Enid Comic Con featured celebrities share ‘once in a lifetime” Star Wars roles | National News

Aug. 7 – ENID, Oklahoma – The Dark Lord of the Sith is visiting Enid this weekend, but he hasn’t packed his suit. This is purely a pleasure trip.

C. Andrew Nelson, award-winning actor, author, motivational speaker, and visual effects artist, is a prominent figure along with Alan Fernandez, who played a Tusken Raider in the original Star Wars at Enid Comic-Con.

The annual event began Saturday at the Stride Bank Center and runs from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Sunday. Admission tickets are $10.

Darth Vader

Nelson is best known for his portrayal of Darth Vader in the special edition re-release of the original Star Wars trilogy, as well as in the games Rebel Assault II and Dark Forces published by LucasArts. He even voiced the role of Luke Skywalker for video games when Mark Hamill was unavailable, completing the full like father, like son circle.

“I was in the right place at the right time and at the right height,” said the 6ft, 5in tall Nelson as he began to don the Darth Vader suit. When asked why he didn’t bring the suit to Enid, Nelson replied that because he didn’t own it, “not even a glove”.

He said Lucasfilm, where he worked in the early half of the 1990s, was looking for someone to play the part for a charity event at the time, and the suit fitted.

Nelson thought it was “a once in a lifetime opportunity” to play the legendary Dark Lord, but it turns out it wasn’t his only time.

“They kept calling me back. Seventy times.”

He said after a while his wife made him count. He has been said to have spent more hours in Darth Vader’s suit than anyone in the last 25 years.

Nelson was six days short of his 15th birthday when he waited in line for more than two hours to get a ticket to “Star Wars,” about three weeks after the film’s premiere in 1977. He recalls watching the opening scene and decided he wanted to make a living, even though back then those who were developing the special effects were creating the job description.

Born in the San Francisco area, Nelson was drawing at age 6, acting at 10, and animation at 12.

“I just couldn’t choose what I wanted to do, so I did everything because nobody told me I couldn’t do it,” he said, adding that he’s always happy to tell people, “I’m a ordinary guy, he can do extraordinary things.”

Between raiders

While Nelson was queuing at the movies, Alan Fernandes had just had his “chance of a lifetime” when he played one of the Tusken Raiders in the original film.

Fernandes was an animal trainer at the time, and he says there was no try-out for the role. It came as a package deal with Marji, one of the elephants playing the bantha mounts in the film, which were ridden by the Tusken Raiders. As her trainer, he was the Raider who rode her, and the rider and his mount are seen in the opening minutes when the Tusken Raiders are introduced in the George Lucas film.

“George wanted an elephant and I came with the elephant,” said Fernandes.

Fernandes said he’s worked with other films and in other coaching capacities, but never on the scale of something like Star Wars. He said he was told by film officials that he is the last surviving Tusken Raider actor from the original film.

After the film, he continued his work as a coach, married, started his own business and eventually retired. He was just recovering from an accident when a friend took him to Lucas’ ranch and he became interested in making public appearances at Comic Con. However, he only started doing these gigs about three years ago.

“I love doing it,” said Fernandes. “Just looking at the smiles of the children – that makes me happy.”

Enid Comic Con

Just inside the security entrance to the annual Enid Comic Con, Clint Randolph meets customers interested in buying and selling comics and memorabilia at his booth.

“This is my show,” Randolph said, raising his hands to embrace the more than 45 vendors positioned throughout the Stride Bank Center’s event arena. When asked about his capacity at the event, Randolph responds with a smile, “Founder, creator, whatever you want to call it. King, we go with King.”

He’s been bringing Comic Con to Enid for five years, and this year’s event is on par with last year’s opening day, he said, as the crowds continue to grow as more COVID-19 shines in the rearview mirror.

Randolph said the show attracts vendors from a variety of states, including Oklahoma, Texas and Colorado. Although the main interests remain comics, superheroes and sci-fi, there are also craft and food stalls settling down for the weekend.

He only has two main rules for sellers, he said: No nudity and no drug-related items. His family-friendly shows include toys, comics, “everything you can think of,” he said, and it’s designed for dress-up and cosplay and for families to have a good time.

One of the local vendors that fits this year is highlighting the Enid Public Schools esports program.

Enid High School Esports team members will operate a booth to demonstrate virtual reality and gaming programs and donor and sponsorship needs, said Christopher Parker, esports coach and coordinator for the EHS and middle school programs.

He said esports gives some students who may not be physical or competitive a chance to shine, and the group is pretty much for everyone. And with the addition of VR or virtual reality devices, “video games aren’t just about sitting and unplugging.”

Esports encourages academic skills, team building and critical thinking, Parker said. The program started at EHS in the fall of 2019 and the first year has been great, he said. Since then, the team has rebuilt in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and 54 returning to the high school program in the coming year expect the program to nearly double in numbers among interested freshmen.

“My great thing about the program is that anyone can participate,” said Parker.

Esports is now in the EPS middle schools, with last year playing Rocket League games. This year, middle schools will play Rocket League in the fall and Super Smash Brothers in the spring, Parker said.

Fall high school games include Clash Royale, Call of Duty: Vanguard, CS:GO, Rainbow 6 (PC), Halo Infinite, Valorant, Super Smash Brothers (Duos), and Fortnite (4v4v4v4 Zone). The spring schedule includes games in Overwatch 2, Apex Legends, Call of Duty: MW2, Super Smash Brothers (Solos), Beat Sabre, Knockout City, Paladins, Rainbow 6 (X-Box), and Fortnite (2v2v2v2 Box).

He said the adult games are geared towards seniors and include a guardian waiver. But there are many other games for all students in the program. He said they play on different days and tournaments to keep numbers manageable and make it more inclusive for everyone.

The high school will also host a tournament among Oklahoma public school programs.

“They (students) are going to be playing video games at home anyway,” Parker said, adding that with esports, they do it in a constructive, social way in a safe environment.

The Esports booth will be there on Comic Con Sunday for anyone interested to learn more about the program.

(c)2022 the Enid News & Eagle (Enid, Okla.)

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