Star Wars Day, May4, celebrates George Lucas's Star Wars media franchise. Observance of the commemorative day spread quickly through media and grassroots celebrations. The date was chosen for the pun on the catchphrase "May the Force be with you" as " be with you". Even though the holiday was not created or declared by Lucasfilm, many Star Wars fans across the world have chosen to celebrate the holiday. It has since been embraced by Lucasfilm and parent company Disney as an annual celebration of Star Wars.
History
The first recorded reference was the phrase being first used on May 4, 1979, the day Margaret Thatcher took the job as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. An online news article from the Danish public broadcaster says her political party, the Conservatives, placed a congratulatory advertisement in The London Evening News, saying "May the Fourth Be with You, Maggie. Congratulations." The saying was used in a UK Parliament defence debate on May 4, 1994. Astrophysicist and author Jeanne Cavelos used the saying on page 94 of her 1999 book The Science of Star Wars. In 2008, the first Facebook groups appeared, celebrating Luke Skywalker Day, with the same catchphrase. In 2011, the first organized celebration of Star Wars Day took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at the Toronto Underground Cinema. Produced by Sean Ward and Alice Quinn, festivities included an Original Trilogy Trivia Game Show; a costume contest with celebrity judges; and the web's best tribute films, mash-ups, parodies, and remixes on the big screen. The second annual edition took place on Friday, May 4, 2012. Fans have celebrated Star Wars in a variety of ways in social media and on television. Since 2013, The Walt Disney Company has officially observed the holiday with several Star Wars events and festivities at Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Disney had purchased Lucasfilm, including the rights to Star Wars, in late 2012. The finale of ' was made available on Disney+ on May 4, 2020. ', as well as an eight-episode documentary series titled Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, were also made available on Disney+ the same day. Minor League baseball teams such as the Toledo Mud Hens and the Durham Bulls have worn special uniforms as part of Star Wars Day promotions. On Star Wars Day 2015, astronauts in the International Space Station watched Star Wars. Also in 2015, the carillon bells inside the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada played "The Imperial March" theme from Star Wars, among other space-related tunes.
Revenge of the Fifth/Sixth
Some recognize the following day, May 5, as "Revenge of the Fifth", a play on ' and celebrate the Sith Lords and other villainous characters from the Star Wars series rather than the Jedi. Others celebrate this one day later, on May 6, citing "Revenge of the Sixth'" as a better play on "Sith". While others refer to the 6th as "Return of the 6th" as a play on the trilogy aspect of the Star Wars films. Those that do tend to use this as a way to watch all of the films not in a single day but as three separate trilogies over three days, typically watching the original Star Wars'' trilogy on May 4th, the prequel trilogy on Revenge of the 5th, and the sequel trilogy on Return of the 6th.
The Los Angeles City Council declared May 25, 2007, as Star Wars Day, in honor of the 30th anniversary release date of Star Wars. A separate initiative for observing Geek Pride Day on May 25 is based on the Star Wars connection along with ties to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Discworld. was also released on May 25, 41 years after Star Wars.
