‘May the Fourth Be With You’: How May 4 became Star Wars Day

Most importantly, Star Wars boasts of a dedicated fan community who live and breathe the imaginary universe which beautifully balances intergalactic feuds and flashy sci-fi action with deeply emotive stories about good and evil. For this fan community, May 4 marks the celebration of all things Star Wars.

But how did May 4 become Star Wars Day?

“May the Force be with you.”

For Star Wars fans the above phrase is the most iconic in a universe full of iconic one-liners. Used to wish good luck, multiple characters, including Obi-Wan Kenobi, Master Yoda and Luke Skywalker used the line as a parting message prior to the addressee undertaking some challenging mission.

As puns go, for “May the Force” to become “May the Fourth” is not a big leap. And this leap was made as far back as 1979, just a couple years after the release of the first Star Wars film. But not in the context of Star Wars.

The London Evening News wishes Margaret Thatcher

By 1979, Star Wars had already been firmly established within American popular culture and became “like a handshake,” as Professor Leo Braudy would later comment in the documentary, Empire of Dreams. Clever newspaper writers were constantly trying to use phrases from the film in the headlines and thrifty merchandise sellers were making a killing selling Star Wars themed goods (foreshadowing the consumer-driven world of modern pop culture).

Across the Atlantic too, Star Wars had made just as big an impact among British audiences. Thus, when the extremely popular Margaret Thatcher became British prime minister on May 4, 1979, editors from the The London Evening News could not resist. The newspaper released a full page advertisement titled “May the Fourth Be With You, Maggie. Congratulations!”. This is the first known use of this pun.

Incidentally, at the same time when this advertisement was issued, the second Star Wars film, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back was in production at Elstree Studios in London.

Other uses of the pun

After being first used, there were a few other known uses of the phrase. One was by Randy Thom, a sound engineer who has worked in the franchise for over 40 years, in 1982. Thom claimed to have “just thought of the pun” while working on the sets of Return of the Jedi. He would go on to send the crew annual messages on May 4, wishing them “May the Fourth be with You” (Thom found this funny).

Another known use of the pun was by the Star Wars marketing team in 2005. Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith had released a couple of weeks prior to July 4 (the United States’ Independence Day), and the marketing team used the pun to advertise a scheme where on purchasing three tickets for the movie, one could get a fourth one for free.

A product of fandom later commercialised

But neither of these two uses can claim to have kickstarted Star Wars Day. Instead, the celebration of May 4 was led completely by fans. As the laughable pun continued to circulate in fan circles, an unofficial holiday emerged. Star Wars fans chose the day to hold themed parties or host community events and gatherings. Others simply used it as a time to revisit the films.

Die-hard fans had been celebrating Star Wars Day for years when in 2011, Lucasfilms, the production house behind Star Wars, started taking active interest in the day. Realising May 4’s marketing potential, the production house began holding sponsored events, special screenings, etc. – basically doing all the things that fans had been unofficially doing anyway.

With the acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney in 2012 and the subsequent announcement of a number of new Star Wars projects, today, May 4 has become a massive, mainstream celebration of Star Wars, celebrated globally.

In 2019, California lawmakers voted to declare May 4 Star Wars Day to commemorate the opening of Disneyland’s Galaxy’s Edge – a Star Wars theme park.