FROM: MouseMerch Published Thursdays

Star Tours: May the Merch Be with You

In a theme park not so far away, Chris Taylor has come face-to-face with the never-ending horde of Star Wars (and Star Tours) merch. Helpless, he bought, and bought, and then he bought some more. The Force is strong in this one.

- by Chris Taylor, May 26, 2011

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You all know the big Disney news this week: Star Tours: The Adventure Continues opened at Hollywood Studios in Disney World to much pomp and circumstance.

Star Wars was the first film to have a true merchandise marketing plan associated with it, which frankly paid for the Lucas empire in years to come. Star Tours, however, never really had a large merchandise base until a few years ago.

Let's explore some of the collectibles from a long time ago, and a galaxy... well, you know the rest.

Luke, I Have No Souvenirs

I was lucky enough to be in California during the summer of 1987 and one of the many guests to ride Star Tours: Tour to Endor at Disneyland. I loved it, but I don't remember seeing any related souvenirs for sale when I got off the ride.

In 1989, Star Tours opened at Disney-MGM Studios, and with it Endor Vendors, a gift shop themed as the Endor bunker from Return of the Jedi. It was later renamed Tatooine Traders and rethemed in 1998. Still, nothing remarkable, merchandise-wise.

During the 1997 10-year-anniversary celebration, Star Wars Weekends (SWW) began at Disney-MGM Studios. This is when merchandise really started rolling out, though it was mostly for the event itself and limited to shirts, mugs, pins, and a few toys from the films, but nothing from the attraction itself.

Two different merchandise areas are set up during SSW: Jabba's Hut and Wicket's Warehouse. In 2006, Wicket's Warehouse featured a full-size X-Wing on display. It has traditionally been set-up on Soundstage 1 near Toy Story Mania.

The Merch is Strong in This Store

2002 is when things really got rolling, with the release of the first Star Tours action figures: Captain Rex; G2-41, one of the droids from the Que; and R3-D3, your Starspeeder 3000 astromech droid; along with a host of variants and, frankly, some really silly spin-offs like SK-Z38, a droid that looks like a bird.

Since then, we've seen the Disney/Star Wars crossover action figures, which began with Jedi Mickey and now include Chip 'n Dale as Ewoks.

In 2007, Disney released the Disney Racers die-cast cars that resemble famous Disney characters. I still have my Toy Story set. These weren't Star Tours specific, but you could get them in the parks.

2010 saw what may be the most popular Star Tours set so far: the Star Tours Boarding Party, complete with a Disney Cast Member. These represent the cast of characters in the ride's pre-boarding video sequence.

Of course, there's now a set for the new cast of Star Tours: The Adventure Continues, featuring Darth Vader, C3PO, and the Sky Troopers.

Along the way, I've picked up Star Speeder 3000 and 1000 models and die-cast ships, some great t-shirts, R2-D2 Mickey Ears, light sabers, and what I think is the most clever of all, the Star Wars Mr. Potato Heads.

Made by Star Wars toys manufacturer Hasbro, these fantastic toys were launched in 2005 and include Darth Tater, Spuda Fett, Darth Mash, Yam Solo, and Chipbacca.

All are great fun - and great puns!

I fully expect to see more in the coming year as the new attraction picks up steam.

By the way, the 'chomping skull' LED novelty I wrote about some time back is now for sale at DisneyStore.com for only $8.

Pick yours up today!

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