater fundamentally changed. His editor asked which character he would like to write about for a movie-related novel. Brian said he picked Han Solo because Han was the only one who made a moral decision... he started out on the wrong side of the law, but joined with the good guys. And to tell you the truth, Brian was a whole lot like Han, a maverick.
He died of pancreatic cancer in February of 1996. He had just turned 49. He wrote the adaptation for National Public Radio drama THE RETURN OF THE JEDI while he was undergoing chemotherapy. He died at his house in Maryland the night the Jedi radio cast was toasting him at their wrap party, having finished the taping of the shows that day.
When they posted the notice of his death, messages began coming in from all over the world. The gist of them was that his passing created a "disturbance in the Force."
Brian Daley's first novel, The Doomfarers of Coramonde, was published on the first Del Rey list in 1977. It was an immediate success, and Brian went on to write its sequel, The Starfollowers of Coramonde, and many other successful novels: A Tapestry of Magics, three volumes of The Adventures of Hobart Floyt and Alacrity Fitzhugh, and, under the shared pseudonym 'Jack McKinney', ten and one half of the twenty-one Robotech novels. He first conceived of the complex GammaL.A.W. saga in Nepal, in 1984, and worked on its four volumes for the next twelve years, finishing it shortly before his death in 1996.
His middle name is Charles. He grew up in Rockleigh, NJ. His mother's name was Myra and his father's name was Charles. He has an older brother, David, and a younger sister, also named Myra. He had no children of his own, but he was always great with his two nieces and four nephews.
He went to Nathan Hale Elementary School in Norwood, NJ, and a consolidated High School - Northern Valley Regional High School in Old Tappan, NJ.
Brian loved to read, drive his '74 Corvette Stingray, spend summers with me on Martha's Vineyard, and travel to wild and exotic places like the jungles of Guatemala and Mexico, and the mountains of Nepal.
He said he wanted to write from an early age, about third grade. He also read a LOT of science fiction as a kid, and that inspired him.
After he graduated from high school in 1965 he joined the army and went to Vietnam for a year's tour of duty. Then he went to Berlin, Germany.
After the army he went to Jersey City State College, majoring in media. While attending college and working as a waiter at a local steak house, he also wrote his first novel, Doomfarers of Coromande. Del Rey Books accepted it and started him on his writing career. The editor picked Brian's manuscript out of the "slush" pile (unsolicited manuscripts) because it was the most neatly typed, but it wasn't accepted right away. The editor made Brian do a lot of re-writing.
When the first STAR WARS movie came out Brian saw it, and he was elated. He said he came out of the theater fundamentally changed. His editor asked which character he would like to write about for a movie-related novel. Brian said he picked Han Solo because Han was the only one who made a moral decision... he started out on the wrong side of the law, but joined with the good guys. And to tell you the truth, Brian was a whole lot like Han, a maverick.
He died of pancreatic cancer in February of 1996. He had just turned 49. He wrote the adaptation for National Public Radio drama THE RETURN OF THE JEDI while he was undergoing chemotherapy. He died at his house in Maryland the night the Jedi radio cast was toasting him at their wrap party, having finished the taping of the shows that day.
When they posted the notice of his death, messages began coming in from all over the world. The gist of them was that his passing created a "disturbance in the Force."
Brian Daley's first novel, The Doomfarers of Coramonde, was published on the first Del Rey list in 1977. It was an immediate success, and Brian went on to write its sequel, The Starfollowers of Coramonde, and many other successful novels: A Tapestry of Magics, three volumes of The Adventures of Hobart Floyt and Alacrity Fitzhugh, and, under the shared pseudonym 'Jack McKinney', ten and one half of the twenty-one Robotech novels. He first conceived of the complex GammaL.A.W. saga in Nepal, in 1984, and worked on its four volumes for the next twelve years, finishing it shortly before his death in 1996.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
August 19, 2015
I recall gathering around the radio with my parents and listening to this radio adaptation for the first time, going wide-eyed with delight as each all-new scene added to my understanding of the Star Wars universe. I've lost count of the number of times I've revisited this ambitious work, but I do know each time I return to it, I'm impressed with its depth and quality. From its depiction of Luke Skywalker's friendships and rivalries on Tatooine to its glimpses of behind-the-scenes politics on Alderaan, this adaptation really delivers for Star Wars fans. It provides additional texture and characterization to support and expand the larger Star Wars story, while using music and sound effects to anchor it solidly to the film. The voice actors are uniformly excellent, with Mark Hamill's vocal talents in particular stealing the show. Highly recommended.
January 15, 2026
I originally heard this on my radio in 1981 and have now re-listened to it on CD 💿 in its entirety in my car and read the guidebook. 13 thirty-minute episodes excellently done like in the Golden Age of radio.
March 15, 2018
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY FUCKING AWFUL.
January 24, 2016
This was a lot of fun. Instead of an audiobook, it's basically a radio play. The movie balloons from 2ish hours to 4 hours, but it adds in a lot of backstory that gives some of the characters, especially Leia, a lot more complexity. I definitely recommend it!
November 1, 2016
My parents taped this off the radio back in 1981. I still have the cassettes and listened to it a bunch of times over the years, especially in the days before home video so things like Luke and Biggs hanging out on Toschi Station and Luke threading the stone needle in Beggar's Canyon have always been part of my personal Star Wars canon. In fact, these radio plays were considered official canon up until the Disney buyout.
Anyway, these radio plays are excellently produced with full access to the Ben Burtt sound fx library and John Williams' iconic score. That, along with Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels voicing Luke and C3PO, gives this an air of authenticity that other supplemental material *cough prequels cough* lack. The story is often told from a perspective we don't get in the films which adds richness and depth to the saga, filling in the gaps. I can't recommend this enough if you've got a 6 hour road-trip in your future and are a Star Wars fan.
Anyway, these radio plays are excellently produced with full access to the Ben Burtt sound fx library and John Williams' iconic score. That, along with Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels voicing Luke and C3PO, gives this an air of authenticity that other supplemental material *cough prequels cough* lack. The story is often told from a perspective we don't get in the films which adds richness and depth to the saga, filling in the gaps. I can't recommend this enough if you've got a 6 hour road-trip in your future and are a Star Wars fan.
June 2, 2019
Anybody who’s looked at my profile knows I’m a big Star Wars fan. Recently when I needed a break from my podcasts, I decided to listen to one of the more obscure Star Wars spinoffs: the official NPR radio play adaptation. I listened to it as a kid and had a copy of the script book, but I haven’t revisited it in a while, though I’ve been meaning to. It’s too bad it’s kinda obscure, because it’s actually a pretty fun adaptation of the original film.
Whereas the novelization has interesting differences because it was written before the film came out, this radio play is three times as long as the movie it’s adapting in large part because it adds in scenes and ideas Lucas meant to use but didn’t have space for. The first two episodes expand on Luke and Leia’s lives before the start of the movie. Luke’s friends at the power station are introduced, as is Biggs Darklighter, making his death at the end of the story more poignant. The radio play shows how Leia gets the Death Star plans, and expands a bit on Alderaan. C-3PO and R2 get more screen time, which makes sense since Anthony Daniels is one of the two actors from the film to appear here. (The other is Mark Hamill, and I can’t help wondering if this is one of the things that got him into voice acting.) One Minor thing I really like is a moment where Han explains to Luke that there’s sound in the gun turrets of the Falcon as part of a computer simulation program to help with targeting. It nicely addresses the “no sound in space” problem.
There are also some things that are abridged or handled differently because this is an audio only format. There’s a bit of the characters describing things aloud that plagues many radio plays, though it usually didn’t distract me too much. The fight scenes tend to be shortened, since it wouldn’t be very fun to hear a lot of lightsaber noises with no idea what’s happening. One clever thing the radio play does is largely frame the Battle of Yavin from the POV of Leia and the other rebels in the base. They only have audio, so their experiences nicely parallel the listener’s and provide a naturalistic way of having commentary on what’s going on. It does mean that the episode covering this final battle is surprisingly short, and in general the pacing is somewhat different from that of the movie.
Still, I think Brian Daley and the voice cast definitely rose to the unique challenge of adapting one of the most popular movies ever to a very different medium quite well. The movie is still my favorite because there’s so much of a visual aspect to it (and the guy they have doing Darth Vader here is nowhere near James Earl Jones) but this is a fun reinterpretation of one of my favorite stories. I do plan to listen to the other two adaptations at some point, as well as possibly some of the other Star Wars audios of my youth, assuming I can get my hands on them. Though I admit that I expect the adaptations of the next two movies to hew somewhat more closely to the films, just as the novelizations did, so I think this may well stay my favorite of the three.
Whereas the novelization has interesting differences because it was written before the film came out, this radio play is three times as long as the movie it’s adapting in large part because it adds in scenes and ideas Lucas meant to use but didn’t have space for. The first two episodes expand on Luke and Leia’s lives before the start of the movie. Luke’s friends at the power station are introduced, as is Biggs Darklighter, making his death at the end of the story more poignant. The radio play shows how Leia gets the Death Star plans, and expands a bit on Alderaan. C-3PO and R2 get more screen time, which makes sense since Anthony Daniels is one of the two actors from the film to appear here. (The other is Mark Hamill, and I can’t help wondering if this is one of the things that got him into voice acting.) One Minor thing I really like is a moment where Han explains to Luke that there’s sound in the gun turrets of the Falcon as part of a computer simulation program to help with targeting. It nicely addresses the “no sound in space” problem.
There are also some things that are abridged or handled differently because this is an audio only format. There’s a bit of the characters describing things aloud that plagues many radio plays, though it usually didn’t distract me too much. The fight scenes tend to be shortened, since it wouldn’t be very fun to hear a lot of lightsaber noises with no idea what’s happening. One clever thing the radio play does is largely frame the Battle of Yavin from the POV of Leia and the other rebels in the base. They only have audio, so their experiences nicely parallel the listener’s and provide a naturalistic way of having commentary on what’s going on. It does mean that the episode covering this final battle is surprisingly short, and in general the pacing is somewhat different from that of the movie.
Still, I think Brian Daley and the voice cast definitely rose to the unique challenge of adapting one of the most popular movies ever to a very different medium quite well. The movie is still my favorite because there’s so much of a visual aspect to it (and the guy they have doing Darth Vader here is nowhere near James Earl Jones) but this is a fun reinterpretation of one of my favorite stories. I do plan to listen to the other two adaptations at some point, as well as possibly some of the other Star Wars audios of my youth, assuming I can get my hands on them. Though I admit that I expect the adaptations of the next two movies to hew somewhat more closely to the films, just as the novelizations did, so I think this may well stay my favorite of the three.
March 20, 2019
"Speed runs, Skywalker. Speed runs." - Fixer
A more complete version of Star Wars, and my favorite. Dad recorded the radio broadcast, and we sibs must have worn out the tape of the first episode "A Wind to Shake the Stars" because we still remember much of it word for word. Daley goes deep into Luke's life on Tatooine, so much so that Luke's desperate cry, "Biggs? BIGGS!" heard in the movie as he hurtles down the Death Star trench, is the emotional climax of Daley's script. The original NPR broadcast stars the inimitable Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, and of course John Williams' fantastic score. It is 24 karat audio gold.
A more complete version of Star Wars, and my favorite. Dad recorded the radio broadcast, and we sibs must have worn out the tape of the first episode "A Wind to Shake the Stars" because we still remember much of it word for word. Daley goes deep into Luke's life on Tatooine, so much so that Luke's desperate cry, "Biggs? BIGGS!" heard in the movie as he hurtles down the Death Star trench, is the emotional climax of Daley's script. The original NPR broadcast stars the inimitable Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, and of course John Williams' fantastic score. It is 24 karat audio gold.
January 6, 2017
Brian Daley added a lot to the Star Wars Universe but the radio dramas in general, and this one specifically, might be his greatest contribution. Adapting anything for radio drama can be difficult, but he manages to avoid having characters describe their every move in an inane way like other audio dramas do and still keeps the narrating to a minimum. Additionally, the voice work is impressive. I usually don't like audio dramas because the vocal actors are sometimes difficult to distinguish from one another, but here they are clear, well spoken, and well acted; not to mention the Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprising their roles as Luke and C-3PO. Not only does the audio drama retell a familiar tale in a new way by taking the visuals away and immersing you in sound, but it also adds details and background that we haven't seen before. In fact, the first two of thirteen stories give us background on Leia and Luke that were not in the movie and take place before the start of the main story. Whether you have seen the movie or not, read the book or not, this retelling has enough new details to make it enjoyable for any fan.
July 12, 2020
Fantastic audio adaption! I listened to the original broadcast as a teenager, and still find this version of Star Wars to be excellent.
October 5, 2015
There is some really great stuff in this radio adaptation. The film itself does not even begin until about halfway through the third episode! Before that point, we get an introduction for C-3PO and R2-D2, Leia's interactions with her father and government related matters, and Luke's interactions with his friends on Tatooine. I always wished that Biggs Darklighter had been given more screentime, and similar fans may find their fix here. There are just little things that I dislike, such as the slow and soft (as opposed to quick and loud) delivery of Darth Vader's line, “Commander, tear this ship apart until you find those plans. And bring me all passengers, I want them alive.” The scene with Jabba in Docking Bay 94 is included, and the voice does not match, though one cannot fault anyone since this was produced two years before Return of the Jedi was released. I have always wondered what that torture droid Vader uses on Leia actually does, and we get an idea of it here. But the film's cutting away from it and leaving it to our imaginations is more effective, whereas here it is a bit awkward having Vader's voice trying to convince Leia that he is a rebel. I do love Leia's immediate reaction to Tarkin blowing up Alderaan, as well as her telling Luke that, being the inexperienced pilot that he is, he should not feel pressured to fly in the Battle of Yavin. I also love the extended sequence of Ben Kenobi training Luke on the Millennium Falcon. The scene in which the crew talks about the plan about hiding in the compartments on the Falcon would ruin the surprise of them being in there if people were to listen to this before watching the film. But there is other extended dialogue to enjoy throughout the drama. The narrator does a great job opening and closing each episode. And, of course, what would this be without the John Williams music? Since this is an audio, there is dialogue during the award ceremony, but it does not ruin the music.
September 15, 2017
A pretty dry, extended version of A New Hope. Most of the additions are extra lines of dialogue to flesh out the scenes so they're easier to follow using only audio. The most noticeable extensions are more time with Luke on Tatooine prior to meeting Obi Wan, as well as more time with Leia on Alderaan trying to slip the Death Star plans under the Imperials' noses during some formalities involving her father. They're not bad scenes, just unnecessary and it becomes apparent why they were cut from the film. If you've ever wanted to read a book of A New Hope with some extra scenes then that's all this really is. Like I said, it's a very straight-forward adaptation that doesn't take anything away from the film, but doesn't have anything worth adding that I could recommend to long-time fans.
August 13, 2017
I remember being so obsessed with getting every one of these episodes on tape back in 1981 that I carried my portable radio/cassette player with me when I couldn't be home for the shows. My dad insisted I get out of the van and play tennis during one taping, and I spent the whole time wondering if the tape was still recording!
April 30, 2013
You love to hear the story, again and again,
Of how it all got started way back when,
- MC Shan (The Bridge, 1985)
February 4, 2019
A lot of nostalgia with this one. So much so that it's a little hard to be objective with this title.
An avid fan of the movies since their first release, I had no idea that NPR had produced this series originally. I remember being at a friends house in the early 80's and my friend's dad said, "hey, do you want to listen to Star Wars?" Admittedly I thought he was joking, and just shook my head--as I was sure that he was pulling my leg.
It wasn't until my hometown announced that they were going to replay it on the radio that I even knew that it existed, and realized what my friend's dad must have been talking about. But with my hectic schedule, I wasn't able to catch any of the airings of it. But soon after highbridge audio produced a recording of it for purchase. And I did--on cassette. And soon after purchased the Empire Strikes Back. And I saved them for a long drive that I ended up going on. And I remember that drive cross country solely because of these two productions (Return of the Jedi wasn't produced until '96). '93 was still at the base of the resurgence of Star Wars, and it wasn't as saturated as it is nowadays. And for an X Gen kid, I knew the movies inside and out, and hadn't seen them in years. So listening to the audio productions was a real treat for me.
As the advertising said, "You've never seen Star Wars, until you've heard it" (I might be misquoting there, but it's pretty close), and I would agree with it. They hired Brian Daley, who had written the Han Solo adventures soon after "A New Hope", to pen the scripts. And Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels came back to reprise their respective roles. What is interesting about these productions, and especially with the first one here, is how much more expanded the story is. With 13 episodes it's around 6+ hours long, and with Ben Burtt's sound effects, and expertly placed John Williams score, it makes for a fun ride. And one that I love to return to.
That said, there are some criticisms that I have. One of those being the scripts. At the time of the original recordings, radio dramas hadn't been produced in 30 years. Some of them were still going on. I believe there was a CBS radio show that was loosely being produced. But the hay-day of, what was the golden age of radio drama was gone. And the art of script writing for the genre was not up to speed here in the States like in the UK. And there are some areas in the scripts that sound a bit force-fed to the listeners. For example: instead of a radio script saying:
Sound FX: We hear their footsteps echo.
Actor 1: Woah... I've never seen so many books before.
Actor 2: Yeah--Me neither.
Sound FX: footsteps stop. An additional sound of book sliding from a shelf.
Actor 1: What are you doing?
Sound FX: Blowing dust off of book. We hear it open and pages ruffle.
Actor 2: (coughs) I don't think anyone's been in here for awhile....
But here we have something like.
Sound FX: We hear footsteps echo.
Actor 1: Woah... This library is so big. I can hear my footsteps echo across the whole way.
Sound FX: footsteps stop.
Actor 1: What are you doing?
Actor 2: I want to take a look at one of these really old books here on the shelf.
Sound FX: book sliding from shelf.
Actor 2: Look how old this book is. I don't think anyone's even touched it for years.
This is a horrible example--but instead of letting the audience figure it out with sound effects and dialog, some of the dialog "tells" us what we should be seeing, instead of us filling it in for ourselves. It's a picky thing, but one that I always come back to.
With the exception of Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, it might be hard to listen to other actors portray iconic roles like Han Solo and Princess Leia... But it doesn't take long to forgo the differences.
I know I kind of knocked on Brian Daley's script a little bit, but don't think I don't appreciate what he did. And the work that he did to give us thirteen 30 minute episodes is amazing. And with John Madden's direction, this is a gem for any Star Wars fan.
Even if you know the story inside and out, this is a great listen for anyone. Especially if you're going on a long car ride with your family. Just start playing it, and let your imagination run wild.
An avid fan of the movies since their first release, I had no idea that NPR had produced this series originally. I remember being at a friends house in the early 80's and my friend's dad said, "hey, do you want to listen to Star Wars?" Admittedly I thought he was joking, and just shook my head--as I was sure that he was pulling my leg.
It wasn't until my hometown announced that they were going to replay it on the radio that I even knew that it existed, and realized what my friend's dad must have been talking about. But with my hectic schedule, I wasn't able to catch any of the airings of it. But soon after highbridge audio produced a recording of it for purchase. And I did--on cassette. And soon after purchased the Empire Strikes Back. And I saved them for a long drive that I ended up going on. And I remember that drive cross country solely because of these two productions (Return of the Jedi wasn't produced until '96). '93 was still at the base of the resurgence of Star Wars, and it wasn't as saturated as it is nowadays. And for an X Gen kid, I knew the movies inside and out, and hadn't seen them in years. So listening to the audio productions was a real treat for me.
As the advertising said, "You've never seen Star Wars, until you've heard it" (I might be misquoting there, but it's pretty close), and I would agree with it. They hired Brian Daley, who had written the Han Solo adventures soon after "A New Hope", to pen the scripts. And Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels came back to reprise their respective roles. What is interesting about these productions, and especially with the first one here, is how much more expanded the story is. With 13 episodes it's around 6+ hours long, and with Ben Burtt's sound effects, and expertly placed John Williams score, it makes for a fun ride. And one that I love to return to.
That said, there are some criticisms that I have. One of those being the scripts. At the time of the original recordings, radio dramas hadn't been produced in 30 years. Some of them were still going on. I believe there was a CBS radio show that was loosely being produced. But the hay-day of, what was the golden age of radio drama was gone. And the art of script writing for the genre was not up to speed here in the States like in the UK. And there are some areas in the scripts that sound a bit force-fed to the listeners. For example: instead of a radio script saying:
Sound FX: We hear their footsteps echo.
Actor 1: Woah... I've never seen so many books before.
Actor 2: Yeah--Me neither.
Sound FX: footsteps stop. An additional sound of book sliding from a shelf.
Actor 1: What are you doing?
Sound FX: Blowing dust off of book. We hear it open and pages ruffle.
Actor 2: (coughs) I don't think anyone's been in here for awhile....
But here we have something like.
Sound FX: We hear footsteps echo.
Actor 1: Woah... This library is so big. I can hear my footsteps echo across the whole way.
Sound FX: footsteps stop.
Actor 1: What are you doing?
Actor 2: I want to take a look at one of these really old books here on the shelf.
Sound FX: book sliding from shelf.
Actor 2: Look how old this book is. I don't think anyone's even touched it for years.
This is a horrible example--but instead of letting the audience figure it out with sound effects and dialog, some of the dialog "tells" us what we should be seeing, instead of us filling it in for ourselves. It's a picky thing, but one that I always come back to.
With the exception of Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels, it might be hard to listen to other actors portray iconic roles like Han Solo and Princess Leia... But it doesn't take long to forgo the differences.
I know I kind of knocked on Brian Daley's script a little bit, but don't think I don't appreciate what he did. And the work that he did to give us thirteen 30 minute episodes is amazing. And with John Madden's direction, this is a gem for any Star Wars fan.
Even if you know the story inside and out, this is a great listen for anyone. Especially if you're going on a long car ride with your family. Just start playing it, and let your imagination run wild.
April 27, 2020
I put this on in the background as mental comfort food while doing some tasks at home (I mean, where else?) and trying to get my mind off the USA's increasingly insane politics. It's impressively produced for its time, with all the expected Star Wars music and sound effects, and adds a layer to the film version of A New Hope, spending more time with each of the chief characters in various "offscreen" scenes. Notably, we learn more about Luke's life on Tatooine and about Leia's role in the rebellion. Brian Daley even manages to patch up a few movie plot elements that never made much sense, such as how Luke qualifies to operate an X-Wing fighter for the final space battle.
It's all pretty corny and innocent (a revelation about how Ben Kenobi was "watching" the younger Luke on his farm is written with blissful obliviousness to what a more jaded listener might quip about such a scene), but there's a bit more world-building than in the movie and it's kinda interesting to get a glimpse of George Lucas's vision for his franchise back when he was paying homage to the Flash Gordon serials of his childhood and had no idea he was laying down a defining mythos for the next generation's childhood. One desert racing sequence probably would have added something to A New Hope if Lucas had had the time and budget, but it obviously served as inspiration for the pod racing in Phantom Menace.
Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels do a good job reprising their roles as Luke and C3PO, though I'm not sure that more time with the latter character improves his likability. The other voice actors, while obviously not the same people who played iconic characters in the films, are... fine.
It's all pretty corny and innocent (a revelation about how Ben Kenobi was "watching" the younger Luke on his farm is written with blissful obliviousness to what a more jaded listener might quip about such a scene), but there's a bit more world-building than in the movie and it's kinda interesting to get a glimpse of George Lucas's vision for his franchise back when he was paying homage to the Flash Gordon serials of his childhood and had no idea he was laying down a defining mythos for the next generation's childhood. One desert racing sequence probably would have added something to A New Hope if Lucas had had the time and budget, but it obviously served as inspiration for the pod racing in Phantom Menace.
Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels do a good job reprising their roles as Luke and C3PO, though I'm not sure that more time with the latter character improves his likability. The other voice actors, while obviously not the same people who played iconic characters in the films, are... fine.
June 22, 2021
Ashar 8, 2078, Tuesday
Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization - Brian Daley (1993)
Genres: Science Fiction/ Space Opera/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Play
Pages: 346
Rating: 8/10
Themes: Respect for elders/ People of different backgrounds can work together to produce great results/ The positive aspects of not relying too much on technology/ The importance of hope and believing in what you can't see
Summary:
The Imperial Forces — under orders from cruel Darth Vader — hold Princess Leia hostage, in their efforts to quell the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, captain of the Millennium Falcon, work together with the companionable droid duo R2-D2 and C-3PO to rescue the beautiful princess, help the Rebel Alliance, and restore freedom and justice to the Galaxy.
Verdict:
I am really surprised that this spin-off of the first Star Wars movie is not more popular. This book adds a lot of details to A New Hope. The first two episodes are, basically, a prelude to the original story. Those illustrate Luke and Leia’s lives in their separate homeworlds before the start of the movie. It expands upon their character, showing the relationship between Luke and Biggs Darklighter and revealing how Leia obtained the Death Star plans. As is the case with radio dramas, since the narrator only ever pops up at the beginning and end of the episode, the onus is on one of the characters to describe the scenes taking place, and some of these might sound a bit off-putting. Also, Darth Vader’s voice irked me. I thought his was the only voice that sounded jarringly off from the movies. Other than those minor hitches, this is a solidly adapted piece.
Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization - Brian Daley (1993)
Genres: Science Fiction/ Space Opera/ Adventure/ Fantasy/ Play
Pages: 346
Rating: 8/10
Themes: Respect for elders/ People of different backgrounds can work together to produce great results/ The positive aspects of not relying too much on technology/ The importance of hope and believing in what you can't see
Summary:
The Imperial Forces — under orders from cruel Darth Vader — hold Princess Leia hostage, in their efforts to quell the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, captain of the Millennium Falcon, work together with the companionable droid duo R2-D2 and C-3PO to rescue the beautiful princess, help the Rebel Alliance, and restore freedom and justice to the Galaxy.
Verdict:
I am really surprised that this spin-off of the first Star Wars movie is not more popular. This book adds a lot of details to A New Hope. The first two episodes are, basically, a prelude to the original story. Those illustrate Luke and Leia’s lives in their separate homeworlds before the start of the movie. It expands upon their character, showing the relationship between Luke and Biggs Darklighter and revealing how Leia obtained the Death Star plans. As is the case with radio dramas, since the narrator only ever pops up at the beginning and end of the episode, the onus is on one of the characters to describe the scenes taking place, and some of these might sound a bit off-putting. Also, Darth Vader’s voice irked me. I thought his was the only voice that sounded jarringly off from the movies. Other than those minor hitches, this is a solidly adapted piece.
August 3, 2021
You might expect a five-hour radio adaptation of A New Hope (a two-hour film) to be bloated out in the same way an audiobook novelization would be, forced to describe the action previously captured by the visuals, but this is not the case from this Radio Drama (admittedly I listened to an edited version from YouTube called Nigel's Edit that trims out the intros and outros of each episode and adds additional effects) which uses a narrator only as bookends and while it does fit in some additional action described in the dialogue at times, this is essentially just an extended edition of A New Hope in audio form and if you want a more fleshed-out version of A New Hope that fits in more backstory, more character moments, and a more defined world, this might just scratch that itch and while it has to recast many of the major roles we still get Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels in their respective roles which adds a real sense of authenticity. While it doesn't radically flesh out the narrative in the way that the ROTS novelization does, this does feel like a more complete version of the film that any fan of the original trilogy will surely get something out of. Would reccomend!
April 16, 2018
I really enjoyed the script of the radio drama since it is completely familiar but adds depth.
My favorite (new) moment is a scene with Tarkin during the initial stages of the Death Star attack by the rebels. He's concerned that rebel fighters might actually destroy the battlestation and is prepared to order a ship be made available for him to escape. A subordinate tells him that his power derives from command of the Death Star and he should stand unwavering in front of the staff. Then, the familiar dialogue from the movie as another subordinate approaches him: "We've analyzed their attack, sir, and there is a danger. Should I have your ship standing by?" Tarkin: "Evacuate in our moment of triumph? I think you overestimate their chances!"
I love how the additional scene adds an ironic nuance to the movie.
My favorite (new) moment is a scene with Tarkin during the initial stages of the Death Star attack by the rebels. He's concerned that rebel fighters might actually destroy the battlestation and is prepared to order a ship be made available for him to escape. A subordinate tells him that his power derives from command of the Death Star and he should stand unwavering in front of the staff. Then, the familiar dialogue from the movie as another subordinate approaches him: "We've analyzed their attack, sir, and there is a danger. Should I have your ship standing by?" Tarkin: "Evacuate in our moment of triumph? I think you overestimate their chances!"
I love how the additional scene adds an ironic nuance to the movie.
July 30, 2022
Okay, so I have tried and tried to listen to this, and I just don't have the patience to make it through it all. I'm just not good with audio books. So when I found this script at the used book store, I couldn't pass it up. I'm so glad I did. This is so much fun! It's like reading the director's cut with all the deleted scenes. I know that most of the added scenes aren't compatible with the new Disney-era canon, but I thought Brian Daley did a phenomenal job adding to the lore of a film we all know so well. I do have one minor gripe. I did not like the way Darth Vader was portrayed in the Leia interrogation scene. Other than that, I think this is a must read for any diehard fan-- or, if you are good with audio books, check out the full audio dramatization. You can find it on YouTube!
My rating: 4.0 Stars
My rating: 4.0 Stars
Read
November 1, 2020I remember listening to this when I was a kid. My dad was a big KUSC fan. It makes you remember what a special thing Star Wars was when it came out. It was so much more than just the movie and this radio drama capitalized on many of the important aspects of that. The sound effects the music the actors that were part of it all made it feel like it was just as important as the movie. It's so amazing when you hear the Star Wars fanfare or when you hear sounds from Chewbacca or R2D2 you know it's Star Wars. It's too bad that nowadays they make such lightweight unimaginative copies.
May 18, 2025
A full cast audio production of the A New Hope script with some of the same actors and some new. Many new scenes that occasionally conflict with other continuities, including the movie one. The way it turns visual language into audio is interesting as well.
Ah, what's there to say, I teared up several times during the final chapter. When the rebel strike force takes flight during the final confrontation and the commander wishes them "may the force be with you". When Han returns. Etc. I am still a kid at heart.
Ah, what's there to say, I teared up several times during the final chapter. When the rebel strike force takes flight during the final confrontation and the commander wishes them "may the force be with you". When Han returns. Etc. I am still a kid at heart.
October 6, 2019
Because the base story is so familiar (and still fun!), this is an interesting chance to consider the choices made in adapting to different formats. This does a great job with character development but clearly struggles in the action sequences. The voice acting for non-human characters is excellent at conveying a sense of personality. I was left appreciating Harrison Ford since I felt like Han Solo was the only character significantly off the mark.
May 7, 2022
This is a well done radio drama. It is not as good as the Movie, but it still keeps you on your toes. Some of the characters are voiced by the same actors from the movie, but the majority of them are voiced by other actors/actresses. The most obvious would be Princess Leia and Han Solo. That being said, while they don't quite get up to the same standard as Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher, they do a pretty good job depicting the characters.
January 3, 2024
I remember being so obsessed with getting every one of these episodes on tape back in 1981 that I carried my portable radio/cassette player with me when I couldn't be home for the shows. My dad insisted I get out of the van and play tennis during one taping, and I spent the whole time wondering if the tape was still recording!
January 17, 2024
I listened to this, didn't actually read the physical book. Found a recording of it on my podcast app. I really enjoyed it a lot. Some of the voices were right from the film. Most were recast, but everyone did a good job. A cool and different way to experience the story. Can't wait to start the next one!
May 13, 2019
It was good. Especially at the beginning. But maybe because I now the story quite well or because of the mediocre actors (except Han Solo and maybe Luke) or maybe because some kind of diluted story and missing epic images of the movie I wasn't so enthralled by the radio outcome. Despite the great original music and sound effects. Still, I will continue with the Empire strikes back, that's certain.
October 26, 2021
Fascinating! I listened to the audio version. This does a lot more explaining of why things happen and the reasons behind certain events. The movie is much tighter and is better for it but this was a fun look into A New Hope.
May 23, 2010
I am not a fan of Star Wars in any way near the way I'm a fan of Star Trek but the original film* remains one of my all-time favorites; it was the near perfect recasting of the archetypal (Western, at any rate) hero myth into a science-fiction setting. For all its adumbrations of Lucas' shortcomings as a director and writer, the film worked on every level for me. Much of that success must be laid at the feet of the veteran actors Lucas managed to corral - Alec Guinness, Peter Cushing and James Earl Jones, who all rose far above the material to create some of the most memorable characters and scenes in SF movie history.
The importance of that critical chemistry is evident when you listen to this adaptation for radio. The script was written by Brian Daley, who wrote some decent, pre-Rebellion Han Solo adventures (Han Solo at Stars' End, Han Solo's Revenge, Han Solo and the Lost Legacy) but here he adds a lot of pointless padding that dilutes the power of some of the most iconic scenes and are boring.** Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their film roles so they do fine (unless you didn't like them in the movie) but the rest of the cast is either lackluster or horribly miscast (with one exception I'll get to below); my cats could read this stuff with more conviction and distinctiveness. The "horribly miscast" role is Perry King (of "Riptide" fame if you're old enough to remember that TV show) as Han Solo. Even if I had never seen Harrison Ford's performance, King's take on the Solo character just didn't work; and in comparison to Ford's, it suffers irremediable harm. The exception to the awful cast is Brock Peters - Admiral Cartwright in Star Treks IV & VI and Tom Robinson in the film version of To Kill A Mockingbird - as Darth Vader. He managed to nearly equal Jones' film version.
An example will suffice: One of the most memorable scenes - Tarkin's confrontation with Leia when he destroys Alderaan - falls entirely flat because neither actor could pull it off. It deserves to be quoted in full and here is the link to the scene on YouTube. Watch the scene and you'll see how both body language and vocal cadence carry it off:
I'm giving this two stars because of Peter's performance more than anything else but I wouldn't recommend this to any but the Star Wars completist.
* And by "original," I do mean the original version, sans Lucas' "improvements" (ugh).
** Even accounting for the fact that this is a radio adaptation and some things that could be shown in the film needed to be elaborated on for a solely listening audience, there's still far too much useless jabbering. In fairness, one part did work: In the film, when Luke races back to the farm to find his aunt and uncle dead, it's all done visually without a line of dialog. Daley successfully converts that scene for the radio by having Luke recount what he found when he gets back to Obi-wan and the droids.
The importance of that critical chemistry is evident when you listen to this adaptation for radio. The script was written by Brian Daley, who wrote some decent, pre-Rebellion Han Solo adventures (Han Solo at Stars' End, Han Solo's Revenge, Han Solo and the Lost Legacy) but here he adds a lot of pointless padding that dilutes the power of some of the most iconic scenes and are boring.** Mark Hamill and Anthony Daniels reprise their film roles so they do fine (unless you didn't like them in the movie) but the rest of the cast is either lackluster or horribly miscast (with one exception I'll get to below); my cats could read this stuff with more conviction and distinctiveness. The "horribly miscast" role is Perry King (of "Riptide" fame if you're old enough to remember that TV show) as Han Solo. Even if I had never seen Harrison Ford's performance, King's take on the Solo character just didn't work; and in comparison to Ford's, it suffers irremediable harm. The exception to the awful cast is Brock Peters - Admiral Cartwright in Star Treks IV & VI and Tom Robinson in the film version of To Kill A Mockingbird - as Darth Vader. He managed to nearly equal Jones' film version.
An example will suffice: One of the most memorable scenes - Tarkin's confrontation with Leia when he destroys Alderaan - falls entirely flat because neither actor could pull it off. It deserves to be quoted in full and here is the link to the scene on YouTube. Watch the scene and you'll see how both body language and vocal cadence carry it off:
LEIA: Governor Tarkin, I should have expected to find you holding
Vader's leash. I recognized your foul stench when I was brought on
board.
TARKIN: Charming to the last. You don't know how hard I found it
signing the order to terminate your life!
LEIA: I surprised you had the courage to take the responsibility
yourself!
TARKIN: Princess Leia, before your execution I would like you to be my
guest at a ceremony that will make this battle station operational. No
star system will dare oppose the Emperor now.
LEIA: The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems
will slip through your fingers.
TARKIN: Not after we demonstrate the power of this station. In a way,
you have determined the choice of the planet that'll be destroyed
first. Since you are reluctant to provide us with the location of the
Rebel base, I have chosen to test this station's destructive power...
on your home planet of Alderaan.
LEIA: No! Alderaan is peaceful. We have no weapons. You can't
possibly...
TARKIN: You would prefer another target? A military target? Then name
the system!
I grow tired of asking this. So it'll be the last time. Where
is the Rebel base?
LEIA: Dantooine.
They're on Dantooine.
TARKIN: There. You see Lord Vader, she can be reasonable. (addressing
Motti) Continue with the operation. You may fire when ready.
LEIA: What?
TARKIN: You're far too trusting. Dantooine is too remote to make an
effective demonstration. But don't worry. We will deal with your Rebel
friends soon enough.
LEIA: No!
I'm giving this two stars because of Peter's performance more than anything else but I wouldn't recommend this to any but the Star Wars completist.
* And by "original," I do mean the original version, sans Lucas' "improvements" (ugh).
** Even accounting for the fact that this is a radio adaptation and some things that could be shown in the film needed to be elaborated on for a solely listening audience, there's still far too much useless jabbering. In fairness, one part did work: In the film, when Luke races back to the farm to find his aunt and uncle dead, it's all done visually without a line of dialog. Daley successfully converts that scene for the radio by having Luke recount what he found when he gets back to Obi-wan and the droids.
August 19, 2017
Adds so much more depth to what is seen in the movie, with additional scenes and extended sequences.
August 28, 2018
If you love Star Wars then you’ll love this too.
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