Einstein was the inspiration for Yoda.

Arts & Culture

F rom their unparalleled wisdom to their wispy white hair, physicist Albert Einstein and Jedi master Yoda have quite a bit in common — and that's no coincidence. In fact, the real-life scientist helped influence the physical look of the beloved Star Wars character. When Yoda was being developed for 1980's The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars creator George Lucas hired special effects artist Stuart Freeborn to bring the character to life. By chance, a picture of Einstein happened to hang in the studio where Freeborn worked on the early Yoda puppets. The wrinkled look around Einstein's eyes eventually made it into Yoda's final design, coupled with features from Freeborn's own likeness.

While we all recognize Yoda today, the character almost looked entirely different, and nearly Smurf-like. As seen in The Empire Strikes Back Sketchbook, published in 1980, early concept art for Yoda depicted the great Jedi master as a lanky, blue creature with a long white beard and a pointed hat akin to a garden gnome. Another sketch showed the creature with a handlebar mustache, not quite fitting for the Star Wars universe. Other characters also underwent vast transformations from their original sketches; Chewbacca was originally a tall, thin, and hairy lemur-like creature, whereas Ewoks had long legs like an ostrich.

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By the Numbers

Star Wars action figures sold by the Kenner toy company in 1978

40 million

Atomic number of the element einsteinium

Did you know?

Chewbacca and Indiana Jones were inspired by the same real-life dog.

Star Wars and Indiana Jones are two of the most beloved movie franchises of all time, and both were the brainchild of visionary filmmaker George Lucas. In developing some of his most popular characters, Lucas took inspiration from real life, including his pet dog, Indiana. While he was writing the first Star Wars movie, Lucas' beloved Alaskan malamute often sat by his side, and frequently plopped down in the front seat next to Lucas on drives, as if the long-haired, larger-than-life dog were his copilot. Inspired by his loyal canine, Lucas decided to create a large, shaggy sidekick for the heroic character Han Solo (portrayed by Harrison Ford), and thus Chewbacca was born. But the dog's influence extended far beyond the Star Wars universe. In 1978, Lucas sat down to develop his new film, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and when asked if he had a name for the main character, he once again looked to his trusted companion. Lucas initially pitched the name "Indiana Smith," though he suggested "Jones" as an alternative surname, which eventually stuck. Later, in the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the character reveals he took the nickname "Indiana" from his fictitious pet dog, a line that pays homage to Lucas' real-life pup.

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