1982: STARLOG MAGAZINE ANNOUNCES THE DEAL TO SHOW STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE ON US NETWORK TV

From February 1982: STARLOG MAGAZINE reports on the CBS deal to show STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE on free-to-air network TV in the States.

It's hard to appreciate now quite what a big deal it was to see the Star Wars films on the small screen.

I suspect that Lucasfilm had a plan to follow the old - and well-established - Disney release plan of rolling out the same classics for theatrical re-release every generation or so.  A proven pre-VHS/ multi-channel TV method of getting maximum bang for their buck and topping up the company coffers for a fraction of the expense and risk of actually making a new movie.