Sideshow Hoth Han Solo (Echo Base)

[Rorywan]

If you get the book by Brandon Alinger/ LFL Archives regarding original trilogy costumes.......the jacket is featured full page spread professional photograph. It is confirmed BROWN.

I saw this jacket many times in person, and I can say its without a doubt 100% brown.

Hope this helps.

We've been through all this before. The jacket was a brown pre-existing arctic woollen coat, required for filming in Norway. It was dyed blue for the movie, the dye didn't take to the wool and the original brown showed through depending on the lighting. The museum display coat (which is now completely brown) still shows blue dye residue on the stitching and folds.
Everyone is right. The coat is blue. the coat is brown.

But it was intended to be navy blue, as per McQuarries original sketches and the fact that navy/blue is Solo's color in Star Wars. His pants in ANH, his Bespin jacket in ESB, his vest in Jedi. yada yada.

 

[SithThundercracker]

We've been through all this before. The jacket was a brown pre-existing arctic woollen coat, required for filming in Norway. It was dyed blue for the movie, the dye didn't take to the wool and the original brown showed through depending on the lighting. The museum display coat (which is now completely brown) still shows blue dye residue on the stitching and folds.
Everyone is right. The coat is blue. the coat is brown.
But it was intended to be navy blue, as per McQuarries original sketches and the fact that navy/blue is Solo's color in Star Wars. His pants in ANH, his Bespin jacket in ESB, his vest in Jedi. yada yada.

Except for the sketches (that are not in the movie) these are your personal conjectures vs a real brown movie prop & real brown screen grabs.

Regardless of screen or prop accuracy, the blue has the nostalgia factor.

Never underestimate the Kenner factor.

Yup! Trumps nerds and their screen shots 100%. Loved that figure.

Everyone has the right to prefer blue for whatever reason. Probably it's even a more "Solo color" than brown. It' just not blue in the movie.

Why don't you write Ford and ask him what color it is?

If he answers brown I bet someone will say that he's too old to remember, that he's selectively color blind or that he wore brown indeed but his stunt double was covering for him in the whole scene wearing a long time lost blue parka.

 

[Rorywan]

Except for the sketches (that are not in the movie) these are your personal conjectures...

You mean the blue coat in the concept art for the movie? The Ralph McQuarrie previsualisation? Sure. Whatever.

And the blue residue remaining even today on the displayed museum coat? Sure.

Yes, all personal conjecture of mine. Of course you are right. Brown it was.

 

[Niltusk]

If he answers brown I bet someone will say that he's too old to remember, that he's selectively color blind or that he wore brown indeed but his stunt double was covering for him in the whole scene wearing a long time lost blue parka.

I'm sure his answer would be more along the lines of who gives a flying ****. Also, if you're talking actual used screen props, the mini props of Hoth Han have blue coats to this day, of course they were hand made for the flick not dyed to match concept. But again, I saw ESB once in the theatre and once in the drive in, we played with the figure daily, which was more important at the time than a screen used prop, care less what nerdss think now that they have the luxury to rehash and look at screengrabs, I didn't know anyone back in the day that had an issue with our figures coat colors.

 

[Rorywan]

I'm sure his answer would be more along the lines of who gives a flying ****. Also, if you're talking actual used screen props, the mini props of Hoth Han have blue coats to this day, of course they were hand made for the flick not dyed to match concept. But again, I saw ESB once in the theatre and once in the drive in, we played with the figure daily, which was more important at the time than a screen used prop, care less what nerdss think now that they have the luxury to rehash and look at screengrabs, I didn't know anyone back in the day that had an issue with our figures coat colors.

Yes exactly, why on gods earth would the mini animatronic Solos have blue coats. When the brief was to make them as realistic as possible. I guess that was a mistake as well. There is a load of irrefutable evidence there, but I guess some folk just want to see things as they remember. Which is cool.

 

[marker2037]

People have just made up their own minds so it's a moot discussion at this point. Whatever everyone thinks it is, well then they should get that color.

Me, I think it's blue. I always thought it was blue. I even watched it again a few weeks ago and going in I kept the mindset to be open to the color I actually saw. While I saw some brown in some shots, I still came to the conclusion that it's supposed to be blue and for the majority of the scenes looks blue too.

So I'm going with blue.

 

[Niltusk]

I just go with my childhood memories, if someone else cherishes the memories of a brown coat, I'm just glad SSC is doing them both to make fans happy.

 

[DarthAlias]

I'll do a screen grab of Harmy ESB on my 4K tv.

 

[Wor-Gar]

Did someone say Blue coat?

 

[Rorywan]

Did someone say Blue coat?

Say "blue coat" 3 times in the mirror and Wor-Gar appears...


(As do I)

 

[Wor-Gar]

You! Rorywan! The Blue King! Aqua Spawn! The Indigo Invader!

I knew you would be behind the resurrection of... the Blue Lie.

 

[Niltusk]

Say "blue coat" 3 times in the mirror and Wor-Gar appears...


(As do I)

Wait, is Worgar that demon thing from the Dio album covers? Scary sucker

 

[Wor-Gar]

If its brown....

 

[Hollywood]

We've been through all this before. The jacket was a brown pre-existing arctic woollen coat, required for filming in Norway. It was dyed blue for the movie, the dye didn't take to the wool and the original brown showed through depending on the lighting. The museum display coat (which is now completely brown) still shows blue dye residue on the stitching and folds.
Everyone is right. The coat is blue. the coat is brown.

But it was intended to be navy blue, as per McQuarries original sketches and the fact that navy/blue is Solo's color in Star Wars. His pants in ANH, his Bespin jacket in ESB, his vest in Jedi. yada yada.

Wrong.

The jacket was never dyed. It has been, and will be brown.

Not sure where people come up with thier info......

 

[Mad Old Lu]

I personally don't doubt the jacket used was that grey/brown jacket. BUT what if they used that brown color knowing the lighting would change it to blue on film! So it's not so much what the prop color was, but what color it was intended to look like on film!

 

[Rorywan]

Forget about what things look like on film, the color of lighting, the color grading.
I work in the film industry the idea of making a brown coat with the expectation of it coming out blue with lighting is just nonsense.

Just acknowledge the physical evidence:
(A) McQuarrie drew a blue coat.
(B) ILM made a blue coat for the animatronic miniature.
(C) The actual coat still has blue residue on it although it is now generally medium brown after decades, it was never the current shade of brown in the movies incidentally. So it was dyed one way or another.

End of story.

 

[SithThundercracker]

Lol.
"physical evidence" A is not in the movie, B is blue and C is a completely brown coat. Everything else is conjectures based on randomly contrasted pictures.
Yes B is indeed blue, but is on screen for 10 seconds in the background during a fake snowstorm. Could have been any dark color including black. Also Luke's equivalent has not the correct costume color too.
But if someone would say blue is screen accurate because of the miniature it would be hard to deny...

 

[Jack Bauer]

But it was intended to be navy blue, as per McQuarries original sketches and the fact that navy/blue is Solo's color in Star Wars. His pants in ANH, his Bespin jacket in ESB, his vest in Jedi. yada yada.

Actually, according to the new Star Wars Costumes book by Brandon Alinger, the ESB Bespin Jacket is not blue, it is stone gray, and appeared blue on film, but the pic in the book shows it pretty well. Also the new ANOVOS Han Solo Bespin Costume has a gray jacket and theirs is based off the original. Having also seen the Hoth parka with my own eyes its definitely brown and doesn't appear to be have even been dyed. It was hard for me to accept the brown Hoth coat and the gray Bespin jacket since in my mind from the time I was 5 they have always been blue, but they are and were not. Solo's Endor vest is definitely black.

 

[karamazov80]

Yeah, it was so obviously blue. Those poor, deluded souls who argued that it was brown owe the rest of us an apology.

 

[Hollywood]

Forget about what things look like on film, the color of lighting, the color grading.
I work in the film industry the idea of making a brown coat with the expectation of it coming out blue with lighting is just nonsense.

Just acknowledge the physical evidence:
(A) McQuarrie drew a blue coat.
(B) ILM made a blue coat for the animatronic miniature.
(C) The actual coat still has blue residue on it although it is now generally medium brown after decades, it was never the current shade of brown in the movies incidentally. So it was dyed one way or another.

End of story.

I respect your opinion, and since you would like "facts" here are a few:

1. I have seen the coat multiple times in person, and even handled the coat on several occasions. Once in 1994, 2001, 2006 most recently in 2010. The color has always been the same.
2. LFL Archives has stated on numerous occasions that the jacket (which was custom made) has always been brown from first day on set to end of production
3. LFL Books in conjunction with Brandon Alinger just released a book detailing the costumes of the original trilogy......in that book the jacket is featured full spread with the same information regarding its color, and the reason that the jacket appears blue on screen. As someone who works in the industry you understand gel lighting and its affects on wardrobe.
4. Per Phil Tippet himself.........to his knowledge the coat was made in blue to match the dailies that were being used to assist the stop motion process.
5. There is NO blue dye in the seams of the jacket, and there are no indications of the jacket having been any other color than brown in person.
6. LFL ESB wardrobe records clearly marked Han Solo's jacket as brown.

Now these are indeed "facts" and are not personal interpretations of any fans. If this is not enough fact then no amount will be.

I am not trying to convince you in anyway, but you asked for facts. Have you actually seen the jacket in person? If so then there would be no confusion as to what color it was made from/ and still is.