Was Star Wars based on Lost in Space?

[onesmallstep]

This may sound ridiculous, given Lost in Space’s reputation of campiness and weak plots. However, not all of the episodes were weak or campy, some were actually very good. I happened to run across the idea that George Lucas actually "borrowed" (some say stole) some aspects of Star Wars from the 1960s Irwin Allen series and after thinking about it, the idea does seem to have some merit to it. Some have postulated that Lucas may have even quietly compensated Allen for the use of the storyline, to prevent having to go through a lengthy and embarrassing court battle.

Specific similarities between the two mainly revolve around a first season episode of LIS called "Follow the Leader" in which the father character, John Robinson, is possessed by an evil, warrior-like alien spirit (the Dark Side). The father even dons an evil-looking mask and intends to kill his son for resisting him. The son is eventually able to defeat the evil "force" possessing his father though the power of love, which is symbolized by the father removing the mask and throwing it off a cliff...all very similar to the climatic scene in Return of the Jedi.

Personally, I also remember having flashbacks to LIS during The Empire Strikes Back when our "family" is riding around in the Millennium Falcon. The family consisted of:

Han Solo = John Robinson, strong leader/father figure
Luke Skywalker = Major Don West + elements of Will Robinson
Princess Leah = Maureen Robinson, (or perhaps Judy Robinson) who had a love interest with Luke and later Han Solo
C3PO = Dr. Smith, cowardly, provided comic relief
R2D2 = the LIS robot, did a lot of buzzing and blinking, was a sidekick for C3PO/Dr. Smith
Millennium Falcon = Jupiter 2, the family station wagon constantly in a state of disrepair.

So there does appear to be some strong similarities between the two. Do you think Irwin Allen may have had a case against George Lucas???

 

[OleNewt]

Probably not. Nobody in the Star Wars universe didn't not know where they were going (other than the minor flap revolving around the former planet Alderaan).

 

[jim48]

George Lucas has always said that author Joseph Campbell inspired Star Wars, the classic hero on a quest and the people who accompany him, not unlike Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.

 

[onesmallstep]

Probably not. Nobody in the Star Wars universe didn't not know where they were going (other than the minor flap revolving around the former planet Alderaan).

Whether or not they knew where they were, or where they were going has no bearing on this issue.

 

[onesmallstep]

George Lucas has always said that author Joseph Campbell inspired Star Wars, the classic hero on a quest and the people who accompany him, not unlike Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.

Lots of movies/stories are based on classic adventure stories. Lost in Space itself was based on Swiss Family Robinson, the original title was even supposed to have been SPACE Family Robinson, but Irwin Allen did not want to get into a battle with Disney over the rights to SFR, so he changed the name to Lost in Space.

That does not mean that certain specific elements of a story cannot be lifted from other sources, like the subplot of Luke Skywalker's relationship with his father.

 

[ZenGalacticore]

Lucas "borrowed" from a lot of other people's work, I think.

What's the basic story? Farm boy meets wise old wizard (Lord of the Rings), finds adventure, rescues the Princess (indefinite number of stories), fights the evil lord (Lord of the Rings) and saves the rebellion* and the "world" from the evil empire.

But a nice touch on the original 'Star Wars' was the sub-plot, or, some would say the entire real story, of the little trash-can robot R2D2. In many ways, the whole story is about the loveable, diminutive droid that talks to super computers and has a 3P0 unit to translate to the humanoids.


*I've always thought it was interesting how American writers are always sympathetic to the righteous rebels in any story vis-a-vis the evil empire or power structure that is oppressing the intrepid resisters. Except when dealing with our own "Civil War". Then, it is the rebels who are evil. he he.

 

[JasonChapman]

i was going to write a post entitled 'Has George Lucas lost the plot?' I think the latest season of his animated series The Clone Wars is getting a bit confusing, a little boring, and maybe a little too political.
Anyway I saw an interview with George once and he said he was inspired by the old Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers cinema reel series, which explains the scrolling titles at the biginning of his films, and also at the beginning of clone wars there's an awful narration updating us on the story so far, that sounds like its a throw back to those old black and white serials.
Also his Star Wars saga has been compared to a spagetti western, and a number of other types of genre. I see no connection with Lost In Space, but perhaps I'm not looking hard enough, sorry.

 

[yevaud]

In part, it was based on the following comic book (which I recollect really well as a kid):

http://www.comicvine.com/space-family-robinson/49-2097/

Also, of course, the plot is reminiscent of numerous other prior plots - everything from Heinlein's Orphans of the Sky onwards.

In point of fact, just as the Stargate series is derivative of Tunnel in the Sky.

 

[a_lost_packet_]

One thing we all have to remember is there are a limited number of choices for a "good story." The key is combining them appropriately, sort of like building with Legos.

The really good stories come up with something "new." Usually, it's just a novel combination of archetypical storylines. But, with fiction, you can "invent" things.. especially in Sci-Fi and Fantasy. You can invent your own hooks for the story and, even if you borrow from classic ideas, you can differentiate your story using those hooks.

So, a young knight rescuing the princess and eventually challenging the evil overlord/dragon/whatever isn't a new idea. But, then we add the classic greek "hero's journey" to it. Add a touch of Arthurian legend, a smattering of "coming of age," some melding of some "Treasure Island/Dickens characters" and put in a few plot twists which are the hallmark of a good story teller. After all, boring stories repeat the same tired archetypical situations. Non-boring stories may borrow from those very archetypes but introduce something "new" to them that catches the reader's attention.

"Hey, this is the classic knight on a greek hero's quest to rescue the princess from the evil overlord with some other noble knights, a tutoring magician and a rascally pirate with a heart of gold acting as an early mentor and lots of swashbuckling swordwork... IN SPACE!"

 

[yevaud]

One thing we all have to remember is there are a limited number of choices for a "good story." The key is combining them appropriately, sort of like building with Legos.

The really good stories come up with something "new." Usually, it's just a novel combination of archetypical storylines. But, with fiction, you can "invent" things.. especially in Sci-Fi and Fantasy. You can invent your own hooks for the story and, even if you borrow from classic ideas, you can differentiate your story using those hooks.

Yep, precisely. For example, the Star Wars story can be traced directly back to the archetypal story of St. George and the Dragon. Or Blade Runner to the Talmudic stories of the Golem.

 

[a_lost_packet_]

Yep, precisely. For example, the Star Wars story can be traced directly back to the archetypal story of St. George and the Dragon. Or Blade Runner to the Talmudic stories of the Golem.

I remember covering "Blade Runner" in High School.. I took a class on Science Fiction.. Great class! Great teacher! I took a few other classes from him simply because he was awesome.. WWII fighter pilot, half-a-lung left but could yell like all "get out.." Anyway..

I've always found that the very best stories ever told are ones that have a "classic" archetype plotline but a very unique and inventive twist. When reading or otherwise experiencing a great story and watching it unfold, there comes an "aHA!" moment when the twist is revealed and draws you into the specific story and outside of your "comfort zone" so to speak - That area where predictability is lost and the "Rules" by which you mistakenly thought the story was being told have been thrown out the window and you are now at the tender mercies of the author.

The first Star Wars didn't have that kind of appeal. Instead, it had the "Science Fiction" hook which simply unfolded a story inside a completely different milieu than what one would have expected. In doing that, it broke a mold on the big screen and gained a heck of a lot of attention, deservedly so, for doing it. It wasn't until the second movie that significant storylines started to manifest that threw some of the conventions out the window... Then, the whole thing devolved down the evolutionary ladder into ewoks, Jar-Jars and Mattel toys... But, at least it afforded us the motivation to invent various ways of killing Jar-Jar..

 

[andrew_t1000]

If you watch John Boorman's 1981 Excaliber, there is a scene where Merlin tells young Arthur about "The Dragon",
"It surrounds us and in part controls us, it is in every living thing."

I don't know if I can see the connection between Lost In Space and Star Wars, besides the obvious saucer shape the Millennium Falcon and Jupiter 2 have,
that and C3PO and Dr Smith are both camp as a row of tents. :lol: