Obi-Wandi, a retrogaming retrographer.

While Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt were busy twisting box office receipts, a powerful new ally joined Lucasfilm in 1996: ‘Hmmm….powerful collector, he is.’

Every media has its fair share of legendary classics. They have in common a huge following regardless of time and age – and especially marketing muscle. For it is the consumer’s infatuation with a product that pencils popularity into the record books of the entertainment industry. The key to such voluntary commitment on the part of the public lies in deft, responsible management of franchise assets that ensures lively interest whilst planting the seeds for anticipation.

Lucasfilm had dedicated the latter half of the 90ies building a repertoire of product, strictly distanced from short-lived opportunism that throws all available content on the market in one senseless waste of potential. Star Wars was the only major motion picture property without new instalments in the near future and yet impressively went from strength to strength. To send this already stellar track record beyond the stars on the eve of the Star Wars Special Edition, Lucasfilm inducted a most versatile man into their fold. Trade paper Variety read on February 22nd, 1996: ‘Sweet Deal For Sansweet’.

Continue reading “Dark Times 11 – 1996 – Part 3”

If it hadn’t been for Sean Connery’s blasting everyone on Alcatraz in 1996, one’s ears might have been pleasantly tickled from across the Bay by Rick McCallum: ‘It’s gonna be awesome.’

The media was busy reporting on Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day, which kept blasting box office records out of the sky. Variety’s Todd McCarthy noted adroitly how ‘it took a foreigner to create what could arguably be the most patriotic film since John Wayne rode into the sunset’ (Variety, Mon. July 1st, 1996). Hulking space ships racing in above the heads of speechless audiences…seen this before, we have.
Continue reading “Dark Times 11 – 1996 – Part 2”

Darkness envelopes capitals worldwide in vacuous black as landmarks ignite in a box office consuming blaze: making plans for August was not a good idea in 1996 – except for Lucasfilm, which was concocting its own significant Shadows…

As heavy drops of Time imbued the parchment of history in omniscient black ink in 1996, they recorded such events as the 30th anniversary of Super Bowl, William Wallace’s victory on the red-carpeted battlefields of the Shrine Auditorium, the cloning of sheep Dolly and Homer’s unwitting killing of Bill Clinton and presidential candidate Bob Dole. Time also skilfully shaped a turning point in the corporate history of Lucasfilm, whose future repercussions were subtly suggested by the tasteful ballet of ink strokes drying into eternity.
Continue reading “Dark Times 11 – 1996 – Part 1”

“Patience is bitter, but its fruits are sweet ” Edmund Burke once scraped onto a blank sheet of paper and may well have had the year 1995 in mind, the year Star Wars returned in full force.

The fine people of Lucasfilm had miraculously transformed an aged entertainment property into gleaming hot media content that formidably stood its ground in the battle for consumer loyalty. Like a resilient flower poking through dry ground in great defiance of the drought of motion picture history, Star Wars merchandise was gently but decidedly expanding.

Continue reading “Dark Times 10 – 1995 – Part 5”

Turbulent times in 1995: As Springfield was frenetically hunting the person who shot Mr. Burns, George Lucas was still wondering who should direct the next instalment in the Star Wars Saga…

Every mass-marketed product creates demand in other areas worth mining, especially with a franchise as mythically permeated as Star Wars, whose religious shadings form a most complex alliance with boldly designed technology. Countless questions as to the people, places, workings and underpinnings of the Saga would doubtlessly arise in the wake of the 1995 THX video release and Lucasfilm was well prepared to answer them all in most elaborate fashion.
Continue reading “Dark Times 10 – 1995 – Part 4”

Richard Gere is lancing a lot in 1995. Unimpressed, Vader steps down from the billboards and charges an old best friend: ‘We meet again, film camera. When we last met, I was but a learner. Now I am the master!’.

As ominous as the tag line “The Original – One Last Time” undoubtedly was, it actually promised very good tidings for the Star Wars community. The 1995 video release purposefully asserted that Lucasfilm would employ the new technology created by ILM to enhance the OT in time for the 20th anniversary of ANH.
Continue reading “Dark Times 10 – 1995 – Part 3”

Life was like a box of choclates for the people of 1994, you never knew what you were going to get. Except George.

Star Wars had ceased to be a rumour whispered in the dark by 1993. Its name once again became synonymous with great commercial success and technological progress courtesy of Rebel Assault and the resultant mass-introduction of the CD-ROM drive, as well as motion picture magic due to ILM’s groundbreaking work on Jurassic Park under the direction of George Lucas himself.

Star Wars comfortably returned to the media’s hot chair and therefore to the people’s pop culture awareness.
Continue reading “Dark Times 9 – 1994”

Steven Spielberg effortlessly climbed the scales of box office glory, Arnold tripped on a sidekick en route to success and buff Sly could still hang on to the top of the crop: dinosaurs sent shockwaves through the world of 1993.

Romping, stomping and trampling all over the place, the adaptation of Michael Crichton’s unforgettable Jurassic Park dominated school yards and office tittle-tattle as Steven Spielberg had once again proven his deft hand at filmmaking. As much an inspired update on Jaws as a technological breakthrough, the blockbuster made Industrial Light and Magic the industry’s first and foremost expert on character animation.
Continue reading “Dark Times 8 – 1993”