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Sci-Fi It's funny. Laugh.

Star Wars Fan Puts Himself in Carbonite 204

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the instead-of-dating dept.
sneezesteve writes "How do you secure your nerd-cred for eternity? By acquiring a life-size replica of Han Solo in Carbonite, having Han's face removed, and replacing it with your own. 'It is made from fiberglass, and the short story is that a friend who is a special effects guy owned the piece, which was a direct casting off the original prop. He was moving, (aka getting married and yelled at) and asked me if I wanted it. I screamed a huge lispy "Yes!", and picked it up, but knew I wanted to do something cool with it. So I called my other nerdy special effects pals, and they offered to replace Harrison Ford's face with mine. I was so tired of hearing this offer in my daily life, but decided to finally consider it, so off it went.'"
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Star Wars Fan Puts Himself in Carbonite More

Star Wars Fan Puts Himself in Carbonite

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  • Head as big as his ego? (Score:5, Funny)

    by Iphtashu Fitz ( 263795 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:07PM (#20296519)
    From the looks of those pictures his head is a little too big, just like his ego undoubtedly must be.

  • *Not to scale (Score:4, Funny)

    by eln ( 21727 ) * on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:07PM (#20296531)
    Is it just me, or is his head way too big for the body? If he was ever unfrozen, his neck would instantly snap under the weight of that enormous melon.

    • Re:*Not to scale (Score:5, Insightful)

      by cayenne8 ( 626475 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:12PM (#20296595) Homepage Journal
      Overall, sounds pretty stupid. I'd think with this thing originally being a 'casting' from the original Star Wars movie prop used in the movie.....it would have had some value.

      Ain't gonna be worth sh*t with his face on it now....

      • Re:*Not to scale (Score:5, Interesting)

        by ushering05401 ( 1086795 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:28PM (#20296783) Journal
        I have a hard time seeing this guy as a legit Star Wars fan, but then I am a traditional type fan. This story is another reminder of the way the fan to content relationship is changing. From t.v. to the web the lines are blurring between fans as passive consumers of entertainment to active participants. We have officially moved beyond 'focus groups' helping to guide the content creation process and the result is bound to be more personal identification of fans with the content they enjoy.

        Long story short, this guy may be as much a true fan as I am, and his disregard for the monetary value of the piece may prove that he has a more intense personal identification with Star Wars than I do.

        I still think he is an ego-maniacal whore, but given the shifts in society my opinion could easily be on the way to irrelevance.

        • Re:*Not to scale (Score:5, Insightful)

          by ChefInnocent ( 667809 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:34PM (#20297489)

          This story is another reminder of the way the fan to content relationship is changing. From t.v. to the web the lines are blurring between fans as passive consumers of entertainment to active participants.


          Unfortunately, many people don't understand what it means to be a true fan. I am often called a fan of StarTrek, but the truth is that I simply enjoy it. I've been to 1 convention and will never go again; I just don't want to deal with those who are fanatical enough to go in costum, or debate what the real chronological order of TOS should be. I have every episode on DVD of all the series, but I can't tell you what episode redshirt #3 died on plant who-really-cares. I know people who don't own any episodes, but could give you the information and the precise minute into the episode it happened.
          I think of fans as those who are fanatical enough to make something a deep part of thier daily lives, and I just enjoy the content. Yet because I have every episode of StarTrek on DVD, I get accused of being a fan.
          Maybe we need a new word for the consumers who enjoy a particular activity and those who are fanatical about it. Even more so, the word shouldn't just exist, but be used by the masses.

          • Re:*Not to scale (Score:5, Funny)

            by markov_chain ( 202465 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:48PM (#20297587)
            Maybe we need a new word for the consumers who enjoy a particular activity and those who are fanatical about it.

            But how do you name... that which has no life?

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by exley ( 221867 )
            I am often called a fan of StarTrek, but the truth is that I simply enjoy it. ... I have every episode on DVD of all the series...


            Well, in that case, you kinda have to expect people to call you a "fan" -- because that's what you are! Nothing to be embarrassed about, even if you're not one of the ones dressing up at cons :)

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by LWATCDR ( 28044 )
            I always hated the term fan because it has the same root as fanatic. I would say that some people are now moving well past fan and fanatic right to zealot. Pop culture has become the new religion for many people. Doesn't matter if it is Linux, FOSS, Star Trek, the PS3, or Firefly.
          • Free yourself from your inhibitions. Let go of your physical senses, and allow the force to surround you. You now know what you must do. It's time to become a true fan, and dress up at a convention (or first screening or book signing etc). Search your feelings, you know it to be true.
        • I have a hard time seeing this guy as a legit Star Wars fan, but then I am a traditional type fan.

          right... a real fan would have done something logical like convert their parents' basement into the scene from Jabba's palace and place Han's carbonite form on display in the corner. Bonus points for making Gamorrean guard costumes for the dogs, buying a sphynx and naming it salacious crumb, and for converting the basement half-bath into a sarlac pit.

      • Antiques Road Show 2027 (Score:5, Funny)

        by MrMarket ( 983874 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:35PM (#20297497) Journal
        I can see it now: "If this were an original Harrison Ford model, it would be worth $5 million, but because your grandfather's brother* replaced Harrison Ford's handsome mug with Butt Head's, the piece is now only worth $5,000**"

        Great niece nods and grits her teeth look while trying to hide her disappointment/embarrassment.

        *has to be handed down to nieces/nephews -- no way this guy is breeding

        ** $5 adjusted for inflation

      • Re:*Not to scale (Score:4, Informative)

        by Saxerman ( 253676 ) * on Monday August 20, 2007 @08:42PM (#20299443) Homepage
        I highly doubt it was a casting from the original. A few different Hollywood replicate companies [ketzer.com] put out prop replicas. A local hobby shop carried one back in the day with (I think) a $400 sticker on it. A friend on mine eventually picked it up, added LED blinkenlights, and turned it into a coffee table.
    • It looks that way at first, but if you look closer, it's pretty much to scale. The shoulders do not protrude through the carbonite all the way, which makes him look very narrow and creates the illusion of a giant head.

  • wtf? (Score:5, Funny)

    by stoolpigeon ( 454276 ) * <bittercode@gmail> on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:07PM (#20296533) Homepage Journal
    it all sounded pretty cool, but this bit, well I just don't know.
     
      The one thing I didn't know until later was that my friend Dana had been holding his bare ass and balls directly in front of my algae covered face while my head was encased. Talk about a missed opportunity.

  • Desecration of a sacred artefact! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Scrameustache ( 459504 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:09PM (#20296547) Homepage Journal

    replace Harrison Ford's face with mine
    He took something I want on my wall and removed all value!

    I'll grab my torch, you get your pitchforks, let's go have a word with our attention whoring friend...

    • Re:Desecration of a sacred artefact! (Score:4, Insightful)

      by lolocaust ( 871165 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:21PM (#20296691) Journal
      Exactly, imagine the killing he could have made on eBay for that thing. Now with his ugly mug instead of Harrison Ford's it's worthless.

      • Re:Desecration of a sacred artefact! (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Keebler71 ( 520908 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @10:31PM (#20300321) Journal
        apparently, the thought never crossed his mind to cast the whole thing and then simply modify the duplicate. Hell, he could have quit his job, made them one after another and spawned them on ebay... you know what they say... "a fool and his replica of carbonite of Han Solo are soon parted..."

        I can vaguely feel the disturbance of his reading this post, as if his of voices suddenly cried out in terror and was suddenly silenced.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by coaxial ( 28297 )
      Funny, but let's be honest. It's a replica. It's not the real prop. It's a genuine fake!

      • Funny, but let's be honest. It's a replica. It's not the real prop. It's a genuine fake!
        So you're at a flea market, and you see a slab of carbonite! Would you be disappointed if you go up close and instead of Han's face, you have the disproportionate mug of some random nerd?

  • He'll be very well preserved (Score:3, Funny)

    by SocietyoftheFist ( 316444 ) * on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:12PM (#20296587)
    ...if he survives the freezing process.

  • All I can say is... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Billosaur ( 927319 ) * <wgrother AT optonline DOT net> on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:13PM (#20296603) Journal

    ...his parents must be so proud.

  • We can only hope the rest of the fan base follows (Score:5, Funny)

    by xxxJonBoyxxx ( 565205 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:14PM (#20296609)

    Star Wars Fan Puts Himself in Carbonite


    We can only hope the rest of the fan base follows. It would make it much easier for their mothers to dust around them when they cleaned their basements.

  • So... is this to impress Boba Fett? (Score:4, Funny)

    by grassy_knoll ( 412409 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:14PM (#20296617) Homepage
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qx-t3eugoM [youtube.com]

    It's funny... laugh ;)

  • Firefox Status Text (Score:4, Funny)

    by Dragonshed ( 206590 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:15PM (#20296621)
    "Waiting for thesneeze.com"

    Zomg, I already have to wait for my real sneezes...

  • Desecration of sacred relics. (Score:5, Funny)

    by forgotenpasswerdmoro ( 955491 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:15PM (#20296625)
    Bring him and the wookie to me.

  • Adam Savage (Score:2, Funny)

    by Genady ( 27988 )
    Did anyone else read the title and post and immediately think: "Shit, what's Adam done now?"
  • ... would have figured out how to laser, CT, or MRI the original (preferably still in the original packaging to preserve the value) and made it available for download. Maybe insert his own face depending on ego. Replacing the face on the original (ok, original copy) is the mark of an interesting idea poorly thought out.

  • Jeez... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by bmo ( 77928 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:37PM (#20296879)
    There are so many things wrong with this story.

    "He was moving, (aka getting married and yelled at)"

    Something like that is good enough to get auctioned off at a real auction house and not Ebay, for real money. It's not as if _real_ Star Wars stuff gets on the market.

    And she was yelling at him for it? How about "This is going to pay for the wedding" or "Down payment on a house"? End of argument right there. Dumbass.

    And the second dumbass removed all value?

    Wow.

    Please, if someone is giving away stuff like that, please give it to me. I'll be sure it will be taken care of properly.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mcmonkey ( 96054 )
      I imagine the yelling was 'get rid of' vs 'keep' not 'pay for wedding' vs 'down payment on house.'

      Also, since this was not a prop from the movies, it was one step away from being the sort of thing you can get from Sharper Image or SkyMall. Unless you're talking about bus fair down to city hall and a bouquet of carnations, this wasn't going to pay for any wedding anytime soon.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by bmo ( 77928 )
        "Also, since this was not a prop from the movies,"

        There is only one prop, and there is probably only one direct casting of the prop. It's worth something, especially since provenance can be directly shown. I agree that it's not worth what the prop itself would be worth. Something that famous might be worth a million, but this is worth at least a few thousand, maybe 50, to the right rich SW fan.

        --
        BMO

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by nEoN nOoDlE ( 27594 )
      Those things aren't that rare. My friend bought one for $300 bucks from Universal Studios (using his employee discount) and at the end sold it for $1500. Down payment on a house? Hardly. I'm sure for this guy having himself appear frozen in carbonite is a lot more valuable than the $1500 he could have gotten if he sold it.

  • Hmm... (Score:5, Funny)

    by niceone ( 992278 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:40PM (#20296915) Journal
    He would have been better off getting his face remodelled to look like Harison's.

    • Re:Hmm... (Score:5, Funny)

      by Dogtanian ( 588974 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:18PM (#20297361) Homepage

      He would have been better off getting his face remodelled to look like Harison's.
      First thing I thought when I read the summary was that it could be interpreted the other way around: "So I called my other nerdy special effects pals, and they offered to replace Harrison Ford's face with mine. "

      It's like some horrid real-life version of Face/Off, where Harrison Ford wakes up one morning, looks in the mirror and realises with horror that he's been given the face of a nerdy Star Wars fanboy. The anguished screams are heard up to 15 miles away and continue to this day...

  • It's not a Star Wars thing; Star Wars is cool. It's not a desicrastion thing; this was a replica made from a mold of the original--not one of the oringal props to appear in a movie. My issue is logical:

    geek: And here is my replica Han in carbonite, with my visage in place of Harrison Ford's.
    nerd: If this is suppoed to be you encased in carbonite, then who's here standing next to me?
    geek: I've wasted my life.

    If you're going to replace Han's face, wouldn't it make sense to replace it with a face that

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by jedidiah ( 1196 )
      Most of us here should be surprised that George himself has not used this as yet another way to extract merchandising revenue out of the fanbase: customized carbonite encasements.

      If there's some desecratin' to be done, and money to be made, George will be the first in line.
  • This is really uncool. You are not supposed to destroy one of a kind movie props.

    Moron.

  • Already Been Done (Score:5, Interesting)

    by dstiggy ( 1145347 ) <derrick.steigerw ... m ['l.c' in gap]> on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:45PM (#20296981)
    As featured on destructoid Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and Carnegie Mellon University created a partial replica of the Death Star for the booth during carnival. (A big competition for nerds which results in a huge party, one of the few cool things CMU does). http://www.beachheadonline.com/gallery/album66/IMG _2375 [beachheadonline.com] http://www.beachheadonline.com/gallery/album66/IMG _2369 [beachheadonline.com] These are the result of being frozen in carbonite. We took a plaster mold of the whole body and back filled it and reinforced it on a 2"x4" frame. The result is a 300lb plaster replica of Hans in carbonite. Check the site if you want to see more of what the booth looked like.

  • Ah, the slashdot effect... (Score:5, Funny)

    by nweaver ( 113078 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:49PM (#20297025) Homepage
    Its like hundreds of megabits of bandwidth suddenly cried out and were suddenly silenced.
  • For the geek with everything... freeze them in carbonite! Have the souvenier of a lifetime when you return from your vacation to Bespin! Amaze your friends, shock your family! And you can pick and choose when you are dethawed! Wake up in a week, a month, a year, when the Cubs win the world series, it doesn't matter! So come on down and have yourself frozen today!

    • freeze them . . . And you can pick and choose when you are dethawed!

      I've heard people say 'unthaw', but never 'dethaw'. Logically, both words would refer to the process opposed to 'thaw', aka 'freeze'. But somehow I don't think either means that.

      Maybe someone's brain needs to be thawed out.

  • Typo in the story (Score:5, Funny)

    by commodoresloat ( 172735 ) * on Monday August 20, 2007 @03:51PM (#20297057)
    It's spelled "virginity," not "nerd-cred."
  • Yep. The power of the Force has been confirmed once again.

  • Well, the first part of the story is cool (Score:3, Insightful)

    by gillrock ( 517577 ) <gillrock@yahoo.com> on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:00PM (#20297155)
    This was a cool thing until the the piece was altered because of the new owner being consumed with his own vanity. The entire coolness factor of this piece was in the piece itself. It is now lost forever. What a maroon.

    I didn't know that Arnold J. Rimmer really was alive and well.

  • The important part (Score:3, Funny)

    by edwardpickman ( 965122 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @04:12PM (#20297307)
    Yes but did you get laid? A couple of hundred thousand geeks saving up for a sports car want to know?
    • Looks like Carbonite has just become the hottest new geek chastity device ... oh wait! Geeks don't need anything to help prevent them from getting laid; they need something to help get them laid. Carbonite's not going to do it,... ;-)
  • What I want to know is, couldn't he have at least taken out his retainer for the mold?
  • This, gentlemen, was a piece of art. Most likely a one of a kind. Can you hear comic store guy and everyone like him cry out in agony and disbelief? How can he? How dares he? How could anyone take a piece like this and mount his own head on top?

    He could've put it on EBay. And ask for ... hell, take any arbitrary amount that comes to your mind. Do you want to be he would have found someone to buy it?

    Personally, if that guy was my friend, he would be an ex friend of mine. I mean, can you see that someone has

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Esion Modnar ( 632431 )
      Why couldn't he have just made a copy of the copy, and modified that? Heck, he might have made a small fortune making (unlimited) customized replicas for various idiots with more money than sense. What a dimbulb.
    • "This, gentlemen, was a piece of art. Most likely a one of a kind. Can you hear comic store guy and everyone like him cry out in agony and disbelief? How can he? How dares he? How could anyone take a piece like this and mount his own head on top?"

      I think Comic Book Guy would be aghast that he took the life-sized Hans Solo in Carbonite(tm) out of the giant life-sized plastic blister pack and played with it! And of course Comic Book Guy would be moaning in pain on the floor if he heard that this "fan' cut off
      • I bet comic book guy already fainted when Lea thawed Han out of the Carbonite and ruined his mint condition.

  • Not Food (Score:4, Funny)

    by xrayspx ( 13127 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @05:07PM (#20297833) Homepage
    Steve, whatever you do... Don't Eat It.

  • Familiar somehow... (Score:3, Funny)

    by El_Smack ( 267329 ) on Monday August 20, 2007 @05:07PM (#20297835)
    I have altered the fiberglass replica from the original casting. Pray I do not alter it further.
  • When I saw the pictures I thought they had frozen Napoleon Dynamite in Carbonite.
  • What an awesome way to make something of high value to collectors lose all value instantly.

  • This is nerd hell (Score:3, Insightful)

    by mattr ( 78516 ) <<mattr> <at> <telebody.com>> on Tuesday August 21, 2007 @12:30AM (#20301115) Homepage Journal
    Unfortunately he completely destroyed the piece's value as a collectible, if indeed this was the original.

    Thinking he'd become famous, he's become infamous. He got his 15 minutes and maybe the most attention-worthy thing he does his whole life is to destroy an icon of movie-lovers everywhere. A trufan does not destroy unique artifacts. This guy is an egomanical poser. Funny how your personality comes out through the things you do.

    Now if he had told everyone how to do the carbonite process at home he could have become loved by all subscribers and idolators of Make Magazine, and he'd be a cool craft nerd. But he isn't. He is a narcissist and nobody cares except to mutter "oh, no." Quite disappointing.

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