Patty Maloney, who played Chewbacca’s son Lumpy on The Star Wars Holiday Special, has passed away March 31st, 2025 at the age of 89.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While the original Star Wars is about the adventures of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia, the Holiday Special is at heart the story of the simple home life of Chewbacca and his family…and in particular, Lumpy – his ambitious and rambunctious son. The 3′ 11″ actress was perfect for the part, due to her background in physical movement with acting, allowing her to convey emotions while often hidden behind a costume and mask. Part of this was with her physical body, and part of it was through creature designer Stan Winston’s animatronics for Lumpy’s face, which had to be operated through wires while Patty was in the costume. A difficult and tedious task, but Patty pulled it off amazingly well and sold the performance.

Patty had a long and storied career that included roles on shows like Far Out Space Nuts, Little House On The Prairie, The Love Boat, Charlie’s Angels, and Trapper John, M.D. and Tales From The Crypt, in addition to being in The Star Wars Holiday Special in 1978. She started experiencing health problems in 2010, and had been in hospice care in Winter Park, Florida when she died.

During the 30th anniversary of the Holiday Special back in 2008 we had a lovely interview with Patty Maloney regarding her work and in particular her work on the Special. You can read the original interview here.

Also, here is a video clip from the fan mockumentary Hanlet: Episode 4 & 1/2 – Attack of the Phantom Special, by brothers Jacob and Jake Adams, featuring an interview with Patty Maloney.