May The 4th Be With You
Trademark: May The 4th Be With You
First Used: May 4, 2013
Registered: September 2014
Current Owner: Lucasfilm Entertainment Company Ltd. LLC (DISNEY) [1]
Trademark Type: traditional trademark; word mark
A Trademark For: fan club services [2]; shirts and tops [3]; online retail and retail store services featuring action figures and accessories therefor, toy building blocks, collectable toy figures, toy action figures and accessories therefor, toy vehicles, toy figures, toy weapons, and toy building structures [4]; and action figures and accessories therefor; toy building blocks; collectable toy figures; toy action figures and accessories therefor; toy vehicles; toy figures; toy weapons; toy building structures [5]
Brief (and likely incomplete) History [6]:
The calendar has officially turned to May and Star Wars Day is just a few days away: May The 4th Be With You®! Fans use the day to celebrate the Star Wars franchise and all things related to it, from Darth Vader® to the Lightsaber®, and everything in-between.
The phrase “May The Fourth Be With You” originated as a pun on the famous Star Wars line “May the Force be with you.” The earliest documented use dates back to May 4, 1979 (hot off the heels of the original Star Wars movie), when the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom took out a newspaper ad to congratulate Margaret Thatcher on becoming Prime Minister: “May the Fourth Be With You, Maggie. Congratulations.” Though not originally associated with the broader Star Wars fan community, the pun caught on and began appearing informally among fans over the years, particularly as Star Wars grew into a global cultural phenomenon.
After The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm and the Star Wars franchise in 2012, “May the Fourth” evolved from a fan-driven celebration into a widely recognized promotional event. Disney embraced the pun and began officially observing May 4 as Star Wars Day, hosting themed events at its parks, launching special merchandise, and premiering related content on streaming platforms like Disney+. This institutional support transformed the day into a major annual celebration for fans worldwide, blending grassroots enthusiasm with corporate marketing to cement May The 4th Be With You as a fixture of pop culture.
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[1] Lucasfilm Ltd., https://www.lucasfilm.com/; Star Wars, https://www.starwars.com/.
[2] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 4,605,773, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=85312768&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch.
[3] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 5,087,060, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=86342054&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch.
[4] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 7,137,770, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=97492596&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch.
[5] USPTO, U.S. Trademark Registration No. 4,989,195, available at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=86342063&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch.
[6] May the 4th Be With You: A Cultural History, STARWARS.COM, posted May 2, 2022, and available at https://www.starwars.com/news/may-the-4th-be-with-you-cultural-history; How did May the 4th become Star Wars Day? What to know about origins of galaxy-wide celebration, ABC 7 NEWS, posted May 4, 2023, and available at https://abc7chicago.com/may-the-4th-star-wars-day-2023-be-with-you-4/11800238/; Why is 'Star Wars' Day on May 4? What is it? Here's how the unofficial holiday came to be, USA TODAY, last updated May 4, 2024, and available at https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2024/05/03/what-is-may-the-4th-star-wars-day/73452403007/; Star Wars Day (May the Fourth Be With You), EBSCO, published in 2024, and available at https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/literature-and-writing/star-wars-day-may-fourth-be-you.