Vending

Pittsburgh’s ‘Star Wars’ vending machine appears in Los Angeles

Image: Adobe stock

September 24, 2026

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Pittsburgh's well-known "Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace" Pepsi vending machine has traveled more than 2,400 miles to Los Angeles. Content creator Braeden Days brought the 1999 promotional machine to California for the opening of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, according to an Axios Pittsburgh report.

The machine had stood outside Pittsburgh Fire Station 27 in the Mount Washington neighborhood for decades, becoming an unlikely landmark and destination for Star Wars fans. Days removed it in August and installed a hand-painted replica, later saying he had permission and intended to repair the original before returning it.

The replacement and Days' videos about "stealing" the machine drew criticism from residents who objected to the secrecy surrounding the stunt and feared the neighborhood attraction was gone permanently. Days said the original machine will appear at additional Los Angeles locations before returning to Mount Washington in October.