The lightsaber first appeared in Star Wars in 1977, created for George Lucas's space saga as the weapon of the Jedi and Sith. Sound designer Ben Burtt built its distinctive hum from a film projector motor mixed with television interference, then recorded the swing whooshes by waving a microphone in front of a speaker playing that hum back. As the films and later shows spread worldwide, the whoosh became shorthand for any fast energy blade, and short isolated versions like this one now circulate widely for fan edits and parodies.