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It's been many years since Dave Prowse has been invited to sign at Star Wars Celebration. After attending Celebrations II, III, IV, Europe and Japan, he hasn't been invited back since 2008 (you can read my article listing every Celebration signer and their autograph prices through the years HERE.) Star Wars original trilogy actress Pam Rose says it's time Prowse was welcomed back to celebrate with the legions of Star Wars fans next July in his home turf of London.
"I work with Dave a lot and we are mates" says Rose. "He is very popular and everyone knows, whatever (their) age, who Dąrth Vader is."
The striffe between Prowse and official Lucasfilm camps are long standing, and fairly well known by fans, even if details are not crystal clear. You can read my look at the subject, which I wrote just before Celebration Anaheim, HERE.
Rose, who portrayed Leesub Sirln in A New Hope, recently put out a call to action on her Facebook page, asking fans to support a movement to have Prowse invited back to the next Celebration, which is scheduled to take place July 15-17, 2016 at the ExCel Centre in London. "He is the main man and deserves the recognition, let's get him back on the Disney circuit "
It didn't take long for Rose's fans to accept her call. A Facebook group titled "Petition To Invite David Prowse to Star Wars Celebration 2016 In London" was soon established and has currently reached 358 members. Nathan Emerson, one of Rose's Facebook friends, started a petition on Change.org. He is petitioning Star Wars Celebration 2016 "To invite David Prowse MBE to Star Wars Celebration 2016."
The petition states:
"David Prowse MBE has been an important part of Star Wars history playing the iconic role of Darth Vader. David is a man who does a tremendous amount of work and is loyal to his fans. Please invite David to attend Star Wars Celebration 2016 in his hometown of London." Click HERE to visit the petition on Change.org.
At the time I am writing this, 64 people have signed the petition. Here are some of the comments made by people who have signed the petition.
"I'm signing this because I feel the original Vader deserves to be at Star Wars celebration 2016 as an official guest." Mario Gonzales, Mexico
"After so much time, one would have thought that past annoyances could be overlooked, for the benefit of the fans that support, share the dreams and buy the merchandise. It is only right the most iconic figure of the Star Wars franchise be invited to attend the pinnacle event in his home country!" Anthony Hopkins, Doncaster, UK
"I'm signing this because I love Dave Prowse. I feel the original Vader deserves to be at Star Wars celebration 2016 as an official guest." Rebecca Wellington, Immingham, UK
"Give Dave Prowse a chance to meet his fans at the biggest Star Wars event of the year! He is great to his fans and it is only fair to him and them for him to be allowed to attend this event." George Morris, Worthing, UK
"Dave is an integral part of the Star Wars pantheon. To deny his presence at official Star Wars events is complete petty foolishness." George Starkey, Indianapolis, US
[[{“type”:”media”,”view_mode”:”media_crop”,”fid”:”19566″,”attributes”:{“alt”:””,”class”:”media-image”,”id”:”media_crop_6634674494108″,”media_crop_h”:”0″,”media_crop_image_style”:”large”,”media_crop_instance”:”12241″,”media_crop_rotate”:”0″,”media_crop_scale_h”:”0″,”media_crop_scale_w”:”0″,”media_crop_w”:”0″,”media_crop_x”:”0″,”media_crop_y”:”0″,”typeof”:”foaf:Image”}}]]Prowse celebrated his 80th birthday on July 1st and has had many illnesses and injuries that have sidelined him from the autograph circuit over the last few years. With that said, he is still one of the most active Star Wars signers listed at Star Wars Actor Appearances. He currently has 12 appearances scheduled from now until April 2016. That's a lot of work and traveling for a man who just turned 80 and has not been in the best of health.
While fans and autograph collectors of the GFFA have many reasons to see Prowse return to Celebration, Rose's reason is one that hits home, and can be applied to many of the people responsible for bringing the original trilogy to life. Each year has added to the number of OT actors and crew who are no longer with us, and sadly, that number will only increase as time continues to go by.
"He is now in his autumn years" explains Rose. "Let the Lord back where he belongs."
If you would like to sign the petition you can do so HERE. Click HERE to visit the Pam Rose website.
