By Kevin Fitzpatrick
Splish Splash, the Star Wars Celebration was a Smash! Fans from all corners of the globe descended on Denver, Colorado April 30-May 2, 1999, for the grand three-day event, hailed on the scene as a "Star Wars Woodstock." For those 30,000 in attendance, the Celebration was like a birthday party you'd anticipated for over 10 years.
Lucasfilm made available seven actors and eight technical artists from Episode I to attend the convention. Props and costumes were shipped out and put on display, some for the first time. Dozens of Star Wars licensees unveiled their Phantom Menace wares. Two massive tents were erected to hold audiences of 1,500 apiece.
"There are so many people walking around with Darth Vader shirts," an enthusiastic Jake Lloyd told a hushed crowd. "And before they can recognize me, I'll go, 'Oh, Darth Vader is the best!'"
Young Lloyd was one of the most popular stars there -- but he wasn't alone. Anthony Daniels, Ray Park, Warwick Davis and Hugh Quarshie flew in from London, while Sweden's Pernilla August came from Stockholm and Ahmed Best arrived from Brooklyn.
All the excitement took place at the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, located at the old Lowry Air Force base. In a hangar filled with vintage war-planes, thousands of fans were treated to exhibits about Episode I and the Star Wars saga.
At first, it appeared as though the weather was controlled by the dark side, because for the first day and a half, the scene was straight out of Dagobah. A record two inches of rain fell on Friday. But in the end, the weekend wrapped in glorious sunshine, just like the ending of The Phantom Menace on Naboo.
In the hangar, sandwiched between retired F-102A and F-104C fighters, a full-size X-wing fighter joined the fleet. Organizers even raised a banner reading "X-wing" above it, just like the ones the Air Force had for its planes. The X-wing -- nearby another fan mecca, Anakin's Podracer -- was the natural favorite to serve as backdrop for hundreds of photos a day.
