On Star Wars as black and white silent film

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Suitably Monochrome Space – 54mm SciFi gaming figures

Musing over my Close Little Space Wars / Not Quite Star Wars 54mm gaming project,

I have finally found proof of a dimly recalled childhood memory about not being able to afford to buy black and white silent film clip reels of Star Wars for the home movie projector.

Ten pounds of saved pocket money c. 1978

A film clip (and projector) would have involved serious saving of pocket money, which I instead spent on toy soldiers or one new Star Wars action figure a month.

What would Star Wars have been like as an early Wellsian SciFi black and white silent film?

How would Star Wars have turned out if George Lucas had been making it as a silent film in the 1910s or 1920s?

A little such film clip from YouTube.

What would its musical accompaniment by a cinema pianist have sounded like?

I found some interesting blogs, more film clips and what could be the silent cinema music piano score?

Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/05/31/star-wars-as-black-and-white-silent-film/

Tenth Blogaversary and May the 25th be with you

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Over on Man of TIN Blog Two,

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com

The ‘looking back to 2016’ social media trend … and my tenth blogaversary on Star Wars Day (May the 25th be with you!)

I have been reflecting on the “Looking back to 2016” social media trend, which takes me back to my first postings on this, My Man of TIN blog.

First post 25 May 2016, which also coincides with another Star Wars Day, Galactic Hitchhikers Towel Day and Geek Pride Day. But I didn’t know that …

What has changed with (my) gaming since 2016 and what remains the same in 2026?

Thanks to all my Readers for their support and comments since 2016. Mark Man of TIN .

Remnant Imperial Snow Troopers in 54mm?

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A Mandalorian and Grogu Star Wars movie trailer glimpse of some new old Imperial Snow trooper ‘remnants’, a bit weathered and worn like my 54mm versions …

Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/05/20/new-remnant-imperial-snow-troopers-and-ww2-german-paratroops/

Star Wars Rebel Snow Troopers more 54mm conversions

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More figure conversions and head swaps changing German Paratroops into German Mountain Troops and vice versa,

then more ‘Carry on Converting’, making six more Rebel snow troopers from the snowy Battle Of Hoth in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (Episode V).

Crossposted from my fully colour illustrated Man of TIN Blog Two post:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/05/09/more-star-wars-rebel-snow-trooper-conversions-from-54mm-airfix-figures/

Real WW2 weapons used in Star Wars films?

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Having recently been converting Star Wars Rebel snow troopers out of WW2 Airfix figures, I was interested to read about how the Star Wars designers and armourers modified existing WW2 weapons into laser pistols and blasters for the film.

My recent Star Wars reading …

Apologies to my blog readers – This blog post is a day late as it was scheduled for yesterday, May The Fourth (go with you) or Happy International Star Wars Day. Alternatively, this post is almost three weeks early as this also happens again on May 25th, another Star Wars / Towel / Geek Pride Day!

Read more / Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/05/04/ww2-weapons-designs-used-in-star-wars/

May the Fourth, a spurious excuse to show a photo of some of my battered play-worn first Star Wars figures collected c. 1977/78, which all started I think with R2-D2.

Brian Aldiss, Buccaneer and Pirates!

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Science Fiction writer Brian Aldiss on his reworking of a favourite pre-war Waddington’s Buccaneer, a pirate board game that I remember playing as a child in the 1970s.

Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/05/02/brian-aldiss-buccaneer-and-pirates/

DIY Star Wars Rebel Snow Trooper conversions

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54mm Star Wars rough and ready conversion fun, turning Matchbox copies of Afrika Korps from the hot deserts of North Africa and old Airfix German Mountain Troops into Rebel Alliance Snow Troopers on the snowy planet of Hoth …

Crossposted from my fullly colour illustrated Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/04/25/diy-star-wars-rebel-snow-trooper-conversions/

Stranger Things Snowballing Tales of 85

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Stranger Things is back (and snowy) in animated form on Netflix. I have enjoyed the first animated episode slipped into Winter 1985 between series Two and Three.

But not like (as cheap as) this …

This is my much cheaper AI Stranger Things meets the Brontes mash up version …

Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/04/24/stranger-things-snowballing-tales-from-85/

Brian Aldiss, H.G. Wells, Floor Games and Little Wars

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An occasional question on people’s blogs and comments: Where will all our lead toy soldiers go when we die?

British Science Fiction writer Brian Aldiss was an admirer of H.G. Wells, and owned a 1931 copy of Floor Games which is now in my library or toy soldier collection.

His daughter the photographer Wendy Aldiss photographed all his possessions after he died as a project called My Father’s Things.

See more here / Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/04/22/brian-aldiss-h-g-wells-floor-games-and-little-wars/

Tiffany New York RetroTech shiny space figures

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I won’t be buying these scarce colourful and collectable figures by Jacques Cuypers at these prices but they give me an idea of how I might paint shiny gloss space figures.

Crossposted from my Man of TIN Blog Two:

https://manoftinblogtwo.wordpress.com/2026/04/18/tiffany-retrotech-space-figures-colourful-aliens-54mm/

Posted by Mark Man of TIN, 18 April 2026