The collection strikes back: ‘Star Wars’ fan forced to expand house for hobby

MOOSE JAW, Sask. – When Ryan Johnson realized his collection of all things “Star Wars” was expanding like a supernova, he knew there was only one thing to do.

Create a bigger universe.

So Johnson built an addition onto his house in Moose Jaw, Sask.

He figures he has 24,000 “Star Wars” items.

“It’s not the world record. (The record holder) is at over, last time I talked to him, over 300,000 and still growing,” Johnson told Regina radio station CJME this week. “I’ll never catch him, but that’s OK. It’s not really a race I care about.”

Johnson, who calls his collecting a hobby and an obsession, has been a fan of the movie franchise since he was a kid 37 years ago, but he didn’t start seriously collecting until the mid-1990s.

Different items come with different memories and stories.

He says he’s always enjoyed a limited-release storm trooper helmet that was used to hold his baby girl for a picture when she was a newborn.

He also enjoys a 24-carat gold-plated storm trooper that was custom made.

Even with the extra room in his house, Johnson still doesn’t have everything out.

“I only have about a quarter to maybe a third of it actually on display. Most of it’s in storage just because I do not physically have the space.”

He says he likes to show off pieces that are important to him. Any items of high value are kept off site.

All in all, he estimates his collection is worth at least $400,000.

But Johnson says he will never go over to the dark side and sell it.

(CJME)