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'Star Wars' Chewbacca actor Peter Mayhew detained by TSA for light saber cane

Everyone has his own way to deal with airport security -- some go with the flow, some show up naked. But the man who played Chewbacca in the "Star Wars" films had a different approach: Last week, when confronted with TSA agents who thought his cane looked suspicious, Peter Mayhew reached for his Twitter account -- not a light saber.Of course, the light saber was at the center of the controversy. T
Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca.
Peter Mayhew, Chewbacca.Today

Everyone has his own way to deal with airport security -- some go with the flow, some show up naked. But the man who played Chewbacca in the "Star Wars" films had a different approach: Last week, when confronted with TSA agents who thought his cane looked suspicious, Peter Mayhew reached for his Twitter account -- not a light saber.

Of course, the light saber was at the center of the controversy. The 7-foot-3-inch hospital worker-turned-Chewbacca player uses a light saber-shaped cane to get around, and on June 3 TSA agents in Denver felt it was a suspicious item.

Mayhew, 69, was trying to fly from Denver Comic Con to his home in Texas. He needs the cane to get around -- and tweeted the incident as it was ongoing, noting that "magic words to TSA are not 'please' or 'thank you'. It's 'Twitter.'" He included a photo of himself sitting with a TSA agent holding the cane in question.

Magic+words+to+TSA+are+not+"please"+or+"thank+you"..+It's+"Twitter"..+cane+released+to+go+home..+twitter.com/TheWookieeRoar…

—+Peter+Mayhew+(@TheWookieeRoars)+June+3,+2013+

Later, the TSA released a statement that explained their agents' reactions: "Because of the unusual weight of the passenger's cane, a security officer alerted a supervisor. Less than five minutes later the passenger and cane were cleared to travel. Social media played no role in the determination."

And Mayhew had his own follow-up for Twitter readers:

Giant+man+need+giant+cane..+small+cane+snap+like+toothpick....+besides..+my+light+saber+cane+is+just+cool..+I+would+miss+it..

—+Peter+Mayhew+(@TheWookieeRoars)+June+3,+2013+

The Force, and a good sense of humor, is strong with this one.