Jenn Hall, a pastry artist in Philadelphia, figured that if she could make a R2D2 cake, she could make a R2D2 helmet. She was so pleased with the results of her efforts that she wore it to bed after finishing. Visit the link to see how she made the helmet.

Link -via The Mary Sue | Photo: Geekadelphia

People look at you funny if you roll around in public in a realistic R2R2 costume. This sweater by Etsy seller Erica Schoenberger is a more discreet and possibly even workplace-friendly alternative. Link -via OhGizmo!

Instructables member Nylanan is currently building a full-size replica of R2D2. As a result, he’s been seeing visions of the droid in everyday objects, such as this lamp. He cut vinyl panels to size and stuck them on the lamp. Link -via Geek Crafts

(YouTube link)

This 1980s PSA from the lovable Star Wars droids is so hilariously nonsensical that it almost works. Artoo could conceivably smoke all he likes, though I don’t know why he’d bother, but he won’t–for the children. Love it. I think a reprisal is in order, though, because “You don’t want to sell me death sticks, ” and “You want to go home and rethink your life,” would be much more effective. Assuming the Jedi Mind Trick works via television.

rougeliter via G.TDW

This amazing 96″ R2D2 is made from cardboard and duct tape and some spray paint. If you want to see it in person and you happen to be near Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, as it’s about to be displayed in the “Dr. StrangeLen or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Make the Art”exhibit.

Link

Suddenly, my respect for C3P0 has greatly increased. Well, I guess his normal manner is the perfect cover for his secret identity as the Coppered Crusader.

via Comics Alliance | Image: Adam Carlson

Really, the studio name and logo displayed in the watermark is as inspired as the smoker itself. Philip Wise modified a 55-gallon drum into this perfect Ewok-smoker. Or whatever else you want to cook.

Oh, was that offensive? Just keep in mind that those adorable little teddy bear-like creatures eat people. I say that we return the favor.

Link via Technabob

Oh! The garbage chute was a really wonderful idea. What an incredible smell you’ve discovered! Let’s get out of here!

via Walyou | Photo: Unknown

Jen of Epbot attended the Miami Comic-Con and took this picture of a little girl in a Cinderella costume reading to R2D2, who chirped and beeped in response. It was only after she started processing the pictures that Jen noticed that Denise Crosby, the actress who played Tasha Yar on Star Trek: The Next Generation, was in the background of the shot.

Link via Boing Boing

YouTube user dmalford1 built a R2D2 simulator that is large enough for an adult human to fit inside and drive it around. It makes appropriate light flashes, sound effects, and has a rotating dome.

via Geekologie

R2D2 appears to have been given a makeover by Tony Stark in this mix between Star Wars and Iron Man. The creator, Mike Verta, is an expert in visual effects and modeling, and has outdone himself in this computer rendering. I’d love to see a real one puttering around.

Image and story via Nerd Approved

The movie was filmed during the summer of 1980.

You’ve probably heard the rumors, and yes, they’re true – Indiana Jones was named after George Lucas’ dog, Indiana. He was the prototype for Chewbacca as well, so his old malamute had a pretty big impact on Lucas’ two biggest series.

“Indiana Smith?” Yep, almost, until Steven Spielberg told Lucas it just didn’t sound right. The equally-generic “Jones” was suggested and flowed much better.

According to George Lucas, almost every studio in town turned down the movie, feeling that it would cost too much money to make.

Tim Matheson and Tom Selleck both tested for Indiana Jones; Karen Allen actually screentested with Tim Matheson. Tom Selleck did very well and was the frontrunner, but had to bow out due to Magnum P.I. Harrison Ford was brought up early in the casting discussion, but George Lucas wanted to avoid casting him since he had already become so closely associated with Star Wars.

The role of Sallah was offered to Danny DeVito – he was Spielberg’s first choice – but was unable to do it because of Taxi. The job went to John Rhys-Davies instead. Picture from BlogCDN.

Indy’s leather jacket looks old and beat up, but in reality, it was brand new – and there were 10 of them. The costume director “aged” each jacket with a metal brush and Harrison Ford’s own pocket knife.

The famous hat is from Savile Row in London, a place called Herbert Johnson. The hat had a very wide brim and the crown was quite high, apparently the fashion Down Under since it was their Australian model. After a couple of fittings, it was declared the Indiana Jones fedora. When the customized hat arrived at the studio, the costume designer rolled it up and crushed it, then various members of the cast (including Harrison) took turns sitting on it to make it look like a very worn-in, well-loved hat.

Someone was actually sent out to find a mountain that specifically looked like the Paramount Studios logo mountain so they could create the opening shot of the movie. I suppose these days Lucas would have just made a CGI mountain…

There was a complication during the scene where Alfred Molina is covered in spiders – they didn’t want to move. They just sat stagnant on him, making the excitement of the scene rather… well, not exciting. They discovered that all of the spiders were male, so a female spider was put on Molina’s chest. It did the trick – the male spiders were immediately more active and started to crawl in the direction of the female.

The golden idol was based on an Incan fertility statue. Photo from FanPop.

The movie was filmed in Tunisia because it was a lot cheaper to shoot there than Egypt, and since the script never called for shots of the Sphinx or the pyramids, so they were able to get away with it. In fact, one of the scenes was shot in the exact same canyon where R2-D2 was stolen by Jawas in Star Wars.

The part where Indy watches a swordsman go through a very elaborate routine with his scimitar only to shoot him at the end of it happened because Harrison Ford really had to go to the bathroom. Indy was supposed to have a huge fight scene using his whip, but a bout of dysentery had left him weak and desperately needing the john. Because of this, someone – reports vary on whose idea it was – suggested that Indy just dispatch the dude like anyone who had a gun in his arsenal would.

Harrison wasn’t the only one who got sick – a majority of the cast and crew found themselves incapacitated at some point during filming in Tunisia. Steven Spielberg didn’t get sick because he ate only canned food from the U.K. Everyone else who ate food in the restaurants or at the hotel got horribly sick at least once during filming.

During the scene where Indy fights while the plane is rolling around, Harrison Ford actually sustained an injury when the wheels of the plane got too close and rolled right up onto his leg. It tore his ACL, but rather than submit to Tunisian hospitals, Ford wrapped it in ice and continued to shoot. He also bruised his ribs during the scene where he is dragged behind the truck.

Unlike his character counterpart, Harrison Ford isn’t afraid of snakes and had no problem working with them during the Well of Souls scene. Precautions were taken anyway – if you look closely, a reflection gives away the fact that a sheet of glass was placed between Ford and the cobra. It was a good thing, too – at one point the cobra actually sprayed venom onto the glass.

Some of the sound effects weren’t fancy at all: the sound of snakes slithering was really just the sound designer squishing his fingers through a cheese casserole, the sound of people getting punched was really a pile of leather coats being hit with a baseball bat, and the lid sliding off of the Ark was a toilet lid being slid off the back of a toilet. The sound designer was having trouble coming up with just the right sound for the rolling boulder at the beginning of the movie and ended up using the sound of a Honda Civic coasting down a gravel hill.

Marion was the writer’s grandmother-in-law’s name, and he had been mulling over a surname for a while when he came across a streetname called “Ravenwood” and loved the way the two names fit together. Photo from TheShadyCat.

The boat was actually the submarine model from Das Boot.

Although most shots were done in four takes or less because Lucas and Spielberg wanted a “quick and dirty” feel to the movie – nothing too perfect – there was one shot that took more than 50 takes. It was the scene where the monkey salutes with a “Heil Hitler” gesture. A grape was attached to fishing line and held just out of reach of the camera shot to achieve the salute, but it took a while to get it just right. It ended up being one of Steven Spielberg’s favorite moments in the movie.

Those of us who like little movie secrets know that George Lucas likes to include a reference to “1138” in all of his movies in homage to his first movie, THX 1138. You’ll find it in Raiders during the Nazi harbor scene if you listen to the numbers being read over the loudspeaker. It’s subtle, though, because the numbers are read in German – “Ein, ein, drei, acht.”

The online “R2-D2 Translator” lets you type in a word (30 characters max) and get it translated into droid language. You also have the option to download the sound as an MP3 file.

Link – via OhGizmo