Without Joseph Campbell there’d be no “Star Wars”

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Did you know Joseph Campbell said George Lucas was the best student he ever had?

“Who?” you’re wondering. “And why does that matter when I could just go stream a Star Wars movie instead of reading this blog post?”

Well, let me explain.  Joe Campbell wrote books about the influence of myths.

This guy Campbell researched ancient religions, tribes, and all their stories from long ago.

Another man named Bill Moyers did a whole series on PBS years ago about the subject of “myth” and even interviewed Joseph Campbell.  The show and book is simply called The Power of Myth.

Basically, my point is Campbell’s books are very important to anyone who considers themselves a writer.

For example, have you heard of the hero’s journey? There’s usually a hero, some wise old sage he learns from to help the hero get the insight he needs to defeat evil and his enemies — and these are just a few of the things a writer should think about when writing stories.

Goerge Lucas honored Joseph Campbell once and said, “I had an idea of doing a modern fairy tale . . . (I) stumbled across The Hero with a Thousand Faces . . . I began to understand how I could do this. It was a great gift.”

I don’t know about you, but the fact that George Lucas became a household name because he studied Campbell’s books makes me want to go out and buy everything written by this guy.

Here’s a list of books you should check out to continue your own personal odyssey of becoming the next George Lucas.

How Star Wars Conquered the Universe: The Past, Present, and Future of a Multibillion Dollar Franchise by Chris Taylor

Everyone’s reading this one to get the nitty gritty on how George Lucas did it.

Star Wars Trilogy Bonus Disc (2004)

A surprisingly cool video about George Lucas and the cast of Star Wars.

The Hero with a Thousand Faces (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell) by Joseph Campbell

The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers

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