| How My Tarkins Got Their Names, Or, How to Make a Lady Tarkin Action Figure |
Adrian? Typhani? Wait a minute, you might think, what happened to Wilhuff and
Thalassa?
It was summer 1978, and I, as well as most other young people of the time, found myself
captivated by the Star Wars phenomenon. I liked the Empire with its order, its power, and
especially the Imperial governor who commanded the Death Star and "held Vader's leash."
I did not, however, like the ending of A New Hope one bit. So I took up my pen, and an old
Royal manual typewriter, and changed things accordingly.
While I am most grateful and artfully indebted to Russ Manning for creating such a
wonderfully strong female Imperial character in Lady Tarkin, I actually preceeded him in
the task by more than a year. When his comic strips of Lady Tarkin came out in 1979, the
similarities between his creation and mine were so striking that, had I not known better, I
would have sworn that Mr. Manning had borrowed my notebooks! At last, the Empire had
a leading lady, an answer to that obnoxious Alderaani princess, and it was time for the
Tarkins to take back the galaxy! But something was still missing--their names!
Grand Moff Wilhuff Adrian Tarkin
Like many, I suppose, I initially took "Moff" to be the Governor's first name, but quickly
figured out otherwise as support materials began to be published. So, I grabbed a
baby-name book and settled on Adrian because of its dark meaning. To me, it just fit, and
in my fiction, that's the way he stayed for nearly 20 years. When West End Games came
out with Wilhuff in 1997, I found myself in a quandry. I loved it! In fact, Wilhelm had always
been one of my favorite male names; I even have another character by that name in one
of my non-Star Wars novels. But for nearly two decades, the Grand Moff had been Adrian
to me. Now what was I going to do? Well, Adrian had to move over a bit, but it had to stay
just because of how long I'd been writing.
Nymph of Darkness--Lady Thalassa Thanymphania Aradia Motti
Octovano
Lady Tarkin's name was another matter, and one of utter serendipity. Like Manning and
other authors, I envisioned Tarkin's wife as having long, black hair. At the time, I collected
unusual dolls and action figures, and I had this Tiffany Taylor doll--remember that one?
The top of the head turned so that the doll could have either long black or long blonde
hair. Set to black, she was the perfect complement to the GI-Joe doll I had adapted as her
husband. Tiffany Taylor-->Typhani Tarkin--it worked for me! And again, it stuck, so much
so that the possibly more appropriate first name of Morgana went to Tarkin's sister in my
story arc.
Indeed, I have been criticized roundly by many reviewers for Typhani's "trendy, earthy"
name. Changing the spelling of an earth-name does not an alien name make, cites one.
The history, its serendipity, and the fond memories were just too good to change it
outright. So again, I went back to the name books and found, to my delight, that "Tiffany"
is actually short for "Theophania," another earth-name in need of tweaking. I worked
backwards to the name I had giver her father, Baron Nostremi Thanatos Bileal Arbos
Octovano. (It is Lady Tarkin's mother who is the Motti in my storyline.) "Theophania"
means "manifestation of God." Anything with "than*" in it means death, such as the word
thanantology, which means "the study of death." Hence, Thanaphania would mean
"manifestation of death," and what more appropriate moniker for Lady Tarkin! But, in order
to be able to shorten the name to Typhani in its familiar form, I adjusted the letters one
more time, and there whence came Baroness Thanymphania Aradia Octovano, Lady
Typhani Tarkin--Manifestation of the Spirit of Darkness!
Now is where the serendipity--and the action figure--comes in. As soon as I saw one of
Russ Manning's drawings of his Lady Tarkin, I set upon the doll with creative frenzy and
my grandmother's sewing skills for the blue, jewel-encrusted dress. With this particular
doll, if you twisted the hair up just right, you could part the black strands ever so slightly
with your fingertips, allowing the blonde to just peek through, to give the graying
appearance in Manning's drawings! I couldn't believe how well it worked.
I regret that I no longer have my 11 1/2 inch Tarkin figures (though I do still have my large
Darth Vader). Several moves and the demands of real life caused them to disappear into
obscurity, and then likely into some box of odds and ends donated to a charity or left
behind in a basement. Now in my retirement, I have been able to return to this creative
endeavor, and my Tarkins are back!
Thalassa?
It was summer 1978, and I, as well as most other young people of the time, found myself
captivated by the Star Wars phenomenon. I liked the Empire with its order, its power, and
especially the Imperial governor who commanded the Death Star and "held Vader's leash."
I did not, however, like the ending of A New Hope one bit. So I took up my pen, and an old
Royal manual typewriter, and changed things accordingly.
While I am most grateful and artfully indebted to Russ Manning for creating such a
wonderfully strong female Imperial character in Lady Tarkin, I actually preceeded him in
the task by more than a year. When his comic strips of Lady Tarkin came out in 1979, the
similarities between his creation and mine were so striking that, had I not known better, I
would have sworn that Mr. Manning had borrowed my notebooks! At last, the Empire had
a leading lady, an answer to that obnoxious Alderaani princess, and it was time for the
Tarkins to take back the galaxy! But something was still missing--their names!
Grand Moff Wilhuff Adrian Tarkin
Like many, I suppose, I initially took "Moff" to be the Governor's first name, but quickly
figured out otherwise as support materials began to be published. So, I grabbed a
baby-name book and settled on Adrian because of its dark meaning. To me, it just fit, and
in my fiction, that's the way he stayed for nearly 20 years. When West End Games came
out with Wilhuff in 1997, I found myself in a quandry. I loved it! In fact, Wilhelm had always
been one of my favorite male names; I even have another character by that name in one
of my non-Star Wars novels. But for nearly two decades, the Grand Moff had been Adrian
to me. Now what was I going to do? Well, Adrian had to move over a bit, but it had to stay
just because of how long I'd been writing.
Nymph of Darkness--Lady Thalassa Thanymphania Aradia Motti
Octovano
Lady Tarkin's name was another matter, and one of utter serendipity. Like Manning and
other authors, I envisioned Tarkin's wife as having long, black hair. At the time, I collected
unusual dolls and action figures, and I had this Tiffany Taylor doll--remember that one?
The top of the head turned so that the doll could have either long black or long blonde
hair. Set to black, she was the perfect complement to the GI-Joe doll I had adapted as her
husband. Tiffany Taylor-->Typhani Tarkin--it worked for me! And again, it stuck, so much
so that the possibly more appropriate first name of Morgana went to Tarkin's sister in my
story arc.
Indeed, I have been criticized roundly by many reviewers for Typhani's "trendy, earthy"
name. Changing the spelling of an earth-name does not an alien name make, cites one.
The history, its serendipity, and the fond memories were just too good to change it
outright. So again, I went back to the name books and found, to my delight, that "Tiffany"
is actually short for "Theophania," another earth-name in need of tweaking. I worked
backwards to the name I had giver her father, Baron Nostremi Thanatos Bileal Arbos
Octovano. (It is Lady Tarkin's mother who is the Motti in my storyline.) "Theophania"
means "manifestation of God." Anything with "than*" in it means death, such as the word
thanantology, which means "the study of death." Hence, Thanaphania would mean
"manifestation of death," and what more appropriate moniker for Lady Tarkin! But, in order
to be able to shorten the name to Typhani in its familiar form, I adjusted the letters one
more time, and there whence came Baroness Thanymphania Aradia Octovano, Lady
Typhani Tarkin--Manifestation of the Spirit of Darkness!
Now is where the serendipity--and the action figure--comes in. As soon as I saw one of
Russ Manning's drawings of his Lady Tarkin, I set upon the doll with creative frenzy and
my grandmother's sewing skills for the blue, jewel-encrusted dress. With this particular
doll, if you twisted the hair up just right, you could part the black strands ever so slightly
with your fingertips, allowing the blonde to just peek through, to give the graying
appearance in Manning's drawings! I couldn't believe how well it worked.
I regret that I no longer have my 11 1/2 inch Tarkin figures (though I do still have my large
Darth Vader). Several moves and the demands of real life caused them to disappear into
obscurity, and then likely into some box of odds and ends donated to a charity or left
behind in a basement. Now in my retirement, I have been able to return to this creative
endeavor, and my Tarkins are back!
I never did find another Tiffany Taylor doll, but now at
least we have the real thing in Wilhuff Adrian. I created
the dark vixen in his arms by starting with a regular 11.5
inch fashion doll with long, black hair. I made the hair
slightly gray by dipping a cotton swab in bleach and
streaking it through the doll's hair. I used calligraphy ind
to alter the face a bit, creating those large, dark
Phelarian eyes with an appropriate amount of Imperial
eyeliner. The ink works better than paint; score the face
with a sharp nib first. Finally, I "aged" the face using a
battery-powered manicure tool with a soft rounded cone
tip. A power rotary tool is too powerful for the soft rubber
of a fashion doll face.
I knew, of course, that, eventually, if my name didn't get
picked up off the web, someone who writes canan
least we have the real thing in Wilhuff Adrian. I created
the dark vixen in his arms by starting with a regular 11.5
inch fashion doll with long, black hair. I made the hair
slightly gray by dipping a cotton swab in bleach and
streaking it through the doll's hair. I used calligraphy ind
to alter the face a bit, creating those large, dark
Phelarian eyes with an appropriate amount of Imperial
eyeliner. The ink works better than paint; score the face
with a sharp nib first. Finally, I "aged" the face using a
battery-powered manicure tool with a soft rounded cone
tip. A power rotary tool is too powerful for the soft rubber
of a fashion doll face.
I knew, of course, that, eventually, if my name didn't get
picked up off the web, someone who writes canan
would give her a first name. That author turned out to be Nathan O'Keefe in his short
story;historical backstory article, "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Praji," publishes in the Official
Site's Hyperspace section in February 2009. And he chose well. Thalassa is the name
of a sea goddess from Greek myth, as well as the name of one of the moons of
Neptune. I oft wonder if he read my site, what with the names being similar, any my
character name Lyscithea being a variation on the name of one of the moons of Jupiter.
I had planned for this eventuality, and so here's how it goes. Members of the Phelarian
nobility have five names:
To this end, many noble Phelarians lament their names, as they are often poked fun of
on the late-night holovids. In her youth, my rendition of Lady Tarkin often muses that she
wants to be just Typhani Tarkin, and nothing more.
Phelarian nobles also live with a strange sort of duality that confuses others, especially
if the bearer of the noble name chooses to be deceptive, in that they can be knows by
their maternal names or their paternal names. Ergo, Thalassa Motti is also
Thanymphania "Typhani" Octovano. Phelarian hovercraft licenses bear both maternal
and paternal name combinations to thwart crime.
This duality, and its potential for deception, is one thing that attracts Darth Sidious to the
young Typhani in my story arc.
story;historical backstory article, "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Praji," publishes in the Official
Site's Hyperspace section in February 2009. And he chose well. Thalassa is the name
of a sea goddess from Greek myth, as well as the name of one of the moons of
Neptune. I oft wonder if he read my site, what with the names being similar, any my
character name Lyscithea being a variation on the name of one of the moons of Jupiter.
I had planned for this eventuality, and so here's how it goes. Members of the Phelarian
nobility have five names:
- A first name given by the mother
- A first name given by the father
- The name of an ancestral deity
- The mother's maiden surname
- The father's surname
To this end, many noble Phelarians lament their names, as they are often poked fun of
on the late-night holovids. In her youth, my rendition of Lady Tarkin often muses that she
wants to be just Typhani Tarkin, and nothing more.
Phelarian nobles also live with a strange sort of duality that confuses others, especially
if the bearer of the noble name chooses to be deceptive, in that they can be knows by
their maternal names or their paternal names. Ergo, Thalassa Motti is also
Thanymphania "Typhani" Octovano. Phelarian hovercraft licenses bear both maternal
and paternal name combinations to thwart crime.
This duality, and its potential for deception, is one thing that attracts Darth Sidious to the
young Typhani in my story arc.
- asdfsadfasdf
Old photos, not so great, of when I first re-created Lady Thalassa as she appears in
"Princess Leia, Imperial Servant."
"Princess Leia, Imperial Servant."
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