Yoda

You can't say no to George Lucas. At least not if you're one of the 1,200 or so technology wizards who work for the filmmaker in a fortresslike facility in Marin County. So when Lucas told his crew he wanted Yoda, the pointy-eared "Star Wars" galaxy sage, transformed from gentle Jim Henson puppet to digital warrior in the sci-fi saga's latest installment, they kept working until they got every last wrinkle right, says animation director Rob Coleman. That meant digital Yoda wasn't finished until nine months after shooting had wrapped and all the live actors had gone home.

Sixteen years ago, the Star Wars light saber passed from George Lucas to Irvin Kershner, and the Jedi master's instructions to his successor were simple. "George wanted me to make a better film," Kershner said with the air of a man who knows what it was like to be the singles hitter who followed Hank Aaron to the plate. What legions of fans got with The Empire Strikes Back may not have been better, but it was a more mature and sobering effort. As it turned out, Kershner, who was a stranger in the strange land of science fiction - chosen by Lucas for his skills with character and relationships - proved a fine choice.

Bill Buckner times two "Croquet, anyone?" That's what Atlanta Braves announcer Joe Simpson said after seeing the unbelievable double error committed by Gaby Sanchez and Dan Uggla on Monday night. The ball went through the legs of both of the Florida Marlins players on one play. With Uggla playing a very deep second in the first inning, Braves catcher Brian McCann pulled a grounder that went through the wickets of first baseman Sanchez and Uggla. The double flub allowed McCann to reach safely and base runner Martin Prado to go from first to third.

Allen Iverson as the young superstar, Anakin Skywalker Larry Brown as cosmic coach Yoda Wolfgang Sawallisch as the classic - baton, light saber, what's the difference? - Obi-Wan Kenobi David Morse, TV's Philly cabbie-to-be, as Jedi driving force Mace "Hack" Windu R&B singer Pink as the overdressed and hypercharged Senator Padm? Amidala The trash can at Second and Market as dependable droid R2-D2

SAN FRANCISCO - Within sight of the Golden Gate Bridge is another landmark cherished by a small but fervent group of travelers: a full-size replica of Yoda, George Lucas' master of the Force. Since the statue of the Jedi sage went up amid the Presidio's landscaped lawns in 2005, Star Wars fans have made pilgrimage to take pictures with their beloved character and take in Lucasfilm Ltd.'s sleek headquarters. Given the franchise's huge impact not only on pop culture but also on the tourism industry, the diminutive Yoda fountain is just one of dozens of location shoots and special sites visited by Star Wars acolytes.

Neil Young is a rock-and-roll Yoda. Hunched, haggard and wearily wise after more than three decades in the tricky business of lending pop a conscience, Young seems as unlikely a rock star as grizzled Yoda was a Hollywood sci-fi hero. But on Saturday's season-opener at Bally's Grandstand Under the Stars, bending over his six-string acoustic guitar and letting out his billy-goat-on- estrogen voice, Young offered music and messages bearing far more force than most of today's mainstream radio fare.

"The Phantom Menace" was a fairly pale reflection of a "Star Wars," and still made a billion or so dollars. Of course, it was an officially sanctioned episode, and probably less irksome to fans than "Titan A.E.," another Lucas-inspired sci-fi yarn whose only distinguishing feature is that it's animated. The story has another usual teen golden boy, Cale (named after cabbage?), learning that he is the only person who can save his kind from the evil whatchamacallits, who are cruising around the universe with their giant death ray, killing things.

to run on or after sunday may 15It's over. After 28 years of Star Wars - after all the "May the Force be with yous," the earnest college papers citing the linkage between Joseph Campbell and Yoda, the jokes about Princess Leia's twin-cinnamon-bun 'do - George Lucas' space saga, six titles and thousands of sliced-and-diced storm troopers later, has come to a close. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, (two stars out of four) the third of the prequels Lucas began writing in the mid-1990s as back-story for the original trilogy, is upon us. And with it, the hype, the merch, and the search for meaning.

B MOVIES NEED LOVE, TOO Secret Cinema proudly offers two worthy examples of the underappreciated genre: "Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome," a 1947 take on Chester Gould's comic strip police detective starring Ralph Byrd; and "The Brute Man," starring (and sort of about) disfigured actor Rondo Hatton. Free. 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Chestnut Hill Branch of the Free Library, 8711 Germantown Ave., 215-248-0977. SUPERTRAMP MAN Guitar virtuoso Carl Verheyen (Supertramp, zillions of sessions)

YUK-A-MINUTE actor Drew Carey may have to trade in his cheeseburgers for (gulp) tofuburgers after undergoing surgery to unblock a coronary artery. Carey, who stars in ABC's "The Drew Carey Show" and "Whose Line Is It Anyway," experienced chest pains Thursday. The 43-year-old was released Saturday from St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, Calif. Surgeons installed a "stent" to keep the blocked artery open in a procedure similar to one Vice President Dick Cheney (who shares Carey's initials as well)

B MOVIES NEED LOVE, TOO Secret Cinema proudly offers two worthy examples of the underappreciated genre: "Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome," a 1947 take on Chester Gould's comic strip police detective starring Ralph Byrd; and "The Brute Man," starring (and sort of about) disfigured actor Rondo Hatton. Free. 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Chestnut Hill Branch of the Free Library, 8711 Germantown Ave., 215-248-0977. SUPERTRAMP MAN Guitar virtuoso Carl Verheyen (Supertramp, zillions of sessions)

SAN FRANCISCO - Within sight of the Golden Gate Bridge is another landmark cherished by a small but fervent group of travelers: a full-size replica of Yoda, George Lucas' master of the Force. Since the statue of the Jedi sage went up amid the Presidio's landscaped lawns in 2005, Star Wars fans have made pilgrimage to take pictures with their beloved character and take in Lucasfilm Ltd.'s sleek headquarters. Given the franchise's huge impact not only on pop culture but also on the tourism industry, the diminutive Yoda fountain is just one of dozens of location shoots and special sites visited by Star Wars acolytes.

Bill Buckner times two "Croquet, anyone?" That's what Atlanta Braves announcer Joe Simpson said after seeing the unbelievable double error committed by Gaby Sanchez and Dan Uggla on Monday night. The ball went through the legs of both of the Florida Marlins players on one play. With Uggla playing a very deep second in the first inning, Braves catcher Brian McCann pulled a grounder that went through the wickets of first baseman Sanchez and Uggla. The double flub allowed McCann to reach safely and base runner Martin Prado to go from first to third.

This review originally appeared in Sunday's Inquirer. It's over. After 28 years of Star Wars - after all the "May the Force be with yous," the earnest college papers citing the linkage between Joseph Campbell and Yoda, the jokes about Princess Leia's twin-cinnamon-bun 'do - George Lucas' space saga, six titles and thousands of sliced-and-diced storm troopers later, has come to a close. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, the third of the prequels Lucas began writing in the mid-1990s as back-story for the original trilogy, is upon us. And with it, the hype, the merch, and the search for meaning.

to run on or after sunday may 15It's over. After 28 years of Star Wars - after all the "May the Force be with yous," the earnest college papers citing the linkage between Joseph Campbell and Yoda, the jokes about Princess Leia's twin-cinnamon-bun 'do - George Lucas' space saga, six titles and thousands of sliced-and-diced storm troopers later, has come to a close. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, (two stars out of four) the third of the prequels Lucas began writing in the mid-1990s as back-story for the original trilogy, is upon us. And with it, the hype, the merch, and the search for meaning.

This time, there are plenty of disturbances in the force. As we near the last episode of the Star Wars saga, George Lucas has a lot on his plate, with plenty of loose ends to tie up. We know Anakin succumbs to the dark side and emerges as Darth Vader. We know the Republic becomes the Galactic Empire, thanks to Palpatine. We know almost all the Jedi, save Yoda and Obi-Wan, get the ax. And we know Padme's and Anakin's twins, Luke and Leia, will be hidden from their father, setting the stage for 1977's A New Hope.

If interviewing George Lucas is a tortured crawl, interviewing Samuel L. Jackson is like soaring. Among Hollywood vultures Jackson is the bald eagle, keen-eyed, keener-witted, nimbly slicing sky and golf course. Having won notoriety in 1991 as the philosopher crackhead Gator in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever, and an Oscar nomination in 1995 as the philosopher hit man Jules in Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, he has now ascended to the exalted status of philosopher Jedi master Mace Windu.

Allen Iverson as the young superstar, Anakin Skywalker Larry Brown as cosmic coach Yoda Wolfgang Sawallisch as the classic - baton, light saber, what's the difference? - Obi-Wan Kenobi David Morse, TV's Philly cabbie-to-be, as Jedi driving force Mace "Hack" Windu R&B singer Pink as the overdressed and hypercharged Senator Padm? Amidala The trash can at Second and Market as dependable droid R2-D2

You can't say no to George Lucas. At least not if you're one of the 1,200 or so technology wizards who work for the filmmaker in a fortresslike facility in Marin County. So when Lucas told his crew he wanted Yoda, the pointy-eared "Star Wars" galaxy sage, transformed from gentle Jim Henson puppet to digital warrior in the sci-fi saga's latest installment, they kept working until they got every last wrinkle right, says animation director Rob Coleman. That meant digital Yoda wasn't finished until nine months after shooting had wrapped and all the live actors had gone home.

YUK-A-MINUTE actor Drew Carey may have to trade in his cheeseburgers for (gulp) tofuburgers after undergoing surgery to unblock a coronary artery. Carey, who stars in ABC's "The Drew Carey Show" and "Whose Line Is It Anyway," experienced chest pains Thursday. The 43-year-old was released Saturday from St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, Calif. Surgeons installed a "stent" to keep the blocked artery open in a procedure similar to one Vice President Dick Cheney (who shares Carey's initials as well)