Who knew Tories were suchStar Warsgeeks?

Battlestar Galactica

Capitalizing on theStar Warsphenomenon, ABC debuted its own gee-whiz space operaBattlestar Galacticain 1978.

The circle is now complete.

When Margaret Thatcher was elected prime minister of the U.K. on May 4, 1979, the Conservative Party took out a newspaper ad in the London

Rolls Press/Getty Images

But franchise-specific parodies really took off only afterStar Wars, led by Brooks’Spaceballs–for better or worse.

On a brighter note,Star Warshas inspired geeky hilarity on the small screen from30 RocktoRobot Chicken.

Cochran unveils his Chewbacca defense in court, asking why a Wookiee from Kashyyyk would live on Endor.

Battlestar Galactica (TV Show - 1978) | Capitalizing on the Star Wars phenomenon, ABC debuted its own gee-whiz space opera Battlestar Galactica in 1978. A battle more fierce than humans vs. Cylons

Everett Collection

No relevance to the case, you say?

It’s a perfect send-up of the derailment tactics Cochran used during the O.J.

A Real Jedi Order?

Ronald Reagan was inspired by Grand Moff Tarkin to create the Strategic Defense Initiative, nicknamed Star Wars by Ted Kennedy. It was a national antiballistic

Penelope Breese/Getty Images

In the 2001 U.K. census, 390,000 Brits listed their religion as ‘‘Jedi.’’

The Force is strong, huh?

The CNN Hologram

Sadly, we still don’t have lightsabers.

Star Wars not only created the pop-mythology template aspired to by every subsequent movie franchise, it spawned artists who’ve changed the face of cinema. Like

Merrick Morton

Or Mr. Chips-accented protocol droids.

And the space program isn’t going to be making the jump to light speed anytime soon.

But we did getwill.i.amas a hologram on CNN during their 2008 election coverage.

Toy Story 2 | The can-do-no-wrong studio behind instant-classics like Toy Story , Finding Nemo , and Up was founded by George Lucas in 1979 as the Graphics Group,

The Force is With Gaga

It really shouldn’t surprise anyone thatLady Gagais aStar Warsfan.

After all, she could easily exchange outfits with Queen Amidala and nobody would be the wiser.

Spaceballs | Okay, the movie parody existed before Star Wars with films like What’s Up Tiger Lily? and, well, the Mel Brooks canon poking fun at overripe

Everett Collection

South Park | Perhaps the most ingenious reference to that Galaxy Far, Far Away occurred in the season 2 South Park episode ‘‘Chef Aid,’’ in which Chef is

Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace | In the 2001 U.K. census, 390,000 Brits listed their religion as ‘‘Jedi.’’ The Force is strong, huh? Actually, most of those citing kinship with Qui-Gon

Lucasfilm Ltd.

Sadly, we still don’t have lightsabers. Or floating cars. Or Mr. Chips-accented protocol droids. And the space program isn’t going to be making the jump

Lady Gaga | It really shouldn’t surprise anyone that Lady Gaga is a Star Wars fan. After all, she could easily exchange outfits with Queen Amidala and nobody

Barry King/WireImage.com