George also used Buck Rogers footage in THX 1138, so you might be on to something. 😃
Right, I forgot about that.
I’d be kind if funny if Han was based on a Buck Rogers book considering how in the first draft they meet him in a spaceport called Gordon.
Bear in mind that the “Han Solo” of the 1974 rough draft was really more akin to Chewbacca: a tall, monstrous alien who nonetheless is a faithful friend and ally of the human heroes. Albeit instead of being a tall furry Bigfoot-like creature, alien-Han was a green and scaly swamp monster, in the vein of the Creature from the Black Lagoon.