Last modified: 2016-03-19 by peter hans van den muijzenberg
Keywords: movie | film | star wars |
Links: FOTW homepage |
search |
disclaimer and copyright |
write us |
mirrors
See also:
Young Anakin Skywalker (later known as Darth Vader), still aged 6 in his Tatooine home world, participates in an illegal, dangerous sport — pod racing. Each racer rides a small cockpit craft pulled by (typically) two oversized thrust engines, across a dramatic landscape of mesas, canyons and caves, at an average speed of some 850 mph...
Just before the start of the race, the Boonta Eve Classic race of 32 BBY, the flags of each racer (or of his sponsor) are shown, paraded across the start line by one of each racer's ground crew — Anakin's flagholder being the robot C3PO (Cee Threepio).
The full list of podracers in the Boonta Classic edition featured in The
Phantom Menace seems to be of 25, compiled from several sources. I do not
know whether all of them were visible in the final cut of the movie, though.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 21 April 2001
In this page, we learn that the footage not included in the commercially released version of Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace included Podrace Intros where one could see and hear a bit more of the various characters involved in the race. This footage is apparently available. Could someone check, for any more detail on the sponsors' flags?
António Martins-Tuválkin, 13 September 2005
the Wookieepedia page mentioned here, does now include the flag designs! These come from the _The Official Star Wars Fact File_ and can be regarded as canonical, although they are still wordlessly added as an afterthought to the page, and individual racer's pages do not include them (yet).
Here, we can see some common features between some sponsors' flags and their pods' liveries.
Here we learn
that Podracers bore Huttese writing, as well as their displays, and
therefore we can speculate that at least some of the symbols on the flags
are Huttese-written.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
A white cloth, approx. 5:6, with a large squarish light blue horizontally
symmetrical emblem on the hoist (actually covering most of the flag) and a
golden monogram on the upper fly. Anakin Skywalker, a young human
(caucasian) male, is arguebly the main character of this movie.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
Five pennants hoisted together, each approx. 1:10 (thus totalizing approx.
1:2); the middle one is light yellow, the upper ones red, and the bottom
ones orange. Sometimes refered to as Ben Quadrinaros, this racer is that cartoon looking chap who never gets his craft on the air.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
A green flag approx. 2:5 hoisted under three white pennants, each approx.
1:10. This is one of the guys who plays at the Mos Espa casino, looks like a
cross between a pig and the Notre Dame hunchback.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
A red flag approx. 1:2 hoisted under two pennants, each approx. 1:10, the
top one light blue and the bottom one very dark blue. Dud Bolt is the one
looking like a cartoon wolf, he gets smashed by Selbulba.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
This flag is just like those of racers Gasgano, Neva Kee, Ebe Endocott, Boles Roor (with 3 streamers), and Wan Sandage (streamers at top and bottom).
Dud Bolt's craft is painted in the same light green as so many others, but it shows proeminent light blue rudders and red exhaustors, so that it more or less matches the colors of his flag. (See here and here.)
Gasgano is a Vulptereen podracer pilot; he actually works for Sebulba,
taking down other racers so his boss can win more easily. In Boonta Eve
Classic of 32 BBY he crashed during the third lap. More information at
the Wookiepedia.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 4 September 2009
image by António Martins-Tuválkin, 31 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
Ebe Endocott's sponsor flag consists of a long (1:2 or longer) plain rectangular cloth with 2 triangular streamers (about 1:10) above it all fixed to the same staff — just like racers Dud Bolt, Gasgano, Neva Kee and (with 3 streamers) Boles Roor. The main flag is light blue and the streamers, two of them, are red.
Ebe E. Endocott is a Triffian podracer; in the Boonta Eve Classic of 32
BBY he finished 4th. < http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Ebe_E._Endocott >
for more information.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 31 August 2008
Ebe Endocott's craft is painted in light blue, white, and red (with small
black logo or writing) which roughly matches the colors of his flag.
(See here.)
António Martins-Tuválkin, 1 September 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
A yellow flag approx. 1:2 hoisted under two red pennants, each approx. 1:10.
Gasgango is the skinny six armed character with funny glasses and emasculated
facial features.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
I'm afraid that the main cloth of this flag may be green instead. Truth is that the images here scanned from The Official Star Wars Fact File use remarkably off-key hues and comparing these depictions with the few of the actual flags seen on set yield disparate results. More on this later.
This flag is just like those of racers Dud Bolt, Neva Kee, Ebe Endocott, Boles Roor (with 3 streamers), and Wan Sandage (streamers at top and bottom).
Gasgano's craft is painted light green with some parts red and orange, which more or less matches the colors of his flag. (See here and here.)
Gasgano is a male Xexto podracer; he finished second in the
Boonta Eve Classic of 32 BBY. More information at
the Wookiepedia.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 3 September 2009
Green (?) flag with large orange device, approx. 4:5. Mars Guo is a grey
greenish character with big eyes, occipital crest and poodle face. His pod
is sabotaged by Sebulba.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
image by António Martins-Tuválkin, 31 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
Neva Kee's sponsor flag consists of a long (1:2 or longer) plain rectangular cloth with 2 triangular streamers (about 1:10) above it all fixed to the same staff just like racers Dud Bolt, Gasgano, Ebe Endocott, Boles Roor (with 3 streamers), and Wan Sandage (streamers at top and bottom). The main flag is medium blue and the streamers, two of them, are dark blue (topmost) and white.
Neva Kee's craft is painted in shades of blue, which roughly matches the colors of his flag. (see here)
Neva Kee is a Xamster podracer; in the Boonta Eve Classic of 32 BBY he
disappeared during the 2nd lap, while driving an unusual craft with the
pod (cockpit) located at the front end of the engines. More information
at the Wookiepedia.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 31 August 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
Light blue flag with a row of five intergral-sign-looking shapes, the hoist
side one red and the others white, approx. 4:5. Small and nearly blind,
Ratts is yet another casualty in this race.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
The only flag of the lot that deserves a vexillographic mention: red cloth
with a large square-tile yellow emblem on the hoist, and a black (or maybe
very very dark blue?) vertical stripe accross the fly. Approx. specs are
2+11+2 : 2+9+2+3+3 for the flag and 9:7 for the emblem. Selbulba is the
camel-spider cross like character that gets quite annoyed with Jar-jar
Binks' reckless behaviour in Mos Espa. He cheats a lot throughout the whole
race, but he's finnaly defeated (as usual).
António Martins, 21 April 2001
A golden flag with a white (?) irregular disc slightly intersecting the
hoist; on it, a red emblem issuan from the hoist. Teemto is the hogg like
racer — not unlike Jabba's guards from The Return of the Jedi, though
those are gammorreans, and Teemto is a veknoid.
António Martins, 21 April 2001
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
image by António Martins-Tuválkin, 2 September 2008
His flag can be seen here.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 29 August 2008
Wan Sandage's sponsor flag consists of a long (1:2 or longer) plain rectangular cloth with 2 triangular streamers (about 1:10), one above and the other below the main cloth, fixed to the same staff quite like racers with streamers at top only, like Neva Kee, Dud Bolt, Gasgano, Ebe Endocott, and Boles Roor (with 3 streamers). The main flag is yellow and the streamers are white.
Wan Sandage's craft is painted in shades pale green and pale yellow, which seems unrelated to the colors of his flag. (See here.)
Wan Sandage is a male Devlikk podracer (looks like a cartoon fox); in the
Boonta Eve Classic of 32 BBY he hired Aldar Beedo to eliminate Sebulba
but end up crashing in the third lap.
António Martins-Tuválkin, 2 September 2008