414

414. Imperial Scout Trooper "Biker Scout" Helmet ### STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983)

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:125,000.00 USD Estimated At:250,000.00 - 500,000.00 USD
414. Imperial Scout Trooper  Biker Scout  Helmet ### STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983)
Please note that all bids placed through 3rd party platforms and not
propstoreauction.com, will be subject to a buyer's expense of 5%.
STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983) - Imperial Scout Trooper "Biker Scout" Helmet - A biker scout helmet from Richard Marquand's Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. Biker scouts, or scout troopers as they were otherwise known, first appeared in Return of the Jedi and were stationed on the forest moon of Endor. Luke (Mark Hamill), Han (Harrison Ford), Leia (Carrie Fisher) and their Ewok allies fought against the troopers, who used speeder bikes as their primary mode of transportation.

One of the most beloved helmet designs in the franchise, the biker scout helmets were largely designed by Nilo Rodis-Jamero and are significantly different to the standard Imperial stormtrooper helmets. During the initial design phase, the Stormtrooper armor was found to be too stiff and inflexible for a predominately forest setting. The scout troopers needed ease of movement in their environment. Rodis-Jamero pitched the mostly-cloth outfit to George Lucas, while Pete Ronzani's team created the armored helmet, torso, arm, and knee guards which lended to the unique "biker" appearance of the costume. The visor around the eyes was inspired by blinders worn by horses, with the idea being that if they were speeding through the forest at great speeds they would need to be entirely focussed and not distracted by things in their periphery.

This is one of two known scout trooper helmets that exist in private collections out of the 24-30 that were made and used for filming. As such, this is an incredibly rare opportunity to own an iconic piece of Star Wars history.

This helmet is constructed primarily of vacuum-formed ABS plastic. The visor lens is made of gray acrylic and is attached to the inside of the helmet. The face mask is hinged and can flip up, which was a practical design implemented by Rodis-Jamero based on a conversation with Lucas to allow the actors to keep the helmets on between takes. It also gave the helmet a more streamlined appearance circumventing the "bobblehead" effect the Imperial Stormtrooper helmets had. The interior of this helmet is hand-marked "#41 Biker BH1030" on the dome interior, which stands for "Blue Harvest." The exterior side of the helmet has a sideways "PR" logo on the side, which was Ronzani's company logo at the time. The helmets were intentionally distressed by production to appear well-worn in the environment of Endor. The helmet is fully painted, and thus not susceptible to yellowing like standard stormtrooper helmets are.

This helmet exhibits a notably a crack in the middle of the visor, as well as the decals on the back of the helmet have partially worn away and remain in a delicate condition. Dimensions: 13" x 10" x 10" (33 cm x 25 cm x 25 cm)

Estimate: $250,000 - 500,000

Bidding for this lot will end on Thursday, August 15th. The auction will begin at 9:30AM PDT and lots are sold sequentially via live auctioneer; tune in to the live streaming broadcast on auction day to follow the pace. Note other lots in the auction may close on Friday, August 16th, Saturday, August 17th or Sunday, August 18th.