Toby Philpott, 67, was the operator of the animatronic Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi (1983). That fame gives him a lot of contract with Star Wars fans, but, he adds, “I can go shopping and no-one ever recognises me as Jabba . . .”
Mr. Philpott began his professional career as a street performer in Mexico. Then he was a clown in London and a puppeteer in Jim Henson’s workshop. It was from that contact that he secured a role in the third Star Wars film. Mr. Philpott notes that George Lucas treated him and his three colleagues in the Jabba rig as one performer:
"The challenge was working together so Jabba looked like one sentient creature, and not four guys in a tent.These days, he teaches computer classes at the central public library in Cardiff, Wales, UK.
"So we'd get George Lucas to address Jabba rather than us individually which did freak him out a bit at first."
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