A new “Star Wars” movie means new names for new places and characters. Poe Dameron. Finn. Rey. Takodana. Jakku.
And all of these newly revealed monikers must feel like they”ve always been part of the “Star Wars” we”ve known since a long time ago.
So it may surprise you (or not, if you really know your J.J. Abrams catalog) that the director snuck one his most frequently used Easter Eggs into “The Force Awakens” when naming a new location in this “verse. It flows past in a stream of dialogue so naturally that you may not even catch it, but we”ll point it out to you so you can notice and appreciate this nod to Abrams” past. (Don”t fret – no spoilers here!)
Listen carefully when Rey is talking to BB-8 just after we first see her with the little droid. Rey points out their surroundings to him, and she says “stay off Kelvin Ridge.” Kelvin – not named for the mathematical physicist and engineer, the namesake of the Kelvin temperature scale. Harry Kelvin was the name of Abrams” grandfather – a man the filmmaker was very close to, who gave him the infamous, never-to-be-opened magic box.
That personal Easter Egg has found its way into many other Abrams projects. In his 2009 “Star Trek” film, Kirk is born aboard the U.S.S. Kelvin. The starship”s registry number (NCC-0514) nods to Kelvin”s birthday.
“Lost” featured a character named Kelvin Joe Inman, a member of the DHARMA Initiative played by Clancy Brown.
Walter and William Bell worked on programs at a firm called Kelvin Genetics in “Fringe.”
In “Mission: Impossible III,” Ethan Hunt receives a postcard addressed to “H. Kelvin.”
In “Super 8,” the name is on the convenience store/gas station.
And now Grandpa Kelvin has one more nod for his growing collection from his grandson”s roster of blockbusters.
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