Ackmena / Legends Ackmena was the nightshift bartender in Chalmun ' s Cantina in Mos Eisley on Tatooine . She was a favorite amongst the patrons there , as she was more approachable than the daytime bartender , Wuher . Ackmena , realizing this , requested better hours from her employer , Chalmun , but the Wookiee initially refused , sparking a confrontation between the two that lasted for months . Even though Ackmena was better liked than Wuher , during her shifts she was aided by Tork , a bouncer . As entertainment , she would occasionally sing to her patrons . One night , after the Battle of Yavin , Ackmena had to fend off the advances of the amorous Krelman . Later that night , the Galactic Empire imposed a curfew on all residents of the Tatoo system . Ackmena tried to get her patrons to leave , but was initially unsuccessful , until she broke into song . She later turned her amateur singing into profit , teaming up with fellow entertainer Cebann Veekan . Together , the two of them formed an acting troupe , and enjoyed success with a production based on the life of Alliance to Restore the Republic war hero , Luke Skywalker . By the year 43 . 5 ABY , Ackmena had joined Freedom Flight , an organization dedicated to freeing slaves throughout the galaxy . Biography . Pre - Yavin career . Ackmena , a female Human , worked as the nighttime bartender in Chalmun ' s Spaceport Cantina in the city of Mos Eisley , Tatooine . She would often bid her patrons farewell with the words " Come back soon , I ' ll be waiting . " A diminutive being aided her in her bartending tasks , while the tall sentient Tork served as a bouncer . Shortly before the Battle of Yavin , she requested better hours from Chalmun , the cantina ' s owner . In doing so , she cited her popularity over Wuher , the daytime bartender , but Chalmun did not agree , resulting in a conflict between the bartender and her Wookiee employer that lasted months . Broadcast blues . Shortly after the Battle of Yavin , Ackmena was tending the bar when footage was taken inside the cantina by the Imperial Council , and broadcast live to other systems , including the Kashyyyk system . As Tork ejected a patron from the cantina , Ackmena berated the Snivvian Zutmore for consuming his beverage too slowly , and suggested that he quicken his pace if he wanted to stay . She then went on to encourage Kelbo , a M ' shento ' su ' Nikto who was reluctant to drink . Soon enough , she was approached by Krelman , who wanted to talk with her rather than drink . He arbitrarily ordered a drink , which Ackmena served , but she chose not to converse with the man — she had other customers waiting . Ackmena served the Ithorian Deneb Both next , but was then summoned back by Krelman , who had finished his drink and placed a flower in his cup for the bartender . Ackmena was flattered , and Krelman explained that he had been in the cantina previously . He had interpreted her parting words of " Come back soon , I ' ll be waiting , " as a personal , unique message to him , and he now believed that he was meant to be with her . Krelman ventured behind the bar , and embraced Ackmena , but she responded by explaining that he had misinterpreted her words . The bartender was able to persuade Krelman to return to his seat by giving him a complimentary drink , but still the man would not accept the fact that she was not interested in him . As another one of her patrons , Pons Limbic , departed , she uttered her usual farewell . Realizing his folly , Krelman ceased his advances towards Ackmena . Shortly thereafter , an Imperial message was displayed on the cantina ' s viewscreen — due to subversive activities , a curfew was to be placed on the Tatoo system , effective immediately . As a result , all of Ackmena ' s patrons were required by law to return to their homes , which was not an uncommon occurrence . Acting without delay , the bartender approached Barbarine and the Modal Nodes , a Bith band playing in the cantina that night . She asked Barbarine and his band to depart , perhaps forever , but this caused a considerable amount of discontent amongst both the musicians and the patrons . Relenting , Ackmena offered the band a round of complimentary drinks before departing , and had Tork collect their orders . Ackmena continued her attempts to get her customers to depart , however . She approached a pair of Duros who were chatting animatedly and asked them politely to leave , but they ignored her . Growing frustrated , she began yelling , urging the cantina patrons to return to their homes , but they reacted violently by throwing things at her . Ackmena was outraged , but she stopped Tork from responding in kind . She quietly asked Zutmore and Kelso to leave , citing the times in the past that she had loaned them money , but even they ignored her . Desperate for some support , she turned to the Rodian Bludlow , and the Sakiyan Thorp — they offered her the same response as the others . As a last - ditch effort , she approached the Lutrillian Solomahal , but unlike the others , had never encountered him before in the cantina . The situation reached fever pitch when the Devaronian Kardue ' sai ' Malloc entered the bar , and reacted to Ackmena ' s insistence that they were closed by drawing a blaster . The bartender urged Tork to stand down , and the Devaronian took a seat . Thorp then demanded another drink , banging his empty glass on the table . He was soon joined by the other patrons in his protest . Realizing that she could not control the situation , Ackmena conceded , and offered everyone in the cantina one more drink , compliments of the bar . They all agreed , and as Ackmena began serving the drinks , she broke , unbidden , into a rendition of " Goodnight , But Not Goodbye , " complemented by the Modal Nodes . As Ackmena sang her song , the patrons gradually began to depart . When the Talz Caldera Righim left , Ackmena was approached by the Aqualish Teak Sidbam , who began to dance with her . Bludlow decided to join in , as did the Cathar Myhr Rho . Rho , however , grew overly amorous , and had to be ejected by Tork . While some of the customers had left , there was still a significant number still seated , and so Ackmena took a new approach . She led a march around the cantina in time with the music , urging the customers to follow her . They did so , and she was able to lead them straight out the door , aided by Tork . When they were all gone , she bade goodbye to Barbarine and his band , Tork , and her diminutive assistant , before closing the doors to Chalmun ' s Cantina . When she turned back to the bar , Krelman was there , waiting with his flowers . Approaching him , she accepted the flowers , just as the Imperial broadcast of their activities stopped . The entertainer . At some stage , Ackmena teamed up with Cebann Veekan , a Hamadryas who shared her theatrical skill . They eventually formed their own troupe , and Chalmun allowed them to perform at the cantina , provided they turned a profit . The two of them would perform together , enjoying moderate success . Following the Battle of Endor , she and Veekan made a stage hit out of the life - story of Luke Skywalker , a Tatooine native who became a hero in the Alliance to Restore the Republic . Their production inspired Myhr Rho , a regular at the cantina , to start up a tour of Tatooine locations tied to Skywalker ' s exploits . Eventually , Ackmena and Veekan enjoyed enough success to move their production from Chalmun ' s Cantina to a more suitable venue . After achieving fame with her singing and becoming a Tatooine celebrity of sorts , Ackmena would nevertheless return to Chalmun ' s and tend the bar during the nightshift . By 43 . 5 ABY , she had joined Freedom Flight , an organization dedicated to freeing slaves throughout the galaxy . She met with the Bothan known as Blink , another member of the organization , in the cantina during one of her shifts to discuss a shipment of slaves that would be leaving the planet and earning their freedom . The conversation was watched by a male Human who was soon after killed by Blink and the young slave Kitaya Shuul . Blink then sent Shuul to inform Ackmena that the shipment would be delayed . Personality and traits . During the Imperial broadcast , Ackmena would constantly encourage her patrons to purchase and consume more of her drinks , and would not tolerate loitering . She would not stop and chat idly with her patrons , as she had no desire to leave customers waiting . When Krelman insisted on engaging her in a conversation , she would begin performing other tasks , only paying cursory attention . She ignored him until he came into physical contact with her . When the Imperial curfew was issued , Ackmena did not question the orders , but was dissatisfied with them . Nevertheless , she acted quickly on the decree , and ushered her patrons home , although she was not initially successful . She was loathe to have Tork eject patrons , even when threatened with a deadly weapon . Ackmena tried a variety of non - violent methods when trying to get her customers to leave , before resorting to singing . Ackmena was better respected by spacers than Chalmun ' s daytime bartender , Wuher , who was considered surly and unapproachable . She was cheerful , if gruff , and was admired by many of the cantina ' s regulars . While in her eighties , she was a member of Freedom Flight , an organization that directed its efforts towards freeing slaves throughout the galaxy . In addition to her other skills , Ackmena was considered a expert in the mixing of beverages . Behind the scenes . The character of Ackmena was created for " The Star Wars Holiday Special " , a television special that aired in 1978 . She was played by Bea Arthur , who was best - known at the time for her portrayal of the title character in the television series " " . Arthur was friends with Ken and Mitzie Welch , the composers who had written the lyrics to the song " Goodnight , But Not Goodbye , " and so she was cast in the role . While her lengthy shoot was being filmed , Arthur had no inkling that she was participating in anything related to " Star Wars " . Ackmena ' s song has been noted as a high point of a program that , overall , was universally panned . Author Bonnie Burton has expressed her affection for Ackmena , citing the character ' s strength , intelligence , wit , and refusal to take guff from anyone as the driving forces behind her nostalgic love of " The Star Wars Holiday Special " . When Burton became an administrator of the StarWars . com forums , she chose a picture of Ackmena as her personal avatar . In an article that Burton wrote concerning hypothetical figures for Hasbro ' s now - defunct " Unleashed " line of action figures , Ackmena was one of the characters chosen . Pablo Hidalgo provided an illustration of the hypothetical Ackmena figure . Ackmena has also been referenced by James Luceno in his book " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " , which established that she was in a back office of the Mos Eisley Cantina during the cantina scene of the 1977 film .