A thread to follow on from none’s awesome OriginalTrilogy.com in the Press thread - to list and highlight quality articles and information supporting the call for a official release of the unaltered theatrical version of the Original Trilogy films - on a modern digital format.

I know many of us may be aware / have already seen some of the links and pieces - yet I think it is worth doing for newcomers to the site, and also for younger fans who may be not be aware it has been 25 years (and counting) since the original theatrical version of the Original Trilogy had a dedicated release (on videotape and laserdisc).

Please add any articles, quality blogs or sites, sources of information to this thread. Hopefully it will grow into something worthwhile whilst chronicling many peoples’ wish to see these films have an official release - and our dissatisfaction in not being able to experience the classic theatrical version of the three award-winning and landmark films that underpin the entire Star Wars universe.

To start things off…

doubleofive’s ‘Star Wars Visual Comparisons’ website : blog : twitter - covering all of the releases of the Special Editions…

Some related info:-

doubleofive’s Complete Comparison of Special Edition Visual Changes thread on the OT•com (which contains multiple sources of information on the continuing changes made to the Original Trilogy films with each passing ‘Special Edition’ release)

doubleofive’s Modern SE Revisionism thread on the OT•com

doubleofive’s Sources on the Special Edition thread on the OT•com

doubleofive’s “Disney+ Should Offer the Star Wars Original Cuts” thread on the OT•com re his awesome article on Wired

doubleofive’s ‘What We Want And How To Make It’ article on the Star Wars Visual Comparisons site

doubleofive’s ‘A Visual Guide to Changes, Fixes & Tweaks in the Disney 4K Version’ articles on The Digital Bits: SW : ESB : ROTJ

zombie84’s Saving Star Wars website…

“In 1997, George Lucas refilmed, re-edited and redid many scenes for the Star Wars trilogy in a “Special Edition.” Since then, Lucas has refused to have the original versions of the films be seen in high quality. All 35mm prints of the original versions have been recalled from circulation and confiscated, and the originals are no longer aired on television nor screened for special events. Lucas has stated that he would like the original versions to disappear, and that once the existing VHS and Laserdisc releases deteriorate he hopes no one will even remember the originals existed, except as “rough drafts” of the Special Editions. Not only is this robbing the world of a very important part of its cinematic and cultural heritage, but it is engaging in the re-writing of history. The original theatrical versions of these films deserve to be continued to be released and preserved in as high a quality as possible.”

zombie84’s (though re-hosted by none) The Secret History of Star Wars website (for the book of the same name)…

"From the cover: "Star Wars is one of the most important cultural phenomena of the Western world. The tale of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and the fall and redemption of Anakin Skywalker has become modern myth, an epic tragedy of the corruption of a young man in love into darkness, the rise of evil, and the power of good triumphing in the end.

But it didn’t start out that way.

In this thorough account of one of cinema’s most lasting works, Michael Kaminski presents the true history of how Star Wars was written, from its beginnings as a science fiction fairy tale to its development over three decades into the epic we now know, chronicling the methods, techniques, thought processes, and struggles of its creator. For this unauthorized account, he has pored through over four hundred sources, from interviews to original scripts, to track how the most powerful modern epic in the world was created, expanded, and finalized into the tale an entire generation has grown up with."

Mod Edit: Some related info…

zombie84’s ‘The Secret History of Star Wars’ thread on the OT•com

‘The Secret History of Star Wars’ book on Amazon

‘The Secret History of Star Wars’ book on Barnes & Noble

An Index of ‘articles and sources of information’ listed in this thread (not including the sources of info in the OP of this thread):-

The Star Wars George Lucas Doesn’t Want You To See - at The Atlantic

J.J. Abrams is calling for the original versions of ‘Star Wars’ to be released - at NowThis

Dear Disney - A Plea for the Unaltered Original Star Wars Trilogy - at HelloGreedo (with many more videos)

Why We Should Be Able to See Star Wars‘ Original Theatrical Cut - at 411 Mania

Star Wars on Blu-ray: George, don’t do that… - at The Guardian

We Can’t See ‘Star Wars’ Anymore - at New York Times

Why releasing the ‘Star Wars’ theatrical cuts is culturally important - at Hypable

From A Certain Point Of View - at Contingent Magazine

Disney Can Now Release The Unaltered Star Wars (But They Probably Won’t) - at Screen Rant

The glass-half-full gift of the only official unaltered Star Wars Original Trilogy DVDs - at SyFy

Why Hasn’t Disney Released The Original Unaltered Star Wars Films? - at Gizmodo

Star Wars: Why Disney Won’t Release the Original Theatrical Cuts’ - at Den Of Geek

A load of ‘MacClunkey’: will George Lucas’s Star Wars tinkering never end? - at The Guardian

5 Reasons Why Lucasfilm Needs To Release The Unaltered Theatrical Cut Of The Original Trilogy On Blu-Ray - at EpicStream

Will the original unaltered theatrical Star Wars Trilogy officially be released again - at SWNN

The Original Star Wars Trilogy Deserves An Unaltered Blu-Ray Release - at ScreenRant

The search for the ‘Star Wars’ George Lucas doesn’t want you to see - at Mashable

We’re Still Waiting For the Unaltered Star Wars Trilogy - at The Wrap

Opinion: Saving the Original, unaltered Classic Trilogy - at Star Wars Aficionado

George Lucas Wants Desperately To Preserve Old Movies… Unless They’re His; So Fans Are Trying To Do It Instead - at TechDirt

OK, so the original Star Wars trilogy probably isn’t coming back - at Force Material

Could Disney finally give us the remastered, unedited Star Wars we want? - at ARS Technica

The release of the Original Trilogy to DVD - at MCW Toys

Will the original, unaltered 1977 Star Wars ever be released on Blu-ray? - at Episode Nothing

Star Wars: The remarkable quest to restore the original film - at Red Shark News

John Landis Says Original ‘Star Wars’ Theatrical Cuts Will Be Re-Released - at IndieWire

Why finding the original 1977 Star Wars is verges on the impossible - at Inverse

A “New” New Hope: Film Preservation and the Problem with ‘Star Wars - at Popoptiq

Disney Has Acquired Fox; What Does that Mean for Star Wars? - at SWNN

An Uncut and Non-Remastered List of Star Wars Editions! - at Tor

Whose Film Is It, Anyway? Canonicity and Authority in Star Wars Fandom - at DOI, & Academic OUP

Nooo! George Lucas Makes More Changes to Original Trilogy - at CA Movies

Untouched is impossible: the story of Star Wars in film - at ARS Tecnica

Star Wars original cuts on Blu-ray: the evidence - at Den Of Geek

George Lucas Approved Rare Pre-Special Edition Star Wars Screening - at ComicBook

Star Wars Original Cuts Could Be Released, But Disney Won’t Do It - at Den Of Geek

Star Wars on Blu-ray: what surprises does LucasFilm have in store? - at The Guardian

Disney+ Should Offer the Star Wars Original Cuts—All of Them - at Wired (by doubleofive)

The Original Theatrical STAR WARS Trilogy Will Never Get an HD Re-release Because of George Lucas - at GeekTyrant

Rick McCallum - Producer of the Star Wars Special Edition - at Maik Eldas

Star Wars, Blu-Ray and a Boycott - at Our Gazebo

Disney’s Fox Acquisition Likely Won’t See Original ‘Star Wars’ Trilogy Released - at ComicBook

Here’s Why Old School STAR WARS Fans Should Be Insanely Excited About The Disney/Fox Deal - at Revenge Of The Fans

Disney Has Acquired Fox; What Does that Mean for Star Wars? - at SWNN

The Disney/Fox Merger is Done; Is a Re-Release of the STAR WARS Original Trilogy Theatrical Cut Next? - at That HashTag Show

Star Wars’ Films Coming to Blu-ray Next Year - at NY Times / ArtsBeat

Will Disney Ever Release the original pre-Special Edition Star Wars Movies? - at TheStarWarsTrilogy.com

A last (definitive) Original Star Wars update for a while - at The Digital Bits

Star Wars Doesn’t Belong to George Lucas. It Belongs to the Fans - at NY Times

The theatrical Star Wars trilogy hasn’t just been replaced, it’s being destroyed - at Our Culture

Disney Is Still Pretending The OG Star Wars Movies Don’t Exist - at ScreenRant