64: Is Lucas Only In It for the Money?

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Force Feature: Is Lucas Only In It for the Money?

Exploring the many worlds of Star Wars, in the imagination and in real life!

Here’s the question that everyone thinks they know the answer to already: Is George Lucas only in it for the money?

There’s ample reason for you, and me, to say the answer is “Yes,” all the way back to Gary Kurtz, who was Lucas’ producer for Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. Incidentally, those are the only two that were nominated for Best Picture, which means it may be worth paying attention to what Kurtz has to say.

Back in the early 80s, Kurtz and Lucas were supposedly at odds over the direction of the story, and one of the growing rifts was that Lucas was looking at the story in terms of how it could serve the merchandising.

The story ideas Lucas had were just ideas, things that could be fleshed out anyway he wanted to do it! They’re story problems. What if Endor was a jungle planet, or a volcano planet, or an ice planet? How would the attack on the shield generator be different? In other words, there was plenty of room in Lucas’ vision to fill in the kinds of details, and to pick ones that would support the story or marketing push first.

Now, let’s be clear. Every artist making good quality work deserves to be paid for it. Rob Taylor of Herofied Art, who donated the Boba Fett print that Andrew Guzman of Washington state won in our first-ever giveaway – he deserves to be paid for the awesome and super cool work he creates. George Lucas deserves to be paid for what he created, too.

So when we ask, “Is he only in it for the money?” part of the answer should be, “Of course!” and it should be the same for anyone else who ever put out anything into the world, and created value for the people who consumed what they created.

In other words, the real issue people have with Lucas isn’t so much about the creations themselves. It’s not about whether Han shoots first and only, or whether Greedo beats him to the draw.

So, what’s the real issue? The lesson that gets taught by every single business magazine, mentor, or subject of a “How I did it” success story is that your passion, vision, and love for what you do and what you create are the keys to your success. And I think it’s fair to say that somewhere along the way, Lucas lost his passion for the Star Wars story.

I think Lucas was fully engaged for Star Wars and Empire, and then I think the money got in the way of the vision. He’s not only in it for the money, but over time, the story decisions seem to have been driven more by the money than by what the story demands.

Take the Gungans, for example. Do they serve any story purpose that couldn’t have been carried out by the Naboo resistance fighters? Even if you like the Gungans, I think you have to agree the answer is no. Compared to the Original Trilogy, which had five kinds of Stormtroopers – the basic kind, the Snowtroopers, the Biker Scouts, the AT-AT drivers, and the TIE Pilots, guess how many types of Prequel Trilogy clone troopers there are? Wookieepedia puts the number at 64. 64 variants! All the more action figures to sell, my pretties. As Leia says to Han, “If money is all that you love, then that’s what you’ll receive.”

So naturally this came up as part of the creation of Star Wars 7×7. We want this to be a money-making enterprise, which is why there’s a Patreon option at Patreon.com/sw7x7 for fans like you to support the show if you love what you hear, and why there are sponsor spots baked into the format of the show. You can find out about becoming a Founding Sponsor at SW7x7.com/sponsors.

And how do we get new patrons and sponsors? By putting out podcasts that you love, and that you tell your friends about, and give great ratings and reviews for on iTunes and Stitcher. That’s our promise to you, as we approach the two month anniversary of the podcast. To lead with passion for this podcast and your enjoyment of it above all else. Because we know that just like the original Star Wars, when you lead with passion, the rewards would be, well, more wealth than you can imagine!

Star Wars Fun Fact

Surprising and little known Star Wars tidbits, usually related to today’s Force Feature.

Did you know? Part of the myth behind the Star Wars movies is that Lucas originally had the ideas for twelve movies. Which was then for three trilogies plus three stand-alone movies, but then he stopped talking about the stand alones, and then stopped talking about the final trilogy, and kinda pretended that those ideas never really existed, and then it turns out he had ideas for the third trilogy after all, and sold them to Disney along with the rest of his empire, pun intended.

Life on “Tweet”-ooine

A featured dispatch from the Star Wars Twitterverse!

George Lucas Advice brought to you by http://t.co/hy8xZF4fPI RT #STARWARS pic.twitter.com/DMd8vBMAGn

— newwavetraders.com (@newwavetraders) August 24, 2014

Star Wars Swag Bag

So many fun, quirky, and awesome ways to bring Star Wars into your daily life!

“I love you” / “I know” Sleep Shirt – click the pic for details!

Trivia Time!

Test your knowledge of the Star Wars universe!

Yesterday’s answer: Force lightning (we’ll accept Sith lightning as an alternative)

Today’s question: Who said of Luke, “He has too much of his father in him”?