CLASSIC: That Time Chewbacca Needed Bodyguards

Summary

Ridiculous History: CLASSIC – That Time Chewbacca Needed Bodyguards

Release Date: November 23, 2024

Introduction

In this classic episode of Ridiculous History, hosts Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown delve into a peculiar intersection of pop culture and folklore: the story of why Chewbacca, everyone's favorite Wookiee from Star Wars, reportedly needed bodyguards during the filming of Return of the Jedi. This zany tale intertwines the legendary creature Bigfoot with the iconic character Chewbacca, shedding light on the humorous and bizarre challenges faced during the movie's production.

Chewbacca and Star Wars Filming in Bigfoot Country

The episode kicks off with Ben and Noel introducing the central narrative: the filming of Return of the Jedi in Northern California's Redwood National and State Parks, an area notorious for Bigfoot sightings.

• Ben [06:11]: "Our story today begins in the far West, Northern California...by golly, by gum, I think we got it."
• Noel [08:17]: "Chewbacca is a Wookiee, a tall, hairy biped... super duper tall, like seven foot plus."

They explore how the presence of Bigfoot legends in the region led the filmmakers to take extra precautions to protect Peter Mayhew, the actor portraying Chewbacca, from potential harassment or attacks by enthusiastic Sasquatch hunters.

Peter Mayhew and Chewbacca's Casting

Ben provides an insightful look into Peter Mayhew's casting and his physical attributes, which made him ideal for the role of Chewbacca.

• Ben [09:09]: "Peter Mayhew, who might be unfamiliar to people who are casual Star Wars fans... very tall human to fill that super duper tall costume."
• Noel [10:15]: "He [Peter Mayhew] just has a condition called Marfan syndrome, which is a genetic disorder... often leading to extraordinary heights."

The hosts discuss the initial casting considerations, including the preference for bodybuilder David Prowse, who ultimately chose to portray Darth Vader instead. They highlight Mayhew's impressive stature of 7 feet 3 inches and clarify misconceptions about his health condition.

The Patterson-Gimlin Bigfoot Film

A significant portion of the episode examines the infamous Patterson-Gimlin film from 1967, a cornerstone in Bigfoot lore.

• Ben [16:29]: "The famous Patterson Gimlin film... is so iconic that... you can go on YouTube and see countless professional documentaries... attempting to analyze this."
• Noel [17:48]: "A lot like it... it absolutely does. Because the big differentiation... only discernible from a closer distance."

Ben and Noel compare the creature in the film to Chewbacca's costume, noting striking similarities and pondering the urban legend that emerged from the filming location's mysterious reputation.

Sasquatch Lore and Historical Sightings

The hosts delve into the rich history of wild man legends in Northern California, dating back to at least the late 19th century.

• Noel [21:42]: "An alleged hotspot for one of the most famous cryptids in the United States, Bigfoot..."
• Noel [22:14]: "Looking for excitement? Chumba Casino is here..."

They recount early sightings and the cultural impact of Bigfoot in the region, setting the stage for the crossover between the Star Wars filming crew and local cryptid enthusiasts.

Connecting Chewbacca to Bigfoot Legends

Ben and Noel explore the core of the episode: the humorous notion that Chewbacca himself might have required protection due to the pervasive Bigfoot belief in the area.

• Ben [35:21]: "If someone who was a Sasquatch hunter was out there... seeing Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca... they would probably have freaked out."
• Noel [35:44]: "As many people as believe in the Big Bang Theory... in 2014, 20% of the US population believe in Bigfoot."

This segment blends factual information about the filming challenges with tongue-in-cheek speculation about the interaction between Mayhew's portrayal of Chewbacca and the local mythos.

Additional Pop Culture References

The conversation takes a playful turn as the hosts mention an alternate reality comic where Chewbacca is revealed to be Sasquatch, interacting with Indiana Jones.

• Noel [46:42]: "Chewbacca mourns his friend... And then Indiana Jones shows up... Chewbacca is Sasquatch."
• Ben [47:33]: "The name Chewbacca is derived from the Russian word for dog."

These anecdotes highlight the creative and sometimes absurd ways Star Wars has been interwoven with other cultural elements, enhancing the episode's entertaining narrative.

Conclusion

As the episode wraps up, Ben and Noel reflect on the enduring fascination with Bigfoot and its unexpected connection to one of cinema's most beloved characters. They invite listeners to engage with their community on Facebook and tease upcoming episodes, maintaining the show's engaging and interactive spirit.

• Ben [49:22]: "Our episode falls to a close. But you don't have to say goodbye just yet."
• Noel [49:53]: "Please join us for our next episode."

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

1. Ben [09:30]: "You like Star Wars? You will recall Chewbacca."
2. Noel [22:14]: "Looking for excitement? Chumba Casino is here..."
3. Ben [35:21]: "They would definitely have tried to film him, harass him."
4. Noel [46:42]: "Chewbacca is Sasquatch."

Final Thoughts

Ridiculous History masterfully blends history with pop culture, offering listeners both laughs and intriguing insights. This episode stands out by connecting the whimsical world of Star Wars with the enigmatic legends of Bigfoot, showcasing the hosts' knack for uncovering and narrating the most outlandish historical anecdotes.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to join the Ridiculous Historians Facebook community and stay tuned for more hilariously bizarre historical stories in future episodes.

Transcript

[Ben]

Welcome to our classic episode for this weekend.

[Noel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's okay. It's. It's, it's all right.

[Ben]

You might hear my pal doing some, I would say eight out of ten.

[Noel]

Thanks, buddy.

[Ben]

Eight out of ten? Yeah. No, eight out to ten.

[Noel]

I lost, I lost it there at the end.

[Ben]

No, you got. You went Australian wookie at the end.

[Noel]

I got excited.

[Ben]

I got. Which is fine. We, we are bringing you a classic episode about that time Chewbacca needed bodyguards.

[Noel]

Isn't Chewbacca himself a bodyguard? He's like Han Solo's bodyguard.

[Ben]

Yeah. Why did he get secret service for his own secret service?

[Noel]

Yeah. Let's just jump in and find out, man. This is a wacky story.

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[Chelsea Handler]

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[Ben]

Ridiculous History is a production of iHeartRadio. We spent a little bit of time before we went on air in search of the perfect song to open today's episode with. And by golly, by gum, I think we got it. Let's, let's, let's roll it. Just a clip of it.

[Paul Decant]

There were some scientists trying to figure out the Sasquatch riddle. Then they figured out it was a missing link.

[Noel]

Is that the D?

[Ben]

It is the D. Oh man, I.

[Noel]

Love the D. I miss the D. They're back though.

[Ben]

That's what could be more appropriate than the Tenacious D song about Bigfoot, about the Sasquatch. Hello, I'm Ben.

[Noel]

I am Noel.

[Ben]

And Noel, you found that perfect song as we were, as we were looking through the Internets to find a cool, fun song.

[Noel]

What had to be the one, Ben? Because there is really no finer song of the mystery of the Bigfoot, the Sasquatch than In Search of Sasquatch by Tenacious D. That was also the TV show version. I don't think it was actually on the record. Doesn't matter.

[Ben]

But they may. The only way that song could be topped is if Tenacious D, when they Return if they put out a reprised version or they have the discovery of the Sasquatch. We want to, of course, bid a distant hello to our super producer, Casey Pegram, and a very close hello to our guest super producer, Paul decant.

[Noel]

Yeah, he's seated right outside the shipping container. We're looking at him right now.

[Ben]

And our story today begins in the far West, Northern California, specifically. It also incorporates not just Tenacious D, but another pop culture phenomenon, Star Wars.

[Noel]

Where do you come down on the Star Wars, Ben?

[Ben]

I'm a fan.

[Noel]

You fur it or again, it.

[Ben]

I'm fur it. I'm a fan. I'm not one of those people who feels that you must choose between either Star Trek or Star Wars. I think they both have their merits and they're totally different.

[Noel]

What, because they're in space and they have Star in the name? We have to make a choice. We have to choose allegiances. That's ridiculous.

[Ben]

It feels a little. It feels a little bit falsely dichotomous to me.

[Noel]

Are you Rebel or Empire?

[Ben]

You know, it's tough to make that call because having watched the films, the rebels are always the protagonists.

[Noel]

Right. So in Empire, they're basically a bunch of fascists.

[Ben]

Yeah. And very much into uniforms and conformity. So I guess I would say rebel, but really, if I were existing in the Star wars universe, all I would want to do is use the Force, get my midichlorians up, you know? What about you? Where would you.

[Noel]

Oh, obviously rebel. It seems like a very unpopular decision to be Empire, but people do choose that allegiance in the fan community. Many of you may know our compatriot Holly Fry from Stuff youf Miss In History Class. Also, by the way, plug host of a cool show I'm working on with her called the Story of Animation, which is a partnership with Cartoon Network. And it's a really fun kind of love letter to all things animation. Anyway, Holly, the biggest Star wars fan you could ever imagine. I'm serious. Use your imagination. Think of the biggest Star wars fan. Take it up a couple clicks from there. You got Holly Fry. She has a rebel tattoo. She makes all her own clothes. Pretty much all of it is Star wars themed. And when she overheard Ben, you and I talking about the connection between Sasquatch and a certain Wookiee, her eyes lit right up.

[Ben]

It's true. There is a connection. Now, fans of Star wars, you will recall Chewbacca. Of course he is that.

[Noel]

It were in the throat. Really? I bet you could do it.

[Ben]

That was close. Let's play a clip I think it's better. As I was saying, Chewbacca is a Wookiee, a tall, hairy biped and also intelligent, a sentient being. He is best known as the friend, first mate, cosmic road trip buddy of Han Solo, and he is the co pilot on the famous spaceship the Millennium Falcon. He's also super duper tall. Very tall, like seven foot plus.

[Noel]

Yeah. And you know, it took a super duper tall human to fill that super duper tall costume. A British man by the name of Peter Mayhew.

[Ben]

Yes. Peter Mayhew, who might be unfamiliar to people who are casual Star wars fans. I wouldn't say that either of us or super producer Paul are people who can quote exact moments and know all the canon. I wouldn't say we're super fans, but we're fans. Right. You like Star Wars?

[Noel]

I've seen all the movies. I'll see. I've seen all of them.

[Ben]

Yeah. And I'll probably watch them again and I'll say it in real life. I'm a very nice, compassionate person with a lot of empathy. But I think the Sith are cool.

[Noel]

Wow.

[Ben]

Don't you?

[Noel]

Okay, dude.

[Ben]

The Sith are cool. Darth Vader is like the most memorable part of the first few movies.

[Noel]

It's true. Also played by a very tall man. It's actually quite appropriate for today's episode. How Mayhew found himself in this role in London, back around the time that Star wars was going into pre production. He was part of a profile that a London reporter did on people with big feet.

[Ben]

Which is insane when you think about it, and funny. Originally he wasn't supposed to be Chewbacca. Originally. I believe George Lucas was hoping to get a bodybuilder named David Prowse to play the role. But Prowse chose to play Darth Vader and we should say Peter Mayhew. Despite having a peak height of 7ft, 3 inches or 221 centimeters, he does not suffer from gigantism, you know, like Wadlow had.

[Noel]

No.

[Ben]

Yeah, he just.

[Noel]

He's just a big fella.

[Ben]

He does, however, have a condition called Marfan syndrome, which is a genetic disorder, connective tissue. And often that can lead to people having extraordinary heights.

[Noel]

Yeah. And often very skinny. You know the band Deer Hunter? The singer Atlanta band is fantastic. The singer Bradford Cox, has Marfan syndrome and he's quite tall and lanky. The other guy you're talking about who played Darth Vader, he said he wanted to play Darth Vader because he thought villains were more memorable and the funny thing is too, he didn't realize his voice wasn't going to be used, that it was going to be James Earl Jones. He did a little bait and switch on him and Mayhew. Also not his voice. The voice of Chewbacca, that sound we heard a minute ago is comprised of like a bear, a walrus, and several other animals combined to make that super cool sound. But today's story didn't take place until the third. I don't know. I don't know how you count them. You're supposed to.

[Ben]

It's like episode in order of, let's do it in order of release.

[Noel]

That's. Let's do it that way just to keep it easy. Yeah. The third Star wars movie released, that was the Return of the Jedi, which was the first Star wars movie to feature, if I'm not mistaken. And Star wars fans, please just come at me.

[Ben]

Be me.

[Noel]

No, don't. Be kind.

[Ben]

Be kind.

[Noel]

Give it to me.

[Ben]

Be kind.

[Noel]

Hit me with your lightsabers. Was the first one to feature the little guys, the little furry bear guys.

[Ben]

Ewoks.

[Noel]

Ewoks. And they occupied their forest dwellers.

[Ben]

The forest of Endor. Yes, Return of the Jedi, 1983. In the film, you'll remember, of course, that Chewbacca is one of the characters who visits Endor. And he is. He has a nice rapport with Ewoks, being that they are both furry and lovable despite their size difference. But the story we're examining doesn't take place in front of the cameras while they were rolling. You see where they were shooting the scenes for the Forest of indoor in State Park. What was that State Park, Noel?

[Noel]

It is the Tall Trees Redwood grove located in the Redwood national and State park in Humboldt County.

[Ben]

And when this area has another notable thing about it, aside from being a site of Star wars filming, it is also known as an alleged hotspot for one of the most famous cryptids in the United States, Bigfoot, AKA the Sasquatch, AKA the Yeti, AKA Swamp ape, but they call it swamp ape in Florida.

[Noel]

Skunk ape.

[Ben]

Skunk ape.

[Noel]

That's another one.

[Ben]

That's another one, yeah. Abominable Snowman in the Himalayas. And Sasquatch sighting or Sasquatch hunting was popular enough in this region and remains popular enough in this region today that the filmmakers were worried that Chewbacca or Peter might get shot or harassed or attacked. Because in Bigfoot country there is a seven plus foot tall creature that is hairy that is wandering around. And they said, well, you know, that's Kind of going to mess up filming for us. We don't have him getting shot.

[Noel]

What's that cool word? The $5 word for being Harry Hirsute. Love that.

[Ben]

Yeah.

[Noel]

Sorry.

[Ben]

Just love that word. Yeah. So they didn't have it in the script for him to be shot by Bigfoot hunters, but they had to make the movie anyway. The show must go on. So what did they do?

[Noel]

Well, according to Mayhew himself, this is something of a sort of a Star wars fan community urban legend, which is interesting considering it surrounds a Bigfoot story as well, that he had kind of a detail, sort of a protection squ, if you will, that were decked out in brightly colored jackets, like vests. You know, like you'd see neon crossing guard vests or even hunters wear these kind of vests so they can be visible in the forest and keep from.

[Ben]

Shooting each other and be obviously not creatures of the woods.

[Noel]

Unless you're Dick Cheney. That apparently does not read for Dick.

[Ben]

Oh, boy.

[Noel]

Too soon.

[Ben]

No, I don't think that's too soon. That's not too soon. It's not a Sasquatch related. But it's a great example of how easily accidents can happen while hunting.

[Casey Pegram]

Yeah.

[Noel]

Especially if you know you're mistaken for a potentially dangerous predator or the target of your hunt.

[Ben]

Right. Because people genuinely believe that this creature, while elusive, does exist somewhere. Right. And they want to. Everybody who believes it wants to be the first person to find it.

[Noel]

You just gonna. You kill it? You think you'd shoot it with a dart or something?

[Ben]

Yeah, that's. That's the thing. Because when we discover new animals or rediscover animals that are previously thought to be extinct, it's a real tragedy to find out that they were still alive. When you've killed one. Right. Or you've killed the last one of two or three, There's. There's another reason here. I know this sounds like maybe they were being overprotective of Chewbacca, even though it's an understandable thing to have this detail. Something else happened in 1967 in Humboldt county that both fueled the search for this cryptid and I think added some credibility to the fear that Chewbacca might be attacked. And that is a film.

[Noel]

Are you talking about the famous Patterson Gimlin film?

[Ben]

Yep, the famous Patterson Gimlin film, which was shot in 1967 alongside Bluff Creek. That's about 25 miles northwest of Orleans, California, in Humboldt County. And this film, which is named after the guys who shot it, Roger Patterson and Robert Bob Gimlin, this film is so iconic that if you are a dyed in the wool true believer of Bigfoot or you're an absolute skeptic, either way, no matter how you feel about the allegations of this gigantic creature existing, you have seen this footage. You can go on YouTube and see countless professional documentaries, countless TV shows, and countless amateur documentaries attempting to analyze this. What, a little less than one minute of footage of this large, hairy looking thing walking?

[Noel]

Yeah. I mean, you see it from behind and it looks good, although at the same time it's sort of like, you know, when was this?

[Ben]

67.

[Noel]

67. I mean, you know, the Chewbacca costume, it looks a lot like the Chewbacca costume from behind. That's the thing. A lot like it. A lot like it.

[Ben]

That's the thing. It absolutely does. Because the big differentiation, the big differentiations between the appearance of Chewbacca and the appearance of this creature in this film are only discernible from a closer distance.

[Noel]

Sure. And my question for you, Ben, is like, what's the backstory behind this film? What gives it weight? Why are people still kind of thinking that these people had no reason to fake it?

[Ben]

Yeah. We can look a little bit into the origin of that film itself. So Patterson read an article about Bigfoot in a magazine in 1959, a magazine called True Magazine. And then he visited bluff creek in 1962. So several years before they filmed, they. They caught this film or made this film.

[Noel]

Right. So he was. He was already kind of in search of Sasquatch.

[Ben]

Yeah.

[Noel]

A little bit like the Tenacious D song.

[Ben]

Yeah. According to author Marion Place, when Patterson arrived at Bluff Creek, he talked to tons of people who believed in Bigfoot and said, hey, it's out here. Not only is it out here, I can show you some stuff about it. I can show you some evidence. And so in 1964, he returned and he met a guy named Pat Graves who drove him to Laird Meadows. And that's where, according to this story, he saw fresh tracks, fresh Bigfoot tracks. And he thought it would be an amazing scientific breakthrough if he could obtain evidence that these were not hoaxes, but the mark of an unknown human like creature.

[Noel]

Interesting. For me, it would be a lot more believable if it just happened to be some rando out in the woods with his camera that caught the thing, you know.

[Ben]

Right. Like out of candidly.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

And they're. They're filming their kid making a sound.

[Simone Boyce]

Daddy, what's that?

[Ben]

And then it pans to the left.

[Noel]

I'd buy that much More than this guy who sort of had a result he was after and a reason to want to be the guy, you know?

[Ben]

Yeah, here's the thing. He was constantly ridiculed for this search, and he was always running short on money. He founded this thing called the northwest research foundation and used that to get funding for these bigfoot searches. And he conducted several expeditions. But he also had a financial motivation is probably the best way to put it. In 66, he published a paperback about the search, and he added the income from that to the income from his lectures, Ostensibly just to fund further searches. But that's a tough call to make.

[Noel]

I think so, too. But you know what, Ben? This area is just lousy with these kinds of reports in general. This Humboldt area and the northern California region in general. Big old state, California, and totally different ecosystem and environment in northern California. California. Whereas in southern California, everything's a lot more arid and desert like up there, it's much more lush and green and these huge, huge trees, the redwood forests. But I actually found, Ben, a report dating back the earliest one that I could find from January 2nd of 1886 from the Del norte record. And a correspondent from that publication wrote this from happy camp, Siskiyou county, again on January 2, 1886. And here's what it says. I do not remember to have seen any reference to the wild man which haunts this part of the country. So I shall allude to him briefly. Not a great while since Mr. Jack Dover, one of our most trustworthy citizens, while hunting, saw an object standing 150 yards from him picking berries or tender shoots from the bushes. This thing was of gigantic size, about 7ft high, with a bulldog head, short ears, and long hair. It was also furnished with a beard and was free from hair on such parts of its body as is common among men. Its voice was shrill or soprano and very human, like that of a woman in great fear. Mr. Dover could not see its footprints as it walks on hard soil. He aimed his gun at the animal, or whatever it is, several times. But because it was so human, he would not shoot. 1886.

[Ben]

1886. And that's. Those are. That's just the first published report we could find.

[Noel]

Well, let's go back even further, Ben. Let's talk about the origins of this creature.

[Ben]

The origins in lore.

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[Ben]

The strange thing about Bigfoot, which is at base, a gigantic human like primate. Right. The strange thing about it is that reports of creatures like these date back into the ancient empires and ages of myth and legend. Sometimes you'll see reports of a quote unquote wild man. Right. That trope. Or that.

[Noel]

The Wild man of Borneo, for example. Sure.

[Ben]

Yeah. Or something called the Hairy man. Folklore experts like Joseph Campbell see this wild man in the woods legend as coming from a couple of different places. One of the most interesting, if not the most plausible ideas is that it's some sort of orally transmitted memory of an encounter with the largest known primate, the extinct gigantopithecus, which was 10ft tall. And May, emphasis on may here, may have interacted with early Homo sapiens.

[Noel]

Like in the Jungle Book.

[Ben]

Yeah, like in the Jungle Book. Spoiler alert for the newest Jungle Book.

[Noel]

I'm kidding. But the one depicted in that live action CGI Jungle Book is like a giant orangutan looking creature, but it is that extinct gigantic Pithecus that would have been native to that part of the country.

[Ben]

Yeah.

[Noel]

And Asia, India.

[Ben]

Yeah. And fun fact, with the gigantic Pithecus, at least in the Jungle Book, this is not too much of a spoiler for the show. In the live action Jungle Book, the gigantic Pythagoras King Louie is played by Christopher Walken, who is going just full walking on that. He is nuts.

[Noel]

He is taking a walk again for some reason.

[Ben]

It's from Brooklyn.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

And he sings the King Louie song, but in a really weird, like, spoken word, scap poet way.

[Noel]

Christopher Walken's one of those, like, just beloved actors that can only do Christopher Walken.

[Ben]

Right. Yeah.

[Noel]

Maybe you might disagree, but I kind of feel like it works and it's great. But he's sort of like a Jeff Goldblum, you know?

[Ben]

Well, here's a. Here's an Al Pacino, right? Here's a hot take. I want to see what you think of this. This is entirely. I guess this is sort of related because Peter Mayhew is an actor. Anyway, just humor me.

[Noel]

Go with it, bro.

[Ben]

Tell me what you think about this. So one of the great differences between the lauded actors in the States and the lauded actors in Europe is that in the case of European actors, the A listers, the top notch actors, are praised for their abilities to be chameleons, largely praised for their ability to become another person to slip into a role. Whereas in the States, a lot of top notch A list actors are praised for their ability to constantly be unapologetically themselves. And it's weird because it doesn't. I'm not at all saying that one is better than the other, nor am I saying that these people aren't amazing actors. It's just a very strange interpretation.

[Noel]

No, it's true. Over here we call those character actors. They almost get like a. Like a demotion kind of, you know.

[Ben]

Yeah, like that guy.

[Noel]

You're not a leading man, you're a character actor.

[Ben]

You're always the cop.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

You're always the angry dad who's almost had it, you know?

[Noel]

Oh, I guess when I say character actor, I mean what I'm saying is they are more chameleonic, but the leading men are less so.

[Ben]

Right. Like Al Pacino in Devil's Advocate and Al Pacino and Scent of a Woman. A lot of people would tell you, and I love Devil's Advocate, a lot of people will tell you that they're always the same. They're roughly the same mannerisms or something, you know, Even though I believe in Scent of a Woman, Al Pacino plays a blind character.

[Noel]

But you know what? Al Pacino. Not tall enough to play Bigfoot, my friend.

[Ben]

Not tall enough. See what I did there?

[Noel]

Yeah, yeah, we pulled it back in.

[Ben]

Yeah, yeah, circled back. Not tall enough to play Bigfoot. Gigantopithecus, though, in a larger sense. No pun intended. But I guess I'll allow it was close enough to be like our guy for this. If we're trying to find a suspect for historical Bigfoot, because gigantic python Blackie was thought to be closely related to early hominins, especially Australopithecus. And this was based on molar evidence. So the thing molar like teeth? Yeah. Like teeth.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

The thing about trying to figure out whether Gigantopithecus was the origin of the Sasquatch or hairy man myths is that when you look at it, as we established earlier, when you look at depictions of this thing, it doesn't look like a Sasquatch the way they are described from the 19th century on. It looks like a giant orangutan. And it's got the big face flap that are, I'm going to say, a big enough differentiator. Like its head is bigger than a Sasquatch's head would be.

[Casey Pegram]

Yeah.

[Noel]

And its neck looks like testicles or something.

[Ben]

It's got like a waddle almost. Yeah. It was also probably not super fast.

[Noel]

Oh, I can't imagine. And unlike the depiction in the Jungle Book, it probably didn't smash things and swing on trees, nor did it have.

[Ben]

Strong New York accent.

[Noel]

Yeah, no, it's true. But here's the thing. You know, one beef that Bigfoot skeptics have is like, where's the evidence? Give me some bones. Give me a body. Show me the body. Right.

[Ben]

Show me fecal matter or nesting site. Yeah.

[Noel]

But with gigantic pythagus, you know, there is evidence. You could even find some of these. They were plentiful enough that you could find jaw bones and teeth in, like, curio or apothecary shops in places like Vietnam and India, where these creatures were indigenous.

[Ben]

So for traditional medicine, then, one would imagine. Right, that would be the use.

[Noel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. And the thing is, you know, these things would have been 10ft tall and weighed more than 1200 pounds. So totally in line with the type of stature we're talking about for these wild men, these hairy men, these Sasquatches. And the thing is, they're not just limited to, you know, North America or Northern California. They're all over the world.

[Ben]

Sure, sure. They're in Siberia. They're called the Chuchana there. The Australians would call it the Yowie, which I think is a fun name.

[Noel]

Absolutely.

[Ben]

You may hear it called the Yerin in China. We mentioned the yeti earlier. There are different.

[Noel]

The yeti is the snow one, right?

[Ben]

Yeah. Abominable snow. There are different. There are different cases of alleged physical artifacts being discovered or being held, such as the Pangboche hand. There was an alleged yeti scalp that was supposed to be around, but I think was later disproven through testing. And this is a really controversial thing because for some biologists, the search for cryptids, which is an umbrella term describing any animal that has been alleged to exist, but has been not proven to exist or has been officially considered extinct, and then people think it may be rediscovered. Cryptozoologists are considered largely Persona non grata in the fringy.

[Noel]

Right.

[Ben]

Yeah. Pseudoscience in the academic world. Because other scientists will say that these folks have already decided something exists, and they're not practicing critical thinking or scientific method. They're just trying to prove that what they came in believing was correct.

[Noel]

It's like confirmation bias, right?

[Ben]

Exactly.

[Noel]

And like our pal who made the film, I would find that evidence, quote, unquote, much more believable if it wasn't somebody who already was looking to find something and then did this.

[Ben]

And until his death, he maintained that he understood why people could think it was weird, but he was not hoaxing anyone. And he will. He wouldn't deny that what he saw was legitimate. But then that also raises the possibility that perhaps he was hoaxed, which is.

[Noel]

Maybe someone was trolling him.

[Ben]

Yeah.

[Noel]

Or sasquatching him.

[Ben]

Yeah. Oh, maybe we could use that as a new verb to get sasquatch.

[Noel]

I like it. Or just squatched. How about that?

[Ben]

Squatched is good.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

Squatch out.

[Noel]

Come into it.

[Ben]

Yeah.

[Noel]

All right, well, let's incorporate it into the ridiculous history lexicon.

[Ben]

Yeah, let's put it into our burgeoning encyclopedia.

[Noel]

We have Son of a Fish, we have Ship, show, and now we have. You just got squatched.

[Ben]

Yeah. Yeah. I think we have a few other ones, too. But recommend your favorite slang to us. We do want to point out again, we know how ridiculous this fear may have seemed for Peter Mayhew and for the filmmakers. But even as recently as 2014, 20% of the US population, 1 out of 5 people believe in Bigfoot or something like it.

[Noel]

Isn't that, like as many people as believe in the Big Bang Theory?

[Ben]

Yes. Yeah. Not the show, the scientific concept.

[Noel]

I believe in the Big Bang.

[Ben]

I believe so.

[Noel]

Good. Sheldon.

[Ben]

It's got a heart.

[Noel]

Have you seen Young Sheldon? Not good.

[Ben]

Is that a spinoff?

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

What?

[Noel]

Young Sheldon?

[Ben]

I remember seeing Just the Thumbnail for that and thinking, wow, I have drifted far from the mainstream demographic.

[Noel]

He's just such a smarmy little kid. He just thinks he knows it all. You know, it's one of those shows about the genius kid who gets to go to high school. When he's like, you know, 10 or something. Like a dude, and everyone hates him, he insists on wearing the bow tie. I digress. The kid, though, that plays him is also in that show Big Little Liars, which is awesome, by the way. That's a great show if you haven't checked that out. But I don't know, you're right, Ben. There was legitimate fear for this quite large, tall man wearing this hirsute costume.

[Ben]

Yes.

[Noel]

Yeah.

[Ben]

And on another show we've done. If you want to learn more about Bigfoot, you can hear our full interview with the founder and curator of Expedition Bigfoot, a one of a kind museum in up near Ellijay, Georgia.

[Noel]

It's so cool.

[Ben]

David Baraka.

[Noel]

Yeah, it's like something you'd see in Epcot center or University center in the 90s or something. It's really, really neat. And the guy's a super cool guy and believes this stuff with all his heart.

[Ben]

And you can, in the interview, hear us ask him some of the same questions that always come up, the tough ones. The question, number one numero uno is where are the bones? Where are the feces? Where are the nesting sites? And how much of a range would a creature this size have to have? How much food would it have to eat to sustain itself, let alone to sustain and feed a juvenile version? Right. If it reproduces. At this point, there is no universally accepted proof that something like Bigfoot currently exists, nor is there proof that something like it existed in the recent past. The closest. The closest known thing would be maybe misidentification of large extant primates like gorillas or orangutans or the Gigantopithecus, maybe, maybe. Maybe way back in the day, but then again, still very speculative. One thing is for sure, though. If someone who was a Sasquatch hunter was out there in the area that is sometimes called the Bigfoot Capital of the world, and they saw Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca, everyone's favorite Wookie, strolling through the woods by himself, they would probably have freaked out. They definitely would have tried to film him, harass him. I like to think they wouldn't have shot the guy.

[Noel]

You don't think they would have noticed all the camera crews and extras and Ewoks and stuff?

[Ben]

Confirmation bias, though, man.

[Noel]

I guess you're right.

[Ben]

Maybe they would. And we don't want to get too far, too far down the Bigfoot rabbit hole. But it is interesting. I wonder if there are other situations like that where in the course of making a film, the filmmakers had to take extra precautions or maybe even do extra cultural things because of the values and mores of the place in which they were filming.

[Noel]

Oh, I have no doubt.

[Ben]

Yeah. Apocalypse Now. There's gotta be something with that oh, yeah.

[Noel]

But I mean, that was a notoriously gorilla kind of shoot, you know. And the thing I've noticed, too, like here in Atlanta, it's like they call it Yollywood. They shoot a whole lot of movies here. And people I know that work in the film industry, sometimes they bulldoze a little bit, you know, if they're gonna, like, shoot on your street.

[Ben]

Oh, yeah.

[Noel]

They don't really care about disrupting your routine. Let's post a little bill. And so, you know, it's coming, but it's like, okay, I guess this is my life for the next week or two.

[Ben]

Do you ever get the shakedown? Like, if someone's filming on your street and they say no, through traffic?

[Noel]

Yeah, no through traffic.

[Ben]

And you have to tell them that you live there?

[Noel]

I live here. I'm walking here. But here's the thing, too. Like I said, this story about Mayhew and the anti the Bigfoot determined detail has kind of found its place in Star wars fan culture as kind of a bit of an urban legend. But Mayhew himself was asked this in an AMA on Reddit in 2015, and he did confirm this is true. He said, yes, that is absolutely true. But then some intrepid Star wars fans did a little digging and kind of got clarification that he was really more warned by production folks not to walk off the set in costume for fear that he might get shot by hunters. They reminded him, remember, this is Bigfoot country. So, you know, memory is a funny thing.

[Ben]

The story's kind of true. It has a seed of truth.

[Noel]

I know, but this idea of dudes in brightly colored vests there specifically to protect of this one actor in this costume. Little.

[Ben]

Little bit of an exaggeration. Yeah. And the thing is that if you would. If you would like to become a Sasquatch hunter or search for them, you are absolutely free to do so. I'm going to go ahead and call it Noel. I don't think. I don't think anyone's going to find anything. But it's such a cool excuse to get out into some of the most beautiful wilderness in this country.

[Noel]

Absolutely. I mean, the redwoods are gorgeous. I've actually never gotten. I've been to San Francisco, but I've not gotten to go quite that far up north. But I think I will be relatively soon going up to Washington State and Oregon for the first time.

[Ben]

And you've been. You haven't been to Oregon before?

[Noel]

No, I've never been to Oregon.

[Ben]

Oh, you're going to love it. It's beautiful.

[Noel]

I'm very excited.

[Ben]

What part are you going?

[Noel]

Going to Portland.

[Ben]

Okay.

[Noel]

But then also up like we're taking a road trip. So awesome. For a secret project.

[Ben]

Right, right, right.

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[Ben]

Well, we are almost out of time today, but we would be remiss if we didn't mention some other fantastic and fascinating things we learned about Chewbacca.

[Noel]

One of my favorites is actually this comic book that depicts a crash landing that happens with Han Solo and Chewbacca on the Millennium Falcon. And they go through some kind of like wormhole of some kind and end up in the past in like this part of the country that we're talking about. Right? And they are being chased by Native Americans who are firing arrows at Han Solo and Chewbacca and Han Solo ends up getting killed in this particular kind of non canon Star wars story. It comes from a collection of Star wars short comics called I think Star Wars Tales, I believe. That's right. And of course, you know, Chewbacca mourns his friend with his famous yowl.

[Ben]

His plaintive whale of sorrow.

[Noel]

His plaintive whale of sorrow, yeah. And kind of goes off into the wilderness alone. It's actually quite sad. And then the comic cuts to a couple hundred years in the future and Indiana Jones shows up with his now fully grown sidekick, short round from Temple of Doom in search of Sasquatch. And it turns out that Chewbacca is Sasquatch. I just like that alternate reality kind of like treatment.

[Ben]

There's DC's Elseworld series or Marvel's, I can't remember what they call them. Marvel. Other Chewbacca facts. The character was inspired by George Lucas dog, a big Alaskan malamute and Named Indiana. Named Indiana. We named the dog Indiana.

[Noel]

Exactly. And it wasn't the other way around. Indiana Jones was inspired by the dog. The name.

[Ben]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And the name Chewbacca is derived from the Russian word for dog. So there's a very clear relationship there. And for anyone who's thinking about some of the chronology of that alternative world comic book Noel summarized, Wookiees are very long lived in comparison to humans. At the time Star wars is set, Chewbacca is about 200 years old.

[Noel]

He looks great.

[Ben]

He looks fantastic. He must be using herbal essences or one of the fancy shampoos.

[Noel]

Or maybe four hymns.

[Ben]

Or maybe he's using four hymns also keeps him virile.

[Noel]

And he was quite virile because in the much maligned Star Wars Holiday special, which I'm not even sure is considered canon, Lucas hated it so much. You are introduced to Chewbacca's family, right?

[Ben]

Yeah. You meet three members of his family. His father, Itchy, his wife Mala, and his son. I think this is your favorite one, Noel.

[Noel]

It's Lumpy.

[Ben]

Lumpy. These names are later. You're later told. These are just nicknames.

[Noel]

They are nicknames, Right. They're much longer, proper Wookie names. And this is on his home planet of Kashyk.

[Ben]

Yeah. The dad is at a chitkuk.

[Noel]

Very well done.

[Ben]

It's probably terrible.

[Noel]

Hey, man.

[Ben]

We don't speak Wookiee.

[Noel]

We don't. We don't. It's fine, though. We do our best. Our level best.

[Ben]

We do our level sincere best. Whether it's hunting Bigfoot or protecting people from Bigfoot Hunters. Right. And we are off. We hope you enjoyed this episode. Episode. At least as much as we enjoyed researching it.

[Noel]

You know what? I enjoyed this one very much.

[Ben]

Yeah. You know, I'm glad to say there's never been one that I thought was a track.

[Noel]

Yeah. No, seriously. But there's also a fun crossover between some of the stuff we talk about on our other shows, Stuff They Don't Want yout To Know, where we take a critical thinking approach to conspiracy theories like this one.

[Ben]

Yes. And stay tuned next week when we are going to do something completely different. Exploring the bizarre story of Santa Anna and a funeral that he held.

[Noel]

Looking forward to that one, too.

[Ben]

We're having a hard time not telling you right now.

[Noel]

I know. We want to tease but not spoil.

[Ben]

Yeah. So please join us for our next episode. In the meantime, massive thanks to our guest super producer, Paul Decant. Thanks as always to Casey Pegram. Thanks to Alex Williams, who composed our opening music.

[Noel]

And of huge thanks to Christopher Haciotes, who has been doing amazing work collaborating with us on research for these episodes.

[Ben]

So our episode falls to a close. But you don't have to say goodbye just yet. You can find us on our Facebook community page, Ridiculous Historians.

[Noel]

We are pushing it hard because it is a lot of fun. And the thing is about Facebook, as you know, you know, if you have just like a regular Facebook page, the reach is you just don't know what you're going to get. If you might like the page, you might not see it. Most of the cool stuff that I look at on Facebook are like meme groups and Facebook pages like that. And that's how you know you're going to get the goods. And the folks on Ridiculous Historians are a lot of fun. There's a lot of fun history memes and just cool articles and discussion and, you know, pictures of me and Ben doing weird stuff.

[Ben]

And of course we have fantastic moderators there who really make the page what it is. We want you to be a part of it. There are some very interesting threads and I hang out there. Noel hangs out there. We even cajoled our recurring arch nemesis, Jonathan Strickland, the Quister, to post a picture of himself as a child.

[Noel]

At first I saw it from a distance and thought it was a joke because I just saw like a giant weird clown. But when you zoom in, you see Jonathan's tiny, tiny child face in the hole.

[Ben]

It's like one of those cut out the cutout things.

[Noel]

Yeah. So. So definitely do check that out.

[Ben]

And of course you can always send an email with feedback or topic suggestions to us directly. We're [e-mail] and we can't wait to.

[Noel]

Hear from you and do us a solid. Leave us a nice itunes review. It really helps out and makes us feel good.

[Ben]

And we might read some on the air.

[Noel]

Yeah, maybe some bad ones even. Take it easy. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your favorite shows this holiday season.

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Stand together as a united team. We can change the momentum.

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