Fans of the intergalactic saga created by George Lucas in 1977 believed that the model of the spaceship used in the initiatory film Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope was lost forever. It has just been found in the personal collection of Greig Jein (1945 – 2022), a talented special effects designer twice nominated for an Oscar (1941 and Close Encounters of the Third Kind).
This collection, which is full of gems, including the famous X-Wing Fighter ship, will be auctioned on October 14 and 15 in Dallas by Heritage Auctions. The highlight of this sale, the 50 cm fighter miraculously found, will be put under the hammer with a record starting price of some $400,000.
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Special effects historian Gene Kozicki told The Hollywood Reporter that it’s unclear how Greg Jein, who didn’t work on Star Wars, came to own the ship. He supposes that it could have entered his collection while he was working on Steven Spielberg’s film Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977. A plausible hypothesis since many special effects specialists were also working on Star Wars at the same time.
Star Wars episode IV: A New Hope by George Lucas in 1977, with Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guiness…
The model of the spaceship belongs to the legend of Star Wars since it is present in the final scene of the first film from 1977. Designed and produced by the special effects company Industrial Light
In addition to this spaceship, Greg Jein’s collection contains other treasures: an original Stormtrooper costume from the 1977 film, an astronaut suit from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Batarangs (boomerangs) from the television series 1960s Batman and finally Star Trek accessories.