The long arm of director George Lucas' legal team has reached out and put a lightsaber at the throat of a local non-profit theater group.

Theater and sci-fi buffs hoping to catch Jet City Improv's send-up of "Star Wars" on Thursday were disappointed when the troupe told them that Lucasfilm Ltd. threatened legal action if it spoofed "Star Wars" that night. Or ever.

Unless Jet City intended to go to court against a major film company, the group couldn't screen a redubbed version of the movie.

"Last night there was quite a roll of boos and raspberries from the audience," said Jet City sirector Mike Christensen.

Jet City, which is part of Wing-It Productions, has been screening old movies and redubbing them live for about seven years. The cease-and-desist letter they received from Lucasfilm Ltd. on Sept. 15 was their first.

"We've never done a more recent movie ... that was a risk as well," said Christensen, who added that as far as he knows, Lucasfilm is the only such company that sweeps the Web on a daily basis and issues cease and desist letters on a regular basis.

"In order to protect our copyright, anyone who plans to commercially exhibit our films has to go through the appropriate channels," said Lucasfilm spokeswoman Lynne Hale...