50 Star Wars secrets that will blow your mind
By Josh Hill
16. Cliff Clavin Brought Cheers To Empire Strikes Back
John Ratzenberger made a name for himself on the hit series Cheers, but he has bounced around in basically every movie we ever loved from our childhood as well.
He is famous for appearing in throwaway roles in Pixar movies, and even had a larger role as Hamm the Piggy Bank in all three Toy Story movies. Just when you thought you had figured out all the movies Ratzenberger was in from your childhood, he pops up in The Empire Strikes Back.
Just like his later Pixar roles, Ratzenberger has a throwaway role as a Rebel base commander on Hoth. He’s briefly seen and has no real impact on the story at all. Still, he’s there, and that’s basically the career of Ratzenberger — he’s just there. To further tie things together, Pixar was originally created by George Lucas as a division of his special effects department, Industrial Lights and Magic.
So, not only is Ratzenberger connected to Star Wars thanks to his small role in The Empire Strikes Back, but the Pixar lineage that goes back to Lucas means the actor is even more engrained in Star Wars lore than we first thought.
Next: 15. Obi-Wan's Uncle Was A Rebel