According to Maxim magazine, "One of the most disturbing homages ever is the Star Wars epilogue, in which our galactic heroes receive medals for blowin' up the Death Star real good. The scene is a shot-for-shot re-creation of a famous award sequence in the Nazi propaganda epic [documenting a 1934 Nazi Party rally in Nuremberg] Triumph of the Will."
[George Lucas' trademark number (1138) -- a reference to his 1971 debut, THX-1138 -- appears in many of his films: on the hero's license plate in American Graffiti and in a reference to (Chewbacca's) "cellblock 1138" in Star Wars, for example. Spielberg also used it once: When Indiana Jones emerges from a Nazi sub in Raiders of the Lost Ark, a loudspeaker blares, "Ein, ein, drei, acht" -- German for "one, one, three, eight."]
Sources
Maxim magazine, February 2003
