I'm wondering about something here just lately.....ever since Star Wars: Episode 2 came out, I've been hearing about this "silver leg" that C3PO has "always" had.
See, as a 37 year old, I can proudly claim to be one of the ORIGINAL Star Wars fans. Three times (much to the ire of my dad, who couldn't understand why I'd want to pay to see the same movie three times) in the summer of 1977, I eagerly plopped down my $1.50 for a matinee, $4.00 for a pop and some popcorn and hunkered down in my seat at the old Victoria Theater on Market Street. I was transported to "A Galaxy Far, Far Away....." where I thrilled to every word spoken by heroes and villains alike.
As my love of the Star Wars universe grew, I l read absolutely everything I could lay hands on that dealt with it. I read "making of" stuff, interviews with cast and the most obscure crew members, detailed descriptions of planets, characters, ships, everything.
I frantically collected five complete series of the Topps bubblegum cards (25 cents for a pack of 10---and a sticker, too!---at the Kom-Pak store across the street from my house; try finding them for that now) and panted at the rumors of a possible (ohpleaseohpleaseohplease) sequel, one that would NOT be called "Star Wars 2". I read every detail I could.
Despite all that, I never, not once, remember seeing or hearing reference to See-Threepio having a silver leg. Yet, since the last movie, or maybe since the re-release of the original in 1997, perhaps, I've been hearing about it as if he's always had it.
I think it was a gimmick, digitally added into the reditions. Since Threepio was going to be constructed out of junk by Anakin Skywalker, Lucas wanted there to be some sort of reference to it in the "later years" depicted in the first three films. I personally don't think he had that silver leg in 1976, '79 or 82, when each of the movies was being made. I think, as I said, that it was digitally altered later on.
Not sure why this bugs me so much, but it does. Anybody else out there ever remember hearing anything about it?
Opinions? I'm wide open on this one.