Star Wars and Spindles

Two things many people would like to see come back have been in the news lately, both with connections (whether vague or not) to me! First off- the sale of the Lucasfilms company to the Walt Disney Company. The connection to me there is very slight- our new friend /fan Mark Hamill, who starred in the company’s “Star Wars” films as Luke Skywalker, has been quoted to say that he and Carrie Fisher had lunch with George Lucas not too long ago, and that he had confided in them that new “Star Wars” films would be made- picking up the timeline after “Return of the Jedi”! Mark said the sale to Disney was a surprise, but also stated that they have obviously done well by Marvel and the Muppets, among others, so this could be a very exciting continuation. He isn’t quite sure if he or the other original stars will be involved in the future films, but- wouldn’t that be pretty cool? Of course, jokes abound, with the merging of Disney with the Star Wars characters- Disney itself put out a fun video with Darth Vader and some stormtroopers taking a trip to Disneyland- but plenty of folks have come up with stuff like “When You Wish Upon a Death Star” and “Snow White and the 7 Ewoks”, according to the Sun Times’ Bill Zwecker. Maybe a Lion King update could have the song “Hakuna for Jabba”…or Donald Duck’s nephews could be Huey, Dewey, Louie, and Chewy… The other thing that might see a return- the famed Berwyn Spindle! You may recall the amazing piece of artwork that graced Cermak Plaza in Berwyn for many years- created by Dustin Shuler, it was a real tourist attraction- especially when it appeared in the “Wayne’s World” movie. The giant spike with a group of cars impaled on it like a Detroit shish kabob deteriorated from years out in the weather and from the nesting (and –uh- waste habits) of various pigeons who took up residence in the cars. It was taken down when the shopping center was “redeveloped” so that a free-standing Walgreens could be built in its footprint. Now, according to the whyberwyn.com website - there’s a “Save the Spindle” project that would put up a new version- featuring what were the top two cars on the Spindle- a BMW and the spike-topping little red Volkswagen! The two cars would have to be refurbished after the years of exposure- and would be displayed on the grounds of the Berwyn Route 66 Museum. This is a project of the Berwyn Arts Council, who now have the two cars- donated by the guy who owns the shopping plaza- and, this Sunday, the Arts Council and the museum will be working to raise awareness and funds for the restoration of the Spindle. At the Berwyn Route 66 Museum, they will be celebrating the birthday of the museum’s founder, Jon Fey, from 1 to 4 pm. In lieu of gifts, they ask that you support the “Save the Spindle” project. You’ll find the museum at 7003 W. Ogden Avenue in Berwyn. You’ll get cake, coffee, and party favors, as well as raffle prizes every half hour. Berwyn has had a love/hate relationship with the Spindle- personally, most of the people I know there love it, as do I- and the chance to have at least part of it revived and on display again makes me hopeful that future generations can enjoy a very unique bit of artwork. Now, if they can just bring back that concrete junk sculpture…