ABOUT THE DARK EMPIRE
Members of TDE at ConNooga 2012
Scroll down for info on how to join TDE, and to access the TDE Charter.
The Dark Empire was founded in April of 2007, in Tennessee, as a fan group for costumers preferring to focus on the "dark side" of Star Wars. Since that time, the Empire has slowly been expanding the world over, with members not only in the USA, but also the UK and abroad. Although TDE is not sponsored or endorsed by Lucasfilm, the group is recognized by Lucasfilm as a costuming organization comprised of and operated by fans of Star Wars.
TDE encourages "custom creativity." While many of our members have canon Star Wars costumes of established Sith and Dark Jedi (and Grey Jedi) characters, one of the core beliefs of our group is that Star Wars was created to engage one's imagination, and The Dark Empire seeks to build upon that principle by allowing custom Sith / Dark Jedi / Grey Jedi costumes within its membership base, adhering to a set of minimum costuming standards, as set forth within the TDE Charter. Creative writing is also highly encouraged; short stories can be placed within the TDE forums by our members. Voiceover artist Joe "Lord Bruticus" Mignano (TDE-021) also narrates fan-fiction at the end of each episode of our podcast, Dark Empire Radio.
Dark Empire Radio was established on February 10, 2010, and has garnered a following of listeners. It is intended for ALL fans of Star Wars, not just members of The Dark Empire. In fact, the very aim of TDE is to work with other fan-groups, instead of against them; we believe that as we are all fans of the same franchise from our favorite galaxy far, far away... We feel that NO group is better than any other group, and that by working together for the common causes of charity and celebration of the Star Wars fan experience, only great things can be accomplished and friendships can be achieved.
As indicated in our Mission Statement, the goal of The Dark Empire is to create smiles and enjoyment of the Star Wars experience through acts of charity. The Dark Empire does not accept any payment for its services, and in cases where funds are collected for charitable causes, those funds are delivered directly to the charity itself. TDE has and always will remain a non-profit organization.
The Dark Empire is still growing and expanding in membership, and is always seeking to aid charities at events. However, as our members in some regions are few in number, we are not actively taking requests for appearances at charitable events. TDE Temples (regions) that have large amounts of members plan and coordinate charitable events and convention appearances by contacting those entities directly.
Our Charter details the costuming standards, regulations, and requirements that all members are expected to abide by, as well as how The Dark Empire is structured in terms of governance, and it is regularly amended and updated as needed. You can download and view the most current version of the TDE Charter below.
How to join The Dark Empire:
Interested in possibly joining TDE? Simply log onto our forums and introduce yourself in the "Roll Call" section! Your membership on the forums may need to be approved first before you can sign in. You can get to our forums by clicking on the "forums" tab at the top of this page.
You must be at least 18 years of age to register on our forums. Minors aged 13-17 may join our forums, however, will require parental approval and assistance from a Council Member before forum registration can be completed. For assistance, contact us via email.
To obtain Full Membership within the organization, you must at be least eighteen years of age and have an approved costume that meets our costuming standards, as outlined in Article II of the TDE Charter, below. See the first two articles of our charter for information on becoming an Official Member of TDE.
The Dark Empire was founded in April of 2007, in Tennessee, as a fan group for costumers preferring to focus on the "dark side" of Star Wars. Since that time, the Empire has slowly been expanding the world over, with members not only in the USA, but also the UK and abroad. Although TDE is not sponsored or endorsed by Lucasfilm, the group is recognized by Lucasfilm as a costuming organization comprised of and operated by fans of Star Wars.
TDE encourages "custom creativity." While many of our members have canon Star Wars costumes of established Sith and Dark Jedi (and Grey Jedi) characters, one of the core beliefs of our group is that Star Wars was created to engage one's imagination, and The Dark Empire seeks to build upon that principle by allowing custom Sith / Dark Jedi / Grey Jedi costumes within its membership base, adhering to a set of minimum costuming standards, as set forth within the TDE Charter. Creative writing is also highly encouraged; short stories can be placed within the TDE forums by our members. Voiceover artist Joe "Lord Bruticus" Mignano (TDE-021) also narrates fan-fiction at the end of each episode of our podcast, Dark Empire Radio.
Dark Empire Radio was established on February 10, 2010, and has garnered a following of listeners. It is intended for ALL fans of Star Wars, not just members of The Dark Empire. In fact, the very aim of TDE is to work with other fan-groups, instead of against them; we believe that as we are all fans of the same franchise from our favorite galaxy far, far away... We feel that NO group is better than any other group, and that by working together for the common causes of charity and celebration of the Star Wars fan experience, only great things can be accomplished and friendships can be achieved.
As indicated in our Mission Statement, the goal of The Dark Empire is to create smiles and enjoyment of the Star Wars experience through acts of charity. The Dark Empire does not accept any payment for its services, and in cases where funds are collected for charitable causes, those funds are delivered directly to the charity itself. TDE has and always will remain a non-profit organization.
The Dark Empire is still growing and expanding in membership, and is always seeking to aid charities at events. However, as our members in some regions are few in number, we are not actively taking requests for appearances at charitable events. TDE Temples (regions) that have large amounts of members plan and coordinate charitable events and convention appearances by contacting those entities directly.
Our Charter details the costuming standards, regulations, and requirements that all members are expected to abide by, as well as how The Dark Empire is structured in terms of governance, and it is regularly amended and updated as needed. You can download and view the most current version of the TDE Charter below.
How to join The Dark Empire:
Interested in possibly joining TDE? Simply log onto our forums and introduce yourself in the "Roll Call" section! Your membership on the forums may need to be approved first before you can sign in. You can get to our forums by clicking on the "forums" tab at the top of this page.
You must be at least 18 years of age to register on our forums. Minors aged 13-17 may join our forums, however, will require parental approval and assistance from a Council Member before forum registration can be completed. For assistance, contact us via email.
To obtain Full Membership within the organization, you must at be least eighteen years of age and have an approved costume that meets our costuming standards, as outlined in Article II of the TDE Charter, below. See the first two articles of our charter for information on becoming an Official Member of TDE.
The official email for The Dark Empire is also the same email for our podcast, Dark Empire Radio. Host "Lord Bruticus" is also the Public Relations Officer of the group. You can email us at darkempireradio@aim.com
The TDE Charter contains all costuming requirements, as well as outlined organizational structure, and codes of conduct that all members of The Dark Empire are required to abide by.
| These letters from Lucasfilm are to demonstrate that although The Dark Empire is not sponsored by Lucasfilm, TDE is recognized as a fan-operated entity.
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