Modesto’s street names celebrate legends. Where are the George Lucas tributes?

Uniquely is a Modesto Bee series that covers the moments, landmarks and personalities that define what makes living in the Central Valley so special.

In a city that celebrates classic cars and cruising, it’s fitting that a Modesto neighborhood features streets named after automotive icons. Located at the northern edge of the city, just off Coffee Road, you’ll find Grand Prix Drive. Branching off from it are streets like Maserati Drive, Ghia Court, Ferrari Drive, Bugatti Way, and Lamborghini Lane.

The race car-inspired pocket is one of numerous themed neighborhoods in Modesto. Around Modesto Junior College are Yale Avenue, Princeton Avenue, Harvard Avenue, Columbia Lane, Stanford Avenue, Fordham Avenue, and Purdue Avenue, which stem from College Avenue.

Off Rumble Road just east of McHenry Avenue, you will encounter King Arthur. Well, not the actual folk hero, but a few streets named after figures in his legend. Lancelot Lane leads to King Arthur Way, Merlin Way, Guinevere Lane and Charlamagne Way.

In a bit of mythological cross-pollination, King Arthur Way also connects to Prince Valiant Lane, named for a comic strip character set in Medieval Times. And the Camelot-themed streets are in a neighborhood named Sherwood Forest, where streets include Robin Hood Drive, Little John Lane, Nottingham Lane, King Richard Lane and more.

The names of several European artists can be found on Roselle Avenue near East Briggsmore Avenue. Da Vinci Lane will take you to Matisse Lane, Degas Lane, and O’Keefe Court.

Where’s the neighborhood from a galaxy far, far away?

There are more examples of Modesto’s neighborhood themes. But one glaringly missing is “Star Wars”-inspired street names.

Modesto native and visionary filmmaker George Lucas is a celebrated American icon. His film “American Graffiti,” set in Modesto in 1962, paved the way for the blockbuster films he would produce in the years later.

His “Star Wars” franchise revolutionized the film industry and permanently influenced pop culture. The phrases “May the Force be with you” and characters including Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia are ingrained in American pop culture.

Lucas sold Lucasfilm and the rights to “Star Wars” to Disney over a decade ago. Would Disney care if a Modesto neighborhood used “Star Wars”-inspired, trademarked names for streets, such as Skywalker Lane or Tatooine Court?

Imagine the delight fans living in, or moving to, his hometown would feel to have homes on streets named for locations in the “Star Wars” galaxy: Coruscant Circle, Alderaan Avenue, Mos Eisley Way, Dagobah Drive. They’re beautiful names that roll off the tongue even if you don’t know their origins.

“Trademark law is all about protecting consumers against confusion,” said David Bernstein, partner at Debevoise & Plimpton law firm in San Francisco. “So if I’m selling a car, I can’t call my car ‘Lamborghini,’ because consumers would be confused into thinking it came from the company that they know sells Lamborghini cars.”

Modesto having Lamborghini Lane and Ferrari Drive as street names indicates how trademark law works differently in noncommercial uses. “Of course, the planners are thinking of those famous car brands, but they’re not using the car brand names in a way to cause confusion or to suggest that they’ve given permission to the town to use those names,” he said. “Rather, they’re using them in a thematic way.”

The fact that a neighborhood in Las Vegas bears “Star Wars” names — Leia Street, Skywalker Avenue, Tarkin Avenue and even Lucas Street — suggests the same would be possible in Modesto.

Disney did not respond to The Bee’s requests for comment.

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