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Gleep Glossary: A Star Wars Story #60 - The Star Wars Holiday Special REDUX

On this very special edition of our Star Wars side show, the Gleep Glossary, we're going back and taking another stab at the much-maligned, and rightfully so, Star Wars Holiday Special!

Originally airing back on November 17, 1978, this complete and total variety show-formatted misfire absolutely tortures you with a story set around Chewbacca's family, including his horrific son, Lumpy, his put-upon wife, Malla, and gross, horny father, Itchy; a janky, cheap-as-shit Millennium Falcon set featuring Han and Chewie getting home for the holidays; an eerie, twisted sequence with Chewie's father watching VR pornography; several ill-written, un-funny Harvey Korman sketches; and one half-way decent, but still creepily-drawn cartoon! PLUS: Kris Kristofferson shot first, chicken-shit!

Thank you for being so incredible by continuing to support this weird, wild adventure we're on! You make this all possible! We know you have lots of options when choosing which pods you listen to and we very much appreciate you carving out some time for us!

Original cover art by Felipe Sobreiro.

Gleep Glossary: A Star Wars Story #60 - The Star Wars Holiday Special REDUX

Comments

I assume Kashyyyk was pronounced “Kasheek” pre-war and “Kazook” post-war. Like Siam and Thailand.

Michael Patrick

I can’t believe they had never seen heard of Food of the Gods before. Amazing b-movie! The effects are hilariously bad. Worth a look!

Patrick Hayden

I did see this as a kid on TV, but it must have been in the early 80s (perhaps Lucas didn’t realise an Australian TV network still had a copy). I recall it was only ever on that once but I recorded it on VHS so definitely watched it a few times, though I suspect I fast forwarded all the songs (except Bea Arthur’s because even as a little kid I liked Bea)

Craig

I only know this movie from pop culture and the two episodes of this podcast. I'm in no hurry to watch this either 🤣🤣 but I always love seeing the glep glossary pop up on my feed

Sergio Rozo

I was 8 when this abomination came out, and it was a crushing disappointment. Thinking I was going to get a new Star Wars story and getting a variety show instead was like expecting to get chocolate ice cream only only to discover it was a bowl of shit. This was also the ancient times where there was only one TV in the house, and I was the only sci-fi nerd in the family so I'd had to beg to be able to watch it. And then had to endure a "What is this shit?!?" from my dad. Didn't help my cause of trying to watch any sci -fi stuff back then.

Kemper

Just ordered that documentary. Think it might be the only way I can sit through clips from that special without harming myself. I love insane 70s crap, but sitting through the entire show is sheer pain.

Ed Harris

Eric Clapton's other kid! High-larious!

Tru$tn01

Wouldnt have needed a costume to play a wookiee

Andrew Dean

What's Wookie for "kill me now"?

Eren Keskin

Lumpy sounds like a malfunctioning dot matrix printer

Smaug

So if family lore is to be believed seeing this holiday special at the age of 6 was my gateway into Star Wars. I was so excited about it my parents let my older siblings take me to see it in the theatres the next time it was re-released (I guess summer 1979). In my memory I saw A New Hope first but recollections of being 7-8 years old are pretty fuzzy at best.

Scott Plackemeier

I just watched the whole thing at work. The guys are right, the worst part is the framing device, I have to watch a bunch of Wookies watching a TV and talking to each other. What terrible ideas

Smaug

Finally I've seen something they haven't. My family not only was blessed to watch Food of the Gods but we had a poster for it prominently displayed among other classics like Mr. Sardonicus. When you watch Food of the Gods just keep in mind keep in mind it's on an island.

John Brownell

The Ellis Island Banjo Kazooie joke REALLY got me

Matt

I was six when this came out. I was a confirmed Star Wars fanatic then, and even at that age I was disappointed. I think this was Gen X nerds first (of many) disappointments.

Damon LeCornu

Eric and gang, you finished the year with peak gloppage. Chris' Wookie impersonations *chef's kiss* quality. I'm looking forward to whatever gleeps you glop in 2024

Smaug

The Shift is basically if the Book of Job was recreated in a sci-fi multiverse. The effects were decent and Neal McDonough was good but let's just say it was a little "preachy".

Daryl Williams

I remember the excitement and fervor my 3rd grade class had waiting for this special. Counting the days until it was on, then the total disappointment. Trying to hang in there to at least see the Boba cartoon which wasn’t worth it. Watching the toy commercials only to get a coupon for the product on Xmas. Then to totally wipe this trauma from my memory until a shock jock on the radio in the 90’s started talking about this fever dream available on bootleg video, if you could find it , on a message board or under the table at a comic book convention.

Catboyslim

Yeah, he supposedly was in a car accident , but why make him up like Carol Channing?

Catboyslim

back in the halcyon summer of 2016 my tutoring coworkers and I decided to get together and watch this for some reason. the way this movie makes a minute feel like 10 is simply unreal. I remember us pausing at one point thinking it was almost over and the gasps of dismay seeing we were only 30 minutes in will live in my memory forever

TJ Guiney

This came out at the perfect time for its bootlegging. Had it been made a few years earlier; nobody would record it and it could’ve been completely erased like a 60s Dr. Who episode. A few years later, when VCRs became readily available; everybody and their mother would’ve taped it

Kevin Lynch

Kudos to WHM for enduring this pap. I've tried many times over the years to watch more than the cartoon and I *always* tap out. But a Kornmentary-style review of the Star Wars Christmas Album would be nice, as I wore that cassette to shreds as a child. The narrative of C3PO and R2D2 helping Santa Claus at the North Pole is actually more substantial than the plot of the holiday special. Also you got Lil Bon Jovi running around, which, yknow, is something.

MarkNM

I was 4 years old when this aired, and I will go on record as loving it at the time. It was like a combination of two things 4-year-old me in 1978 loved; Star Wars and Sid and Marty Krofft. I remember being, a child, confused for years why it was never shown again

Kevin Lynch

Mark Hamill wasn't in a car accident in 1977? I thought that's why he's caked in makeup in this.

Nate Brennaman

Cabin shreiking "IDA LUPINO!!" made me laugh way hatder than you might expect

James C Harris

I too love cilantro

James C Harris

Would this have been better if they put Robin Williams in it? Or would this have killed his career before it even began?

John Locke


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