Now, though, instead of being sold at auction, Mayhew’s old items will go to the late actor’s foundation and then be displayed at a Texas toy store dedicated to “Star Wars.”
Mayhew, center, played Chewbacca in several “Star Wars” films, appearing last in 2015’s “The Force Awakens.” Credit: Lucasefilm/Bad Robot/Walt Disney Studios/Kobal/Shutterstock
Within days of Angie Mayhew’s tweets and a chorus of “Star Wars” fans’ differing opinions on what to do with the items, the auction was called off. Ryedale Auctioneers head Angus Ashworth said in a statement to CNN that the couple who uncovered the “Star Wars” memorabilia in their attic were “quite happy to donate” the lot of items to the Peter Mayhew Foundation to have in its collection, “not for profit, so that fans can access it in perpetuity.”
“I can only apologise to all of the Star Wars (sic) fans who had already shown great interest in owning a bit of film history!” Ashworth said.
As for Mayhew’s souvenirs from his stint as Chewbacca, the foundation’s philanthropy director, Matthew Egan, told CNN that the items will be displayed at the Holocron Toy Store in Fort Worth, Texas, a popular “Star Wars” shop Egan said has donated more than $300,000 in “Star Wars” toys that the foundation then distributed to patients at children’s hospitals and to shelters for women who have experienced domestic violence.
Top image: Peter Mayhew, who played Chewbacca for decades in “Star Wars” films, left several scripts and memorabilia from his time on the films in his former home’s attic
Source: www.cnn.com