STAR WARS : SOCIOLOGICAL AND SPIRITUAL INFLUENCE
One collector's true story
By: Julian H. Betancourt julian@sandtroopers.comSomeone once wrote:
"Star Wars has gotten into the hearts and minds of millions and millions of people like no other adventure of our time. The Saga reveals to us as a story full of power and myth, rebirth and redemption and the triumph of good over evil."
"Values that had seemed lost to our society were brought back to fulfill our souls and gave us new faith. The positive influence of Star Wars in our lives opened our hearts to a world of mystery and has offered guidance to our own hero's journey."
"Throughout history, we as humans have told each other tales and stories sharing our experiences of the world. We have explored ways to deal with life's problems and adventures and we have done our best to outstretch the deepest meanings that underline our daily lives."Star Wars was, is and will be forever remembered as an inspiring story guiding, teaching and uniting generations to the Light Side of the Force, always making good conquer over evil.
We are not alone, we shall be with all the world!...
With this said, I have meditated for sometime on what really drives so many of us into collecting, its spiritual and social significance, the feelings this great hobby of ours brings.
Every person is a different world, everyone has its own motivations, therefore every one of us has a different story to tell. And that is why I have felt inspired and wanted to share with all the Troops what Star Wars and collecting have meant in the life of one ordinary collector, myself.
Born in a communist island, Cuba, whereas a child only to mention the name "Star Wars" or "Guerra de las Galaxias" was considered by the regime "An infiltration of the capitalist Yankees up north," I lived until the age of 12 in such place not being able to see, wear nor have anything related to Star Wars.
The year was 1977 and preconditioned Cuban news radio and television talked about A New Hope by calling it a "Capitalist flick corrupting the minds of millions of young people." The film was never publicly shown and of course no merchandise related items were ever made available. Only those with strong government connections got to watch the film in private screenings, where the film was enjoyed by the elite and then "analyzed" to later on "educate" the public on television reviews, where it was pointed as being "destructive with mind deforming capabilities."
The reason for such censure and harsh comments was clear. Star Wars its the triumph of good over Evil, the termination of a totalitarian regimen, very much like a communist dictatorship. To the government's eyes it meant rebellion, subordination and naturally they avoided any possible contact of the youth with the film, a contact that possibly would had inspired "public disobedience."
In letters received from relatives in the States, I was described with detail this fantastic newly released movie, where droids, armored soldiers, rockets and laser swords interacted and were setting new sales records all over the world. My reading of such passionate writing in those letters about Star Wars opened a window in my mind, allowing me to get a different prospective of the movie besides the boring and argumentative issues administered by the government.
I felt at that point there was something really amazingly exciting being hidden behind the orchestrated dialogue the regime was trying to feed our young minds with. Those letters, helped me throw away the darkness of the government's lies and uncover and discover the "Light side of the Force," the real truth. It was then I knew I had to see the film one day!!
Twenty-five years ago, once our family was allowed by the government to leave the country and as the old, shaky Russian airplane made the island diminish in the distance, one very significant thought overwhelmed my mind: I was on my way to experience the pride of becoming part of the brave American society, to experience the hope freedom brings and the opportunity to get in touch with another forbidden hope ... "A New Hope" It was like a dream
My dream came true when two years after its premiere, the same year of my arrival to this land, a local small neighborhood movie theater in Hoboken, NJ announced shows for "A New Hope" for the entire week!
I was completely blown away from beginning to end when I first saw it. " ... I'm one with the force," I thought. Needless to say, despite the screen having a noticeable hole, I went to that movie theater for the remaining of that week, watching the movie everyday
The film was of great meaning to me as I was able to compare the remarkable similarities of the Empire and the nowadays, 45 year old dictatorship taken over my place of birth. One could see domination, control, power as well as determination, courage and will to fight them and not to give up.
I was 12 years old then and my parents bought me a few Star Wars toys. I was able to finally own and wear a Darth Vader shirt with the Star Wars logo and Luke holding the saber high. I was able to freely speak about my newly discovered passion, my favorite film, without taking the risk of being accused of being a "Capitalist Corrupter" by the government, one thing for sure I would had been called in my native land. Do I need to mention how proud I felt to be a part of America? At the movies and in my life, there was indeed ... A New Hope!
As I grew up, my Vader shirt was replaced by a more up to the times Van Halen shirt, my figures swapped for the newest Def Leppard album and my collecting sort of drifted away as my attraction for the opposite sex deployed. One thing for sure, though, my love for the movies that once made me feel the joy of being a free man never died.
I got back into collecting in 1995 when I saw the new line of Star Wars figures in the market. I couldn't help myself but to start to buy every single figure I saw. I had just gotten married and my wife and I went on a $200.00 Star Wars shopping spree. Ever since then, I haven't stopped collecting.
Collecting Star Wars means a second chance for me to have what I wasn't allowed to have as a child by a controlling regime. It is also a symbolic landmark separating two very different cultures and the changes and experiences they both have brought into my life.
When I find myself running down the toy isles like a 10 year old in this much older body, looking for the latest figures, I get to live and enjoy "A new and happy childhood" and my own inner feeling of freedom al last! It also allows me to share with the rest of many great fellow Americans a passion that unifies one common love for the greatest films ever made.