Star Wars Holiday Special Fans Celebrate Life Day on Social Media

Following the massive success of the release of Star Wars in May of 1977, everyone was clamoring to cash in on the success of the galaxy far, far away and wanted to give fans something to hold them over until the release of its sequel in 1980, including (to some degree) Lucasfilm themselves. 18 months after that debut film hit theaters, audiences were given The Star Wars Holiday Special, a variety program full of comedic sketches, musical numbers, and even animated sequences set within the franchise, which featured appearances by Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford. With the Holiday Special having premiered on November 17, 1978, the date is now considered the annual "Life Day" celebration, which fans are celebrating on Twitter.

Given that the Holiday Special and the entire Star Wars franchise borrows real-world elements while putting a fantastical and intergalactic spin on them, Life Day was conceived in lieu of making direct reference to any secular holidays that fans might celebrate. Known as a Wookiee celebration, the day is meant to honor things like family, joy, and compassion towards one another, all of which are tenets of traditional winter holidays across a number of religions. 

While the disappointing nature of the Holiday Special has resulted in Lucasfilm distancing itself from the TV event as much as possible, the mythology and iconography of Life Day has been officially embraced back into the canon of Star Wars, with references to the event appearing across a number of different stories. What was once a lesser-known occurrence among fans is arguably more popular than ever.

Scroll down to see Star Wars fans celebrating Life Day!