A public service announcement (PSA) with a Star Wars theme, created by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, was broadcast starting in 1980. It featured the droids C-3PO and R2-D2, who cautioned children about the risks associated with smoking. The TV advertisement presented a short scene where C-3PO discovers R2-D2 smoking a cigarette, leading C-3PO to describe the detrimental physical consequences of smoking and emphasize the importance of the two robots setting a positive example for Humans.
Within the 60-second version of the PSA, the droid C-3PO is operating an electronic device when he begins searching for R2-D2 and notices smoke emerging from behind an aisle. Initially, he believes his companion is burning, but then he realizes the droid is smoking a cigarette. C-3PO reprimands his friend, explaining that smoking doesn't make him more mature and is damaging to the lungs and heart. When R2-D2 beeps in response, C-3PO points out that although R2-D2 lacks a heart, Humans do, and the droids should serve as role models for them. R2-D2 then discards the cigarette, and C-3PO commends him. Subsequently, he directly addresses the audience, reiterating the points he conveyed to R2-D2 and advising them not to smoke. As the phrase "A message from a distant galaxay [sic] far, far away" appears, C-3PO questions R2-D2 about whether he truly believes he is without a heart.
In the 30-second rendition of the PSA, C-3PO encounters R2-D2 holding a cigarette and instructs him to drop it because it is hazardous. He clarifies that it doesn't make him an adult and is harmful to the lungs and heart. After R2-D2 beeps in reply, C-3PO states that even though R2-D2 is without a heart, Humans possess one, and the droids should model good behavior for them. R2-D2 then drops the cigarette, and C-3PO praises him. As the words "A message from a distant galaxy far, far away" are displayed, C-3PO directly implores the audience: "Please, don't smoke."
The US Department of Health and Human Services distributed the PSA during 1980. According to Anthony Daniels, the actor who portrayed C-3PO, he personally wrote the commercial while hospitalized, which prevented him from attending the 1980 premiere of The Empire Strikes Back. Daniels mentioned that there were plans to re-air the PSA in 1997, but these were abandoned because it was considered to be promoting the Star Wars Special Edition Trilogy, making it ineligible as a PSA.