They weren’t called “Star Destroyers” in Star Wars; that name came at least one movie later. Maybe two. They were referred to in Star Wars by Han Solo as… “an Imperial cruiser.”
(The terms “X-wing” and “TIE fighter” are also never used in Star Wars. I guess the need for lore came later. I suspect a lot of these terms first popped up in toys.)
To add to that, he was a decorated submarine commander in the First World War: Georg von Trapp - Wikipedia
In Star Wars Han says, “Star Destroyers. Two.of them coming right at us.”
They are often found scrawled upon ILM model-making department sketches, so were ‘official’ while the movie was being made, they just never ended up spoken on-screen very often.
Image 1: George Lucas’s notes
Image 2: Colin Cantwell’s initial designs
Image 3: Joe Johnston’s development
Actually, no, he doesn’t. His two relevant lines in that scene (linked below) are:
“Looks like an Imperial cruiser. Our passengers must be hotter than I thought.” (1:50 in the clip below)
“Stay sharp – there’s two more coming in. They’re gonna try to cut us off.” (2:07)
Yeah, the scene @Quimby’s thinking of is from The Empire Strikes Back.
Yep, that was what I was thinking of. Thanks for the correction.
Now that you mention it, I dimly recall it. I think it may have been in the novelization. Must’ve been bouncing around in the bottom of the dust-bin of my brain when I hatched my theory.
IIRC, Return of the Jedi was the first time the phrase “TIE fighter” was actually spoken aloud.
The really good thresher shark steaks taste like humans.
Both these destroyers are blowing badly compared to the mighty Pig Destroyer.
I’d always assumed it was a “scary name” designation for the class like “dreadnaught” but I guess either works.
Incidentally, not knowing the Star Wars lore very well and not wanting to disappear into the online void of nerd-dom, does anyone know if the Star Destroyers were individually named in the movies?
For instance we have had HMS Victory and Aztec and Hood and…er, Pinafore. But did The Empire do the same?
I don’t believe that any of them were actually ever given names in the films, but in the novels and other media, many of them definitely had names. In the case of Vader’s Star Destroyers, the one he uses at the beginning of A New Hope (and at the end of Rogue One) was the Devastator, while the Super Star Destroyer he commands in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi was the Executor.
Thanks for that, those names fit nicely of course but part of me would like to have seen something more left-field.
I’m thinking along the lines of HMS Cockchafer, Pansy, Spanker (all true)
ETA, and I’ve just now realised who replied to me. 
It’s called “Affirmative Action.”
And likewise “ship approaching, X-wing class” towards the climax of Empire as Luke gets to Bespin.
The name “Tatooine” is never used in the first Star Wars movie, either. I’m also not sure when Luke’s father’s name was first given as “Anakin.” It may not have been until Return of the Jedi.
In dialogue, again in Empire when Luke tells Lando at the end they can meet up on Tatooine.
Yup, at least on screen.
Of course, many of these examples were in the novelization, so they didn’t just pop up out of thin air.
Oh, yes, the novelization and the Marvel Comics adaptation. Not to mention various merchandise like trading cards and such. I’ve always known that Luke’s planet was called Tatooine. It was only relatively recently that I realized that the movie never actually calls it that.
Damn, we almost had Darth Vader in his trademark Finned Sausage!
We will try to ignore George’s propensity to steal, what exactly is a (stainless Steel Rat) Mr. Lucas?