No where near a complete list of some of the most interesting facts surrounding the creation of what is now one of the most iconic film epics of all time, but there are some interesting tidbits.
A few of the more notable omissions on this list, since they nearly mentioned them but somehow failed to mention them are:
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Harrison Ford never really read for the part of Han Solo but was filling in to help out with the casting of the other characters. Lucas and Co. couldn’t find anyone better than Harrison and he agreed to play the part.
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George Lucas, although he managed to get funding through 20th Century Fox via Alan Ladd, Jr., managed to pen an unprecedented deal for marketing rights. This included the creation of toys, tshirts, and other products based off of the movie.
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ILM, or Industrial Light and Magic, the foremost experts in Special Effects and used for a large portion of the movies that continue to be made out of Hollywood (including a division that was spun-off, bought by Apple, Inc. CEO Steve Jobs, and is now named Pixar) all came to be during the filming of the first Star Wars film.
There are others I’m sure. But I have to recommend that if you are interested in this sort of thing – be sure to watch the special features that ship with the special edition DVD box set of the original Star Wars films. There is tons of information to be found there.
Source: No Jiggling in The Empire: Fun Facts About Star Wars.
Hat tip: Justin Blanton.