Chewbacca, the world’s oldest captive wombat, passed away on November 8, 2014. Chewbacca was born in March of 1985 in Australia, and came to the Tama Zoo in Japan on September 4 of that year. Through my Japanese friend Chieko, I’ve known Chewbacca for over ten years. Chieko’s pictures of Chewbacca were a major influence on the character design for the Wombies. Pictures of Chewbacca are courtesy of Chieko and her Womland website which is devoted to documenting the wombats of Japan.