Public Service Announcements! Don't you just love them?
The 1970's and 80's were the real golden age for these gems. At that time there seemed to always be a celebrity on hand to teach us a valuable life lesson in 30-seconds-to-a-minute. Have a search on youTube and you'll find PSA'a with The Fonz warning about sexual abuse, Pee Wee Herman scaring you away from cocaine, and Clint Eastwood asking you not to litter!
Of course, with the whole world suffering from 'Star Wars Mania' it made sense to utilise the characters, like that time in 1978 when R2-D2 got all concerned about the amount of energy wasted by dirty coils in your refrigerator...
It wasn't long before R2 was back, this time with his droid buddy C-3PO, addressing the parents of Earth about the importance of immunisation against childhood diseases such as whooping cough, measles, or polio, and pointing out that such diseases could progress further to ailments like pneumonia, brain damage, or death!...
The following year it was Muftak's turn, and over to the Mos Eisley Cantina for a drunk driving PSA. You see, when friends drink too much - even in galaxies far, far away - friends don't let friends drive drunk...
1983 saw the droids return in possibly my favourite moment in the Star Wars universe.
It's a tough life being a service droid, how does one unwind? Oil bath? WD-40 to the circuit board? Well if you're R2-D2 you grab a pack of Marlboro and light-up!
I feel we humans drove him to it, all that stress over those refrigerator coils...
That really is just perfect. Because if anyone from Star Wars was going have a crafty smoke it would be R2, wouldn't it? I like to think that he shows up to the Star Wars set two hours late every day, reeking of last night’s cigarette smoke and booze, then refusing to come out of his trailer until his agent coaxes him. Typical R2 unit!
And it's the exact typical 3PO response you'd expect too:
"Smoking does dreadful things to your lungs and is very bad for your heart. [R2-D2 beeps.] Well, I know I don't have one, but Humans do, and I think we should set a good example."[R2-D2 beeps - translated "Shut your face you overgrown Oscar statue!"].
Here's hoping that JJ Abrams remembers this gem, and includes R2 taking a cigarette break somewhere in The Force Awakens.
